B Cycle – 2^nd Sunday of Advent 23

Mk. 1:1-8

From moment Adam and Eve sinned the deepest desire of God has been for us to turn back to Him and allow Him to restore us. Years ago, there was a song by Weston Priory, whose lyrics were “Come back to me with all your heart, don’t let fear keep us apart. Long have I waited for your coming back to me and living deeply our new life.”

As we enter our second week of Advent, we hear once again this plea of God to turn back to Him.  This time it is through a new voice, that of John the Baptist. Yet there is a familiar refrain, but John’s words seem harsher as he points to seeking forgiveness as a condition of returning.  How different does John’s message of repentance sound than God’s gentle invitation to “come back.”  God knows our sinfulness is a barrier between Him and us. Yet He gently tells us “I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people. Who walk in the way that is not good, following their own thoughts” (Is.65:2)   

How long must God wait for us to realize with has been offered us is unconditional mercy. Free flowing grace from God’s own heart.  It is ours by simply acknowledging we cannot make up for all we have done wrong.  Not just our sinfulness but our arrogance in believing we have somehow found the formula for our holiness.  We judge our righteousness by our faithfulness and avoiding grave sins.  Because we have repented and sought reconciliation, we believe we are in God’s grace.  We have changed our focus and have prayed, served the community, and have followed the rules of holiness. 

Who defined holiness for us?  God did tell us or commanded us to be holy as He is holy (Lev. 11:45). So, we strive to be holy according to our definition of holiness. The problem with that kind of thinking is we are in control of our holiness.   

I believe we have misunderstood what God was saying by this biblical command to be holly as He is holy.  I believe God was not commanding us to be holy, but He was making a statement of fact.  God was declaring that He was going to make us holy.  He was going to provide a way for us to be holy as He intended us to be when He made us in His image.  We do not consider the fact Adam and Eve were created sinless.  They were as we were formed in the image of God, created for intimacy with the Triune God.  They were destined to rule over His creation.  But sin entered the world because Adam and Eve were tempted to believe God was withholding something from them.  Something that if they could obtain it, they would be “like God.” 

That doubt in God’s goodness is still evident in our human nature today.  That is our greatest sin.  It is not any of those things we consider sin, but it is instead our arrogance to believe we can be holy on our own.  That is why we must repent. That is the message of John the Baptist.  That is why John pointed to the one who was to come whose sandal he was not worthy enough to loose – Jesus Christ.  John then emphasized that Jesus would not only baptize them with water, but He would also baptize them in the Spirit.  That statement was significant for it echoed the God’s promise to change our hearts by the infilling of the Spirit.  Our ability to follow God’ will would no longer depend on our will power but on God’s power.  Recognizing our dependence on God rather than self is the first step in repentance. 

The next step is to realize God’s arms are open, His eyes welcoming and His voice inviting.  He is longing for us to allow those arms to embrace us.  He longs for us to give voice to our sin and acknowledge we have sinned against Him by relying on self.  He is the father in the parable of the prodigal son.  He is waiting and watching for us to return.  Return not like the prodigal, whose only desire was to be accepted as a slave.  No God wants us to understand what He is offering us is total and complete restoration and acceptance. 

Acceptance, welcomed into His kingdom and with a certainty about our destiny because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  We need to shed our doubt about His grace if we are ever to allow God to embrace us as He desires.  John the Baptist offered the forgiveness of sin through the baptism of water.  Did you ever wonder if after the people baptized by John ever grasp forgiveness was theirs without them offering the ritual sacrifice demanded by the law.  Or did they believe they were freed, cleansed, and restored by the grace of God through the baptism of repentance? 

But these readings today are about us.  They are not about something that happened two thousand years ago.  They were intended to challenge us to consider our approach to our baptism.  Our approach to our entering into the confessional.  Our approach to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Christ coming will be celebrated in a few weeks and our focus will be on the baby Jesus.  Yet we are challenged by His dependency on Mary and Joseph for everything that allowed Him to grow and ultimately submit to the plan of God for our redemption.

Just as He was dependent on them, we must respond to the words of the Baptist and acknowledge our dependency on Jesus and the Holy Spirit for us to grow in wisdom and grace into the people God destined us to become.  Holy men and women because of His sacrifice freed us from sin and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit will transform us into sons and daughters, heirs to the Kingdom.