First Reading • Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10
Psalm • Psalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10.
Second Reading • James 5:7-10
Gospel • Matthew 11:2-11
Today’s Gospel opens with a poignant scene: John the Baptist in prison, sending his disciples to Jesus with a profound question: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
At first glance, we may wonder how John; of all people; could ask this. Did he not witness the Spirit descend upon Jesus? Did he not hear the Father’s voice proclaim, “This is my beloved Son”?
But far from showing doubt, John is performing his final act of humility and faith. John knows who Jesus is. He is not wavering.
Rather, from his prison cell, he is handing over his remaining disciples, urging them to encounter Jesus for themselves and begin following Him. The best man is stepping aside so that the Bridegroom may take His bride.
Just as a bridegroom desires the heart of his bride, Jesus desires our hearts; joyful, open, and ready to receive Him.
To understand this moment, we must ask why John is imprisoned at all. King Herod had unlawfully taken his brother’s wife. John, fearless in truth, condemned this public scandal. But Herod’s wrongdoing goes much deeper than an illicit marriage. Herod is not a legitimate king of Israel; not a son of David, not even a full Jew. His throne rests entirely on Roman power. His marriage, in a sense, mirrors his kingship: illegitimate, corrupt, and falsely rooted.
By denouncing Herod’s marriage, John is also unmasking the illegitimacy of Herod’s kingdom. The true King; Jesus Christ, has arrived. The Kingdom of God is breaking into the world, overturning not only Herod’s petty rule but the might of Rome itself.
And this new King is not a tyrant; He is the Bridegroom. He comes not to dominate but to love. Not to enslave but to enter into covenant with His people.
John is the friend of the Bridegroom, pointing to the One who seeks not just obedience, but the love of our hearts.
Because the Bridegroom wants more than faith; He wants your heart– clean, open heart.
This is the invitation John makes to us today: Do not simply believe in Jesus. Fall in love with Him.
Give Him not only your faith, but your heart.
This is the meaning of Christmas: the eternal God became a child so that we could know Him, love Him, and enter into a relationship with Him.
Let these final days of Advent be a time to remove whatever keeps us from loving Christ wholeheartedly.
When John’s disciples come to Jesus, He answers them with the prophecy from Isaiah: “The blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk…” But He leaves one line out: do you know which line?
“…and the captives will be set free.”
Jesus is gently telling John that he will not leave prison. His mission will be completed through suffering and martyrdom.
This reveals a deep spiritual truth. Christ’s Kingdom is here, but not fully.
Miracles are happening already. But suffering still remains, not yet taken away.
Some are healed to show God’s power.
Others are not healed so they may show God’s glory through perseverance.
Both are loved. Both are chosen. Both are held close to God’s heart.
Like John, many of us know what it is to sit in our own “prisons”: We may cry out: “Lord, when will I be free?”
John was physically imprisoned, but many of us know what it feels like to live behind invisible bars- fear, hurt, loneliness, rejection, abandonment, closed hearts or unanswered prayers.
Some doors open in this life…
and some will only be opened when Christ returns in glory.
We all know what this feels like.
Even if we’re not behind physical bars, many of us are in emotional or spiritual prisons:
– an illness that doesn’t go away,
– a situation that seems immovable,
– a relationship that causes pain,
– a burden of grief or loneliness.
– wounded memories
– waiting for a breakthrough that hasn’t come
John’s message to us is simple:
Trust the Bridegroom.
He has not forgotten you.
Your liberation will come.
Isaiah answers us today: “Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.”
God is with you in your suffering. If He heals you, it is for a good reason. If He asks you to carry the cross a little longer, that too is for a good reason.
What matters is trust – trust that your liberation will come in God’s perfect time. Christ is not distant from us.
He is the Bridegroom who loves His bride passionately and tenderly. You need only look at the Eucharist on this altar to see how deeply He desires us.
His coming in Bethlehem was only the beginning. We now await His Second Coming, when He will wipe every tear from our eyes and gather us forever into His joy.
This is why we rejoice – even in trials, even in prisons, even in waiting.
Because the One who is to come has already come, and the One who has come will come again in glory.pe, from darkness to light, from death to life.
