Kaukauna Catholic Parishes

When you came into church today, you probably noticed that the Christmas decorations are gone. You know where Mary, Joseph and Jesus are, don’t you? No, they are not in Egypt. They are in boxes for storage. Some of the poinsettias may remain. They, particularly the red flowers, are a good reminder that the one we celebrate on Christmas gave His blood for us.

The Christmas season is over. Now we move on with the very beginning of Jesus’ public life. In our Gospel reading, we come upon John the Baptist seeing Jesus and pointing to Him. “This is the Lamb of God,” he says. We use the term “Lamb of God” so often that it is easy for us to overlook the deep theology and the unfathomable love our God displayed in sending His Son to be the Lamb. 

Why did the world need a savior to suffer and die for us? Was Christmas necessary? From the very beginning of the world, all creation was entrusted to humanity. Instead of glorifying God, creation was used to satisfy man’s selfish needs. Out of love, God still did not take the gift of creation away. A man would once more restore creation to God’s original plan. Jesus Christ was that man.

Jesus came to live as the Father wants us all to live. He sacrificed himself completely for others so that we could experience sacrificial love. He called us to use creation as the Father meant creation to be used. Entrusted with creation, a man restored the world.

John the Baptist saw Jesus and proclaimed, “Look, there is the Lamb of God.” The one who became a man was the Lamb who was slain for us. He restored our life with God by conquering sin. When we say or sing “Lamb of God,” we are remembering what Jesus did for us and what he has empowered us to do for others.  We are remembering His sacrifice to make God’s love manifested in the world.

John the Baptist found his reason for existence. He was to point out the Lamb of God to the world. His mission is the mission of every Christian. There is nothing greater any of us can do in our lives than to reveal Christ to our children and then to all we encounter. May we have the courage, like John the Baptist, in saying with our lives, “Look, there is the Lamb of God.”

Deacon Mark