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Weekly Message | July 5th, 2009
Passage: Luke 4:14-30
Key Verse(s): 18
In less than two weeks, we will have the “Great Lakes Region Summer Bible Conference”. The theme of the conference is “Discipleship Training”. Shepherd Chad and Greg have been working hard to prepare the main messages. They will be delivering the messages from Luke chapter 5–the calling of Peter and Jesus' messianic ministry. They need our prayer support.
In preparation for studying the main passages at the conference we will be studying Luke's gospel chapter 4 in two lessons. This is the first one of the two studies. Today’s passage records a brief summary of Jesus' beginning ministry in Galilee and his excursion to his home town of Nazareth. It shows us who Jesus is and what he would do. Jesus preached the good news to the poor and proclaimed freedom for the prisoners. The blind received sight and the oppressed were released. Jesus declared to his home town people that he was the fulfillment of the prophet's words regarding the messiah. But he was rejected by his own hometown people and driven out. May God help us to accept the good news of Jesus with faith and humble obedience.
First, “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,..” (14-17). Look at verses 14-15: “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.” How did Jesus receive the Holy Spirit? Jesus started his public ministry by receiving a baptism at the Jordan River. When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. It was to fulfill all righteousness. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased. (John 3:21-22) Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days. During the fasting he was tempted by Satan and defeated the temptation by holding onto the word of God firmly. He returned to Galilee in the power of the Holy Spirit. He preached the good news. Quickly news about him spread through the whole countryside. He taught in the synagogues and people praised him because Jesus spoke with power and authority.
Luke characterizes Jesus’ ministry as the ministry of the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God. Throughout his ministry Jesus relied on the power of the Holy Spirit. He received the Holy Spirit when he was baptized. The Spirit led Jesus to the desert. Jesus healed and drove out demons by the power of the Spirit. Jesus promised his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit when he returned to the Father. In John 6:63 we read: “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” It is the power of the Holy Spirit that gives life. The Holy Spirit was an integral part of his teaching ministry. His message touched people’s hearts deeply because his words had life giving spirit.
Jesus based his ministry on the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God. As we are engaged in campus ministry through one to one studies, we face many difficult challenges. Young people do not seem to have much interest in studying the Bible. They are busy with studies and work. They are under the heavy weight of their life issues which require love and care. We work diligently to invite students and teach them the word of God. It is hard work and spiritually draining. At the last spring conference, we witnessed the great work of God especially among students. But we cannot forget how hard all the leaders work together as a team. It was possible because we were united though prayers. We are again preparing for the Great Lakes Region conference. We are exited about the great work of God we will be experiencing at the conference. The work of God does not just happen. We need the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God.
Second, Jesus preached the good news to the poor (18a). Look at verse 16: “He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read.” After a brief ministry in Galilee, Jesus went to his hometown. On the Sabbath, Jesus went into the synagogue. It was his custom since he was a boy. He was given many chances to read the passage. So he stood and read, then sat back down to listen to the teaching as was Jewish custom. (Mt 5:26:55; Jn 8:2; Ac 16:13) This time was different. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and the recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” He read from Isaiah 61. It was about the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon the Messiah. Now, Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit, explained the real meaning of Isaiah 61.
Isaiah was preaching a message to the people of Israel who became captives. They were slaves of the Babylonian people. They did not have any protection but lived as strangers in the foreign land. They were forced to do hard labor without even enough food. They had to live in such a hopeless condition for almost 70 years as slaves. To these people, God graciously gave the message of hope. Isaiah, the prophet, planted the vision of a day of deliverance. Jewish people believed that the Messiah someday would come and fulfill this hope. They eagerly waited for the day of freedom from their slavery. Historically, through the Persian King Cyrus, the people of Israel were allowed to return to their homeland. Even after the people of Israel returned to their home they did not see the fulfillment of Isaiah 61 because the promised Messiah had not come yet.
These verses very well articulate the main work of the Messiah. The first main work of the messiah is to preach the good news to the poor. Who are “the poor”? The poor are those who do not have much. In Isaiah's time the people were in need of many things. They were despised because of their lack of material things. They sought material richness. Even when they had become rich they were not happy. They still lacked something. But to Jesus those who do not have eternal life were the poor. So Jesus preached the good news to the poor. The good news to the people was repentance and faith. The good news was about the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is where we enjoy eternal life with God. There we will receive an inheritance from God that will not spoil or fade away (1Pe 1:3-4). Without Jesus we are all poor no matter how rich materially we are.
The second main work of the messiah is to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. Look at verse 18b: “He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners...” We are prisoners of sin. The Lord Jesus alone has authority to free us from our sins. Sin has no more claim on us because Jesus pays the price of sin through his precious sacrifice. The devil has no claim on our freedom because Christ has adopted us as his people. When Jesus saw a paralyzed man, He said, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” (Mk 2:5b) When a woman who was subjected to bleeding for twelve years came to Jesus by faith, Jesus blessed her and proclaimed to her freedom from fear by saying, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.” (Mk 5:34) He proclaimed the forgiveness of sins to a woman caught in adultery: “’Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.’” (Jn 8:11b) Freedom is the precious gift of our Lord Jesus. Therefore, in Galatians 5:1 we read, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (Jn 8:31-32)
The third main work of the messiah is to proclaim “the recovery of sight for the blind” The blind are those who cannot see the light of God. There are many examples of blind people in the Bible. King Ahab is a classic example of a spiritually blind man. As a king he could have seen the future of his nation. He could have had a wonderful and fantastic vision for the nation. Yet, he was blind. He could not see all the blessings God gave to him. He only envied a fine vineyard of one of his subjects. The Bible described him as the one who “sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the LORD…” (1 Ki 21:25) Jesus gives spiritual insight for his disciples. We were once blind but we can see now.
The forth main work of the messiah is to release the oppressed. Still, in many parts of the world many totalitarian leaders oppress people. These days many people are oppressed by their need for money. Yet, real oppression is not political or economical oppression, but oppression of the devil. Jesus surely gives release from the power of spiritual oppression.
Look at verses 20-21: “Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’ Jesus identified himself as the fulfillment of God’s truth. In fact, Jesus declared to the people that he, himself, was the promised Savior of the Bible.
Third, No prophet is accepted in his hometown. (22-30). At first Jesus’ hometown people spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. But, soon they looked at Jesus from a human point of view. They said to each other, “Well, isn’t this Joseph’s son? How can he say that he is the Messiah?” Eventually, such human thinking hardened their hearts and all the people in the synagogue were not ready to hear the truth.
Jesus knew that his hometown people had a hard time accepting him as the promised Messiah. Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum. I tell you the truth,’ he continued, ‘no prophet is accepted in his hometown.’” (23-24) This is true with many Old Testament prophets. Most prophets did not receive welcome in their hometown. Jesus gives two examples of how very famous prophets─Elijah and Elisha─were rejected by their own people. Jesus said, “I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.” (26-27a) God used the Gentile starving widow not only to feed him but also to train Elijah in absolute faith.
Another example was a Gentile general named Naaman. Jesus said, “And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed─only Naaman the Syrian.” (27b) Naaman was a valiant soldier and the king regarded him highly. But he had leprosy. He humbly followed Elisha's direction to go to the Jordan River and wash seven times. Initially, Naaman felt very humiliated and wanted to go back home immediately, but he later changed his mind and did exactly what he was told. Then as he dipped into the murky water of the Jordan River, he was cleansed. Yet, many lepers in Israel did not humbly come to Elisha and seek God’s mercy and help.
Jesus urged his people to repent. What did the hometown religious leaders do instead of repenting? Instead of repenting, they became furious and drove Jesus out all the way to the brow of the hill on which the town was built. They were willing to throw Jesus down the cliff. However, Jesus walked right through the crowd and went on his way.
Jesus’ hometown people were very familiar with the prophesies regarding the Messiah. They were confident that they would recognize the Messiah right away when they saw him. When Jesus came to them as the Messiah, they rejected him on the basis of their human thinking. They only saw him as the son of Joseph. What they did not see was the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God Jesus had. They had to bear the consequences of their unbelief and disobedience.
As I was preparing this message, I had a question in my heart. What is it that really motivates me to prepare for the conference knowing that it would require hard work? What motivates me is the fact that the conference will be an opportune time for us to present Jesus as our Messiah so that people may renew their relationship with Jesus or accept Jesus as their Savior for the first time. This can be done only by the power of the Holy Spirit and the word of God. We already sense God at work in student's experiences through the Samuel study for the discipleship conference. Those who attended the study are already taking root in the word of God. We see changes in their lives. As we invite our sheep to the conference, we may experience rejections. But don't be disheartened because Jesus was also rejected. We just ask for the Holy Spirit and the word of God. I am confident that as we humbly come to God in prayer, he will fill us with his Spirit and Word. We will be a part of Jesus’ life-giving ministry.
July 5, 2009; Peter Park; Toledo, UBF.
Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
