TOPIC: THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD
C, SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 3:15-16, 21-22, JANUARY 9, 2022
1.
STORY
Mary, a non-Christian, attended a Catholic school. Although she liked to
discuss religion with the priests and sisters, she had no desire to be baptized.
One day, when she was in form five, she went to one of the priests and asked to
be baptized. Surprised by this change in her attitude, he asked what changed
her mind about baptism. She said that it was the good example of the priests
and sisters. By their words and actions, they showed the love of God. She was
eventually baptized and considered the date of her baptism more important than
her birthday. God had changed her life.
2.
GOSPEL, LUKE 3:15-16, 21-22
A. THE HOLY SPIRIT DESCENDED UPON HIM.
When Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the river Jordan, Jesus
received the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus was given the power to carry out
his mission of preaching the gospel and saving the people.
B. YOU ARE MY BELOVED SON. WITH YOU I AM WELL PLEASED.
Jesus came to us to do the will of his father thus making him pleasing
to his father. Obedience to the father’s will was extremely important to Jesus.
He did not come to do his own will.
3.
APPLICATION TO LIFE
A. THE GIFTS WE RECEIVE AT BAPTISM.
At baptism we receive the following four gifts.
i) We become adopted children of God the Father. We can call him, “Our
Father.”
ii) Jesus becomes our brother who cares for us and has come to save
us.
iii) The Holy Spirit becomes our guide. We become temples of the Holy
Spirit who lives in us.
iv) We become members of the family of God, the Catholic Church. We have
the right to receive the sacraments from the Church.
B. WE STRIVE TO BECOME PLEASING TO GOD.
We become pleasing to God by obeying his will.
i) We love God by trusting him, praying to him, and obeying his
commandments.
ii) We love our neighbor by being kind, helpful, and forgiving towards
them. We avoid hurting them by what we say and do.
iii) We love ourselves by caring for our spiritual and physical health.
We try to eat properly, get enough rest, do some exercise, and do not overwork.
We pray daily, attend Sunday Mass, receive Holy
Communion, and make a good confession several times each year.
4.
CONCLUSION
Mary, because of the good example of the priests and nuns in her school,
was moved by God to be baptized. This event changed her life. When Jesus was
baptized, he received the gift and power of the Holy Spirit to preach the
gospel and to save us. By his life of obedience, he was pleasing to his Father.
At our baptism we became adopted children of the Father, Jesus became our
brother, the Holy Spirit became our guide, and we became members of the family
of God, the Catholic Church. By doing God’s will, we, like Jesus, become
pleasing to our Father. We thank God for the gift of baptism. We pray for the
strength to be obedient to God.
