January 10
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

In each of the Gospels Jesus’ ministry begins with his baptism by John the Baptist. John serves as a transition figure between the Old Testament and the New. John realized that he was living at a transitional moment in the history of salvation and by his preaching and actions he directs peoples’ attention to look not to the past but for a coming prophet who will be filled with the Holy Spirit and whose baptism is not with water but with the Holy Spirit and fire.

When John’s work is finished and everyone is baptized, including Jesus, a voice from heaven tells Jesus “You are my beloved Son.” In Mark’s Gospel the voice is directed to Jesus as well. However in Matthew’s Gospel the voice reveals this to the crowd. Jesus life as a carpenter in a small town in Galilee is over and he is ready to begin his true work – preaching the coming Kingdom of God, his Father.

 

January 17
John 2:1-11

In John’s Gospel Jesus performs seven miracles, or more correctly “signs” that point to who he really is. Six of those sign are similar to those found in the other Gospels. But this first miracle is unique to John. Jesus, his mother, and his six newly called disciples are at a wedding in Cana, a town north of Nazareth. His mother points out to him that they have run out of wine. John’s Gospel never gives Jesus’ mother a name. Jesus’ response of “woman” is not to be seen as disrespectful. It was a common and polite way of addressing a woman. Jesus’ first response is that it is not yet time to begin to reveal who he is. But he then turns and asks the servants to fill the stone jars with water. When they take some of the wine from the jars to give to the headwaiter he finds it has been turned into an excellent wine. This action is the first sign that begins to reveal Jesus’ glory so that the disciples will begin to believe in him.

The community of John hearing this story would be led to think of baptism and the eucharist prefigured in the water and the wine. There are also echoes of the messianic banquet awaited by the Jewish people when the messiah would come at the end of time and bring prosperity and peace. But the most important point is that Jesus has begun to reveal who he really is so that the disciples and we can believe in him.

 

 

January 24
Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21

Today’s gospel is a combination of the opening sentence of Luke’s gospel and the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Nazareth after his baptism and his forty day preparation in the desert. The opening sentence in Luke is forty-one words in the original Greek. In it he informs Theophilus that he has prepared an organized account of the events that have occurred, in fulfillment of God’s plan, in the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. This is so Theophilus will know that the teachings he has received are certain.

After having been filled with the Spirit at his baptism and after resisting the temptations of the devil in the wilderness Jesus returns to his home district of Galilee to teach in the synagogues. In Nazareth he is handed the scroll of Isaiah and unrolls it to the part that begins “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.” In speaking of being anointed and called to prophecy Isaiah is referring to himself. But Jesus takes the words as referring to himself as well. He too has been called an anointed to proclaim God’s good news to the people. And much more than in the life of Isaiah this passage will truly be fulfilled in the ministry of Jesus.

 

 

January 31
Luke 4:21-30

How quickly people can change. After hearing Jesus apply the words of Isaiah to himself and assert that the Spirit is also upon him the people were amazed at the gracious words coming from someone they thought they knew so well. But Jesus uses their sense of wonder to provoke them, challenging them to demand that he works wonders in Capernaum as he did in his hometown. With one sentence their sense of wonder is turned to anger. Jesus uses examples from the lives of Elijah and his disciple Elisha. Both were sent to perform wonders not for their own people but for foreigners. These words of Jesus sound harsh in the context of the gospel but would have been encouraging to Luke’s audience who are foreigners, not Jews.

These neighbors who thought they knew Joseph’s son move from amazement at his wisdom to wanting to throw him off a cliff. Jesus does nothing to stop them. He just passes through them and goes on his way. It is a way, as we know, that will ultimately lead to Jerusalem where he actually will be killed but also enter into his glory.