Reading 1
1 Jn 2:18-21
Children, it is the last hour;
and just as you heard that the antichrist was coming,
so now many antichrists have appeared.
Thus we know this is the last hour.
They went out from us, but they were not really of our number;
if they had been, they would have remained with us.
Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number.
But you have the anointing that comes from the Holy One,
and you all have knowledge.
I write to you not because you do not know the truth
but because you do, and because every lie is alien to the truth.
Ps 96:1-2, 11-12, 13
Responsorial PsalmR. (11a)
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name;
announce his salvation, day after day.
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult before the LORD.
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
The LORD comes,
he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Gospel
Jn 1:1-18
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing came to be.
What came to be through him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.
A man named John was sent from God.
He came for testimony, to testify to the light,
so that all might believe through him.
He was not the light,
but came to testify to the light.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world,
and the world came to be through him,
but the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own,
but his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believe in his name,
who were born not by natural generation
nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision
but of God.
And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only-begotten Son,
full of grace and truth.
John testified to him and cried out, saying,
“This was he of whom I said,
‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.’”
From his fullness we have all received,
grace in place of grace,
because while the law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God.
The only-begotten Son, God, who is at the Father’s side,
has revealed him.
Meditation: 1 John 2:18-21
“Children, it is the last hour.” (1 John 2:18)
John’s words can set our hearts racing. The end is near! Antichrists have appeared! Time is running out! But remember that these words are two thousand years old. There have always been antichrists. There will always be danger. There is really nothing to distinguish this age from any other. As the Book of Ecclesiastes tells us, there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9).
So does that mean that God really doesn’t care about our struggles? Or maybe he is very anxious about how we will bear up under the pressures of this age? Neither is the case! The answer lies in today’s Gospel message: Jesus Christ, the Word of God, has existed since even before the beginning of creation. He was with the Father before the first sin, and he will remain after every enemy has been defeated. He is the eternal constant in our lives, outlasting every evil the world could ever devise.
How secure we are! Regardless of the ups and downs of life, Jesus is our firm foundation. He has bound himself to us in an unbreakable covenant of love. In him, we can respond to the very real pressures of the world. By his Spirit, we can work to remedy injustice and falsehood. When we hear troubling news reports and see evil in our own neighborhoods, we can look back to before the beginning and know that tyrants and tyrannies may come and go, but Jesus remains constant. History is really his story, and no one else’s.
So as one year ends and another begins, never forget that you are a child of God. Never forget that you are wrapped in his love, enfolded in his plan, and held close to his heart. He who is from all eternity has divine wisdom to guide you as you face the challenges of 2011. No matter what comes your way, Jesus Christ, the Word of God, has taken on human flesh. He came to dwell among us centuries ago, and he is still dwelling among us today.
“Lord, I trust in you. When I start to get fearful, help me to remember that everything was made through you, and that you will see it through to the end! You are my solid foundation!”
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