O Come O Come Emmanuel!
Here begins the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In Isaiah the prophet it is written:
“I send my messenger before you to prepare your way: a herald’s voice in the desert, crying, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, clear him a straight path.’”
Thus it was that John the Baptizer appeared in the desert, proclaiming a baptism of repentance which led to the forgiveness of sins. All the Judean countryside and the people of Jerusalem went out to him in great numbers. They were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins. John was clothed in camel’s hair, and wore a leather belt around his waist. His food was grasshoppers and wild honey. The theme of his preaching was: “One more powerful than I is to come after me. I am not fit to stoop and untie his sandal straps. I have baptized you in water; he will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.”
Mark 1:1-8
We are still in the beginning of Advent. Yet it is never too early to begin our preparations for Christmas. Mark’s Gospel is always a reminder to me of how quickly events can occur and Christmas is certainly one of them. The reality of Christ’s coming should always be present to us. This morning it was St. Bernard who reminded me that during the season of Advent we celebrate the coming of the Lord in three ways. He writes,
We know that there are three comings of the Lord. The third lies between the other two. It is invisible, while the other two are visible. In the first coming he was seen on earth, dwelling among men; he himself testifies that they saw him and hated him. In the final coming all flesh will see the salvation of our God, and they will look on him whom they pierced. The intermediate coming is a hidden one; in it only the elect see the Lord within their own selves, and they are saved. In his first coming our Lord came in our flesh and in our weakness; in this middle coming he comes in spirit and in power; in the final coming he will be seen in glory and majesty.
Christians celebrate this season of Advent and later Christmas as a remembrance of Christ’s first coming. We live during the time when we can experience God’s presence through His Spirit in our lives, and we eagerly await the day when Christ will return.
My own preparation this Advent (making a little birdhouse in my soul) is beginning by seeking God’s forgiveness and awaiting it with a joyful spirit. John the Baptist was a man who called others to recognize their own sinfulness and to repent in order to receive God’s mercy. I believe that God still sends each of us messengers who can show us the areas where we need God’s help, the places we need to open up more space for God’s grace. The Scriptures tell us to be watchful. Let us first be watchful for those people and events that call us to repentance, all the while knowing we should also rejoice, knowing that our savior will come to ransom us from the captivity of our sins.
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