HOMILIES

Dear Audience,
For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!

Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year A)

Jan 18, 2026

513

Listen Read

First Reading

A reading from the Book of Prophet Isaiah (49:3, 5-6)

The Lord said to me: You are my servant, Israel, through whom I show my glory. Now the Lord has spoken who formed me as His servant from the womb, that Jacob may be brought back to Him and Israel gathered to Him; and I am made glorious in the sight of the Lord, and my God is now my strength! It is too little, the Lord says, for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the Earth.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10)

(R) Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.

I have waited, waited for the Lord, and He stooped toward me and heard my cry. And He put a new song into my mouth, a hymn to our God. (R)

Sacrifice or offering you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave me. Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not; then said I, "Behold I come". (R)

"In the written scroll it is prescribed for me: to do your will, O my God, is my delight, and your law is within my heart!" (R)

I announced your justice in the vast assembly; I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (1:1-3)

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (1:29-34)

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, "A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me. I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel."" John testified further, saying, "I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and remain upon him. I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, "On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit", Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God".

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

Last week, we heard that people were flocking to the Jordan river to hear John preach and to receive the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin from him. Then Jesus, who was sinless and had no need of repentance, also came to John to be baptized. John, knowing Jesus' identity and His mission, refused to baptize Him. But Jesus convinced John that it was only necessary and right for Him to be baptized. By doing so, Jesus (a) identified fully with those He came to save, (b) affirmed John's role as a prophet and messenger preparing the way for Him, (c) demonstrated His submission to God's will, setting an example for us to follow, and (d) inaugurated His public ministry.

In today's gospel, John introduces Jesus as the "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." What exactly does that mean? The ancient Israelites were nomadic shepherds. Many of their early leaders such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David were all shepherds. Animals such as sheep, particularly lambs or baby sheep, goats, and oxen were not only their staple food but also their sacrificial animals, each with specific symbolic meanings. So, when John described Jesus as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world", the Israelites probably thought of three important ritual sacrifices in their time and culture.

Their first thought might have been the slaughter of a lamb during the Feast of Passover. Passover commemorates the liberation of the ancient Israelites, led by Moses, from Egypt around 1,500 years before Jesus. But their path to liberation was not immediate. It took ten devastating plagues before Pharaoh was finally convinced to free them. The tenth and final plague was the death of all the firstborn humans and animals in Egypt. Before the plague, God commanded Moses to tell the Israelites to kill an unblemished lamb and apply the lamb's blood on their doors and stay inside their houses, so that when the angel of death "passed over" he would see the blood and spare their children from death. That fateful night in Egypt, those under the blood of the lamb were saved, and those not under the blood of the lamb died. For centuries, the Israelite families continued to remember the event by sacrificing a lamb substituting for the person who could have died in the plague.
Another ritual sacrifice they probably thought of was the regular burnt offering in the Temple in Jerusalem. The burnt offering refers to placing a spotless animal on the altar and burning it whole as a sacrifice to God. It was performed every morning and evening, for general atonement of sin and expression of thanks, worship, devotion, and commitment to God, Leviticus (1:1-7; 4:32-25; 6:8-13) and Exodus (29:38-42). Sins of an individual were symbolically transferred to the slaughtered lambs in order to propitiate the wrath of God against the person.
The other important sacrifice they might have thought of was Abraham's burnt offering. Remember the story of God calling Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, as a burnt offering as a proof his faith in and obedience to Him! As they were climbing up the mountain with the fire and wood for the sacrifice, Isaac asked Abraham, "Where is the lamb?" and Abraham replied that God Himself would provide. Eventually, when they submitted their will to God and were ready for the sacrifice, God stopped Abraham and provided a ram as a substitute sacrifice.

So, when John introduced Jesus as the Lamb of God, he was pointing out to the people that Jesus replaced the entire sacrificial system of the Old Testament. In Jesus, all the three sacrifices were fulfilled. No more lambs needed to die. 1) Jesus is our Passover Lamb. Just as the blood of the lamb saved the Israelites from death in Egypt, the blood of Jesus, shed on the cross, saves us from eternal death and brings us into new life. (2) Jesus is our perfect and ultimate sacrifice for sin. Animal sacrifices could not take away our sins and guilt, Hebrews (10:1-18). But Jesus as the Lamb of God offered Himself in atonement for the sins and sorrows of a fallen world and the fallen people in it, once and for all. (3) Just as God provided a ram so that Isaac could live, so that he would not receive a penalty of death, God provided His own Son Jesus Christ as the sacrificial lamb to stand in the place of every human being. Thus, Jesus fulfilled all three types of sacrifices in a way that highlights the different facets of His redemptive work on our behalf.

As the Lamb of God, Jesus had a specific mission - to take away the sin of the world. What is "sin"? The Hebrew word for sin is "khata", meaning "to fail" or "to miss the goal." What is the goal? The answer comes from page one of the Bible, which says that God created us, human beings, in His own image, so that we would display or reflect or communicate to the world who He is, how great He is, and what He is like, Genesis (1:27). The Bible describes God as loving, merciful, kind, faithful, all-powerful, eternal, holy, righteous and perfect. Sadly, we lost the perfect image of God when Adam and Eve rebelled against God and fell into sin. So, in biblical context, sin refers to a thought, word, or deed that goes against God's will, His law, or His character, John (3:4).

Since, we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, God sent His own Son, Jesus Christ, to restore the broken image in us, through His life of perfect obedience, His sacrificial death on the cross for our sins, and His resurrection from the dead, Romans (3:23). Therefore, we don't need to come to God with any sacrificial offering for sin, because Jesus has already fulfilled the Old Testament system of worship through His once-for-all sacrifice. All we need to do is to look up in faith to Jesus, the Lamb of God, follow Him wherever He leads us and allow Him to be our Saviour, to cleanse us of all shame and sin and clothe us in His righteousness so that the image of God will be restored within us.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

Content Options

to download the audio file Sign In » or Register ».
generate Google Translate Layout ».
share this homily via:

Top of Page

More Homilies this Month

Use the Prev or Next buttons to read or listen to the other homilies of the month.

« Prev The Baptism of the Lord (Year A) Next » Third Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year A)