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You Are Called To Greatness

If all you ever do is tell someone over and over again that they are breaking the rules, that they have failed, sooner or later they are going to stop listening to you. Your message becomes irrelevant noise. To truly inspire people and lead them to greatness, you have to show them what they can aspire to, and what they can be if they follow the right path. This is the message of John the Baptist: repent and leave behind your evil ways, not just because you broke the rules but because you are called to greatness. As we continue on this second week of Advent, let us ask God for the grace to see the greatness we are called to and the courage to follow the path that leads to it.

The Proclamation of John the Baptist

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair, and a leather girdle around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit that befits repentance, and do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” Matthew 3 : 1-12

Scriptural Analysis


The ministry of John the Baptist was based at the Jordan River. It is likely he was on the southern stretch of the river, which flows by the Judean desert, right before the river dumps into the Dead Sea. Reaching this location was not easy. It was about twenty miles from Jerusalem covering some of the most rugged, hot, and barren terrain in the area. Why then would John choose this location?

The Jordan river was more than just a river for the Jewish people. The river was a symbol of hope and life. God did amazing things at the Jordan river. The Syrian, Naaman, was healed at the Jordan river. The prophet Elijah was taken up to heaven in a chariot at the Jordan river. Most of all, after wandering in the wilderness for fourty years, God lead his people across the Joran river into the promised land. The Jordan was the climax of the Exodus story.

The Judean desert likewise was rich in meaning for the Jewish people. It also recalled the Exodus story for it was in the desert that Israel was established as the covenant people of God. The desert also brought hope for their future. The prophets foretold that God would lead his people back across the desert to renew his covenant with them, “I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness.” (Hosea 2:14) Therefore, John’s call into the desert was a signal to the people that what they had longed for was going to be fulfilled. Going into the Jordan reenacted the Exodus and signaled that a new Exodus was now here.

It had been 400 years since the last prophet had spoken to Israel. In John, that prophetic voice spoke once again. The heart of John’s message is repentance. John is calling the people to turn around or return to God in a radical way. This is a complete change in thinking and conduct. John stands in the line of the Old Testament prophets who did the same thing. This call is a signal that Israel is on a path to destruction and in need of radical conversion. However, John does something new. He tells them that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This is not a geographic location but rather it refers to God’s role as ruler.

John’s preaching fulfills the words of the prophet Isaiah, “A voice cries: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord.” (Isaiah 40:3) In the original scripture, Isaiah is saying that there will come a day when there will be a voice in the desert telling the people to prepare the way for God to return to Jerusalem. By referencing this passage, Matthew is saying that John is the herald mentioned in Isaiah. If John is announcing Jesus then Jesus is God coming to Israel.

John’s clothing choices were important. It connects him with Elijah, “He wore a garment of haircloth, with a girdle of leather about his loins.” (2 kings 1:8) This is critical as the Jews expected Elijah to return before the day of the Lord, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.” (Malachi 4:5). Thus by looking like Elijah the Jews would have picked up on the symbolism that he is playing the part of Elijah and preparing the way of the Lord. Lastly, it was at the Jordan that Elijah’s mission was passed on just as John will pass on his mission to Jesus at the Jordan.

Baptism literally means to dip or immerse Jews participating in it would have noticed similarities to other Jewish rituals. However, it was a single decisive act and it concerned sins, not ritual impurity. There was a Jewish custom called a proselyte baptism. This was a ritual cleansing of a gentile converting to Judaism and it symbolized a rejection of one’s sinful ways. It is possible that John’s baptism was modeled after this which means John’s baptism would apply to all people. Don’t assume ethnic identity gets you into heaven.

Both the Sadducees and the Parishes took a keen interest in what John was doing. They do not appear like they are moved to repentance. Rather they were there to investigate. This is why John called them a brood of vipers. He asks them who warned them to flee from the coming wrath as if they really desired repentance.

John goes on to warn them that being descendents of Abraham is not enough to guarantee righteousness in the sight of God. Ethnic identity will not save anyone from the wrath of God caused by sin. In the kingdom he is proclaiming, membership is marked by repentance. Those who repent, despite their background, are the children of Abraham. The Pharisees and Sadducees think that their lineage of Abraham’s children is enough and they don’t need to repent. This refusal to listen to the warning of John is what makes them children of vipers.

John uses the image of a tree being cut down to describe those who do not repent. This is the image of God’s judgment on a pagan nation, “Hew down the tree and cut off its branches, strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit; let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches.” (Daniel 4:14). He uses this image to describe the judgment that will befall the religious leaders. The burning of the tree is a symbol of judgment while the ax lying there shows not a simple pruning but a felling of the entire tree.

John then instructs those who came for the right reason. He declares that one mightier than he is coming. His image of sandals is the most demeaning of tasks, touching the master’s feet. Students of a rabbi were expected to do anything a servant would do for their teacher except touch their feet. John says he is not even worthy to do that.

Second, John contrasts hit baptism with the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. These were associated with purification in the Old Testament, “I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:25-26)

Daily Application

Saint John the Baptist remains one of the greatest saints of all time. He was not afraid to call a spade a spade. He called out evil as he saw it and his message was clear and direct, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Nine words capture his entire message and yet there is so much richness in these nine words still for us today.

There was a belief at the time of Jesus, especially amongst the ruling class, that ethnic decent was the determining factor with regard to who God viewed as righteous. The Pharisees and Sadducees thought that simply being a descendant of Abraham was enough to ensure safety in the life to come. John the Baptist challenged that and argued that alone was not sufficient. John challenges this idea and warms the leaders that unless they repent of their sins and turn to the Lord with their whole hearts, their safety in the life to come was not assured.

It is easy for us to get caught up in the same trap as the Pharisees and Sadducees. I am a baptized Catholic, I am in the pews each week at Mass, I send my children to Catholic School, and I am a member of the club so surely that must get me into heaven. That is not enough. If it is not enough simply to be Catholic, one must live Catholic. That is the greatness that John the Baptist and Jesus are ultimately calling us to. We need to live our lives in accordance with the truth

To live Catholic is to live differently from the world. It is to recognize that, why we are in the world, we are not of it and there is an eternal destination for us that is far greater than this present reality. It means the radical embrace of the love of God and the love of neighbor: to love those who wish to persecute you and do you harm. If I goto Mass on Sunday and then celebrate the ruin of my neighbor on Monday, am I really living Catholic? If I pray my Rosay on Tuesday night buth then ingore the homeless man sitting outside of the local coffee shop as I wait in line for my $10 latte, am I really living Catholic? These are the opportunities we need to look for to truly acheive the greatness we are called to in the eyes of God.

Advent is the perfect time for us to live differently. As the world is busy with the hustle and bustle of the secularized holiday season, let us slow down. Let us be deliberate during these final two weeks of Advent and not simply try to hurry them along and get to the Christmas season. Let us reflect upon the greatness that John the Baptist was calling us to and ask Jesus to give us the grace we need to live it out.

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