Readings: Isaiah 40 :1-5, 9-11; 2 Peter 3:8-14; Mark 1:1-8
The Voices in Our Life
1. On this second Sunday of Advent, we meet John the Baptist once again as we do every year. John was humble but courageous, a defender of the truth and a fearless preacher. He looked simple and austere both in his dressing and eating habit, but he was passionate and committed to his mission. John was the voice crying in the wilderness, calling people to repent. His preaching was direct and urgent: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” (Mk. 1:3). He proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. For fear of being mistaken for who he was not, John was quick to add: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the holy spirit.” (Mk.1:7-8).
2. In the first reading, Isaiah assured the people that God was coming into the wilderness – their land of captivity in Babylon and bring them out of exile. “Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her service is at an end, her guilt is expiated; indeed, she has received from the hand of the Lord double for all her sins.” The children of Israel were to prepare the way for the Lord in the desert. They were to “Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God! Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; the rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, abroad valley. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together.” This was also the message of John the Baptist who heralded the coming of the Lord by encouraging the people to prepare the way for the Messiah. This was the good news proclaimed by John the Baptist. In the same way, Isaiah was mandated to “Go up onto a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out at the top of your voice, herald of good news! Here comes with power the Lord God, who rules by his strong arm; here is his reward with him, his recompense before him.”
3. In order to be a recipient of this good news we must confess our sins, like those who listened to John the Baptist. We must listen and prepare the way for the Lord in the desert of our hearts. We must also be heralds of good tidings. We do this by paying attention to the positive voices in our lives. The voices that cry in our wilderness. These are voices of conscience, warning, begging and exhorting us to stop making bad choices. We hear these voices crying, not only from the wilderness, but from the pulpit, from street corners, from men and women of integrity, telling us the truth about our life and our relationship with God. But do we always listen? No, only if they tell us what we want to hear rather than what we ought to hear. Their message is simple: repent, make a U-turn, change your mind, change the course of your life, be alert, be watchful, pay attention, you are on the wrong path, the wrong trajectory, stop and think before you act, for you know not when he will come. Those who listen and prepare the way will receive the Messiah when he comes, either at is birth at incarnation or at his second coming.
4. Today, dear friends we must listen to the voice of the one crying in the wilderness. He calls us to do the right so that the Messiah will find us waiting in readiness for his coming. Peter tells us in the second reading that we should be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him at peace when he comes. It was on account of Jesus our Messiah at the Transfiguration that the Father’s voice was heard from the heavens, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased, listen to him.” (Matthew 17:5). There are different voices that compete for our attention. The voice of our doctor gives us medical advice. The voice of our lawyer gives us legal advice, our teacher’s voice directs us in our academic pursuit. The voices of our parents point us to right direction in life. The voice of our therapist helps us to maintain a balanced mental state. The voice of our pastor, reechoing the voice of the Church, helps us to achieve and maintain a stable spiritual and religious well-being. The discordant voices of politicians, though confusing at times, should help us to make up our minds and decide what is the best way to live our lives. We are not bound to follow anyone who is not capable of telling the truth.
5. In spite of all the voices of our life, it is Christ that we must ultimately listen to. John the Baptist has told us what to do. We must make a pathway for Jesus in our hearts. It is by so doing that we will realize the meaning of peace and joy at the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ. May the voice of John and the many positive voices of our lives challenge us to bring down the mountain of pride, fill in the valley of deceit, and make straight the highway of corruption and dishonesty so that our Lord may dwell in our hearts made clean by works of charity and penitence. May God bless us now and always. Amen.
Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP
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