Pastor John Wright

It is interesting that our readings highlight the revelation of God through the body of Christ. In traditional Christian thought, Christians learned to talk of the three-fold body of Christ -- the historical body, crucified and buried; the "mystical" or "mysterious" body of Christ -- the body and blood of Christ present in the Lord's Supper identified as such by the historical body, "This is my body; this is my blood"; the "true" or visible body of Christ in the world -- the church, a particular congregation that is simultaneously the body of Christ universal. In orthodox Christian thought, the "true" body does not make the "Eucharistic" or mystical body; the Eucharistic body, the mysterious body produces the true body. To speak language from, I believe, an Eastern orthodox theologian, "the Eucharistic makes the church." To participate in the "mystical" body of Christ is the basis for unity of the visible body of Christ in the world; unity in the body of Christ in the world is not the basis for participation in the Eucharist. To make unity in the world the basis for participation in the Eucharist is to make salvation by works, not by grace through faith.

In this light, it is good to start at the Gospel passage, and move to the Epistle reading, and then to the Nehemiah reading today. We celebrate the revelation of God in Jesus to the nations that God calls us into through the Son by the Spirit that we might be the body of Christ in the world through Christ's presence in worship at the Lord's Supper.

Luke 4:14-21

This passage begins Jesus' public ministry in Luke. He begins in his hometown, in the synagogue. Read through the passage. Why is the Isaiah passage fulfilled "today in your hearing"? Can the fulfillment of the Isaiah passage be separated from Jesus? What is the importance of this question? Can one be committed to Jesus without the program? Can one be committed to the program without Jesus?

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Read 1 Corinthians 2. Was the Corinthian church unified? Why then does Paul speak of the unity of the body of Christ in this passage? What is the basis for the unity of the body of Christ? What is the relationship between the Spirit that is with Jesus, the one that leads to the fulfillment of the Isaiah passage, with the Spirit that comes upon us in baptism? What happens to us in baptism? What then does the Spirit craft us to become? How does this relate to the fulfillment of the Isaiah passage in the Gospel reading? Do we pick our community as the body of Christ? Does becoming one body annul our individuality? Why not?

Nehemiah 8:2-10

After the public reading of the Law, why would Nehemiah have to tell the people not to weep or mourn? Why instead does he tell them to rejoice and feast? What is the proper response to the revelation of God to humanity?

Epiphany is a season of joy, of thanksgiving, of celebration. In none of these passages is it in denial of the reality of sin and fragmentation, in our lives, in the lives of a congregation, in the life of the world. Yet there seems to be a different reality witnessed here as well, a reality that calls for celebration, the recognition of the fulfillment of Scriptures, that in baptism by the Spirit, we ARE the body of Christ to live out this reality in the world -- to become what God has already made us. This is the basis for our thanksgiving, our Eucharistic sacrifice. How can we call our whole congregation into the joy of the kingdom that has come near in Jesus, how can we better call the world into this joy that arises out of a life in Christ by faith, rather than seeking to make the life of Christ present through our works?

Have a joyous meeting!