Mt 11:2-11 Are You the One?
Lord, increase my faith for I long to see your face!
What came first, the chicken or the egg? The answer to this profound scientific riddle can only be found outside the circle since an egg requires a chicken and a chicken required the egg. So, there must have been one that was neither chicken nor egg; one that goes beyond the chicken and the egg. In other words, there must be one that frees us from the chicken and the egg.
St. John the Baptist was starting to get a little nervous. Things weren’t going as planned. He was in prison. He was scared and alone. He was beginning to doubt. The prophecy from Isaiah was clear and John knew scripture well - he wore it in his heart and mind. He knew what Isaiah had written (Is 61:1) and what Jesus had read (the day he arrived in Nazareth and entered the synagogue, opened the scroll and read these words), “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”
And so, the Baptist’s question was simple: Are you the One? Are you the One who can explain it all and do it all? Are you the One who can give meaning to life? Are you the one who can do these things and so much more or are we to look for another? To Mormon? To Mohammad?
Jesus said to his disciples and they said to John the following:
“Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight…
[The Baptist: Awesome!]
The lame walk.
[The Baptist: Great! Keep going!!!]
The deaf hear.
[The Baptist: Even better!]
And last but not least…
[The Baptist: I know!!! I know!!! The oppressed are set free!!!]
Ahh…Not exactly…The dead are raised.
[The Baptist: Oh.]
The Lord came into the world not to eliminate death but to embrace it and to transform it into a blessing. Yes! Thank God we die. Thank God we do not have to live on this earth for all eternity. This would have been a far worse curse than death. Imagine for a moment having to deal with betrayals, denials, lies, pain and suffering, broken promises and revealed secrets, now and forever! Imagine living forever in fear and in doubt.
The Lord came to earth and gave us something far better than Isaiah’s prophecy: He gave us a break and some undeserved rest. When we are experiencing anguish and there doesn’t seem to be much to hold on to, the Baptist reminds us of how important The Truth is. Hold on to the Lord for He is definitely the One! O Come, let us adore Him in our moments of happiness, trials and tribulations.
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