Epiphany 4C, January 31, 2016
Luke 4:21-30 21Then [Jesus] began to say to [all in the synagogue in Nazareth,] “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 22All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” 23He 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.’ ” 24And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. 25But 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; 26yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 28When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. 29They 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. 30But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.
Luke 4:21-30 21Then [Jesus] began to say to [all in the synagogue in Nazareth,] “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 22All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” 23He 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.’ ” 24And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. 25But 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; 26yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 28When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. 29They 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. 30But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.
There’s an old story of a man who received the promise
of three fulfilled prayers- anything he prayed for, it would be granted. But
there was a catch: whatever he received, his neighbor would get double. The man
decided that that was alright, so he went home and prayed for land- good land,
with rich soil and no rocks. In the morning, he received word that he had
unexpectedly inherited a big parcel of land, more than he could imagine. He was
down at the pub, celebrating with his buddies when in walked his neighbor.
Wouldn’t you know it, but the neighbor had also received an unexpected
inheritance of twice the amount. All of a sudden, the news from the morning
seemed to be minor, the amount of land paltry.
That spring, the man walked through his land, and
without even thinking, he prayed for an abundant harvest. Not a bad prayer. And
that year, the weather was the best, the rain, the sun shone, the pests were minimal.
The harvest that year filled his granary. The man went into town to celebrate
the harvest with his friends, and there he heard that his neighbor not only
filled his granary, he had had to build a new one besides.
That winter, the man stewed and mulled and churned
over the events. And he came up with a prayer. That spring, the man prayed that
he would be struck blind in one eye.
What is it about human nature that we get jealous,
that we want to have more, that we want to do better than our neighbor or our
sister or our brother. Why is it so important to us to be the best, to have the
most, whether it’s in talent or grades or promotions or friends? Why is it so
hard to rejoice in other people’s success, especially when we’re still doing
fine?
When I was a sophomore in high school, a new girl
transferred in to my high school. Everything I could do, she could do better. She
got the lead in the school musical. She did better on tests, she got the solos
in choir, she had more friends. I hated her- because I was jealous. In some way
it felt like she was taking what was mine. But the solo, the lead role, the 98%
on the test- those were never mine in the first place.
Justified or not, perhaps jealousy is the emotion
driving the murderous impulses of the crowd against Jesus. They turn on him
because he’s favoring other people. In verse 22, they speak well of him, proud
of the hometown boy, amazed at his gracious words. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
But when he refuses to do the amazing things for Nazareth that he did in
Capernaum, well, then, they’re ready to throw him off a cliff. I guess Jesus
really wasn’t welcome in his hometown.
But what is it that sets them off? He’s just declared
freedom for captives, recovery of sight for the blind, good news to the poor.
Why aren’t these people happy?
It’s that he declares these things and says, “It’s not
going to start here. It’s starting somewhere else, with the people you hate,
the people you dislike, the people you resent. In fact, you’re going to have to
get in line- behind them. There’s no special treatment for you, just because
you helped raise me.” It must have been a slap in the face. Where was the
reward, where was the loyalty, the payback? Where was the gratitude?
But that’s not how God works, is it? God picks
unlikely people, despised people, the lowly and the marginalized. Those folks
are God’s favored people. God love everyone, but when God sees someone who has
been pushed to the side or pushed out, that’s where God hangs out.
That’s why God chose Mary to be the mother of the
Messiah. That’s why God picked some uneducated fishermen to be the first
disciples. It’s why God healed Naaman the Syrian and made Ruth the Moabite one
of the ancestors of Jesus. It’s why Rahab the prostitute got in that lineage,
too. God works on the margins, boosting the folks who need it first.
That high school competitor of mine- She was smart and
beautiful and seemingly self-confident, but she was also multi-racial, and her
dad was in prison. She faced racism and discrimination and so many roadblocks I
never had to overcome. If anyone needed to get the boost of being the best, of
being chosen first, it was her. Looking back, I’m thankful for a God who is
wiser and more generous than I am.
May God give us all exactly what we need. May God
teach us to love without envy. And may God’s love and mercy bring healing and
wholeness to all people, starting with the people who need it most. Amen.
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