"YOU HEAR AND SEE"
We may be hoping for something
we think is a good thing from God, but God can exceed our plans and
expectations. Advent is a good time to put aside the confines we place on Him,
and let God be God and surprise us!
The present and the future...
When the present is painful and survival is the issue, people often need help
to move forward. Frequently, they look to the future just to get through each
day. Without hope, our spirits can wither and we can feel like throwing up our
hands in surrender or we simply just want to lie down and die. Today's first
reading directs our eyes to the future coming of God, Who will free us from any
bonds of sin and weakness. The Prophet Isaiah encourages us to look for those
signs.
Jesus draws from Isaiah's
message in order to affirm that our hope is to be fulfilled in Him. Since John
is in prison, He tells John's disciples to take back to him what "you hear
and see," - the fulfillment of Isaiah's promise - "the blind regain
their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are
raised, and the poor have the Good News proclaimed to them" (Mt 11:5). The
signs are not only physical cures, but also spiritual. In Jesus, the hoped-for
future has become a reality!
But as we look to the future
fulfillment of God's plan, let's not leave what Isaiah says about the present
too quickly. The present still has its troubles, messes and obstacles. Jesus
points out to John's disciples that a time of fulfillment has arrived but it is
far from being a "done deal". God has more work to do to bring things
to fulfillment and that work involves us.
Because John is imprisoned,
word of what Jesus is revealing is brought to him by trustworthy messengers,
which is what we are called to be. We must be messengers for people who are
"locked up" and unable to free themselves, or who are too preoccupied
to take the time to see who Jesus really is. Our words and deeds, or maybe just
our presence, may be the only contact others will have with Him from whatever
cells keep them locked up. If freedom from fear, poverty, loneliness, ignorance
and sin are to come to them, we must be the bearers of that Good News by our
words and loving acts on their behalf.
What brings Christ's living
Presence to us today, on this third Sunday of Advent? Well, His Word has been
passed on to us by our ancestors who, like John's disciples, were reliable and
trusted messengers of faith. Witnesses to Jesus' Presence also comes to us in
those around us who minister to the needs of people confined and cut off from
us by sickness, poverty, alienation, indifference, materialism or the
distractions of the current buying frenzy in preparation for Christmas. Our
challenge is to hear and see in each other, the living and healing presence of
Christ. We need to share our vision of hope, but we need to start by looking
within our own hearts and focusing on our own spiritual growth. In this rapidly
changing and busy world in which we live, it is important to keep our spiritual
bearings. Relationships are critical for us in our daily living. First and
foremost is our relationship with God, and then with our neighbors.
John learned a lesson from
the news brought back to him. God wasn't fire and brimstone what he got was
Jesus, Who preached full and endless forgiveness. What we can learn from this
Sunday's Scripture reading is to be less judgmental and more forgiving, which
might go a long way to enable "the blind regain their sight, the lame
walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor
have the Good News proclaimed to them" (ibid). John the Baptist's example
feeds our hope. We may be hoping for something we think is a good thing from
God, but God can exceed our plans and expectations. Advent is a good time to
put aside the confines we place on Him, and let God be God and surprise us!