Gospel: Matthew 3:1-12
John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying,
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was of him that the prophet
Isaiah had spoken when he said: A voice of one crying out in the desert,
Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. John wore clothing
made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was
locusts and wild honey. At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region
around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the
Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he
said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming
wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to
say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God can
raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the
root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be
cut down and thrown into the fire. I am baptizing you with water, for
repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am
not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and
fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and
gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable
fire.”
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Reflection:
A sinful man promised God that he would repent and walk away from
anything that make him sin. He was able to walk away from his sinfulness for a
period of time until he sinned again and again and again.
It’s very easy to say that we would not sin again but when the temptation
to sin beckons many of us are helpless against it. So, we sin again until
sinning becomes a part of our lifestyle until these many sins become our ticket
to wretchedness.
Why do we sin or why do many of us fall to sin? Because sin is attractive
and salivating. This is the reason why we fall for it until we are eventually
destroyed by it if we would not repent and completely walk away from it.
When John appeared from the wilderness he preached repentance and many
listened to him. They went to John to repent and be baptized including the
Pharisees and Sadducees. Were the Pharisees and Sadducees sincere in their
desire for repentance?
No, they were not; it was a superficial repentance this was primarily the
reason why John rebuked them. John
wanted the Pharisees and Sadducees to produce concrete evidence of their
repentance. John wanted an interior, genuine and deep repentance from them.
This is also the call for us in this second Sunday of advent: To have an
interior, genuine and deep repentance from within. Thus, we have to completely
walk away from anything that make us sin. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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