In today’s gospel passage, we meditate on John’s testimony concerning Jesus. When John began his ministry, people were attracted to his preaching, baptism, and ascetical way of life. Religious leaders wanted to know the motivation behind his ministry. However, John never wanted to go behind any name or fame. People asked him whether he was Elijah or a prophet. He makes his identity clear: He is neither Christ nor Elijah nor a prophet. He introduces himself as a voice crying out in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord. John came as a herald and forerunner of the Messiah. Abba has been preparing the people of Israel for the advent of his beloved Son down through the centuries by sending his prophets, judges, etc. Now, the time has come, and John is privileged to point out the Messiah to the whole world. All the other prophets prophesied about the Son of God, but no one received the privilege to witness him and share the same historical epoch with him. In fact, initially, the people of Israel took John the Baptist for granted and thought, if he is neither Elijah nor a prophet, then why did he give baptism? This situation did not bother John. He was certain that the baptism that he administers was meant to invite a person to repentance so that the people of Israel might recognise their saviour and turn their hearts to him. So that when the Messiah comes, they will be ready to receive him into their hearts. Thus, he prepared himself and the people of Israel to have an encounter with their Messiah.

How did John the Baptist fulfil his mission of preparing himself and the people of Israel to have an encounter? The first reading taken from Isaiah prefigures the mission of Christ as well as John the Baptist: “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” (Is. 61:1,2) John fulfilled this mission by preparing the people of Israel to receive their saviour. Moved by his life example and call to repentance, the crowd asked for his guidance, ‘What they should do?’ He advised them to share their coats with those who don’t have them, as well as the food. The tax collector felt the need for conversion and approached him; he told them to collect only the prescribed amount and not more than that. We see even the soldiers approached him with the same intention; he advised them not to extol money by force or any other form of corruption. Thus, those who repented and embraced a life of repentance and renewal could recognise Christ, and they had an encounter with him.

In the second reading taken from Paul’s letter to the first Thessalonians, it says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil.” (Thess. 5:16-22) Like John the Baptist and St. Paul, let us prepare ourselves to receive the Lord into our hearts. Once we lead a life with the intention of encountering the Lord, then our entire perspective changes. We see these particular aspects in the lives of both John the Baptist and Paul. John was prepared from his mother’s womb for this mission, and he had no other thoughts, words, or intentions other than proclaiming Jesus. Whereas, Paul lived as though he was on the correct path before his encounter with Christ, but once he encountered Christ, he realised the way, the truth, and the life. That moment his life was transformed, Paul became another herald of the Good News, preparing people’s hearts to encounter Jesus. Let us be inspired by the legacy of John the Baptist and Paul and prepare ourselves to encounter the Lord.