Isaiah 42:1-9

Epiphany 1 "Baptism of Jesus" - Year A
"Holy Week" Monday - Years A, B, C

Great emphasis is placed upon a “suffering servant” as though it might be the be-all and end-all of our desire. Oh, to be a suffering servant! and all the supposed atonement such is supposed to bring.

We have given far less emphasis to a vocation of justice. Its end is often the receiving of suffering and injustice by one attempting to relieve suffering and injustice. Somehow the cause of justice is eclipsed by the effect of suffering.

In one way or another, giving heed to one’s calling will call one forth to justice-living. The arena in which one operates may be large or small, but justice is something that needs to be present at every level of life. Not doing one’s part where one is causes a vacuum that weakens every other justice-seeking and impedes a spirit-of-G*D.

Not only do we have a vocation of justice, but a vocation of light-bearing whereby we might see and reveal an idolatry of past and present and illumine the way of new things. Justice and Light-Bearing are vocational corollaries.

These two vocations guide our thought today. Another way of coming at this is from The Meaning of Vocation by A.J. Conyers:


“Vocation” is distorted by two disastrous misunderstandings: a secularized idea of “career” and a monastic concept of the religious life. Both are less than the biblical idea of vocation…. Vocation is about being raised from the dead, made alive to the reality that we do not merely exist, but are “called forth” to a divine purpose.


To be raised from the dead (to be brought up from the waters of baptism to hear one’s belovedness) is to have a prophetic vocation—justice-making and light-bearing—regardless of one’s current reality of prison guard, prostitute, or presidential candidate.

 

As found in Wrestling Year A: Connecting Sunday Readings with Lived Experience

 

 

"My servant", "my chosen" are the same as "my beloved".

To be baptized is to have been visited by the spirit of justice.
To have a spirit of justice is to be baptized.

A regular, steadfast, quietly determined if dimly burning, justice orientation in everyday events is our role in life. The big, flashy, creation-wide righteousness is G*D's.

Moment by moment new justice is declared and brought to pass, one by one and two by two.

Brother Servant, Sister Chosen, Beloved All, let us throw off our chains of fear that those we are complicit in oppressing might rise. We will do so not out of an expectation of reward for doing so, but because they will spring forth with or without us and it is better to be part of the party.

http://www.kairoscomotion.org/lectionary/2005/january2005.html

 

 

Isaiah 42:1-9
Psalm 29
Acts 10:34-43
Matthew 3:13-17

Peace is preached through people's lives. Peace was seen in Jesus' life and invites us to preach peace to others as a way of testifying to his preaching and to our call. In peace, Jesus' preaching and our preaching come out the same. There is no partiality when it comes to peace preaching, each is blessed - period.

So we rejoice when we see another blessed with the affirmation that they are beloved. Even though we know it will lead them to the desert, we rejoice that the blessing given will be sufficient for wilderness times and dark nights of souls.

We are able, thus, to also rejoice when we finally catch on to our own blessedness. We receive with gladness and look around to see what test we will be able to meet with it.

Love Peace with all your heart and mind and soul and strength and whatever other little categories might be brought to bear. Love your neighbors blessedness as you love your own.

- - -

we advise
better to be baptized by you
we consent
let it be so

we advise
we consent
better lies there
but we are here

we let it be so
we give up better
we give up advice
we consent

http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2006_12_01_archive.html

 

 

Isaiah 42:1-9
Psalm 36:5-11
Hebrews 9:11-15
John 12:1-11

Yes, PreEaster, not Holy Week. Our very distinction of "Holy This" or "Holy That" belies the holiness of life in all things. We move into unhelpful dualities that end up with a split between spiritual and material.

Let us take hands and declare to one another that which is yet to come to pass before it has sprung forth. This imagery from Isaiah sees us through every sort of life situation.

The Psalmist reminds us of the continuance of steadfast love (salvation, if you will). We participate in this love and add our part to its continual revelation. Hold hands, do not be driven from this reality.

The writer to the Hebrews knows that a new covenant does not depend on some third party, but on the integrity of those engaged together. She reminds us that it is not the sacrifice of others that brings life, but that of our own participation in that which we deem essential that moves us from life's repetitive works to continually revealed expressions of a steadfast love not held away as a carrot for tomorrow, but offered as a full feast for today.

Whether it is our commitment to giving roses, perfume, anointing, relationship now instead of later or our past experiences of resurrection coming to challenge the leaden, deadly inertia of cultural and political blocks to more life for more people, we challenge the current status quo striving for more advantage and control. It is in fact our generosity and awareness of new life that bring forth the opportunities for revealing the basic choices of life. Here we immediately run into the fears and tremblings of past teaching that we now know what's what. Generosity and awareness of abundance of life are still counter-cultural fulcrum points that can move the world.

Let's keep telling a larger story than our own small part and honor our small part in moving a larger story along.

http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html

 

Great emphasis is placed upon a "suffering servant" as though it might be the be-all and end-all of our desire. Oh, to be a suffering servant! and all the supposed atonement such is suppose-ed to bring.

We have given far less emphasis to a vocation of justice. It's end is often the receiving of suffering and injustice by one attempting to relieve suffering and injustice. Somehow the cause of justice is eclipsed by the effect of suffering.

In one way or another, giving heed to one's calling will call one forth to justice-living. The arena in which one operates may be large or small, but justice is something that needs to be present at every level of life. To not do one's part where one is causes a vacuum that weakens every other justice-seeking and impedes the spirit-of-G*D.

Not only do we have a vocation of justice, but a vocation of light-bearing whereby we might see and reveal the idolatry of past and present and illumine the way of new things. Justice and Light-Bearing are vocational corollaries.

These two vocations guide our thought today. Another way of coming at this is from the Link of the Week at Text of the Week about The Meaning of Vocation: "'Vocation' is distorted by two disastrous misunderstandings: a secularized idea of 'career' and a monastic concept of the religious life. Both are less than the biblical idea of vocation... Vocation is about being raised from the dead, made alive to the reality that we do not merely exist, but are 'called forth' to a divine purpose."

To be raised from the dead (to be brought up from the waters of baptism to hear one's belovedness) is to have a prophetic vocation worth paying attention to – justice-making and light-bearing – regardless of one's current reality of delivery person, prostitute, or presidential candidate.

http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2008_01_01_archive.html

 

 

Here is one version: "You are beloved."

Here is another: "You will be just."

Justice is not extraordinary action. You do it without raising a ruckus. Steady - don't faint. Be a light where you are to reveal better choices.

So here is the thing: You are beloved; you are just. Go ahead, reveal it.

http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2011/01/isaiah-421-9.html

 

 

To be a beloved one is to be a just one.

Justice? What is it?

All of this is to spring forth from your assurance of being a beloved one of G*D and any other willing to wait for your revelation.

Epiphany; Baptism; Shine; Show.

http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2014/01/isaiah421-9.html