Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

 

“Come and you will see.”

 

Gospel Reading: John 1:35-42

 

John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi" (which translated means Teacher), "where are you staying?" He said to them, "Come, and you will see." So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about four in the afternoon. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, "We have found the Messiah," which is translated Christ. Then he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon the son of John; you will be called Cephas," which is translated Peter.

 

Jesus said to disciples, "Come and you will see."  So what is it that they saw?  They saw the “the Lamb of God!”  The one who was sent to free us from the bonds of hell and open the gates of heaven.  Two disciples heard this message and decided to become followers Jesus Christ.  During this Christmas season, we too all called to “come” so we can “see” the “Lamb of God”.  We are called to come and know and become acquainted with Jesus Christ.  We are called to come so we can find out who is Jesus.  Jesus is referred to as the Lamb of God, the Pascal Lamb who was sent to save us from sin and lead us to the Kingdom of Heaven.  This is the same Passover Lamb that led the Israelites out of Egypt.  The two disciples recognized Jesus as “the Messiah.”  We too are invited to follow Christ so we can get to know him. 

 

One of the two who followed Jesus was Andrew, the brother of Simon.  In response to his encounter, Andrew reaches out Simon and calls him forth to become a disciple of Christ.  He is called forth to have an encounter with Christ.  Like Andrew, when we encounter Christ, we are not only call to encounter Jesus, but to invite others to his table.  We are called to invite others to experience Jesus.  How many of us received a gift this Christmas we just had to share with others?  When we opened the package, we were so excited that we called our friends to let them know what we had received.  Every Christmas, our gift from God is renewed and reopened.  The big question is what did you do with this gift?  Did you set this gift aside or did open it with overwhelming joy. This is what Andrew felt like when he encountered Christ.  He was so overwhelmed with joy that he had to share this gift with others.  When we encounter Christ, we should have the desire to lead others to Jesus Christ with the same enthusiasm and excitement we would for any prized treasure we receive.  We should call all to “Come and see.”

 

A Simple Prayer

 

Lord, You are the lamb of God.

I want to follow you.

I want to come and see.

Give me the strength to bring others to you.

 

Yours in Christ,

Michael Marcon