COME AND SEE
Introduction
“Come and see,” says Jesus to the two disciples of John who were curious about him. They came and saw their Saviour and followed him. “Come and see.” With that, could we say the same to the people of today and show them that Christ is present in our midst? Would they find him among us? And do we ourselves recognize Christ passing among us?
Opening Prayer
Lord, our God,
your Son passes among us
as the saving Lamb,
and often, we are not aware of his presence.
Give us eyes of faith,
that we may see a glimpse of him
in the love and compassion of people around us,
in their encouragement and help,
in their concern for justice.
For in their goodness you show yourself
through your Son, Jesus Christ,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen!
1 Reading – 1 JOHN 3:7-10
Children, let no one deceive you. The person who acts in righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous. Whoever sins belongs to the Devil, because the Devil has sinned from the beginning. Indeed, the Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the Devil. No one who is begotten by God commits sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot sin because he is begotten by God. In this way, the children of God and the children of the Devil are made plain; no one who fails to act in righteousness belongs to God, nor anyone who does not love his brother.
Responsorial PSALM 98:1, 7-8, 9
R. (3cd) All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm. R.
Let the sea and what fills it resound,
the world and those who dwell in it;
Let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy before the LORD. R.
The LORD comes;
he comes to rule the earth;
He will rule the world with justice
and the peoples with equity. R.
Alleluia HEBREWS 1:1-2
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets:
in these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel JOHN 1:35-42
John was standing 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 Christ. 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.
Commentary
It is through Jesus that we conquer sin.
Today’s reading is a continuation of yesterday’s, which reminded us that we must ‘break with sin’ if we are ‘to live as God’s children’. “The one who acts in holiness is holy indeed.” John must have been rephrasing the teaching of Jesus that a tree can be known by its fruit. John repeats the teaching of Jesus to his community through the letter: “the one who sins belongs to the devil.”
This passage is directed against the false teachers, who produced more than one reason to justify sin. They said that the body was evil and therefore, there was no harm in satisfying its lusts, because what happened to it was of no importance.
John tells his readers what sin is. It is the deliberate breaking of a law. To sin is to obey oneself rather than to obey God. John understands the work of Christ. Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). To sin is to bring back what he came into the world to abolish.
Sin comes from our failure to remain in Christ. Abide or remain with Jesus is a favoured theme of John the evangelist. In his Gospel he would bring this most important teaching of Jesus… “Abide in me…” This call to remain with Jesus means that we remember the continual presence of Jesus in us and we will not sin. We fall into sinfulness when we forget Jesus’ presence with us.
Sin comes from the devil; In the world there is a power hostile to God; and to sin is to obey that power instead of God. But John reminds us that only through Jesus we conquer sin – because Jesus destroyed the works of the devil. He has broken the power of evil, and by his help that same victory can be ours.
Intentions
– For those who have heard the special call of Jesus, “Come, follow me,” that they may remain faithful to their vocation, we pray:
– For those who preach the Gospel of Jesus, that their own life may be a constant invitation for people to live according to the Gospel, we pray:
– For our communities, that leaders and members may go together the way of the Lord as companions and friends, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord God, our Father,
you invite us to come and see
your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior,
in these signs of bread and wine.
May he stay with us not only here
in this Eucharistic celebration
but in the daily events of life,
that he may brighten its drabness
with his living nearness
and that he may change
the way we look at people and things,
for he is our Lord and Saviour for ever. Amen!
Prayer after Communion
Lord, living God,
we thank you for having gathered us
around our brother Jesus Christ,
and for restoring us with the strength
of his body and blood.
Let him stay with us
as our companion in life,
that we, too, may say to those we encounter:
“Come and see Jesus alive among us.
Come and see how we try to love and serve one another.
Come and see how there is among us
justice and hope and trust.”
Help us to say and live this in all sincerity
by the power of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen!
Blessing
“We have found the Saviour,” exclaims the apostle. We, too, have found him. May this be our joy and prompt us to tell others about it. May all of us find him, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!