Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word Among Us” Friday, 3 January 2014

Mass Readings and Meditations “The Word Among Us” Friday, 3 January 2014

Meditation: John 1: The Lamb of God

²⁹ The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!³⁰ This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ³¹ I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” ³² And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. ³³ I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴ And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”^[a]

Footnotes:

a. John 1:34 Other ancient authorities read is God’s chosen one

The Most Holy Name of Jesus

I saw the Spirit come down. (John 1:32)

A new president. A royal birth. Freed hostages. Truly significant events make newspaper headlines and nightly news programs everywhere. No wonder, then, that all four Gospels recount the descent of the Holy Spirit at Jesus’ baptism! Not only was this one of the most important events in Jesus’ life; it’s also one of the most important events in the unfolding of God’s plan for his creation. After all, if Jesus needed the Holy Spirit to accomplish his mission, how much more do we need the Spirit to help us live the Christian life!

In his own way, each Evangelist tells us that the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit came down on Jesus at his baptism. Then, the entire New Testament goes on to tell us that the heavens remain open to this very day. Think about it. No barrier between heaven and earth! Nothing to keep us from hearing the Father’s voice! We can know God, hear his voice in our hearts, and experience his Spirit empowering us.

There’s another equally amazing truth behind Jesus’ baptism: heaven has come down to earth! Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come,” but he also told us, “The kingdom of God is among you” (Luke 17:21). It’s not here in fullness yet, but it is here—and we are its ambassadors. Filled with the Holy Spirit, we can bring the reality of heaven to our families, offices, and schools. We can bring a taste of heaven to prisons, hospitals, and homeless shelters. We can become vessels of the Spirit in coffee shops, bookstores, supermarkets, and even traffic jams. Because we have the Spirit, people around us can learn what heaven is like.

Jesus was baptized so that the Spirit could be released. He was baptized so that the good news of the gospel would come not just in the words we hear at Mass or read in the Scriptures but in power and in the Holy Spirit. You—yes, you—get to be God’s headline in this world! Your life can become a news story that everyone is eager to read. All because heaven has come down to earth.

“Holy Spirit, fill me! Teach me to bring the life of Christ and the reality of heaven everywhere I go today.” Amen!

First Letter of John 2: Children of God

²⁹ If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who does right has been born of him. 3: ¹ See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he^[a] is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. ³ And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that he was revealed to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. ⁶ No one who abides in him sins; no one who sins has either seen him or known him.

Footnotes:

a. 1 John 3:2 Or it

Psalm 98:  Praise the Judge of the World

A Psalm.

¹ O sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
    have gotten him victory.
² The Lord has made known his victory;
    he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
³ He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
    to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
    the victory of our God.

⁴ Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
    break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
⁵ Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
    with the lyre and the sound of melody.
⁶ With trumpets and the sound of the horn
    make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.

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