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Lectionary for Jan 11, 2026
Baptism of Our Lord
First Sunday after Epiphany
Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29;
Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17
Don’t you love books or movies where you already know what happens, and then you get to find out why it happens? I read Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You a month ago. The terrible thing that shapes the book happens in the first sentence, and the reader finds out what went wrong in the ensuing chapters. In this week’s lectionary readings, we already know what happens, and then we are told why it happens.
In the Gospel, Jesus goes to the Jordan River to be baptized by his relative, John (Matthew 3:13). We already know what is going to happen, but we’re not sure why. Even John isn’t sure why. Why would John baptize Jesus? Shouldn’t it be the other way around? But Jesus says it must be done this way to fulfill all righteousness. And immediately after coming up from the baptismal waters, the Spirit alights on Jesus, and the heavens speak. The voice announces that Jesus is God’s beloved son, with whom God is well-pleased. The why of the baptism was to continue to fulfill God’s desires and delights in Jesus’ life.
I love when Acts is brought into the lectionary. Peter spoke to the Roman, Cornelius, and his household, as well as the Jews who had accompanied the prophet to Jaffa. In his speech, Peter reminded them of what they already knew. You know about all the things in Judea and Galilee concerning Jesus. God anointed him with the Spirit and power. Jesus went around healing, doing good and exorcising demons. He was killed by hanging on a tree, but God raised him after three days. Jesus appeared to those who had eaten with him. And he commanded those who witnessed his resurrection to proclaim that God had anointed him judge of the living and the dead.
So why did Peter make the journey to tell the people what they already knew? He added this new revelation: Jesus lived and died so that people in every nation who fear God and work righteousness will be acceptable to God (Acts 10:35). Jesus taught and healed the people who heard him in Galilee. He was killed by the Romans to save his disciples, of course. But only here in Acts does Peter realize that Jesus lived and died for the whole world. Anyone—absolutely anyone—who follows Jesus has been saved by him from sin and death. This is Peter’s why.
Reaching back to Isaiah, we already know that for hundreds of years God has appointed servants to do God’s work. The servant in this passage is the people of Israel (see Isaiah 41:8-9, 49:3 and 42:16-22, especially verse 19). But we can join the early church in also reading this passage intertextually to speak about Jesus’ life and ministry. And what does God’s servant do? The servant’s job is to bring forth justice to the nations (42:1) and to be peaceful and non-injurious (2-3). This is undoubtedly a difficult job, but the servant must not become disheartened or crushed while establishing justice on earth (4). If establishing justice is the what, what is the why?
The why, in Isaiah, is because God is God. God establishes the earth and gives breath to people to live because “I am the Lord” (5-6). God calls servants to righteousness, to be a light to nations, to open the eyes of the blind and to release prisoners because “I am the Lord” (6-8). God establishes servants to perform justice because that is who God is. In the same way, I tell long Bible stories to my sons on car trips and have poetry contests where they all “win,” because of who I am and who they are. I don’t know how to be a sporty dad. But I do know how to share a love of stories, history and language.
We already know the what of Isaiah by the time we get to chapter 42. God raises up prophets and servants to proclaim that God is passionate about justice and fidelity and disgusted by oppression and idolatry. Why does God keep anointing servants to spread a gospel of justice and righteousness, even when the first several hundred attempts didn’t seem to go so well? Well, that’s just who God is!
Sharing the good news of God’s inclusive welcome and passion for righteousness and justice is the what. God’s love for us as made known in Jesus is the why.
