3rd Sunday of Advent – A
December 14, 2025 5pm
Our Lady of Grace Parish, Parkton
John the Baptist
Back in the first century in Palestine, there was a man named John the Baptist.
We heard some things about him last Sunday and we hear more today. John expected the Messiah to come very soon.
That word meant the Anointed One of God or the Savior. It is unclear how John the Baptist thought the Messiah would save us.
Like a lot of people of his day, he might have been expecting a Messiah with military skill – that he would overthrow the rule of the Roman Empire and save his people in that way.
Or maybe John the Baptist was expecting the Messiah to be a person of harsh judgment on the sinful – that he would save us in this way.
John’s understanding of the Messiah is unclear. But at least at first, he was clear that Jesus was the Messiah or Savior.
Jesus
Well, Jesus listens to John and is even baptized by him, but then, he introduces a whole new idea about the Messiah or Savior.
For example, Jesus does not talk so much about judging and punishing. Instead, he shows compassion and forgiveness.
Jesus emphasizes union with God and with one another and not division. He stresses God coming to save us from what oppresses the human spirit and not from the oppression of a foreign ruler.
Jesus replaces John’s austere life in the desert with a lifestyle centered on meals. He even has dinners with those labeled as sinners.
And to top it off, Jesus does something that John the Baptist never does. He heals people and his physical healings seem to point to something deeper – to the healing of the deepest hungers and hurts of the human spirit.
“Are you the Messiah, the Savior?
Eventually, John the Baptist is in prison.
He has been arrested for calling into question the lifestyle of the Roman governor. And so, he is asking deeper questions about life and maybe having second thoughts about whether Jesus really is the Savior.
So, John sends some of his followers to ask Jesus: “Are you the Messiah, the Savior, or not? You look different from what we expected.”
Jesus responds by going back to Isaiah, to what we heard in our first reading. Isaiah gives the accurate description of what the Savior will do, and Jesus knows that John will understand this.
So, Jesus says: “Tell John what’s happening. The blind now see and beyond that, everyone can now see a purpose for their lives.
“The deaf now hear and beyond that, everyone can now hear a message of acceptance and self-worth. The lame now walk and beyond that, everyone can now walk through the challenging bumps of life.
“Those as good as dead are now alive and beyond that, everyone can now have hope even for eternal life. And the poor now have good news and beyond that, everyone in need is to be cared for.”
So, Jesus is telling John that Isaiah’s description of what the Savior was to be like is fulfilled in himself. Jesus knows that John will understand this.
Trust and Faith
Apparently, John does, and he places his trust and faith in Jesus.
Today’s passage invites you and me to do the same. So, with Jesus:
v We can now see his purpose for our lives.
v We can now hear his reassuring words of God’s love for us.
v We can now walk with him through the sufferings of life.
v We can now have hope for life and a fullness of life.
v And the poor can now experience the good news through the compassion of Jesus flowing through us.
With Jesus, this is what it means to be saved. This is what he does for us and why we call him Savior.
So, I recommend that today, and each day of Advent right up to Christmas day, let’s offer this brief prayer. “Jesus, Emmanuel, I place my trust and faith in you as my Savior.”
“Jesus, Emmanuel, I place my trust and faith in you as my Savior.” Let’s pray that every day right up to Christmas.
