Word to the Wise
Saturday, January 11, 2025 - Saturday after Epiphany, or Jan. 12
[1 John 5:14-21 and John 3:22-30]We also know that the Son of God has come and has given us discernment to know the one who is true. And we are in the one who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. [1 John] "You yourselves can testify that I said that I am not the Christ, but that I was sent before him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens for him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. So his joy of mine has been made complete. He must increase; I must decrease. [John]
John the Baptist was a problem for the earliest disciples. Evidence of this can be easily seen in the gospels which were written some years after Jesus' life. St. Paul encountered a community of "believers" who had only been baptized with the baptism of John the Baptist! [Acts 19:4]. The Gospel According to John was composed toward the end of the first century, which tells us that the concern over the difference between Jesus and John the Baptist was still a live concern. There were still folks who believed that John the Baptist was the messiah. Eventually the problem faded but John the Baptist remains as a model of prophetic preaching.
History teaches us that others have tried to introduce themselves as something of a cross between John the Baptist and Jesus. Charismatic figures appear in every age, attracting followers who see them as some kind of reincarnation of Jesus Christ. In varying degrees, this has been characterized as a "messianic complex!" The task of all of us who have been baptized in our faith is to do our best to live our faith in such a way that others will be attracted to it. We are not saviors, but helpers. The Lord provides the grace of faith. He must increase and we must decrease. AMEN