Saturday March 9

Matthew 3:1-12

Jim Roste

In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’”

Although John the Baptist was a man of the wilderness and dressed as a “wild man,” he does not appear to be a “crazed’ man as we might suspect.  Often when we see people who act and dress different than the norm we tend to avoid then, regard them as a little “off,’ or not take them seriously.  However, John was drawing crowds of people to him. People responded to his proclamations and accepted being baptized by him. Yet, he did all this in deference to someone who would follow him.   Even the Pharisees and Sadducees came to see John.

Now being a man of the wilderness, John saw the Pharisees and Sadducees for what they were, a “brood of vipers.”  He confronted them about trying to flee the wrath to come and told them to bear fruit worthy of repentance. Jesus would later follow up on that theme by saying, “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)  Like John, our good works, the fruit we bear, are not for our glory but for the glory of our Father in heaven.

Questions for Reflection:

• Is John’s warning to the Pharisees and Sadducees also a warning to us, that we are too comfortable in our faith and not bearing the fruit worthy of repentance?

• Does John’s statement imply that we can bring about our own salvation by bearing fruit worthy of repentance?

• Only God grants salvation to us, how can you give thanks for this gift by bearing good fruit in our world?

Prayer:

Lord, help us to not be content with faith alone.  Guide us in living lives that bear good fruit, lives that identify us as children of God.  In Christ Jesus, Amen