Second Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A 15th January 2023
Lectionary Readings: Isaiah 49 v1-7; Psalm 40 v1-11; 1 Corinthians 1 v1-9; John 1 v29-42.
Partners with Jesus.
God spoke to the people of Israel during their time in exile, through his prophet Isaiah.
The Lord said to me; “Israel, you are my servant and because of you I will be highly honoured.” (Isaiah 49 v3).
A few verses later God reminds the people of Israel of the covenant he made with their ancestor Abraham. (see Genesis 12 v1-3). (Blessed to be a blessing).
Now the Lord says to me, “It isn’t enough for you to be merely my servant. You must do more than lead back survivors from the tribes of Israel. I have placed you here as a light for other nations; you must take my saving power to everyone on earth.” (Isaiah 49 v6).
The apostle Paul writing to believers in Corinth said,
“Christ Jesus chose you to be his very own people, and you worship in his name, as we and all others do who call him Lord….. God can be trusted, and he chose you to be partners with his Son and our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 1 v2b,9).
The gospel passage today starts on the day after the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan.
The next day John was there again, and two of his followers were with him. When he saw Jesus walk by, he said, “Here is the Lamb of God!” John’s two followers heard him, and they went with Jesus. (John 1 v35-37). One of the two men was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother and tell him, “We have found the Messiah!” (John 1 v40-41a).
Jesus chose ordinary people to be his disciples, people like you and me. As believers and followers of Jesus in today’s world, we have, as Paul says, been chosen to be partners with Jesus in his mission to establish the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. Blessed by and equipped with his Holy Spirit, we are to be the light that shines in the darkness. (see Matthew 5 v14-16).
Allan Dickinson asks “What should we do in our service to all?
(Singing the Faith 672)
Where can we find you, Lord Jesus our Master? We want to serve you, to answer your call.
Where do you lead us and ask us to follow? What should we do in our service to all?
‘Go to the hungry, to those who have nothing; go where the farmlands are empty and bare.
I broke the bread for the people around me; out of my plenty, think what you can share.’
‘Go to the homeless, to those who have nowhere; go where my people sleep out in the rain.
I had no comforts but what others gave me; offer them shelter, give ease to their pain.’
‘Go to the outcast, to those who have no-one; go where my sheep are rejected and lost.
I dined with sinners and reached out to lepers; go and do likewise, and don’t count the cost.’
Where will we find you, Lord Jesus our Master? We are your servants who answer your call.
You go before us, and there we will follow, taking our cross in the service of all.
Bible quotations are taken from the Contemporary English Version.