Richard F. Ward gives us some questions to guide our exploration of this weekend’s lessons–“How does rhetoric measure up to an arms race? How can a God whose people are held captive or victims of violence dare to promise the restoration of an order of justice? How can the community of faith we call the church hear the Servant’s message when the secular culture that holds it captive considers its witness banal or a ‘waste of time’? These are questions that the church takes up during Epiphany.” (FEASTING on the WORD, A 1:247)
In Isaiah 49:1-7 we’re told that God has polished a wonderful arrow and hidden it in his quiver until just the right time. Some will see the birth of Jesus as “the right time”; but IMHO the Servant is the greater community of faith–the Jewish People of the Exile AND the unfolding entity which we call the Church today. The Servant is being prepared (“polished”) to point out the Light “to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” There is nowhere God’s salvation doesn’t reach!
Paul tells the Corinthians (I 1:1-9) that they’re perfectly prepared for any eventuality: “for in every way you have been enriched in [Jesus], in speech and knowledge of every kind….so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift…” This is an important understanding through the ages–we become enriched by Grace, not our own spiritual acrobatics. Paul fills most of this First Corinthian letter with instances of how this treasure sparkles, especially as contrasted to the fool’s gold of materialism, ambition and pride of place. The message is to celebrate what has already been received and to be empowered by the ongoing revelation of divine justice and mercy.
“What are you looking for?”, Jesus asked the seekers (John 1:38). But they had already been set up by John the Baptizer who had publicly pointed out Jesus, “Here is the Lamb of God”. And the story should include John as a major character who has perceived the Savior as embodying “the polished arrow” tucked away in God’s arsenal. Yet if the Servant of Isaiah is the Whole People of God, the early disciples and later apologists and still later bearers of light to those who can’t even tell that they’re afflicted must take heart and receive the Good Gifts in order to carry them to the next stop.
I commend to you the movie of some years back, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”. You may remember that having survived many dangers through an appreciation of the Holy, Indiana & entourage arrived at the repository of the Sacred Chalice, guarded by an ancient knight who was all too ready to pass on the opportunity. The Holy Grail was an unadorned wooden cup, remarkably plain when next to the glitter of its competitors. Many powers and principalities do not recognize treasure, even when they trip over it. The Servant Community has the mandate to reveal the hidden…or rather to believe that God continues to dig up the treasure even in the strangest places.
God Bless Us, Every One
My reception of scripture lessons assigned to the upcoming weekend can be found every “Tuesday” at this spot on Facebook; or at horacebrownking.com
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