Third Sunday of Advent (Year A) – 14 December 2025
- CADEK-Europe-Laity
- Dec 11, 2025
- 7 min read
Together, the readings invite us to hold steady in waiting, to encourage one another in hope, and to recognize the signs of God’s kingdom already breaking into our world.
Isaiah 35:1–6
The wilderness will burst into bloom
The Desert Transformed
Isaiah paints a vision of hope: “The driest lands of the wilderness will burst into bloom and sing for joy.”
The desert, usually a place of barrenness and silence, becomes alive with colour, song, and abundance.
This is not just a picture of nature; it is a metaphor for human lives. Where despair has dried up the soul, God promises renewal. Where fear has silenced voices, God brings songs of joy.
The desert is not the end of the story. It is the stage for God’s glory.
Strength for the Weak
Isaiah continues: “Encourage the weak, and all who live in fear. Say to them, ‘Do not be afraid!’”
The prophet reminds us that faith is not only personal; it is communal. We are called to lift one another up.
Encouragement is itself a form of prophecy. When we speak courage into the fearful, we participate in God’s saving work.
In times of uncertainty, whether illness, injustice, or loneliness, the church becomes a voice that says: “Do not be afraid, for God is surely coming.”
Justice and Salvation
Isaiah declares: “For God is surely coming, with justice, to save you.”
God’s justice is not vengeance but restoration. It is the setting right of what has been broken.
Salvation here is not escape from the world but transformation within it. The blind see, the deaf hear, the lame run, the voiceless sing.
This is a vision of wholeness: bodies healed, communities restored, creation renewed.
It is a promise that no wound is too deep, no silence too long, no desert too dry for God’s redeeming love.
The Signs of the Kingdom
The miracles Isaiah describes, such as sight restored, hearing opened, voices lifted are signs of the Kingdom of God.
Jesus himself fulfilled these words, healing the blind, opening ears, raising the lame, and giving voice to the voiceless.
But the prophecy is not only about physical healing. It is about spiritual awakening.
Eyes opened to see God’s presence.
Ears tuned to hear God’s Word.
Feet strengthened to walk in God’s ways.
Tongues loosed to proclaim God’s praise.
Our Call Today
So, what does Isaiah 35 mean for us today?
It calls us to be desert-bloomers: people who bring life where there is dryness.
It calls us to be encouragers: voices that say “Do not be afraid” to those who tremble.
It calls us to be witnesses living signs of God’s justice and salvation in the world.
When we forgive, when we serve, when we speak truth, when we sing hope, we become part of the desert’s transformation.
James 5:1–10
Be patient, as you wait for the coming of the Lord
The Farmer’s Patience
James begins with an image everyone can understand: “As the farmer waits patiently for the crops to grow, through the spring and autumn rains, so you also must be patient.”
A farmer cannot rush the rains or force the seed to sprout. He tills, plants, waters, and then waits.
This patience is not passive; it is active trust. The farmer works faithfully, knowing that God provides the growth.
Story: There was once a small farming community that faced a year of drought. The people gathered weekly to pray for rain. One Sunday, a little girl arrived carrying an umbrella. When asked why, she said, “We’re praying for rain, aren’t we? I thought we should be ready.” That child embodied the patience James describes, waiting with confidence, expecting God to act.
Patience in Community
James warns: “As you wait, do not complain against one another.”
Waiting can test relationships. Frustration often spills into grumbling, gossip, or division.
But patience is not only about enduring time, it is about enduring together.
The church is called to be a community of encouragement, not complaint.
Story: In a hospital ward, two patients shared a room. One was bitter, constantly complaining about the food, the nurses, the noise. The other, though in equal pain, chose to speak gratitude, thanking staff, encouraging fellow patients. Over time, the second man’s spirit lifted the whole ward. His patience became a witness, while the other’s complaints only deepened despair. James reminds us: our words shape the waiting.
The Prophets as Examples
James continues: “Follow the example of the prophets, who showed great patience, even when they suffered for speaking in the name of the Lord.”
The prophets endured ridicule, exile, and hardship, yet they held fast to God’s promises.
Their patience was not resignation; it was courage. They trusted that God’s justice would prevail.
Story: Think of Jeremiah, thrown into a cistern for speaking truth, yet refusing to abandon his call. Or Amos, a shepherd who confronted kings with God’s justice. Their patience was costly, but it bore fruit in the long arc of God’s salvation.
In our own time, we see echoes of this prophetic patience in those who stand for justice, such as community leaders, caregivers, and ordinary people who persist in goodness despite opposition. Their endurance is a living sermon.
The Nearness of the Lord
James assures us: “Trusting, with confidence, that the coming of the Lord is near.”
Patience is possible because hope is certain. The Lord’s coming is not a distant dream but a near reality.
Every act of kindness, every word of encouragement, every moment of endurance is a rehearsal for that day when God’s kingdom will be fully revealed.
Story: A chaplain once told of a dying patient who whispered, “I’m not afraid. I’ve been waiting all my life to see Him.” That quiet confidence is the fruit of patience, trusting that the Lord is near, even at the threshold of death.
Matthew 11:2–11
Are you the one, or should we wait for another?
John’s Question in Prison
John the Baptist, the fiery prophet of the wilderness, now sits in a dark prison cell.
His voice, once thundering by the Jordan, is silenced by stone walls.
His question: Are you the one, or should we wait for another?” This is not just his. It is ours too.
In moments of suffering, when promises seem delayed, we ask: Is God really at work? Is Jesus truly the Messiah?
Story: A mother waiting in a hospital corridor for news of her child whispered the same question: “Lord, are you here? Or should I look elsewhere for hope?” John’s prison becomes the symbol of our own places of doubt and waiting.
Jesus’ Answer: Signs of the Kingdom
Jesus does not give John a theological lecture. He says: “Go and tell John what you see and hear.”
The blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear, the lepers are cleansed, the dead are raised, the poor receive good news.
The proof of the Messiah is not in arguments but in transformed lives.
The Kingdom is known by its fruits: healing, restoration, joy, and justice.
Story: In a village struck by famine, a group of women began sharing what little grain they had. Slowly, the community survived, and hope returned. When asked why they did it, one said, “Because Christ is among us.” That was their testimony: the poor receiving good news.
Blessed Are Those Who Do Not Stumble
Jesus adds: “Blessed are those who find no offence in me.”
The Messiah does not always come as expected. John preached fire and judgment, but Jesus came with mercy and healing.
Sometimes we stumble because God’s ways are gentler, slower, or stranger than we imagined.
Faith means trusting that even when God’s work looks different, it is still salvation.
Story: A man once prayed for strength, but instead God gave him weakness that taught him compassion. He prayed for success, but God gave him failure that taught him humility. At the end he said, “I received nothing I asked for, but everything I needed.” Blessed are those who do not stumble when God’s ways surprise them.
John’s Greatness and Ours
Jesus turns to the crowd: “You went into the wilderness not to see a reed blowing in the wind, nor someone dressed in palace robes, but to see a prophet, and more than a prophet.”
John is the messenger who prepared the way. His greatness lies not in comfort or power but in faithfulness.
Yet Jesus says: “The least in the kingdom of heaven is greater still.”
Story: In a small parish, an elderly woman who never preached, never led, never travelled far, spent her days visiting the sick and praying quietly. At her funeral, the priest said, “She was greater than many who held titles, because she lived the kingdom in love.” That is the greatness Jesus speaks of.
Closing Exhortation
Beloved, Isaiah’s vision is not a distant dream. It is God’s promise breaking into our present.
Where you feel barren, expect blossoms.
Where you feel weak, hear the call to courage.
Where you feel voiceless, trust that God will give you a song.
The wilderness will bloom. The fearful will be strengthened. The broken will be restored. And all creation will sing for joy at the majesty of God.
James calls us to a patience that is:
Active like the farmer: working faithfully while trusting God for growth.
Communal like the church: encouraging one another instead of complaining.
Courageous like the prophets: enduring suffering with hope.
Confident like the saints: trusting that the Lord is near.
So let us wait not with weary resignation, but with expectant joy. For the rains will come, the harvest will be gathered, and the Lord will appear in glory.
Matthew 11 invites us to:
Bring our doubts honestly: like John in prison.
Look for signs of the Kingdom: in healing, justice, and good news for the poor.
Trust God’s surprising ways: even when they differ from our expectations.
Seek true greatness: not in power or robes, but in humble faithfulness to Christ.
So let us go and tell what we see and hear: lives restored, hope renewed, and the poor lifted. For in these signs, we know that Jesus is indeed the One.
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