Second Sunday in Ordinary Time 2014

With the conclusion of the Christmas season, we begin a short stretch of ordinary time Sundays before the start of the season of Lent. In our Gospel reading for today, we hear John the Baptist's account of the baptism of Jesus. John announces, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." John's message would have been crystal clear to the audience who heard it. The Jews where used to the idea of sacrificing a lamb in a ritual of atonement. Now, John was declaring that this man walking towards him, Jesus, was in fact the new lamb, the sacrificial offering that would atone for the sins not just of one person, but of all people. No one is excluded from the gift of salvation. Do we accept that God can forgive even the sins of our enemies, of those who have hurt and mistreated us? Can we forgive them too, as God has done through his Son? When we struggle to forgive someone, we can pray for the grace to love that person as Jesus has loved us.