3rd Sunday of Advent- Jesus, the Messiah Has Come to Save Us

 

In the Gospel today, while John the Baptist was in prison, John's disciples came to visit him. He told them to go to Jesus, and ask Him a question, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" The question really means, “Are You the Messiah, who will come to save us?”

The Jews were looking for the Messiah, who would come to save them from their sins and reconcile them back to God. But, during the time of Jesus, and even today, some Jews thought the Messiah would be a military leader, who would save the Jewish people from their enemies. But this idea is not scriptural. This wrong idea is why many Jews today reject Jesus.

Jesus declared Himself the Messiah when He responded, "Go tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.”

The prophet Isiah, who lived 800 years before Jesus predicted what the Messiah would do, "Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God. He will come with vengeance, with terrible recompense. He will come and save you.” Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy." (Isiah chapter 35:4-6)

The Jewish people expected the Messiah to work these kinds of miracles, and so, by Jesus pointing them out, He was telling John's disciples, He is the Messiah.

Through every generation Jesus continues to physically heal, but first and foremost, to save people from their sins.

Here are some real-life examples of Jesus causing the deaf hear, the blind see, the lame walk.

Bruno from Brazil was born deaf in his left ear. One day, in 2007, he learned about Isidoro Zorzano through the Opus Dei website, and he decided to pray to him. A month later, on April 4, 2007, when his alarm went off, he realized through the intercession of Isidoro Zorzano he could hear. Pope Francis declared Isidoro venerable.

Mother Angelica, a Poor Clare nun of Perpetual Adoration, who founded EWTN, was miraculously healed of the leg and back pain that had hobbled her for 40 years due to a floor buffer accident. Jesus healed her through the mystic, who came to visit Our Lady of the Angels Monastery near Birmingham, Ala., where EWTN is headquartered. Mother and mystic Paola Albertini prayed the Rosary together on Jan. 28, 1998. When Paola came out of the vision, Mother Angelica could walk without crutches and braces, raised her arms in triumph and even danced. After the healing Mother Angelica cautioned that others with physical pain and illness should not necessarily expect miraculous healing. Instead, she said that when medical means cannot produce healing, people should “offer up” their pain “as a way of saving souls.” And she added: "I think we forget that the Rosary is powerful."

A few months after I was ordained in 2004, when I was giving Communion to the home bound, I went to the house of a lady in her 90's. She told me that she was going blind in her eyes, but she said, she asked Jesus to not let her go blind before she dies. She said she started a novena to St. Lucy, who is the patron for the healing of eyes. The following week, when I went to visit her, she said she happened to have an eye appointment on the last of the 9-day novena. On that day, the doctor prescribed her a new medicine called "Lucere". The woman said her vision actually improved and she believed St. Lucy interceded to Jesus for her, so that Our Lord could keep her eyesight.

In a previous homily, I told you about Andre, an 8-month-old boy, who had Leukemia. When I was pastor of Sacred Heart in Halstead, Andre's parents, Zach and Melanie, were beside themselves and in terrible anguish. Melanie phoned and asked me to anoint her baby, I replied, "I'm sorry, but I can't because the Church desires that anointing of the sick be given to only those who are of the age of reason." I said, "Come to my office, and we can pray for little Andre." When they arrived, we prayed the prayer to Fr. Kapaun, and they immediately left for a doctor appointment. After running lab tests, the results came back normal. The doctor said the child no longer had Leukemia. Some believe Jesus healed the child through the intercession of Fr. Kapaun.

Besides Jesus raising Lazarus back to life, the little girl who died, and also the young boy being carried out in a coffin, Jesus raises the dead through saints: St. Dominic, St. Vincent Ferrer, St. Patrick, St. Joseph of Cupertino, St. Rose of Lima, St. Martin de Porres, and many other saints, God used them to bring the dead back to life.

Today, Jesus continues to work miracles as the Messiah. He fulfills the prophet Isaiah's prophecy, "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy."

More importantly than physical healings, Jesus, the Messiah, came to save us from our sins. It is infinitely more important for our soul to be healed from sin, than for our bodies to be healed. That is why before Jesus healed the paralytic, he said, "My child, your sins are forgiven." Then he said, "So that you may know the Son of Man has power to forgive sins, I say to you, take up your mat and go home." First his soul was healed, then the paralytic was physically healed.

Jesus first and foremost wants to heal the soul and then, if it's His will, He can also heal the body. But in order to be physically healed, we should first have all our sins forgiven and forgive all those who hurt us. How can God heal us, if we are not sorry for our sins and if we haven't forgiven others? What good would it be, if our body was healed, but our soul wasn't and then we were to die and lose our soul forever?

Jesus not only saves us through the forgiveness of our sins in Confession, He also wants to make us holy through trials and sufferings.

St. Padre Pio said, "God neither wants, nor is able, to save and sanctify us without the Cross. The more He calls a soul to Himself, the more He sanctifies it by means of the Cross. By suffering we are able to give something to God. The gift of pain, and suffering is a big thing and cannot be accomplished in Paradise."

Saint Therese said, "Sufferings greatly help to detach us from this earth, they make us look higher than this world. It is such joy to think that for each little pain borne with joy, I shall love God more through eternity."

St. Margaret Mary said, "The Heart of Jesus is closer to you when you suffer than when you are full of joy."

My friends, Jesus is the Messiah, who has come to reconcile us back to God, save us from our sins, help us to grow in holiness, and on occasion heal us physically to help us grow in faith. He also came to help us embrace our sufferings and crosses to help us get to heaven.

Jesus always, at all times wants to heal us spiritually, by saving us from our sins and helping us to endure our suffering. We are all sinners and in need of being saved.

Over the centuries, how many billions of people had their sins washed away in the ocean of God's mercy by Jesus the Messiah. O, the multitude who suffered everything and anything out of love for Jesus, because He saved them from their sins and by the sufferings and pains they endured, their souls were made ready for paradise, our eternal home in heaven.