The greatest Christian who ever lived was a man who simply pointed to Jesus.
John the Baptist was not known for his great intellect.
He wasn’t known for his money or possessions.
He wasn’t known for his buff body, clothes, or cracking good looks.
John was known for putting himself aside and letting the Lord take center stage.

The Church has always held the highest esteem for those who do this –
who abandon themselves, letting God take over, throwing off the
security blankets of wealth, family, safety, political correctness,
and public approval – acknowledging that of all the Christian virtues,
this is the most admired - and least imitated.

What John did for Jesus, is so hard for us to do today – awash as we
are in our acquisitive and narcissistic culture – that brainwashes us
into thinking that our deepest fulfillment lies in focusing on our own
keep. But the message of the season is that living a good Christian
life is difficult but not impossible. We can cut through the things
that bind us. We can get a fresh start. We can go down into the
River Jordan and come back better.

This Second Sunday in Advent is about the power of abandonment. We
see a man – a bedraggled and undernourished heckler – whose only
concern was for the One who came after him. This is what made John
great. The source of his power was his weakness. The place of his
exaltation came in his lowliness. How ready are we to abandon
ourselves – to step aside, and let the Lord take center stage?

Reading
God is Not Great – Christopher Hitchens
The Sorrows and Pleasures of Work – Alaine de Boton
Matthew – Donald A. Hagner