Today, we have three readings, because it seems to be a special day. It is the Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist. Now, there is another set of readings if you didn't want to celebrate the Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist , but we aren't doing them here today.
So, our first reading is Isaiah 49:1-6. I think I'm getting these links the way I want them now.
I love the imagery of Isaiah as a weapon so cherished that the owner (master?) hides him and keeps him safe. But ultimately, this is about the last few lines, isn't it? It's too small a thing, basically, to save the Israelites, because they are only one nation. God wants Isaiah to be the light for everyone. Does this mean that Isaiah was the first step towards letting the world know about the coming messiah, or that the messiah had a little bit of Isaiah in him? I'm not very insightful this morning. I'm only on my fifth cup of coffee so far.
Reading numero two is Acts 13:22-26
I had a lot of trouble with this one, because it seemed tacked on to me. My first thought was "Is this just the first non-gospel mention of John?" So as usual, I read the stuff around it and looked at what the smart little editors of my study bible had to say. It turns out that this is a part of a speech (sermon?) that Paul is giving in the temple in Jerusalem. He's trying to explain the order that God gave certain prophets to us, to lead us to Jesus. He starts out with the Exodus from Egypt, and shows how that led to the inheritance of lands in Canaan. Once the Israelites were settled down, God gave them judges until they asked for a king. Out of the line of their favorite king, David, he gave Jesus to the world, and right before Jesus, he gave us John to get every body ready for it. Right? Right. By the way, this sermon also ticked a bunch of guys off. It looks like this is the sermon that led to the sermon that got Paul kicked out of Jerusalem the first time.
Last one, kids. Luke 1:57-66, 80
See now, I've been waiting for this one. Luke is one of my favorite authors in the bible, and I really love this reading. From my understanding, John's daddy, Zechariah, had been told the whole plan about John and Jesus and the whole world getting the chance to be saved and all, and understandably, he found it a little hard to believe. So he got struck dumb. I think it was a little like giving a toddler some quiet time. Maybe God thought he needed to stop talking and think it over for a few months. When Zechariah confirmed what Elizabeth said about the kid's name, then he was allowed to speak again, so everybody knew that there was some miraculous things going on around the birth of this child. Just in case Elizabeth's advanced age and previous barren state weren't enough. The only part that I don't get is "The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel." Did Zechariah and Elizabeth live way out in the desert or something? Is this describing his spiritual state? Anyone?
News of the day goes back to our "fear not" theme on Sunday: (Hey, it's a slow news day.)
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