Second Sunday of Advent - Fr. Leo

 “I have baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

In the last sentence of today’s gospel, we see two aspects of the path to holiness.

First, is the baptism with water.  This John does as a human, so it points to all that we can do to prepare for holiness. Just as water sustains life and we use water to clean, so too are we called to be clean by an ethical and moral life.  

The second aspect of becoming holy, comes form the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  This is not something we can make happen.  It is God’s continual invitation to us to let him live in us with his love - that all we are, say and do, become expressions of the God who lives in us.

Life in the Spirit is easy and joyful and the extent of our joy reflects our giving up our way’s that are not God’s ways.  There is a tension between how God’s spirit will have us live and how we may want to live.  But the more we surrender to God, the less pain we have in the ethical and moral living we are called to.  In fact, what was painful and difficult at first, becomes joy. Our new unity and sharing in the fullness of the Spirit makes doing God’s will a pleasure.  

To reflect, are there things we do today with peace and confidence that at one time would have been a nightmare for us?

As we grow in our trust in God’s love, do we feel closer to God with assurances of faith? Are we more at peace than we were before?