Homily for 3rd Sunday of Advent Year A 2025
Introduction
John the Baptist asks an interesting question in today’s gospel: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
For us, who have the advantage of 2,000 years of Christianity, John’s question might sound unnecessary. We might think: “But everyone knows Jesus is the Messiah!” So why is John asking a question with such an obvious answer?
Let us not be too quick to criticise John. Instead, let us ask ourselves: Would we recognize Jesus if He came among us today? Or would we, like John, look at someone who resembles the Christ and ask: “Are You the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
And so the message I want us to reflect on today is this: How do we recognize Christ when He comes into our lives?
Scripture and Theology
Although John and Jesus were cousins and likely grew up knowing each other, John still asks for confirmation. He had proclaimed a powerful Messiah — the one who would separate wheat from chaff, who would baptize with fire. But Jesus appears in gentleness, mercy, healing, and preaching. John, now sitting in prison, wants to be absolutely sure.
His question, then, is not a question of doubt but of discernment—the holy desire to recognize Jesus clearly. It is a question every believer must ask again and again: “Lord, where are You in my life? How can I recognize Your presence?”
Jesus’ answer may also surprise us. He does not give a long explanation. He simply says: “Go and tell John what you hear and see.” The blind see. The lame walk. Lepers are cleansed. The deaf hear. The dead are raised. The poor receive good news.
Jesus is saying to John: “You will recognise the Messiah not by words but by the works that fulfil God’s promises.”
To understand those promises, we go back to the first reading. Isaiah spoke to Israel during their exile — a people waiting, longing, asking the same question John asked: “When will God come to save us?”
Isaiah gives two powerful images:
1. God will transform the land. The desert will bloom. Dry ground will become fertile. The wilderness will become like the gardens of Lebanon and Carmel. Isaiah promises something like a restored Garden of Eden — a sign that God Himself is drawing near.
2. God will heal His people. The weak will be strengthened. “The eyes of the blind will be opened… the ears of the deaf cleared… the lame will leap like a stag… the mute will sing.” Healing, restoration, and joy — these will be the signs of the Messiah.
So when John sends his disciples to Jesus, Jesus answers by pointing precisely to Isaiah’s prophecy. Look at what is happening. The signs of God’s promised Kingdom are appearing. And John understands. He sends no further questions.
But Jesus also turns to the crowds and asks them another question: “What did you go out to the desert to see?” A reed swayed by the wind? A man in fine clothing? Someone living in a palace?
No — they found a simple prophet dressed in camel skin. And yet Jesus declares: “Among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist.”
Why? Because John recognized the Messiah when He came — and prepared others to do the same.
Christian Life
So, brothers and sisters, we too must learn to recognize not only Jesus, but also those whom He sends to prepare our hearts.
Who might God be sending to you as your “John the Baptist”?
• a catechist teaching faithfully every Sunday in a village chapel,
• a mother or father who prays with the children at night,
• a youth choosing honesty instead of corruption,
• a neighbour caring for an elderly relative,
• a priest or religious who speaks the truth even when it is unpopular,
• a Christian who helps a family in grief or sickness.
These are the voices crying out in our own desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight His paths!”
But above all, we must learn to recognize Jesus Himself in the works happening around us. When we, like John, ask Jesus: “Are You the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” He gives us the same answer: “Go and tell what you hear and see.”
What do we hear and see? The Kingdom may not be complete — but it is already here.
Here in Mbale, we see the Kingdom already alive in the simple faithfulness of ordinary Catholics. We see it in those who quietly support the poor with food, clothing, and small acts of mercy; in the youth who choose prayer groups, choirs, and apostolates instead of destructive paths; and in Christians who forgive deep injuries and choose reconciliation over revenge. These hidden acts reveal Christ at work among His people.
We also see the Kingdom in what the Church
as a whole is doing here in Mbale. The Church forms the young through schools,
catechism, and youth programs; she cares for the vulnerable through our
Catholic hospitals and clinics, our Babies’ Home at Gangama, and our homes for
the physically disabled in Butiru and Budaka. Most importantly, through her
priests, catechists, and sisters, she proclaims the gospel of salvation and
celebrates the sacraments that give us grace for our journey toward heaven. In
all these ways, the Church makes visible that Christ is truly in our midst —
and invites us to recognize Him.
Conclusion
Brothers and sisters, today is Gaudete Sunday — the Sunday of Joy. The Church pauses in the middle of Advent to remind us that Christ is already near, already present, already at work in our lives. St. James tells us in the second reading to be patient, like a farmer waiting for the early and late rains. But our patience is not empty waiting — it is joyful expectation, because the Lord is close at hand.
So Jesus asks us the same question He asked the disciples of John: “What do you hear and see?” If we look with the eyes of faith, we will recognize Him — in the mercy of His people, in the work of His Church, and in the quiet ways He heals, strengthens, and guides us every day.
May this Gaudete Sunday rekindle in us the joy of recognizing the Christ who is already among us, so that when He comes again in glory, we may welcome Him as the One for whom we have always been waiting.
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