Introduction
Jesus quotes from Isaiah, but from three different chapters, selecting ideas which particularly illustrate his mission and who he is. Scripture is used to define his identity as empowered by God and sent by him. The words he quotes may have been very familiar, but the way they are used gives them a new emphasis and power. It might be said that the force and relevance of the message remained hidden until the Messiah appeared, proclaiming himself as the fulfilment of the message of the prophet.
Context
We ask what God is saying to our world, and what passages of scripture are appropriate to use. The recent declaration by Anglican Primates meeting at Canterbury highlights the issue that marriage between two people of the same sex is now permitted by the Anglican Church in the United States, and indeed is legal in Britain and a number of other countries. Christians will search the scriptures in seeking to know what is God’s will, or indeed we may select scriptures to suit our own prejudged opinion. It is difficult to know which of these we are doing as we approach this or any other divisive issue.
The Bible notes emphasise that Jesus message contains social and political implications. He does not confine himself to spiritual matters. And the message was not accepted by all! Next Sunday’s gospel (Luke 4.28) tells the story: ‘All in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff.’
Being right, and even using scripture rightly, may not be the easy way to court popular opinion. New ideas, particularly those with a social implication, are often difficult to accept. We might recall:
- The struggle early campaigners against slavery had to persuade people that theirs was a just cause.
- The life and witness of Martin Luther King in a country which treated black people as second class citizens.
- The struggle for women’s’ right to vote, which is still unequal across the globe.
- The very long delay after the Church of England had agreed there was no theological bar to the ordination of women, to the day when the first woman was made a bishop.
It is clear that Jesus did not just read the text in front of him, or provide a literal interpretation. Indeed, his opening quotation affirms that he recognises the guidance of the Holy Spirit in his actions and choice of words. We have to discern ‘what the Spirit is saying to the churches’ (Revelation 2.29).
And, if the issue is one like that of same sex marriage, then no church is in a position to advocate a world-wide solution. National governments uphold views on both sides a very great divide. But, at the same time, we have to confess that those who might wish to marry someone of the same sex have been severely oppressed by both churches and states, and Jesus’ call is to ‘let the oppressed go free.’ Some of the difficulty the issue has presented may be seen in the apology which the Archbishop of Canterbury made for the hurt caused. There are several related articles in all the main newspapers.
And this is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity - needed now as much as ever!
Reflection
Jesus announced his mission, saying ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.’
- How do we recognise the Spirit’s guidance?
- Do we seriously seek the guidance of the Spirit when difficult decisions need to be made?
- Where the Spirit’s guidance calls us to the help of the weak, the marginalised, the poor and the oppressed, is the call loud enough to spur us into action, or only to feel slightly uncomfortable?
- What do we think of the way Jesus used the scroll which he was handed – which seems to be as a visual aid for his message, rather than as a text to be read out and carefully studied? How different was it from Nehemiah’s use of scripture?
Prayer
Based on 2 Corinthians 12.
Holy Spirit of God, we give you thanks that we were all baptized into one body, whoever we are, however different we are, and that we were all made to drink of one Spirit. We give you thanks that you call us all, single and married, old and young, of all colours, of all sexual orientations, of all abilities, of all backgrounds, to be your people.
Holy Spirit of God, we thank you that the body does not consist of one member but of many, with all our differences. If the foot were to say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear were to say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?
Thank you, that you arranged the members in the body, each and every one of them, as you chose, for if all were a single member, where would the body be?
We thank you that even those members of the body that we think less honourable we clothe with greater honour, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But you have so arranged the body, giving greater honour to the inferior member, that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another.
Thank you that we are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And above all, we thank you for your greatest gift, your most excellent gift, the way of love.
Amen.
Prayers and other resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity are available on the Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI) website.
Questions
- How do we discern the guidance of the Spirit?
- Is our prayer consumed with telling God what is on our minds, or with listening for his prompting?
- Can you provide an instance of an issue on which you have asked God’s guidance? And what was the answer? Was it expected or not?
Action
It is clear from the Archbishop of Canterbury’s apology to the LGBTI community, that hurt and pain has been caused. Is there anything you can do to help bring to an end the suffering of those who feel persecuted for their sexuality?
Young people
How did David Bowie open people’s eyes to those who are different?
The Revd Dr Tom Ambrose (husband of former ROOTS AAA editor, Gill Ambrose) is an associate priest in the Parish of the Ascension, Cambridge.
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