JESUS IS THE TRUE MESSIAH, THE SON OF GOD, THE SON OF DAVID, THE SON OF MARY
⏰FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT, YEAR B
📖2 Sam 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16; Ps 89:2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29 (R.2a); Rom 16:25-27; Luke 1:26-38
🎤JESUS IS THE TRUE MESSIAH, THE SON OF GOD, THE SON OF DAVID, THE SON OF MARY
It is the last Sunday before Christmas! The liturgy of today exposes to us the real identity of Jesus and challenges us on our contribution in revealing that identity of Jesus to the world.
In the First Reading, God makes a promise through the prophet Nathan to build an eternal dynasty for David and that his son would sit on the throne of that dynasty. Could that son be Solomon or any of his offspring? The much we know shows that all of them died. Who then could the prophet Nathan be referring to?
The angel tells us in the Gospel that that son of David who would sit on his throne forever is Jesus (cf. Luke 1:31-32). The mention of Joseph in that account (Luke 1:27) serves the purpose of making that claim in that account legal. Mary is also of the line of David but the Jews do not consider women so much, hence the need for the mention of Joseph as the father.
However, we do know that Jesus was conceived without the aid of a human father. The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). So we can see that Jesus is first of all the Son of God. But he is also legally the Son of David and the Son of Mary.
It is a great privilege for David and Mary to participate in bringing God to the world as man. Let us consider the roles they played to create room for such a privilege.
The generosity and selflessness of David in thinking of building a house for God was the predisposition needed for the promise which was made to him.
Those two qualities were also found in Mary. She did not consider what might happen to her if she is found to be with child outside wedlock; the Law recommends that any woman found in such a condition should be disgraced and stoned to death (cf. Deut 22:20-21; Matt 1:18-19). Yet, she responded freely and without reserve, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38).
With that final response, Mary also added a third quality which is faith. She believed that God will do as he promised and will also not abandon her (see Luke 1:45).
We too need to embrace those three qualities of faith, generosity and selflessness in this season so as to make the face of Jesus more visible in the world. St. Paul says in the Second Reading that it is only in our time that we come to the full understanding of the fulfillment of that promise in Jesus.
Can I not also be a channel for making that understanding fuller? How many people have I been generous to with my talent, time and treasure? Do I think about the welfare of others before thinking of myself? Do I really trust God much?
We must all answer those question for ourselves, knowing that we cannot lie to ourselves or to God.
May God grant us the grant us the grace of persevering in faith, generosity and selflessness and so gain Christ in our life. Amen
Have a grace-filled Sunday. Peace be with you
