3rd Week of Advent

Joseph knew that Mary’s expected child wasn’t his. Under Mosaic Law, pretending otherwise would result in God’s punishment of the Israelite nation. An angel came to reassure Joseph of God’s blessing. An angel also appeared to Zechariah, who doubted the message that his wife, Elizabeth, would bear a son in the couple’s old age. It seemed impossible! Zechariah lost the ability to speak until the day he named their baby in accordance with the angel’s message. The child became John the Baptist. In His ministry, Jesus offered to tell religious leaders where He got His authority if they would answer whether baptism by John had heavenly or human origin. No one dared to say, because they failed to see John’s baptism of repentance as preparation for Baptism in the Holy Spirit. Scripture—the Word of God!—comes to us. Through Baptism, the Holy Spirit dwells within us. When something seems too good to be true, how do we choose between doubt or faith?

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