______________________________________________________
4th SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY
Each of the lessons for this Sunday are probably best left to stand on their own. As to
themes, we have a lament (Psalm 71), a calling story (Jeremiah 1), a poem on love (1
Corinthians 13), and a story-the account of Jesus being rejected at Nazareth (Luke 4). In
the season of Epiphany, look for the biblical epiphany that will most effectively speak to
your community at this time in their life and experience. Enjoy!
PSALM 71:1-6-PRAYER OF AN AGING MUSICIAN
Psalm 71 has been titled "an aging musician prays," but the lament could
simply be understood as an older person who is in deep trouble and now seeks to remind God
of all God’s past faithfulness. Though the psalmist begins with a song of faith (In
you, O LORD, I take refuge), the pray-er quickly breaks into a petition for God to
deliver, rescue, incline the ear, and save. In the second strophe, while the psalmist
continues with the petition for God to pry him/her loose from the hands of the wicked and
from the white knuckled grip of the enemy, most of the words move toward trust and faith
in God who has been the psalmist’s lifelong hope and trust.
JEREMIAH 1:4-10-KNOWN, CALLED, AND COMMISSIONED
We have in this lesson Jeremiah’s prophetic call to speak God’s words
"to the nations." The beginning of the call alludes to God’s initiative in
the process. Jeremiah is informed that quite apart from any human ability, God knew,
consecrated, and appointed Jeremiah-laid out his entire life like fresh clothes from the
closet. Typical to call episodes, Jeremiah remonstrates with God (truly, I do not know how
to speak . . . I am only a boy), yet God brushes the excuse aside with divine "you
shall" statements. Reminiscent of Isaiah’s call, God touches Jeremiah’s
mouth and in effect transfers divine words to a human mouth.
1 CORINTHIANS 13:1-13-THE GREATEST OF THESE . . .
This lesson which is familiar to nearly the entire world-and to brides and grooms in
particular-grounds much of what Paul has said in previous chapters about how Christians
should treat and relate to others. The "love" chapter also serves another
purpose: it is the basis on which the practical instructions of chapter 14 will be
presented. The presupposition that binds chapters 12 and 14 together-gross instances of
non-love-begins with the very first verse and continues on to the end: . . . and the
greatest of these is love.
LUKE 4:21-30--REJECTION
We continue in the story begun last week with Jesus in his home town of Nazareth, at
the synagogue on a sabbath day. Jesus has just finished reading from the prophet Isaiah
(58:6 and 61:1-2) and given a radical reinterpretation, "Today this scripture has
been fulfilled in your hearing" (v. 21). Luke suggests a favorable reaction to this
hometown boy makes good preacher. But then, Jesus’ stuns his listeners with not one,
but two scandalous examples from Jewish biblical history that turns outsiders into
faith-heroes and insiders into outsiders. The story ends very differently than we might
have expected given the auspicious beginning. Caution: Mob Riot Errupting.
