April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
Skating with Jesus
Everybody knows you're the best skater around. You can play ice hockey and beat anyone in a race, and you even know how to skate backwards. When other kids are around, you probably show off a little, just because you like being the best at something.
Jesus probably wouldn't be impressed with how great you are. In this week's Gospel (Matthew 3:13-17), He has the chance to show off -- but even Jesus, the Son of God, chooses to act just like everybody else.
Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized. John tried to stop Him, saying, "I should be baptized by you!" But Jesus said to do it anyway. As soon as John baptized Jesus, the Holy Spirit came down from heaven to Jesus in the shape of a dove, and God the Father's voice said, "This is my beloved Son, and I'm proud of Him."
If you're a great skater, it can be tempting to show the other kids what you can do. You dare people to race you because you know you'll win or skate backwards so everyone will see you.Jesus could have done that. When He asked John to baptize Him, John couldn't believe it. John knew that Jesus was God's Son and could baptize anybody He wanted to. Why would he go to John to be baptized like a regular person?
When you show off, other kids will probably get sick of being with you. It's no fun to race if they always lose, and they don't want to watch you skate backwards when they don't know how.
Jesus knew that. If He wanted other people to stay around Him, He knew He couldn't show off all the time. He asked John to baptize Him to show He was humble and wanted to be people's friend. When He did, God the Father told everyone how happy He was!
If Jesus was skating with you, He wouldn't be showing off what He could do. Instead, He'd probably say, "Come on! Let me show you how, and then we can all skate together!"
PRAYER FOR THE WEEK: Jesus, help me teach other people what I can do! Amen.
(01-07-99)
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