The second Sunday in Epiphany moves us from Matthew’s story about baptism to John’s version of the event. Each has their own peculiar features. John focuses on the community drama that surrounds the baptism and the epiphanic "revealing" of the identity of the Lamb of God, while Matthew focuses on Jesus as the one who is baptized as God’s royal-servant. Identity seems to be at the core of the Isaiah passage as well as the gospel lesson-who is this servant? Who is this Lamb of God? In both cases identity is elusive and requires a seeing and faith which breaks beyond the normal limitations of sight and hearing. In the Pauline opening the apostle too, speaks to of the epiphanic qualities of God who will reveal the Lord Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 49:1-7-The Servant’s Mission

This is the second of Isaiah’s servant songs and it speaks of the calling and mission of the servant. The calling and purpose of the servant stretches behind time and birth to re-collect Israel, to restore, and to spread God’s salvation to all the inhabited earth. The God of Isaiah is the God of the whole creation; redemption is incomplete until it embraces everyone. Epiphany compels us to think outside and beyond the box of comfort and community to consider God’s intentions for the whole world, for all peoples.

1 Corinthians 1:1-9-Greetings and Sal-u-va-tions

The epistle lesson begins with a typical Pauline salutation and eucharistia or thanksgiving prayer that connects the apostle to his beloved congregation. The salutation includes Paul’s formulaic calling as an apostle of Jesus. The recipients are in Corinth, "sanctified" in Christ, named "saints" and then generally addressed to all who call on Jesus as their Lord. The eucharistia seems to contain pieces of a larger ongoing argument and refutation that Paul has with the pneumatikoi, the spiritual ones who have tried to undermine Paul’s ministry and teaching among the Corinthians (cf. "in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind" vs. 5). An important phrase to consider in light of the 2nd week of Epiphany is found in verse seven: ". . . as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ."

John 1:29-41-John and the Redemptive Analogy

We have both an epiphany and calling story couched within our gospel lesson. Both are introduced by the phrase, "the next day," a device the writer uses to walk us through the first chapter scene by scene. John the Baptizer has been telling folk on other days about someone whom he refers to as, "The Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world." When pressed for the specifics of this Lamb, however, John seems to dance around his mystery man, describing the coming one’s impact more than his identity. But then we come to another "next day." The next day, John looks up from his baptizing and sees something that convinces him that he’s found his man. He suddenly finds his voice and proclaims: "This is he . . ." God opens our eyes and ears to perceive what normally we are blind and deaf to. The confident identification of Jesus as the Messiah, the Lamb of God, frees others to follow him as disciples. The lesson reminds us that God sometimes uses unusual epiphanies and callings to bring us to faith.