Every Sunday, Bishop Edward Malesic writes a Scripture reflection for the faithful. Follow the bishop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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John the Baptist is the central figure in our Gospel for today and next Sunday. His austere habits and severe message are meant to get our attention, and it does: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” He says that now is the time, not later, to change our ways and get right with God.
This focus on repentance is appropriate at this time of year. Advent is sometimes called a “little Lent.” Like the season of Lent, Advent has a penitential character. In order to prepare ourselves for Christmas many of us, myself included, will confess our sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. But, we must also prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord at the end of our lives. However, to receive this forgiveness, we must not only list our sins, but also firmly resolve to be different, better, and try to live up to being the people we have been baptized to be: children of God. In short, we must repent, change direction, be renewed in spirit.
That is why Saint John the Baptist is so hard on the Pharisees and Sadducees who were coming for his baptism. He called them a “brood of vipers.” They were going through the motions of repentance, but they didn’t actually desire to change. They didn’t put their heart into it. So, John the Baptist tells them, “Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.”
We cannot depend on the fact that we call ourselves Christian, much like the Pharisees and Sadducees could not depend on the fact that they had Abraham as their father. And the fact that we have been baptized means little if we have rejected the meaning of our baptism by how we live our lives. Instead, we must bear the fruit of our Christian faith, which includes loving one another as we have been loved by God, believing as we have been taught, and following Jesus as our Lord. Then as a reward for the fruits of our labors and the produce of our faith, Jesus will gather us like wheat into his barn.
Have a blessed week everyone.