Third Sunday of Ordinary Time-C
We claim our Jesus of Nazareth to be God and human —all that is authentically divine and all that is authentically human. One of the great mysteries of the faith we profess. Perhaps the greatest of mysteries not comprehensible by human reason alone. With the aid of scripture, humanity was told to await a Messiah who would come to save a sinful world.
For the past two weeks, the Gospel readings have indirectly shown the relationship between Jesus’s divine and human natures. Last week, the Son of God was invited to a wedding in Cana, a typical thing for a person to do. The revelation that Jesus was divine came when he changed the water into wine, something no ordinary person has the power to do. By helping the bride and bridegroom avoid experiencing embarrassment, Jesus used the occasion to show the divine initiative of actively participating in human life.
Today, the Gospel reveals again the relationship between the human and the divine in the person of Jesus. As was the custom, Jesus entered the synagogue in Nazareth on the sabbath as other people had done regularly. He was handed the scroll from the prophet Isaiah and began to read the prophecy. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. After reading, he concluded, “Today, this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
By proclaiming that the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled in himself, Jesus told those in attendance that he was not only the Messiah whom they hoped for but also insinuated that the mission was to be different from what they expected. His mission was not to overthrow a political or military power but to emancipate sinful humanity from all the maladies that result from that condition. Only a divine person could alleviate such hardship, such as claiming to recover the sight of those who are blind. That is what he did. Scripture confirms that Jesus brought sight to the blind during his earthly mission and forgave those in the bondage of sin.
If you notice, the revelation of Jesus’ divine nature is based upon being united in the Spirit and anointed. Jesus’ anointing took place when John baptized him in the river Jordan. There, the dove descended upon him, and his Father spoke from heaven, “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.” The prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled, and Jesus was in an intimate relationship with the Godhead. He was the one anointed by God to bring health to a sickened humanity.
Some have interpreted that the confirmation of Jesus as divine is not in question. Where they begin to differ is that all of the things that lead up to revealing Jesus as the Son of God have little or nothing to do with people outside of having the opportunity of being saved. They have a hard time thinking that Jesus is the new Adam and that all humanity is called to follow his lead, even by suffering on their hill and dying, just as he did.
Jesus’ mission is to save his beloved creation through his divine power and empower his people to do the same. The Incarnation was necessary to pay off our debt and to open up the possibility for human beings to participate in Jesus’ mission. It was also made possible through his death as a man. Once Jesus’ death destroyed the barrier between God and humanity, the action of his obedience created a sacramental system by which humans, with only human nature, can participate in divine initiatives.
We must become anointed through baptism, and then the Lord is upon us. St. Paul reminds us that we become Temples of the Holy Spirit once baptized. With the Lord with us and being anointed by God, the prophecy of Isaiah can and should refer to us. We are called to bring glad tiding to the poor, sight to the blind, and help those oppressed into freedom.
When we choose to work with Jesus’s mission, we fulfill ancient prophecy in our lives. The famous teaching that God became man so we could become God becomes evident because we, too, have been anointed by the Lord.