(Jesus said to the crowds) Amen, I
say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the
Baptist; yet the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the
days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and
the violent are taking it by force. All the prophets and the law prophesied up
to the time of John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah, the one
who is to come. Whoever has ears ought to hear.
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Reflection:
What does John the Baptist brings to
us? John brings to us his faithful witness for Jesus and His teachings. Like the
Prophets before him, John gave his life so that evil would not triumph over good.
In essence it was the devil against God. John chose God over the devil, John
chose righteousness over evil and immorality.
For these reasons Jesus hailed John as
the greatest amongst the prophets, yet Jesus tells us also that the least in
the kingdom of heaven is greater than John. Who is greater than John the
Baptist? It’s Jesus Himself! Jesus came into this world not with power and
might. Like John, Jesus was born into this world bereft of worldly opulence.
Somehow the gospel communicates to us
that for us to become great in the eyes of Jesus we have to emulate John. His
humble witness for Jesus, his uncompromising stand against evil and so forth.
We must not forget also that Jesus is challenging us also to become the least
in the eyes of the people of this world.
It means that we must not crave
for money, power or anything that this fleeting world will offer us. Nevertheless,
even without these worldly things we will strive to continue to make a positive
difference in the lives of our fellowmen. For this is the life of Jesus when He
walked on this earth.
Can we emulate the life of John? Are we
capable of shunning the trappings of this world and still make a positive
difference in the lives of our fellowmen just what Jesus did? - Marino J. Dasmarinas
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