Cycle A 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
20 January 2008
You Are The Chosen One
Isaiah 49: 3, 5-6
"You are my Servant. . . I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."
Psalm 40:
"Here am I, Lord, I come to do your will. "
1 Corinthians 1: 1-3
Paul tells the Corinthians that he is called and so are they.
John 1: 29-34
John the Baptist testifies that Jesus is the Chosen One, the Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world.
This week our liturgy expands on the theme from last Sunday. Again we have a reading from Isaiah and it's a continuation of the Servant theme we heard about last week. You remember the Servant is the Chosen One - chosen by God to bring justice and salvation to all the world. The Servant is called to this mission by God and empowered by God's own spirit.
In today's reading from Isaiah the Servant is identified with the nation of Israel - probably the people of Israel that remained faithful to God even in tough times. Other places in Isaiah's prophecy the Servant is an unnamed individual. Remember the New Testament saw Jesus as this Servant.
Again today, in John's Gospel, Jesus is seen as God's Chosen One - the Servant who will bring salvation to all the world. John the Baptist testifies that Jesus is chosen, he is called, to the mission of reconciliation and justice. John uses the title "Lamb of God" for Jesus. Isaiah refers to the Servant as a lamb. So John is saying that Jesus is this Chosen Servant. He is the one who will bring salvation to the world. He is empowered by God's spirit for this mission.
Paul, in the greeting of his letter to the Corinthians, tells the church in Corinth that he is called and chosen by God to bring the good news of Jesus to the Gentile world. Paul reminds the people that they are also chosen and called to live the way of Jesus.
So just what does it mean to be chosen? On our radios and TVs and in our newspapers right now, we are hearing a lot about some people who want to be chosen. The news is full of people named Clinton, Obama, Huckabee, McCain, Romney and others who are spending a lot of time, energy and money trying to get chosen. For what reason do they want to be chosen?
You know the prophet Isaiah had to deal with this whole concept of being chosen. The nation of Israel always thought of themselves as the Chosen People. Chosen by God - but for what? For a while they thought being chosen meant having special favors from God - having all kinds of benefits that other nations did not have. But they were in for a surprise. They were captured by the Babylonians about 586 BC and lost their nation, their chosen privileges, their status in the world. Their influence.
This was Isaiah's problem. How could Israel be the Chosen People and still be captives with no status, no influence, no place of honor in their world? Isaiah's prophecy was to these captive people who had lost heart and thought God abandoned them. And a lot of them abandoned this idea of being God's chosen people.
Isaiah still believed they were the chosen people and he said so. But Isaiah said they had misunderstood the idea of being chosen. To be chosen by God did not mean having special privileges - it meant having a special purpose. Israel began seeing being chosen as being called to a mission. They would have influence. They would be the people who brought light into the darkness. They would bring salvation to the world. They would be the Servant of God if they could just keep in mind this new idea of what it means to be chosen.
Jesus, of course, understood this concept quite well. He will be the Servant that doesn't seek privileges and power. He will be the Servant that brings salvation and justice through kindness and healing and love. This power of love and service is very contrary to the power of force and might. And since it is so contrary to our way of thinking, Jesus will end up suffering for his convictions.
Why do the folks running for the office of president want to be chosen? Is it for the privileges and prestige and power? Or is it to be of service to the people of our country. I guess each one of us will have to decide that for ourselves.
Meantime, today Saint Paul reminds us that we are also chosen and called by God. Why are you chosen? What is God calling you to do with your life? What is God calling you to do today? When you figure it out, will you do it?
Well you've already given your answer to God in the Response Psalm today.
You said, "Here am I, Lord, I come to do your will." Did you mean it?
Think about it and pray about it.
NOTE:
To read the Sunday readings on line for the The 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time click on the following link - or copy it to your browser's address bar.
http://www.usccb.org/nab/012008.shtml
To listen to the readings on line go to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' podcast. To get there click the following link - or copy it to your browser's address bar. You will need to scroll down on the right side of the window to find the correct date.
http://www.podcastalley.com/player/player.php?pod_id=43329
