Second Sunday in Ordinary Time B

The speaker expresses joy in sharing the Gospel and discusses the transition from the Christmas season to ordinary time in the Church. They emphasize the importance of discipleship and opening oneself to Jesus. The passage from John's Gospel is read, highlighting John the Baptist pointing to Jesus as the Lamb of God. The disciples follow Jesus and spend the day with him, defining discipleship as being with Jesus in friendship. The importance of sharing the encounter with Jesus is emphasized. The speaker encourages personal reflection on the passage and invites listeners to spend time with Jesus. The speaker concludes with a prayer and encourages listeners to let the word received grow within them throughout the week. Greetings, friends. What a joy to share the Gospel. We move now into what the Church calls ordinary time. This is the time of discipleship, walking and living with Jesus, growing in His grace as we experience in Him the mystery of God's saving presence in our midst. Jesus' life is mediated to us in the sacred scriptures. Let's prepare ourselves, intentionally opening our hearts and our spirits to Him. Let's take a moment to quiet ourselves. If you will, take a deep breath slowly in and slowly out. Come, Lord Jesus, allow Your Holy Spirit to bring Your Word to life in me. May I hear Your voice, Good Shepherd. The first step of the ancient prayer of Lectio Divina is simply to read the passage. We read to become familiar with the narrative and to begin to open ourselves to the movement of the Holy Spirit carried on the words of the Gospel. On this second Sunday in Ordinary Time, we read from John's Gospel, chapter 1, verses 35-42. The next day, John was there again with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, Behold the Lamb of God. The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following Him and said to them, What are you looking for? They said to Him, Rabbi, which translated means teacher, where are you staying? He said to them, Come, and you will see. So they went and saw where He was staying, and they stayed with Him that day. It was about four in the afternoon. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, We have found the Messiah, which is translated anointed. Then he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, You are Simon, the son of John. You will be called Cephas, which is translated Peter. One could hardly, I don't think, imagine a more appropriate passage for our transition from the Christmas season into ordinary time. Here stands once again that great Advent figure, John the Baptist, doing just what he does best, pointing to Jesus as he cries out before two of his own disciples, Behold the Lamb of God. What a poignant title, Lamb of God. We know that at the exodus from Egypt, the Israelites sacrificed a lamb, smearing its blood on the doorpost so that the angel of death would pass over them. Jesus is the Lamb whose blood will save the human race. The two follow, though at a distance. Jesus asks them, What are you looking for? Oh, friends, what are you looking for? What a great question. I wonder if you can hear Jesus. Listen closely, deeply. Can you hear him asking you, What are you looking for? These disciples tell Jesus they are interested in knowing where he stays. Jesus doesn't tell them where he stays, notice. Instead, he invites them to come and be with him. And we are told, so significantly, they stayed the whole day with him. In this, discipleship is defined. To be a disciple, before learning anything, before doing anything, is to simply be with Jesus in friendship, to stay with him. Notice one of the two, whichever one told the gospel writer, I suppose, remembered exactly what time he first encountered Jesus. It was four in the afternoon. No of us can ever forget the first moment when our eyes, our hearts were first opened to the reality of Jesus. When they leave, what do they do? Well, Andrew, anyways, he goes straight away and shares his encounter with Jesus with his brother Peter. The encounter with Jesus, you see, simply must be shared with others. This gospel is the story of discipleship in its first stages as it begins to come to life. I can hardly wait to read it now again. Be sensitive, please, as the passage is read to how it is speaking to you personally. Become aware of what stands out for you, a word or phrase or image that draws you into the encounter with Jesus. Once again we open ourselves to the word as we read John chapter one, verses thirty-five through forty-two. The next day, John was there again with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, Behold the Lamb of God. The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, What are you looking for? They said to him, Rabbi, which translated means teacher, where are you staying? He said to them, Come, and you will see. So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about four in the afternoon. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, We have found the Messiah, which is translated anointed. Then he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, You are Simon, the son of John. You will be called Cephas, which is translated Peter. We come now to the second step of Lectio Divina, this praying with the Gospel, which is meditation. In meditating on the Word, we pause to ponder and reflect on what has stood out to us, to savor that word, phrase, or image from the Gospel that speaks most powerfully to us. What is speaking to you at this moment? What in this passage is drawing you toward Jesus? For me, I am still amazed, and at this very moment amazed, at Jesus' invitation to come and just be with him. Jesus wants me to hang out with him. Remarkable. What does it mean for me to walk with Jesus in friendship? Dear Jesus, thank you for this moment now. Thank you for wanting to renew our friendship. You renew in me, in this moment, the invitation to be with you, to simply spend time with you. I want to spend this whole day with you. And friends, let me invite you again to continue to sit with this Gospel. Notice how it stirs within you. Talk to Jesus about what his word is doing in you now. Before leaving prayer, be sure to intentionally place the word you have received deep in your spirit, where the Lord might bring it growth throughout this week ahead. Friends, it is a joy to share the Gospel with you. Amen.