predication.net

In the 5th century BC, faith weakened, and hopelessness manifested itself. Many, looking at the achievements of idolaters, were subject to doubts about God’s justice. The wicked do better in life. Where is God who judges? Through the prophet Malachi, God responds to the reproaches of the people by sending his messenger (angel) to prepare the way for them. Immediately after this predecessor, the expected Messiah will come to his temple as King and Judge.

God identifies himself with the Messiah and thus clearly indicates his divinity. In the prophecy, the Messiah is called an Angel or the Messenger of the Covenant because he will conclude a new covenant between God and the New Testament God’s people. He will carry out the moral cleansing of people and priests who have fallen into spiritual superficiality and official carelessness. This purification is compared to heating precious metals with fire and washing lye, which have cleansing effects. The Messiah will establish a pure sacrifice that will please the Lord. He compares the Messiah’s predecessor to the prophet Elijah. This comparison, as well as the prediction about the arrival of the messenger who is supposed to prepare the way for the Lord, was applied by Jesus himself to John the Baptist (Mt 11:10; 17:10-13; Luke 1:2; 9:11-13; Luke 1:17; 7.27).

The Birth of John the Baptist » Lk 1, 57-66

In this sense, the birth of John the Baptist testifies to the fulfillment of the promise of the messenger before the promised Messiah. After his birth, relatives and neighbors rejoiced with his mother, Elizabeth, because they saw a great blessing in the child. Amazingly, both parents gave him the same name, John, which means God is gracious. People wondered: What will this boy be?

And God’s blessing was with him from his birth. He did not let bad influences affect him but took his profession seriously and with personal responsibility before God. He went to the desert, where he led an austere life of penance, prayer, and self-denial. Furthermore, he became significant in his life’s holiness and mission. He was preparing the way for the Messiah Jesus with the zeal of Elijah. The boy grew into a great personality. He was a man of God who was able to put his life behind the ideal to which he dedicated himself.

The wicked are better off than we are. – A contemporary person also makes such a reproach with a sense of injustice. But the good of the wicked is fleeting. A believer has permanent good and salvation in Jesus Christ. Do we allow ourselves to be influenced by the saving power of Jesus? Today’s psalm encourages us: Lift your heads; your redemption is near. This Christmas, Jesus wants to come to us as our personal Savior and Redeemer. How do we receive it?

Today’s passage from the Gospel can direct my attention to various relationships in my life. Maria rushed to Elizabeth because she found someone who perceived what happened in her life, what happened under her heart, who “heard” her even without words, understood her, and knew how to please her. Maria and Elizabeth are my role models for how we should help each other, encourage each other, and give each other additional strength and courage. Their beautiful relationship is a challenge for spouses to understand what kind of gift they should be for each other. It is also a challenge for parents to find the greatest treasure of their lives in their children and enjoy them.

Every day, I get many opportunities to meet Jesus in another person. I will learn to enjoy every meeting, family, neighborhood, work, or friendship. And just as Mary carried Jesus under her heart, I also had the opportunity to bring Jesus in my heart to the people around me. I will open my spiritual eyes, and in these pre-Christmas days, I will try to let the light of Jesus “shine” through me as much as possible. So that people feel peace, love, joy, and acceptance through me. Who will I bring Jesus to today?
Lord, let me be a light to all around.

 Isaiah and his followers found themselves in the worst conditions ever in the kingdom of Judah. Many who had previously resisted the temptations of idolatry were now persuaded to participate in the worship of pagan deities. The princes of Israel neglected their responsibility; false prophets arose with their seductive prophecies, and even some priests taught the people only for profit. However, the leaders of the apostasy still performed religious ceremonies and were counted among God’s people. The prophet Micaiah, who performed his prophetic ministry in this troubled time, declared that the sinners in Zion who claim to “trust in the Lord” are blaspheming when they say: “Is not the Lord among us? Nothing bad will happen to us.” These people “build Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity” (Mic 3:11, 10). (322) The prophet Isaiah pointed out these iniquities and reprimanded them severely: “Hear the word of the Lord, princes of Sodom, listen to the teaching of our God, people of Gomorrah! What do I need? What is the number of your victims? – says the Lord… Who asked you to tread my courts when you appear before me?” (Is 1,10-12). Scripture says: “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination, especially when it is offered for a shameful deed” (Proverbs 21:27). God, “your eyes are pure to look at evil” (Hab 1,13). God does not turn away from the sinner because He does not want to forgive him but because he rejects the grace freely offered, and God cannot deliver him from sin against his will. “The Lord’s hand is not too short to save, and his ear is not so deaf that it does not hear, but your iniquities have become a barrier between you and your God! Your sins have hidden his face from you, so he does not hear” (Isaiah 59:1,2). Solomon wrote: “Woe to you, land, if a child is your king” (Ecclesiastes 10:16). That’s how it was with Judea. By constantly transgressing God’s commandments, its rulers became children. Isaiah warned that the position of the people among the surrounding nations was uncertain and pointed out the consequences of ungodly leaders. He said: “The Lord, the Lord of hosts, will remove from Jerusalem and Judah all the support of bread and all the support of water, the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the soothsayer and the old man, (323) the commander over fifty and the noble man, the counselor, and the expert in magic (172) and capable spell caster. I will give them boys as princes, and their will rule over them.” “Truly Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because their language and actions are against the Lord” (Is 3,1-4.8). The prophet continued: “O my people, your leaders are deceivers and make confusion in the way you should walk” (Isaiah 3:12). These words were fulfilled to the letter by King Ahas. We read about him: “But he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and even made molten idols for the Baals.” He burned incense in the valley of Ben-Hinton,” “even he had his son lead through the fire according to the abominable custom of the nations that the Lord drove out from before the Israelites” (2 Par 28,2,3; 2 Kings 16,3). This period was difficult for the chosen nation. The enemy will soon scatter the twelve tribes of the kingdom of Israel among the Gentile nations. The prospects for the Kingdom of Judah were also bleak. The number of followers of good was rapidly dwindling, while the forces of evil continued to increase. Looking at this state, the prophet Micah had to declare: “The godly have disappeared from the land; there is no honest man among men.” “The best of them is like a thistle, and the most honest of them is like a thorn hedge” (Mic 7,2.4). “If the Lord of hosts had not left us a small remnant, we would have been like Sodom; we would have resembled Gomorrah” (Is 1:9).  God, for the sake of his faithful and out of infinite love for those who wandered, is forgiving for a long time and admonishes the rebellious to stop doing evil and return to him. Through the called men, he sends them “precept upon precept, precept upon precept, here is a little, there a little” (Isaiah 28:10) and teaches transgressors the way of justice. It was similar during Ahas’s reign. Wandering Israel received call after call to return and be faithful to the Lord. When the prophets compassionately and lovingly admonished the people to repent and improve, their words bore fruit to God’s glory. Micah’s call was admirable: “Hear what the Lord says: Arise! Start a lawsuit before the hills. Let the hills hear your voice! Hear, you mountains, the judgment of the Lord, and you, firm foundations of the earth! Because the Lord has a dispute with his people, he judges Israel. My people, what have I done to you? What have I burdened you with? Answer me! For I brought you out of Egypt, redeemed you from the house of slavery; I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam before you. My people, remember what Balak king of Moab counseled and what Balaam son of Beor answered him. Remember your journey, from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know  the righteous acts of the  Lord. (Mic 6:1-5). The God we serve is forgiving and long-suffering. “His mercy never ends” (Lamentations 3:22). Throughout the time of grace, God’s Spirit begged man (325) to accept the gift of life. (173) “As I live – declares the Lord God – I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but in the fact that the wicked turn from his way of life and live. Turn away, turn away.

There are two criteria for the love that Jesus gave us.
– The first criterion is expressed in words: “Love your neighbor as yourself!” (Lv 19:18). If you do not love yourself, you cannot fully love your neighbor. That is why I have spoken to you about accepting yourself. If you reject yourself, condemn yourself, do not forgive yourself, pull yourself aside, do not recognize your charisma in yourself, and do not love yourself, you cannot love others. You can only love to the extent that you love yourself. If you do not accept yourself, you cannot accept others. If you cannot forgive yourself, you cannot forgive others.
– But then Jesus gives us a second criterion in the New Testament when he says: “The new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. That you also love one another, as I have loved you.” The novelty of this commandment is not in the injunction “Love one another”-we already find that in the Old Testament. The novelty is in the words-” as I have loved you.” The criterion of loving “as yourself” is no longer sufficient. The criterion has become “as I have loved you” (cf. Jn 13,34). And how did Jesus love us? Unconditionally. Next, we will try to explain the word “unconditionally.” This is newness in love.
The difference between secular and Christian love It will be good to tell ourselves the difference between worldly and Christian love. Ordinary love in the world is love based on feelings, attraction, and sympathy. We see this on television or in reading love novels.

God does not let the faithful wander in the dark but sends them pardoned people with a special mission to show the way in God’s name.

Pietro Paolo Azzopardi: John the Baptist (1845). Source: Wikipedia

Make up your mind at least once, if not more times in your life, that you relied on your forces or circumstances that should have guaranteed you a good result, success, or favorable position. However, sometimes everything turns around, and everything is different, like a snap of a finger. We begin to doubt ourselves and abandon ourselves; our joy gradually fades until we are filled with fear and uncertainty for a specific time (or moment). Why is that so? Because in the matter that was so important to us, we relied more on “how good I am, how I can’t be wrong, but I’m like a fish in water” and similar thoughts that cloud our judgment. We should constantly remember that the Lord is our only hope, NOT our last. He gives us everything we need. He is the savior of the lost. He will provide you with the best because he knows what you require. Therefore, do not be afraid to place your steps daily in the hands of the One who comes and offers you all heaven. Be brave and walk forward with a smile.

Prayer: Lord, I take refuge in You. Help me surrender every step to You; teach me the art of small steps in joy. Let me not be focused on my strengths and abilities because they can betray me over time. But I know that you will never betray me. Let me remember that. Amen.

Questions for reflection: Can you surrender all your today and tomorrow to the Lord without fear or doubt? Why am I surprised if something doesn’t turn out according to my expectations?… After all, I believe in the Lord!