Third Sunday of Advent
Today's Scripture
At the volunteer party last Sunday, Santa came by and gave the children their gifts. Guess what I got this year – a big lump of coal. I guess, I have not been very good this year. I don’t think I deserve Santa’s coal. I think Bernard Madoff or Tiger Woods should get it But since I am in the dog house I guess I will join them in saying, “What must I do?” That is what the people in today’s first reading and the gospel reading did.
Today is “Gaudete Sunday,” or “Rejoice Sunday.” The sentiments are expressed in the very first verse of today’s first reading. Zephaniah proclaims, “Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! (Zeph 3:14) But joy did not come easy. The entire book consists of merely three chapters. The first chapter announces the “day of doom,” the second chapter the “day of judgement,” and the third chapter the “day of restoration and promise.” Today’s reading that proclaims joy and hope is taken from the third chapter. To take today’s reading at face value is to miss the real message of Zephaniah and today’s readings. Joy is proclaimed as a result of certain concrete action. Joy is result of repentance and reconciliation. The bottom line is this – joy lies at the end of the road.
The gospel reading has to be understood in the same way as the first reading. John the Baptist is a Zephaniah-like figure who had this to say: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance… Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire” (Luke 3:7-9). As a result of this ‘fire and brimstone,” message of John, the people begin to ask the question, “What then shall we do?” (Luke 3:10). John gives very specific responses that people must make. To the tax collectors he said, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed” (Luke 3:13); to the soldiers he said, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages” (Luke 3:14). To this message add his general exhortation to the public, “The Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Once again, the bottom line is this – the joy of salvation is the end result of a series of actions.
The question then is: What should we do? Here are three things we could do.
1. On a very human level, Christmas brings many good things to us: the thrill of opening a gift, the joy of seeing children’s faces as they open gifts, the joy of being with family, the contentment of a good feast. From a human perspective these experiences keep us going at least through the winter. From the Christian perspective, these experiences are God’s gift to us. However, the total Christmas experience has one more element to it – “the peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7). And we can ask ourselves today, how can we make sure that the peace of God lasts with us beyond Christmas, for our lifetime? The answer to the question lies in the exhortation that both Zephaniah and John the Baptist gave to the people: In hearing the voice of the Lord, in accepting the Lord’s correction; in trusting in the Lord and in drawing near to God; in our striving to be selfless, to be just, to be forgiving and through a close following of Jesus. The peace that passes understanding comes when inside here we are convinced that we are at peace with God.
2. Like the disciples of John, the right question to ask today is, “What shall we do?” Yesterday, Tiger Woods announced that he was taking an indefinite break from golf to focus on his family. He runs the risk of losing a hundred million dollars annually in endorsements. I guess at sometime of our lives we really need to figure out what is really important. We have a week before Christmas. During each day of this week we could take time for personal prayer and reflection. We could take the scripture for the day and write down the inspiration we get from it. In seven days, what we have in your journal is what God is saying to us. In obedience to God’s word we will discover joy and peace that passes all understanding. We deserve better than coal this Christmas.
3. What shall we do with John the Baptist’s very harsh message in the gospel reading? Hear this for example: “His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire” (Lk 3:17). There is one reality that we must be aware of, a week before Christmas – that the possibility of missing the total intensity and implications of the birth of Jesus. At that first Christmas, there were many who did not open the door to Jesus, there were many who did not hear the angels sings, and there were many who did not spot the star. They did not miss Jesus – the missed the opportunity for salvation. I hope this does not happen to us, that we do much for Christmas, yet miss Christ.
This Eucharist reminds me of the time that Zephaniah or John the Baptist proclaimed to the people about Christ’s coming. People waited for centuries, decades and years for that proclamation to be fulfilled. Unlike them, Christ will come to us in a few moments from now. Let us make sure that we are ready. Let us receive Christ with joy. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph