The whole of the Christian life is like a great pilgrimage to the house of the Father, whose unconditional love for every human creature is something we rediscover anew each day. And while this pilgrimage takes place in the heart of each person, it should also extend to the believing community, and then reach out to the whole of humanity.
Jesus lived his life in ways that were unconventional and totally unexpected by those around him. John the Baptist pleaded with him that it was he who should be baptized. Peter argued that He would never wash his feet. The Pharisees pointed out that anyone who frequented with tax collectors and sinners could not possibly be the Messiah, the long-awaited conqueror.
But Jesus reveals the startling difference that the reign of God will come about not through military conquest, but through compassion and peace ("a bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench"). The Baptism of Jesus was a beginning - the beginning of the mission of compassion and justice, prefigured in the Servant passage of Isaiah and echoed by the heavenly voice.
Matthew's Gospel points out that the voice from heaven was actually directed to the crowd: "This is my beloved Son..." But in both Mark and Luke the affirmation is directed to Jesus: "You are my beloved Son..." And the voice of the Gospel is one which all of us are entitled to hear: "You are my beloved, with you I am well pleased."
There is a very beautiful image in the Isaiah reading today. God says to the chosen servant, "I have grasped you by the hand." God does not just send us out on our own as we face the obstacles the world throws at us. Instead, like a loving parent with a little child, God takes us chosen ones by the hand. Isaiah's image seems to be what we hear throughout the Gospels: we are anointed by the same Spirit as Jesus was. We are beloved daughters and sons. God takes us by the hand and leads us as we work to establish God's justice and peace in the world.
But all of us are bruised reeds and smoldering wicks. We are far from perfect, and rather consistently plagued by failure and selfishness. We are much too easily hurt, too easily discouraged. We fall short of expectations, we display our frailty like open wounds.
Yet despite this, the Lord has confidently chosen us to complete His work. We need to realize that we are living in a sacred space, populated by a multitude of folks who - like us - desperately want to be faith-filled, who sometimes get defeated, who sometimes get battered by life and bested by trials, and yet somehow, throughout it all, still cling to their faith.
At Christmas time, we are reminded again that God has entered our lives. But the Christmas season has now ended. We shouldn't wait for the heavens to open and the Spirit to come down to tell us what to do. God is speaking to us today and the shape of our life is changing.
God has gently and compassionately grasped us by the hand and has already prepared us for what lies ahead.
