Tag: luke 4

Rejected (Luke 4:16-30)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Orthodox depiction of Christ in the synagogue at Nazareth

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
        to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
        to set free those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 

All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” 

He said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’ ” 

And he said, “Truly I tell you; no prophet is accepted in his hometown. But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months and there was a severe famine over all the land, yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. There were also many with a skin disease in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 

When they heard this, 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. But he passed through the middle of them and went on his way. (New Revised Standard Version)

Reject:

  1. to refuse to have, take, recognize, etc.; to deny
  2. to refuse to grant (a request, a demand, etc.)
  3. to refuse to accept (someone or something); to rebuff, renounce, or repel
  4. to discard as useless or unsatisfactory; to jettison or eliminate
  5. to cast out or eject; vomit
  6. to cast out or off

Rejection can be mutual, and cut both ways. This appears to have been the case with Jesus and the synagogue goers in his hometown of Nazareth.

The townsfolk rejection of Jesus went far enough to want to throw him off a cliff. They were enraged with anger. Christ recognized the people’s rejection of him, long before they realized it themselves. Christ’s rejection of unjust and unbiblical ideas and practices went far enough to rebuke the congregation from the scriptures.

The difference in the two rejections was that the synagogue attenders were denying Jesus himself; whereas Jesus was refusing to accept a longstanding tradition of hate toward a certain group of people.

The nub of the rejection, which went both ways, had to do with non-Jewish persons, that is, Gentiles.

If you think this to be a silly sort of thing, especially of getting so worked up as to try and kill someone, then consider how frothed-up people get concerning contemporary political elections.

Jesus being pro-Gentile was not only unpopular; it was unheard of. So, the people rejected him.

The synagogue being anti-Christ meant that they were anti-Gentile and anti-God, as far as Jesus was concerned. And he wasn’t about to put up with it. So, he rejected not the people, but their entrenched hatred and unscriptural stance.

Jesus took the prophecy of Isaiah about proclaiming liberty to captives, and freedom for the oppressed, and then applied it, not to his fellow Jews who were present, but to, of all people, Gentiles.

Christ pointed out that in the days of Elijah, the prophet was sent to a Gentile woman. In addition, he let everyone know that the prophet Elisha cleansed a Gentile. 

The gathered synagogue worshipers understood exactly what Jesus was saying and doing – he was claiming to be the ultimate prophet, sent for those despised people. 

It was too much for the gathered folk to take. So all hell broke loose as the “worshipers” became so angry and insolent that they drove Jesus out of town and tried to chuck him off a cliff to his death.

Jesus had that kind of effect throughout his earthly ministry by saying and doing the unexpected, and the unwanted.

The people of Nazareth seemed to have always interpreted the message of Isaiah and the prophets as being for themselves, not others. 

This is a probing story for today’s Christian Church. Whenever we lose sight of a biblical message and re-interpret it as being for only us, then we end up like the Nazarenes of old who did not recognize Jesus for who he really is and what he really came to do. 

Perhaps the burning question from today’s Gospel lesson for individual Christians and all churches is this: Are you ready to throw Jesus off a cliff?

Spend some time alone with God today. Consider whether you have made Jesus into the image of what you want him to be, or whether you accept him as he is. 

One clue to this is if you believe some person or people group should not have Jesus – he belongs to people like us. This, by the way, is the very definition of “rejection.”

It could be that some soul-searching repentance is in order, so that Christians will be true worshipers of Jesus, and not just spectator fans of him.

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Victory Over the Power of Evil (Luke 4:31-37)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

He went down to Capernaum, a village in Galilee. He was teaching the people on the Sabbath. They were surprised and impressed—his teaching was so forthright, so confident, so authoritative, not the quibbling and quoting they were used to.

In the meeting place that day there was a man demonically disturbed. He screamed, “Stop! What business do you have here with us, Jesus? Nazarene! I know what you’re up to. You’re the Holy One of God and you’ve come to destroy us!”

Jesus shut him up: “Quiet! Get out of him!” The demonic spirit threw the man down in front of them all and left. The demon didn’t hurt him.

That knocked the wind out of everyone and got them whispering and wondering, “What’s going on here? Someone whose words make things happen? Someone who orders demonic spirits to get out and they go?” Jesus was the talk of the town. (The Message)

During his earthly life and ministry, Jesus was a Deliverer and a Liberator; he came to save people from their guilt and shame, and to free the world from the clutches of evil.

And so, it was inevitable that Jesus would come into conflict with the forces of darkness.

In today’s story, Jesus had a confrontation with an unclean spirit, that is, a demon who is an ally of the devil. The particular demon was not only speaking for himself, but also for his fellow band of wicked spirits.

Christ’s ministry put him in direct opposition to the hosts of Satan. The nub of the issue for the demon was whether Jesus had come for their immediate destruction. Jesus, however, wasn’t in the habit of answering questions from demons.

So, Christ rebuked the demon, told him to get out of the person he was influencing. And that is exactly what happened. The writer, Luke, pointed out that this demonstrated Christ’s authority, that it even includes the power to command unclean spirits, and out they go.

And that is how the liberating and saving ministry of Jesus began.

In the Gospel of Luke, this account of Jesus being confronted by a demon happens just after Christ’s 40 days of being tempted in the desert, even by Satan himself. So, the entire demonic realm was alert to beginning ministry of Christ. They went after Jesus right away, perhaps trying to trip him up before he could get any ministerial momentum.

Jesus was teaching on the Sabbath in the town of Capernaum. We ought not to be surprised that a demonized man was among those observing the Sabbath. The wise believer will be savvy to this reality.

Furthermore, we aren’t told who the man was or of any symptoms he may have had. Apparently, he presented himself as a normal Jewish villager. So, we ought not to think that anyone being demonized will necessarily demonstrate madness or illness of some sort.

The demon was perhaps more aware of who Jesus was than anyone else there on that Sabbath Day in Capernaum. He acknowledged Christ’s power and mission. Jesus indeed came to destroy the power and influence of evil in the world.

You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

James 2:19, NIV

Since Jesus Christ is the rightful authority over all, that means Satan and his wicked spirits are not; and they must submit to that true and real power.

Truth and doctrine are not only about objective facts and right belief. Even though our thinking is important and critical, there is more to it than that: Orthodoxy (right belief) requires orthopraxy (right actions).

A right truth that is only described is not the whole truth. In reality, a false witness and a liar may state the truth, but not entirely, withholding important information; thus, impairing any sort of right action from taking place.

Gaslighting relatives, oppressive bosses, and tyrannical rulers who tell some truth, and even support some good things, are still gaslighting and oppressing others with their narcissistic brand of leadership.

Truly, believers in and followers of Jesus can sometimes be duped into supporting evil leaders who use all sorts of unjust tactics, just because that leader tells the part of truth I want upheld.

Jesus saves; he is Savior of the world – but that is only part of the truth. We must also ask: What has Christ come to save us from? Not just our mistakes, mess-ups, and sins. Christ came to deliver us from the very power of evil that supports injustice and unrighteous behavior to begin with.

If we merely view Jesus as our personal Savior from hell after we die, then we will likely focus almost exclusively on heaven. But if we see all the freedom we need from unhealthy behaviors and unjust ways, then we view Christ as so much more than a fire insurance policy.

We need a more expansive understanding of Christ’s cross. Yes, Jesus died for our sins. Yet, he also died to conquer evil; Christ made it possible for us to become liberated from the shackles of systemic sin and structural evil, as well as personal guilt. In other words, Christ came to topple all evil, and not just human foibles.

And this was why the dark powers of Satan, and his demons, were so afraid of Jesus. They knew their time was short. There is yet another power that has a hold on us today – and that is the reality that many people no longer believe in demons and devils and dark forces.

Since we are a technically advanced people with great understanding of medical science, we now know all sorts of things which cause physical and mental illness. Ancient people did not know about human hormones and chemicals, and the impact of genetic codes on our health. They had no idea about bacteria and viruses, microbes and hygiene.

Therefore, we can jettison all this mumbo-jumbo about demons, right?… Not so much.

Even with all of our modern (and postmodern) explanations for the body and brain, we are still finding ourselves having to contend with the mystery of evil, and the malevolent suffering it causes us.

We modern folk can certainly provide a lot of insight into the cause and effect of particular symptoms a person has according to their biology. And yet, that doesn’t take away the presence of malevolent forces on this earth.

Even with all of our understanding, evil still resides within organizations, institutions, and even faith communities. The meanness and malevolence, the injustice and the ingratitude, and the profound violence (both verbal and physical) which one human being can exact on another is still here – and some would argue that it’s worse than ever.

Knowing something isn’t the same as doing it. If that were true, then education ought to deliver us from evil. Even some intelligent and objective people, who are fluent in facts and figures, still use their calculations for evil.

No matter our creeds or convictions, whether we are religious or not, all of us seem to have a collective sense that this old world of ours is profoundly broken.

All the research dollars in the world has not produced a solution to fix evil. And even if we could completely understand evil, that isn’t the same as ridding ourselves of it.

What’s more, those who put all their trust in changing things through modern means (which means without God) have been some of the worst offenders of producing wars, political tyranny, and gross injustice.

To put all of this perhaps more succinctly in the form of question: We know and understand a lot in combating disease, disaster, and death; but does all of that insight do away with the evil of it? Are things less tragic now?

I argue that is has not. Evil is still evil. Chronic pain, homelessness, poverty, injustice, and health inequities are still wreaking their evil on people.

I believe that evil really does exist, even if it has different language today than it did in the ancient world.

There is real opposition, conflict, and confrontation from evil today. The victory Christ has achieved over the forces of evil has a 2,000 year track record of helping people experience renewed lives, even when their bodies are wasting away.

In the end, the victory of Jesus Christ shall become evident to all the world. Overcoming evil doesn’t come from us, but from God. We can and we must deal with evil in this world. But we are not the Savior or the Liberator.

We need faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us. Amen.

Luke 4:42-44 – Holding onto Jesus

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
Journey with Jesus by He Qi

At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea. (New International Version)

A domesticated Jesus is nothing more than a fictional character, part of the panoply of old classic literature, and just another person in the Christian writings of the New Testament.

Many so called Christians want to control Jesus, to have him serve their purposes. Like some magical entertainer, they want to hold onto him, keep him around, trotting him out occasionally to impress friends and family.

Such persons have not yet come to terms with the spiritual reality that Jesus belongs to others, to everyone, not just me or people I like.

Whenever we grab hold of Jesus to keep him from going to others, we play the role of Mary Magdalene, who did not recognize her Lord when he was standing in front of her face. Then, when realizing who he was, did not want Jesus going anywhere. Yet, the Lord responded:

“Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” (John 20:17, NRSV)

Mosaic of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, Washington National Cathedral

Jesus did more than proclaim good news; he was the good news itself, embodied, for the life of the world – and not only for the life of a particular race or ethnicity or gender, or even religion. As the Lord of Life, there is enough Jesus for everyone.

Maybe the true mark of a Christian is not having bumper sticker messages or a bobblehead Christ or an impressive Bible on the living room coffee table or erudite theological ideas. Maybe its in telling others about Jesus from our own mouth, from a heart that overflows with the gospel of grace.

We must let God be God. Yes, there is a very important place for us to ask, seek, and knock on the door of heaven. And there is also an equal necessity for solitude, silence, and patience, in waiting for the Lord to say, “Come here to me.”

The wisdom to know when to practice solitude, and when to actively seek, arises by purposely engaging in both. We must have an action/reflection model in which we seek to do the will of God, then step back and reflect upon the experience and learn from it. And, at the same time, we are to practice a contemplation/response model that communes in solitude with God, then responds with active involvement of just and merciful acts toward others.

Our Gospel lesson today highlights the need for solitude as a Christian spiritual practice because our Lord practiced it. The solitude, however, is not to be unending. At some point, we must descend from the mountain peak and enter the valley, just as we ascended it from the activity below.

Good news needs proclamation. And for that to happen, it must be proclaimed from both the top of the mountain, as well as the lowest valley. The gospel cannot be chained so that it is tethered for only my group of cronies. No, Jesus is for all, and so, good news is meant to spread to every corner of the earth.

Perhaps we need to sit still long enough, without allowing our inner anxiety to rule the day, to let Jesus call to us and invite us to come. Then, maybe we will be able to hear the gracious words of the Lord:

“Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Put on my yoke and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves. My yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, CEB)

Come Unto Me by Wayne Pascall

There’s no need to break down doors, trying to squeeze ourselves into the kingdom of God. We need only respond to the gracious invitation of Jesus and let him invite others. Truly receiving amazing grace changes us, and we then do not seek to keep Jesus from leaving.

“How amazing, amazing that the one who has help to bring is the one who says: Come here! What love! It is already loving, when one is able to help, to help the one who asks for help, but to offer the help oneself! And to offer it to all! Yes, and to the very ones who are unable to help in return! To offer it, no, to shout it out, as if the helper himself were the one who needed help, as if he who can and wants to help everyone were nevertheless in one respect himself a needy one, that he feels need, and thus needs to help, needs those who suffer in order to help them!”

Søren Kierkegaard, Practice in Christianity

Coming and going, silencing and proclaiming, holding and letting go. We allow Jesus to do it all. And we simply follow in his footsteps.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Son of Humanity, your presence here on earth never becomes a thing of the past – thus never becoming distant. Our faith and experience of you is very present and very much real in the here and now.

Might all people see you in your true form and in the way you walked this earth – not in an empty or meaningless way of mere thoughts or distortions. May all people see you as you are, a lowly man, yet the Savior and Redeemer of humanity – who out of love came to earth to seek the lost, to suffer and die, to call the straying soul, and to absorb the opposition of others without raising a hand in defense.

Would that we might see you in this way, and not be offended at you and your gracious gathering of all kinds of people into your glorious kingdom. Amen.

Luke 4:38-44 – Every One of Them

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
“Healing” by Ivan Filichev, 2014

After leaving the synagogue he entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked him about her. Then he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she got up and began to serve them.

As the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various kinds of diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on each of them and cured them. Demons also came out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah.

At daybreak he departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowds were looking for him; and when they reached him, they wanted to prevent him from leaving them. But he said to them, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.” So, he continued proclaiming the message in the synagogues of Judea. (New Revised Standard Version)

One of the most fundamental truths about the person of Jesus is that he heals all kinds of people. 

Even people who know very little about the historical Jesus know that he was a guy who brought healing to people while he was here on this earth.  For many Christians, the fact that Christ healed people is almost a “ho-hum” moment because we are so familiar with the Gospel stories about him doing the supernatural. 

Observation: Christ Healed Every One of Them

Yet, as with most Scripture stories we encounter, we really need to slow down a bit and let the story sink in. Then, we are likely to make simple but profound observations of the text. One of those observations is this: When people brought the sick and infirmed to Jesus, he healed every one of them. Christ laid his hands on each and every one of them and cured them.

Every one of them, Jesus healed. There is apparently no disease, no infirmity, no sickness, no malady, and no situation too much for Jesus to heal. Without exception, no matter the problem, every individual who came to Jesus was healed by Jesus. 

Observation: Every One of Them Were Healed Through Others

Here’s another simple but profound observation of the story: All those who had any who were sick brought them to Jesus. In other words, those needy folks didn’t come to Jesus on their own. It was their family, friends, and neighbors of the sick persons who brought them to Jesus for healing.

It is good to care for the sick. It is also good to encourage them to look to Jesus for their help and healing. Yet, it is also very good when we bring them to Jesus ourselves. 

Perhaps one of the main reasons we are not seeing more healing and new life in the Western church is because we are not bringing the needy to Jesus. Maybe it is our lack of faith and action, and not the sick person’s, that prevents healing from being realized. 

Methinks that a profound dearth and lack of prayer for others might be at the core of all the physical, mental, and spiritual sickness that abounds in this world. So, let us bring people to Jesus so that he will heal and cure every one of them.

A mosaic of Jesus healing Peter’s mother-in-law, from a Byzantine Church, c.1100 C.E.

Observation: Christ Cares about Every One of Them

Jesus accepts, heals, and cures those at the margins of society. The sick, infirmed, and demon-possessed were the most marginalized people in the ancient world. They were at the mercy of a caring relative, that is, if they had one. If not, the only way of making it was to beg and rely on public charity. Yet, that was difficult because, in many cases, depending upon the illness, they were considered impure. No one would get near them. They couldn’t participate in the community.

But Jesus welcomed them. He took the time and attention to place his hands on each one of them. Their divine healing was much more than physical; being cured meant they no longer needed to be at the margins, unaccepted and unwanted. Jesus was giving them full inclusion to society.

The good news of Jesus Christ consists of meeting the holistic needs of people for health and community. Our Lord desires to integrate excluded people into society. If that takes the miraculous healing of sickness to do it, then Jesus will make it happen.

Observation: Christ Looks to Heal and Care for Every One of Them, Besides Just Us

It can be a real temptation to believe that our little group has the corner on Jesus. We don’t. Jesus was given for the life of the world – not just a few people who look, think, and act like you and me. In today’s story, the people didn’t want Jesus to go. That’s understandable. Yet, Christ left them because there were others in need of healing of both body and soul.

Christ’s mission is so much broader than we sometimes see or expect. Evangelical Christians camp on saving the soul. Progressive Christians hang their hat on social justice and the real physical needs of people. In reality, the gospel involves both body and soul. To only focus on one aspect is to truncate the gospel as only okay news, not good news.

I would argue there is far too much proclaiming of okay news today. Christianity needs a full-orbed gospel that addresses the holistic needs of people, just like Jesus did. It needs a robust Trinitarian theology with the love of God the Father, the grace of Jesus Christ, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit delivering souls from spiritual death and saving bodies from worldly injustice.

Anything less is simply picking and choosing what we want and trying to keep Jesus to ourselves. Let’s not do that. Instead, let’s preach the gospel, a kingdom message in which the power of God comes upon people – transforming them from the inside-out and bringing them from the outside-in.

Healing God, we bring to you all those who are discouraged, depressed, diseased, disordered, and damaged in some way by the sin of this world. Cure them by your mighty power so that they will be included into our communities, as well as your heavenly kingdom. Amen.