pure wheat before Jesus

Homily for the Second Sunday of Advent Year A

by Fr. Tommy Lane

John the Baptist is a powerful image placed before us every Advent. We might want to say John the Baptist preparing for Christ is our model during Advent. In the Gospel today (Matt 3:1-12), John announces judgment, and next Sunday’s Gospel tells us of Jesus bringing salvation. John’s first word announces his theme: “Repent.” In other words, John asks his listeners to turn their minds and hearts away from whatever they had as their goal and look only to God. The reason is because “the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matt 3:2) In other words, Jesus the Messiah has already arrived. Everything about John shows that he himself had turned away from everything to look only to God. He had nothing in the desert; he only had a garment of camel hair and whatever food he could find in the desert. John is living the very message he proclaims: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Because John is obviously radiating God’s word, as we heard, Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going to John. Normally it would be the reverse; they would all go to Jerusalem. Already with the preaching of John the Baptist there is something new in the air that is not in the temple in Jerusalem. Therefore, even the Pharisees and Sadducees come to John the Baptist and he reminded them that no matter what their dignity they too must repent and cannot just pretend to repent:

Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ (Matt 3:8-9)

Jesus came to save but if we reject Jesus then we bring judgment on ourselves so John says,

Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. (Matt 3:10)

John describes Jesus using the image of a farmer threshing. At the threshing, the wheat and the chaff are separated. The farmer blows with his fan and the wheat falls down to the floor while the chaff is blown away and is burned later. John is making it clear that now is a critical time and repentance will save the situation.

John makes it very clear that he is not the Messiah, he is only preparing for the coming of the Messiah:

I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. (Matt 3:11)

The baptism given by John was only a water baptism as a sign of repentance from sin and did not give the Holy Spirit, but Jesus’ baptism gives the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is the one full of the Spirit prophesied in the first reading from Isaiah. Isaiah prophesied that a shoot would sprout from the stump of Jesse and the Spirit of the Lord would rest on him. Jesse was the father of King David, and they are of the tribe of Judah. Jesus also is of the tribe of Judah. Jesus is the one on whom Isaiah sees resting

a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
a spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord (Isa 11:2)

These are six gifts of the Spirit in the Hebrew Old Testament, and the Greek translation adds a seventh gift of the Spirit, piety, resting on the shoot sprouting from Jesse. Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy of Isaiah and had the fullness of these seven gifts of the Spirit. They are the seven gifts of the Spirit that the bishop prays we receive when we are confirmed. The bishop prays during confirmation:

Give them the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of right judgment and courage,
the Spirit of knowledge and reverence.
Fill them with the Spirit of wonder and awe in your presence.

Not only does Isaiah see Jesus sprouting up in the tribe of Judah full of the Spirit but he also sees the time of Jesus as one when hopes are fulfilled. Isaiah describes this in an imaginative way as animals completely at peace with each other:

Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest (Isa 11:6-7)

Although imaginative language, it does describe something real—the difference that having Jesus in our life makes, which is the peace of pure wheat and no chaff. Is there chaff in our lives that needs to be blown away and burnt so that we can stand before Christ as pure wheat?

A voice of one crying out in the desert,
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.’ (Matt 3:3)

When we remove the chaff and become pure wheat for God, we have harmony and integrity in our life:

Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them. (Isa 11:6)

Copyright © Fr. Tommy Lane 2010

This homily was delivered in a parish in Maryland.

More homilies for the Second Sunday of Advent Year A

The Peace of Jesus 2007

Related Homilies: Making room for Jesus in our hearts during Advent 2015

God is offering you a grace this Advent

Advent: preparing our hearts for the the Second Coming of Jesus