Epiphany 4c - conclusion

The lessons for Epiphany 4c remind me of one of those questions on a standardized test. Which of the following four items does not belong to the group? The obvious answer is C or 1 Corinthians. The messenger Jeremiah is blamed for the message. The psalmist is threatened by the wicked, unjust and cruel. And Jesus, the home town prophet, is treated as being too big for his britches. The epistle with its poetic description of a still more excellent way seems too sweet to belong. But if you place “Love is gentle and kind” in the context of the conflicted Corinthian congregation it belongs with Jeremiah and the Psalmist and Jesus. Love that bears, believes, hopes and endures is not sentimental but suffering. Love that does not insist on its own way is emptied of power to take on the form of a servant. Love that keeps no records of wrongs forgives those who “know not what they do” even when they do it on purpose. Love that never ends dies that others may live. So if C is understood in the context of conflict then it belongs with A,B, & D the answer is E or none of the above. And Love will tell you if you really want to pass the test… Go and do likewise.