Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for May 31, 2015

First Reading: Isaiah 6:1-8

Prophets, it seems, need to be persuaded. Moses argued with God, objecting that he could not speak well. Jeremiah worried that he was too young. Jonah simply ran away. Now we hear Isaiah fearing that his sinfulness – “unclean lips” – disqualifies him for God’s service. But then a mighty angel purifies Isaiah’s lips with a hot coal. Now Isaiah eagerly accepts God’s call: “Here I am! Send me!” When God calls us, will we look for an excuse, or shout, “Send me”?

Canticle 13

Canticles, “little songs,” are scripture passages, other than Psalms, chosen for use in worship in the Book of Common Prayer. Canticle 13 incorporates parts of the “Song of the Three Young Men” who were thrown into the fiery furnace by an angry king. Protected by God, as recorded in Daniel and the apocryphal Song of Azariah, they survived this ordeal, walking unharmed through the fire and singing this hymn of praise to God and all creation.

Second Reading: Romans 8:12-17\

These verses came just before last week’s reading from Romans, in which Paul likened the hope and pain of Christians waiting for salvation to the pain and expectancy of a mother in labor. Here we see Paul building toward that image, telling us of the great gift that we are offered: By accepting life led by the Spirit, we become children of God, just as Jesus is the Son of God. With Jesus we become heirs of God, inspired by the Spirit, knowing that our suffering with Jesus opens us up to being glorified with Jesus.

Gospel: John 3:1-17

Our Gospel reading returns to that familiar verse, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” Today, we hear it in context with the narrative that leads up to it. Using language that bewilders Nicodemus, a leader of the Pharisees, Jesus says we must be “born from above” in order to see the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus can’t figure out how that works. How can an adult return to a mother’s womb? But Jesus means something completely different: Through the Son, from the Creator, inspired by the Spirit’s restless wind, we come to the Kingdom through a spiritual rebirth in faith and belief.