Advent 1, Cycle B

THEME OF THE DAY
Face the future with confidence. The texts for the first Sunday of the new church year testify to the hope that lies ahead with Christ’s coming in the future. Christology, Eschatology, and Justification by Grace receive primary attention.

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
This psalm is a lament and prayer for deliverance or salvation from national enemies. Its reference to the leader entails that instructions are being given to the director of temple musicians. The meaning of the direction to recite the psalm on Lilies is uncertain, but it may refer to a particular melody. The reference to the psalm as a covenant may also be translated “testimony.” Asaph, to whom the psalm is attributed, seems, as we have previously noted on other occasions, to have been one of the Jerusalem Temple’s worship leaders appointed by David (1 Chronicles 6:31-32, 39). As evidenced by the tribes mentioned in verse 2, it was probably a prayer for the Northern Kingdom (Israel).

God is identified as shepherd [raah] of Israel (an image often associated with kings and rulers, as per Jeremiah 23:1-6), enthroned on the cherubim [kerubim, referring to the Lord's invisible abode on the cherubim in the temple's Ark of the Covenant] (v. 1). A strong doctrine of Providence is affirmed; God is said to be the one who has sent affliction (vv. 4-6). Reference in verse 17 to “the one at your [God's] right hand” [perhaps the king] or “the Son of Man [ben adam] made strong by God” perhaps refers to Israel, but could be interpreted messianically. Emphasis on restoration (literally to be “turned again”) and the theme that when God’s favor/face [panim] is shone salvation [yasha, or ease] transpires (probably a hymn refrain [see vv. 2-3, 7, 19]) are reminders that God’s new ways [the eschatological hope] are in continuity with God’s former manner of dealing with his people [redemption does not contradict the original/created order]. Reference is made to how the people who have been made restored will never turn back from God (v. 18).

Application: The psalm affords opportunities to preach on how all that happens is God’s work (Providence), to help parishioners understand that salvation is only the result of God’s favor or presence (Justification by Grace), to explore the messianic hope (see discussion of the identity of the Son of Man noted above), and to celebrate that the hope for salvation and God’s new way is in continuity with the original created order (Creation and Eschatology).

Isaiah 64:1-9
We have previously noted that this book is actually the product of two or three distinct literary traditions. The first 39 chapters are the work of the historical prophet who proclaimed a message to Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom of Judah from 742 BC to 701 BC, a period during which the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been annexed by the Assyrian empire. Chapters 40-66 emerged in the later period immediately before the fall of Babylon (in 539 BC). A hypothesized third section (chapters 56-66) may have been written by Second Isaiah (author of the chapters from 40 on) or by one of his disciples in view of close stylistic similarities to chapters 40-55. But the last eleven chapters begin at the conclusion of the Babylonian captivity and are likely written after the restoration of the exiled in Judah, expressing some disappointment about what has transpired since the exiles’ return. Our lesson originates in this period and is an eschatological prophecy.

The prophet begins with a lament that the people of Judah have continued to sin, even after their return from the Babylonian exile. They are said to have become a society in which “no one calls on your [God's] name.” The precariousness of the life (“we all fade like a leaf”) is noted (vv. 6-7). He prays that God would reveal himself as in the days of old, to do so in a cataclysmic, eschatological way (vv. 1-4). Petition is made that the awesome God who the prophet is bold to call Father [ab] not remember [zakar] the sins of the people forever (vv. 8-9). We are said to be but clay [mortar], the work of God’s hands (v. 8).

Application: Sermons on this text have the opportunity to reflect on the precariousness of life and the growing secularism of our day (Sin). Reflection might be given to how we yearn for clearer contact with God, as seems to have been the case in ancient times. God’s presence is related to the end times, and so is urgent (Realized Eschatology). This awesome but loving God who is so familiar to us (like a Father) has his way with us (Predestination and Providence), but forgets our sin (Justification by Grace).

1 Corinthians 1:3-9
The lesson is taken from one of Paul’s authentic letters, written from Ephesus prior to his epistle to the Romans, to a church he established (Acts 18:1-11). Relations had become strained with the church. The letter aims to address doctrinal and ethical problems disturbing the Corinthian church. This lesson is a thanksgiving to God as part of Paul’s salutation to the Corinthians, seeming to reflect the best traditions for greetings in the ancient Near East, but in fact hinting at the sensitive topics (knowledge, [ecstatic/charismatic] speech, and claiming the spiritual gifts) that were dividing them and the apostle (vv. 3-6). Paul reminds the Corinthians that they are not lacking any spiritual gift [charisma] (v. 7), a clear critique of their passion [perhaps of Gnostic influence] for attaining a wisdom from teachers other than Paul (chapter 2). They are assured that they have what they need until Christ comes again. The eschatological preoccupations of the epistle (see 4:5; 5:5) surface in verse 8. Assurance is given that we have what we need, will be strengthened, to endure blamelessly to the end [telos]. The reference to “blamelessness” [anegkletos] implies an affirmation of the justification of the sinner (6:11).

Application: This text offers several distinct approaches to the Advent season. In response to the restlessness of many churchgoers and the unaffiliated to the lack of deep spirituality, Paul allows preachers to proclaim that Christ is all we need, and we have that. Also we might focus on the sense in which Christ makes us blameless. The theme of Justification by Grace is prominent in these directions. More in line with this Sunday’s theme is the eschatological reference to having all we need until Christ comes, and so it is a little easier to endure hardships of the present.

Mark 13:24-37
With the new church year we turn to the first of the Synoptic gospels to be written, a book that was perhaps the source of other gospels. Perhaps based on oral traditions of the Passion narrative and accounts of Jesus (the so-called Q-source), it was probably written prior to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Although an anonymous work, the tradition of ascribing authorship to John Mark is largely accepted. But his identity is not always clear, whether this is the John Mark referred to as an associate of Paul (Acts 12:12-25, 15:37; Colossians 4:10) or as Peter’s scribe (1 Peter 5:13). There is an extra-biblical source (Eusebius of Caesarea) who designates Mark as the apostle to Africa (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2/1, pp. 115-116). Some speculate that the original audience was the church in Rome (especially Gentiles), as it presumes readers are unfamiliar with Jewish customs and Palestinian geography (see 7:2-4, 31), but it also could have been written for Palestinian Christians. A general consensus has been that the gospel was written not so much for unbelievers, but to remind the audience that a believer’s response to the crucified Christ is still needed even after the Resurrection.

This lesson is a prophecy of the end of the age uttered by Jesus prior to the Passion in the context of his prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem (v. 2). There is essential agreement in Jesus’ prophecy with the version of other Synoptic gospels (save Mark’s characteristic omission of reference to the Son of Man returning in a great lighting of the sky [perhaps characteristic of the Markan concern to stress the hiddenness of Jesus' revelation]). (Compare Matthew 24:26-28 and Luke 17:23-24, 37 to the Markan account.) References to the Son not knowing the day or hour, only the Father (v. 32), may be indicative of Jesus as Son of Man (huios tou anthropos, his humanity) not comprehending all that the Father knows, though not that somehow the Son of God is subordinate to the Father. Heaven and earth may pass away, Jesus claims, but his words will endure (v. 31). The cataclysmic events prophesied are still under God’s control (vv. 6-25). The reason for these catastrophes is to prepare for Christ who will gather up his elect [elektos] (vv. 26-28, 37; cf. Daniel 7:13-14). They will come soon, for Jesus says it will happen before the generation he addresses has passed (v. 30).

Application: At least two possibilities for sermons emerge from this text. On one hand Future Eschatology might be explored, with a sermon on Christ’s second coming and what to expect. Or more in keeping with the Advent season, sermons might proclaim that the Eschaton has been realized in the person of Christ and that we are living in a new era in which new possibilities for the present are open, and so we need to be prepared. In both cases a focus on God being in control of things (Providence) and God choosing to save us (Predestination and Justification by Grace) is emphasized.

THEME OF THE DAY
Get ready! All of the lessons have to do with the theme of getting ready (for Christ’s coming) or the passing of time. Christology, Providence (God’s care for us), Justification by Grace, Sanctification (living in preparation for Christ to come), and Eschatology receive special attention as we prepare ourselves for Christmas.

Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13
This is prayer for deliverance from national adversity. It is a Psalm of the Korahites (a group of professional Levitical musicians). Thus the verses seem to have origins in the Jerusalem Temple. The opening reference to God’s favor to his land and its people (v. 1) could be occasioned by the return of the exiles from captivity in Babylon. But it could also be taken as messianic prophecy, describing all Christ will do. The bulk of the lesson (vv. 8-13) includes an oracle of assurance, likely delivered by a priest. Messages of forgiveness (covering sin) (v. 2) and salvation/safety [yesha] (v. 9) are delivered. Righteousness [tsedeq] and peace [shalom] are said to kiss each other (v. 10). We should highlight once again that the concept of “righteousness,” even in an Old Testament context, is not to imply that the believer lives in faultless conformity to some moral norm. It has to do with living in right relationship with God (Gerhard von Rad, Old Testament Theology, Vol. 1, pp. 370-371). Thus the term in this case could refer to a vision of a just society or merely what happens to faithful people through God’s justifying grace. And peace [shalom] in this Jewish context refers not just to a state in which there is no combat, but to a state of well-being and thriving, to social justice (von Rad, p. 130). Right relationship with God leads to a state of well-being (Justification by Grace, Sanctification, and Social Ethics). Likewise mercy [chesed, or loving kindness] and truth/faith [emeth] are said to meet. Love and faith go together. Salvation [yesha, also translated "safety"] and these new realities are said to be close at hand for those who fear [yare, that is, "reverence"] Yahweh (v. 9). Thus there is a clear eschatological dimension at this point in the text, which fits the viability of interpreting the text as a prophecy of Christ’s coming. Yahweh, it is said, will give what is good [tob], and this gift is related to the righteousness (restored relationship he will work out with us) going before him like a herald before a king, and also to the faithfulness [emeth, properly translated "truth"] which will spring from it (vv. 11-13). Again it seems clear that when God acts with righteousness (faithful to the covenant relationship with his people), faith and all good follow (Sanctification as Spontaneous Good Works).

Application: The Psalm gives occasion to celebrate God’s forgiving love and goodness (Justification by Grace and Providence), but also to relate this to what God is about to do in Christ the coming one. Not only do we find a loving God described here in the Old Testament but also a vision of the Christian life (Sanctification and Social Ethics) springing spontaneously from God’s righteous actions.

Isaiah 40:1-11
It is well-known that this book is actually the product of two or three distinct literary traditions. The first 39 chapters are the work of the historical prophet who proclaimed a message to Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom of Judah from 742 BC to 701 BC, a period during which the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been annexed by the Assyrian empire. Chapters 40-66 emerged in the later period immediately before the fall of Babylon (in 539 BC). This lesson is the work of the latter period.

With the Babylonian captivity nearing an end (but while the Israelites are still in bondage), consolation is offered with the announcement that the exiles have served their penalty and that God is coming (vv. 1-3). This prologue to Deutero-Isaiah focuses on the heart of this message. We learn of his coming from a voice crying in the wilderness (v. 3). Verses 3-5 are quoted in the New Testament (Luke 3:4-6; cf. Matthew 3:3; John 1:23; and even in today’s Gospel Lesson, Mark 1:3) to refer to the preaching of John the Baptist. The idea of valleys being lifted up and mountains laid low could also be interpreted in terms of Social Ethics, as God’s willingness to challenge the powers that be in favor of the powerless. The fragility of life, how it fades like a flower, is noted, but it is also proclaimed that God’s word is forever (vv. 6-8). It is confidently proclaimed, despite the circumstances, that God is coming and will prevail (vv. 9-10). God will feed the flock like a shepherd [raah] (v. 11). The image suggests Christ as the good shepherd. It is also royal imagery, as the Babylonian king Hammurabi described himself as a shepherd. Also implied is the Lord’s resolve to restore the captives in Israel. His power over all creation to achieve this end is discussed in the remainder of the chapter (vv. 12-31).

Application: Sermons on this lesson should focus on the comfort we can take, in the midst of despair about life (Sin), that Christ’s coming is on the horizon (both Future Eschatology and Realized Eschatology in the sense that Christ’s birth made possible having our penalties removed and our restoration). Social Ethics may also be a sermon topic since the text highlights how God challenges the powerful for the sake of the powerless. The text also affords an opportunity along with the Gospel Lesson to highlight the witness of John the Baptist, to note how even the Old Testament prophesies him.

2 Peter 3:8-15a
Though represented as a letter by Saint Peter (1:1), this is likely a later work of the late first century (not by the author of First Peter, which is probably the work of one of Peter’s disciples). It was written to respond to various false teachings. The later date of composition is suggested in 3:3-4 indicating the disappointment experienced by the first Christian generation that Jesus had not returned. The epistle is likely dependent on the books of Jude and First Peter. Cast in the form of a farewell address by Peter, it is a response to critics of Christianity (probably Gnostics), who argued that Christians were free of moral constraints and that there would be no coming judgment.

In the assigned verses the author responds to charges that there will be no second coming of Christ or end of the world (v. 4). The expected response is by arguing the divine sense of time is not that of humans; that a thousand years is as one day to God (v. 8; cf. Psalm 90:4). The delay thus far experienced is not long, and so the claim of Jesus to soon return is not negated. The apparent delay is said to be really an example of God’s patience, for he wants none to perish and is giving all time for repentance [metanoia] (vv. 9, 15). The author claims that Christ will return suddenly and surprisingly, dissolving the earth with fire. The actual phrase used, “day of the Lord,” is a common biblical expression for the time of God’s final judgment (v. 10; cf. Amos 5:18-20; Joel 2:28-32). Stoic influence may reflect in the final verses of the lesson, as they entail the call to be at peace [eirene, the Greek term may refer here to harmony] and patient/long-suffering [makrothumia] while leading lives of holiness [hagios] as we await the creation of new heavens and earth in which righteousness [dikaiosune] dwells (vv. 11-15a). When we recall that righteousness is a concept entailing restored relationship in the biblical witness (Gerhard von Rad, Old Testament Theology, Vol. 1, pp. 371-372), we receive here a vision of how when Christ comes again the cosmos, even our relationship with God, will be like it is now, but perfect, made new.

Application: This is a text that can give hope, both in explaining the delay of Christ’s second coming (for 2,000 years is not a long wait for God in view of his way of experiencing time) and also giving hope in the same way and for the same reason when we feel that God has not answered our prayers. Providence and Eschatology are primary themes for such sermons. Guidance in living the Christian life (Sanctification) might also be a theme, as we are given advice to remain at peace/harmony, be long-suffering, and live in holiness (without passion) as we patiently await Christ’s coming in our lives.

Mark 1:1-8
We continue to consider the first of the synoptic gospels to be written, a book that was perhaps the source of other gospels, perhaps based on oral traditions of the passion narrative and accounts of Jesus (the so-called Q-source). Probably written prior to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, this anonymous work is traditionally ascribed to John Mark, perhaps referred to as an associate of Paul (Acts 12:12-25; 15:37; Colossians 4:10) or as Peter’s scribe (1 Peter 5:13). Some speculate that the original audience was the church in Rome (especially Gentiles), as it presumes readers unfamiliar with Jewish customs and Palestinian geography (see 7:2-4, 31), but it also could have been written for Palestinian Christians.

This lesson includes the introduction to Mark’s gospel, which is said to be good news (euangelion, or gospel] of the Son of God [huios tou Theou] (a title rarely used in Mark, though it had Old Testament precedents to connote an obedient servant in God’s history of salvation [see 2 Samuel 7:13-14; Psalm 2:7]) (v. 1). The remaining verses report the proclamation of John the Baptist. Parts of the First Lesson from Isaiah (v. 3) as well as Malachi 3:1 and Exodus 23:30 are cited (vv. 2-3). A messenger [angelos] will be sent to prepare the way for the Lord, crying out in the wilderness. John the Baptist is described — his nomadic way of life, clothed with camel’s hair complemented with a leather belt around his waist, and subordinating to the Messiah about whom he preached. (His attire recalls that of Elijah [2 Kings 1:8], which may be deliberate in Mark’s unique description, since some Hebrews believed the prophet’s return would be a sign of the end times.) A summary of John’s preaching regarding repentance and forgiveness of sins is offered, as well as the contrast between his baptism of repentance [baptisma metanoias] and the Messiah’s baptism of the Holy Spirit [pneuma hagios] (vv. 4-8). Matthew (3:4-6), but not Luke and John, closely parallels this data. What makes Jesus greater than John is not answered in this text, but we can assume that aspects of John’s ministry as a prophetic ministry prefigure Jesus’ own emphases. Perhaps the main distinction is in the baptism Jesus brings, for only by the Holy Spirit (grace) can we really be changed and spiritual communion with God established. The coming of the Spirit was also associated with the last days in the Jewish tradition (cf. Joel 2:28-29; Isaiah 11:1-2).

Application: The gospel affords an excellent opportunity to prepare for Christmas by focusing parishioners on its real meaning — that Christ comes actually to forgive sin, not just to call us to repentance. This stress on Justification by Grace may be complimented with a Sanctification theme, that we need John’s word of preparation in order to be prepared. Other sermon options include a stress on the Holy Spirit’s work in actually restoring our relation to God, the Spirit as a sign of the end times (Eschatology), or to focus on what baptism does — actually restore by the work of the Spirit our relation to God. This is an opportunity, then, to link baptism to the meaning of Christmas.

Within our Church Year schedule, already within a week after the birth of Jesus, our texts remind us that Jesus was born to suffer and to die. Our theology, if it is to be faithful to the texts, must be a theology of the cross, a theology of God in Christ suffering with us for our redemption.

Isaiah 63:7-9
Within this portion of the Isaiah traditions the rescue of the pre-Israelites from bondage and affliction in Israel by the Lord God is recalled. The Lord God is said to have carried the pre-Israelite people from danger just as a loving father carries his children to a place of safety. The Lord is described as the Savior of the household of Israel, afflicted when the Israelites were afflicted, suffering with them and redeeming them. For an excellent discussion of biblical expressions of God entering deeply into human experiences of suffering and of implications of this for our own pastoral care, preaching, and teaching, see Terence E. Fretheim, The Suffering of God (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984).

Hebrews 2:10-18
The concept of the suffering of the Lord continues and is amplified in this text. In this text Jesus as the Christ is depicted as having been sent by God to offer himself as the empathetic and faithful supreme priest representing all people in the presence of God, in order to make expiation as a priest for the sins of all of the people. Although Jesus had been tempted to avoid death by submitting to the claims of absolute authority of the Roman state, he instead experienced and overcame the power of death, destroying the power of the Romans who had the power of death, and setting free those who, in fear of death throughout their entire lives, had been subjected to bondage. God is said to have done this by making the Christ perfect through suffering, so that those who are tempted to submit to the claims of absolute authority of the Roman state may not yield to that temptation.

Matthew 2:13-23
The cruelty of Herod, representing the Roman state as one who had purchased the contract to rule for the Romans in Jerusalem and Judea, is portrayed in a most horrible form in this text. In his attempt to kill the infant Jesus, Herod is depicted as having ordered that all of the baby boys in the area of Bethlehem who were two years old or younger be slaughtered. The infant Jesus is spared because Joseph, warned in a dream by an angel, takes Mary and Jesus to Egypt, from which Jesus will be called to be God’s Son. Jesus and his family will suffer politically and economically throughout their lives, and Jesus himself will suffer and die on a Roman cross in Jerusalem.

Psalm 148
After the three texts considered above, Psalm 148 provides a song of praise. For all that God has done, does, and will do, all of God’s creation, in heaven above, on the earth, and the sun, the moon, and the flickering stars, people of all ages and genders are called upon in this psalm to give praise to the Lord God. In view of texts such as this in our Older Testament and of texts such as Galatians 3:26-28 in our Newer Testament, what justification do so many of us have in our time for causing additional suffering by continuing to restrict leadership positions in the Church to males and to those who have majority power positions and orientations?

Even though from the perspective of the Christian Church Year we have already observed “New Year’s Day approximately one month ago on the First Sunday of Advent, we can be grateful if people will come together to worship God on the first day of our secular calendar year. It is good to see that for some people worship of God in Christian community on the first day of the secular year is more meaningful than “celebrating” with alcoholic drinks and watching football games. It is interesting to see the texts selected for us as we prepare this worship service, since the American secular year is obviously not noted in our biblical tradition. They provide for us a challenging set of choices rather than a unified theme.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13

This popular selection from the Qoheleth supplies for us on this day a collection of philosophical reflections over contrasting activities in our lives. It concludes with the observation that it is a gift from God that our eating, our drinking, and our occupations, even if tedious, should be enjoyable to us.

The wisdom tradition here has some similarities to Eastern philosophy, to Oriental wisdom, especially to the Taoist concept of yin/yang, the combination of opposites to attain completeness. As we have completed one secular year and as we begin another, it can be comforting to realize that although much of what occurred for us during the previous year was beyond our control, we can believe that, in spite of it all, God wants us to enjoy life and wants us to believe in God and to believe that, ultimately, God is in control of our lives and of our destiny.

Psalm 8

Psalm 8 in this context is a reminder to us that God, awesome as God is for us, has given tremendous responsibilities to us to care for the creatures of this world. As we ponder this, perhaps making some serious New Year’s resolutions with regard to our God-given responsibilities to care for this world and its creatures and for our own bodies as individuals and as groups of Christians in communities of faith would be appropriate. If we make resolutions, we should keep them.

Revelation 21:1-6a

Although we are not on this day in a new heaven nor on a new earth, we are beginning a new secular year and the old year has passed away. The sea, however, is still with us and is rising! On this New Year’s Day and every day God is the Alpha and the Omega for us, present from the beginning to the ending of our lives.

There is an expression of faith in this text that God will be with us at every moment in our new year to “wipe away every tear” that may come into our eyes. We should be ready and prepared to see the hand of God in whatever form that hand may be expressed for us during the coming year.

Matthew 25:31-46

The clear emphasis in this text upon judgment of people by the Risen Christ based on works of mercy and of kindness that they may or may not have done may appear to be in stark contrast to the insistence by the Apostle Paul that we are being judged by God and saved from eternal suffering and death by the undeserved grace of God, not based on our own good works. Certainly different and even contrasting emphases can be and are present in our biblical collection of documents. Also, it is helpful to see contrasting teaching as present in creative tension within our Scriptures.

A key factor in this Matthew 25:31-46 text, however, is that it is “all the nations” that are said to be judged by the Risen Christ as the “Son of man” here in 25:32, not the People of God, not those who believe and trust in God. Perhaps the people who do not believe in God and who do not trust in God are considered here in this text to be judged by criteria that are different from the criteria under which we are to be judged. In any event, during the coming year as in the past, eternal judgment is the work of the eternal God, not of mortal humankind.

Jeremiah 31:7-14

This thoroughly optimistic text is a reminder to us that the concept “salvation” in much of the Older Testament is primarily corporate and this-worldly and in most of the Newer Testament is primarily individualistic and is often otherworldly. By accepting both the Older and the Newer as its biblical canon, the early Church assured itself of a well-balanced and well-rounded salvation concept. Our teaching and our proclamation should reflect this balance, not overemphasizing the individualistic and otherworldly. When the corporate and this-worldly aspects of salvation are underemphasized and neglected, as they have been for so many centuries in most of the Church and still are in significant segments of it, oppression inevitably results and social justice is neither valued nor considered to be important for the Church. Instead, the Church offers only “pie in the sky by and by” and persons and groups of people who understand the necessity for social justice look with contempt upon the Church or at least consider it to be irrelevant.

Both corporate and this-worldly and individualistic and otherworldly, salvation is a gift from God for us. Life is itself a gift from God. Although we are individuals, we are members of the Church, the corporate body of Christ.

Sirach 24:1-12

This extensive personification and praise of Wisdom introduces the second half of the document known and used in major portions of the Christian Church as “The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach,” “Ecclesiasticus” (the Church’s book), or simply as “Sirach.” After emanating from the “mouth of the Most High,” Wisdom is said in this text to have permeated the world before being commanded by the Creator to dwell in Israel.

Psalm 147:12-20

As in so many of the songs in the Psalter, praise of the Lord (Adonai) is the dominant theme here. It is possible that there are three extended “verses” (1-6, 7-11, and 12-20) in this psalm as we have it today, much as we may have hymns with three verses in our hymnals. The third verse selected here (12-20) was probably at one time separate from verses 1-6 and 7-11, as it is the Septuagint (Greek) and in the Vulgate (Latin) major translations of the Hebrew Bible. The emphasis in verses 12-20 on the Lord sending out the Word of the Lord (verse 18), declaring the Word of the Lord to Jacob (19), and the statement that the Word of the Lord runs swiftly (15) explains the reason for the selection of this portion to be placed between the personification of Wisdom in Sirach 24:1-12 and the personification of the Word of the Lord in Jesus perceived as the Christ in John 1:1-18, the pre-existent Logos (Word) who became flesh and “camped” among us full of grace and truth.

Wisdom of Solomon 10:15-21

In this other major wisdom document that, together with Sirach, is sacred Scripture for most Christians, Wisdom is personified and acclaimed throughout its first ten chapters. In this segment, as in the portion from Sirach 24:1-12, Wisdom is said to have provided guidance for and become a blessing for Israel. It is written that Wisdom entered into Moses and led the former slaves through the Red Sea to freedom. We can believe that just as God via Wisdom provided salvation for Israel, God via the Word (the Logos) Jesus the Christ, provided salvation for the members of the Johannine community and offers salvation to the world.

Ephesians 1:3-14

The key words that connect this text selected from the “blessing” portion of this epistle to the Johannine Prologue (1:1-18) are Grace in verse 6 and the Word of Truth in verse 13. It should be noted that in Greek the entire “blessing” section of this epistle (verses 3-14) are one extended sentence. When we translate this sentence into the English language for readers of modern English, we have to divide it into at least six sentences. Greek readers from the period of classical Greek and from what is for us the “biblical” period enjoyed well-constructed, “edifice” sentences; most modern readers of English want their sentences in simple, small bites.

John 1:(1-9) 10-18

Since the references to the witness of John the Baptizer interrupt the flow of thought of the Prologue even though they link the Prologue to the materials in the Gospel proper that begin with 1:19, on this particular occasion on the Second Sunday after Christmas Day when the Word, the Logos is emphasized, it would be appropriate to focus our attention on the portions of the Prologue (1:1-5, 9-14, 16-18) apart from the references to John the Baptizer that we see in 1:6-8 and 15. The main and perhaps original portions of the Prologue (1:1-5, 9-14, and 16-18) express one of the highest Christologies that were included within the New Testament canon.

Here in Jesus, the pre-existent Logos, divine grace is said to be so abundant that it is literally “grace piled on top of grace.” Here the only begotten God the Son, who is in the close presence of God the Father, has “exegeted” (from the final verb in verse 18) God, has brought God out so that those who follow him will be able to see the meaning of God, God whom no human has ever seen at any time.

Particularly if we have used John 1:1-14 as the Gospel text on Christmas Day, we should put our emphasis on 1:16-18 on this present occasion. A biblically based message from this text on the Second Sunday after Christmas Day will demonstrate from Jesus as Jesus is revealed to us in the New Testament and from our experiences within the Church as it should be as the “Body of Christ” what it means to us to receive God’s “grace piled on top of God’s grace.” Our message will also show how the Jesus of history in his life brought out for others to see the meaning of God whom no human being has ever seen at any time. It will be God who graciously forgives and Jesus who goes to the cross for us whom we, therefore, will proclaim and will depict with our lives. This will mean offering ourselves for others. It will mean giving up our life by trusting and believing in God who is the one who gives “grace piled on top of grace.” Our words will be effective if our lives demonstrate these things.