"... they marveled at the appealing discourse which came from His lips"
Luke 4:22
Two kindergarten pupils were standing together in the schoolyard. A jet plane whizzed by overhead. "Did you see that?" said one of the little lads. "That was a BX501." The other replied, "No, it was a BX51. You can tell by the sweep of the wing." The first lad said, "I believe you are right. And did you notice it wasn't going more than 760 miles per hour because it didn't break the sound barrier." They agreed on this point. Then the first lad said, "Isn't it amazing how the pressure develops on a plane like that when it goes into a dive." "That's right," said the other, "almost twelve hundred pounds per square inch." Whereupon the bell rang, calling the kindergarten children back to the classroom. The first boy looked at the second boy and said, "There's the bell. Let's go back and finish stringing those darn beads."
Those two little kindergarten geniuses probably were light years ahead of their classmates on the subject of aerodynamics. In today's Gospel Lesson, Jesus appears to be light years ahead of His class on the subject of the meaning of life.
Jesus has returned to Nazareth, the town in which He was reared. It is the Sabbath, and He is standing in the local synagogue, preaching. His text is taken from the Old Testament passage which reads, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me ... He has sent Me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind and release to prisoners" (Lk. 4:18-19). Then He says to the congregation, "Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." And "all who were present spoke favorably of Him; they marveled at the appealing discourse which came from His lips" (Lk. 4:22). We can just see the people nudging each other and whispering, "Isn't this the Son of Joseph the carpenter? Isn't He a marvelous preacher?" Because Jesus knew what they were thinking He knew He was light years ahead of them on the subject of the meaning of their life as a Chosen People. He was addressing that synagogue crowd on the highest level of God's Mercy for all His children, while they were still down on the same old level of regarding themselves as favored by God above all others. Jesus was giving them one of the great keys to the mystery of life and they were still "stringing their beads," so to speak.
Jesus knows what they are thinking. They have heard reports of the miracles of healing He has performed in Capernaum. And they are waiting to see Him do the same here in His home town. "Do here in your own country the things we have heard you have done in Capernaum. That is what you will probably say to Me," Jesus tells them. "But in fact, no prophet gains acceptance in His native place! Indeed, let Me remind you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah ... when a great famine spread over the land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but to a widow of Zarephath near Sidon. Recall too, the many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one was cured except Naaman, the Syrian." Jesus was reminding them of two of the Old Testament episodes in which God's prophets had ministered to "foreigners" -- people who knew nothing of Israel's covenant with God, people whom Israel looked upon as their enemy. This was Jesus' way of explaining to them that the Great God Almighty's universal love is for all the children of His creation; that God does not play favorites with His Love; that they had been designated as a "Chosen People" in terms of responsibility rather than special privilege. Hearing Jesus speak in this manner, the synagogue crowd was outraged. They saw Jesus as a threat to their expectation that God would send a Messiah King who would lead them to victory over their enemies and establish a great earthly kingdom. And what did they do? They threw Jesus out of the synagogue and literally ran Him out of town. Then they became a lynch mob. They led Jesus "to the brow of the hill, intending to hurl Him over the edge. But He went straight through their midst and walked away" (Lk. 4:29-30).
One of the great symbols of the Early American revolutionary spirit is the picture called, "The Spirit of '76." It depicts three battle-scarred soldiers marching side-by-side. One of them is playing a drum. One is playing a fife. One is carrying the flag. Some time ago, the United States Postal Service issued a stamp series commemorating this symbol. The series consists of three stamps, each bearing the image of one of the soldiers. A patriotic secretary purchased a large supply of these stamps for use in her office. Her employer thought this to be a fine gesture until he noticed that the secretary was putting all three stamps on each outgoing piece of mail when only one was required. "Why are you wasting money this way?" he asked. The secretary replied, "I just can't break up a set. People need to see the whole picture in order to appreciate the 'Spirit of '76.'"
That's precisely the way it is with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. People need to see the whole picture in order to appreciate the Spirit of Christianity.
The Gospel picture is unmistakably clear: every human person comes into being as an object of God's Love. No exceptions! No equivocation! God loves you and He loves your spouse. He loves your children and all your relatives. He loves your neighbors and your friends and your acquaintances. He loves every single human being who is a stranger to you. He loves your enemies. Take even one person out of the picture and you take the God who is present to you in Jesus Christ out of the picture.
The Gospel picture is unmistakably clear: because God's love is universal so too must be yours. No exceptions! No equivocation! Take even one person out of the picture and the Christ Spirit is lost to you. You are spiritually crippled.
Journalist Andrew A. Rooney has won many awards for his television essays and syndicated newspaper column. A collection of these works appear in his latest book entitled, "And More of Andy Rooney." In one called "Everyone Else Is Doing It," he says that he once saw a truck driver throw a paper cup and a napkin out the window into a New York City street. "I pulled up beside him," he writes, "and yelled, 'You dropped something back there.' He got the message and he gave me one in return. 'Whaddya want me to do, take it to the dump? This whole town's a dump.' In other words, everyone else was doing it, why shouldn't he?"
Everyone else is doing it, why shouldn't we? Everyone else is being judgmental these days, why shouldn't we?: "Judge not," Jesus says, "for with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye" (Mt. 7:1-3).
Everyone else has at least a half dozen scores to settle these days, why shouldn't we?: "... if you forgive men their trespasses," Jesus says, "your heavenly Father will also forgive you" (Mt. 6:14).
Everyone else is entered in the dog-eat-dog rat race these days, why shouldn't we?: "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth," Jesus says, "but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven ... For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (Mt. 6:19,20,21).
Everyone else has a "me first" attitude these days, why shouldn't we?: "If anyone wishes to rank first," Jesus says, "he must remain the last one of all and the servant of all" (Mk. 9:35).
Everyone else is saying "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," these days, why shouldn't we? "Love your enemies," Jesus says, "and pray for those who persecute you" (Mt. 6:44).
No matter what anyone else is saying, Jesus is saying that God did not provide room on His good earth for a human garbage dump to accommodate our prejudices and enmities.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me ... He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind and release to prisoners."
The Spirit of the Lord is upon us. He has sent us to be healers, reconcilers. He has sent us to show the world the big picture, the true picture, the whole picture of the Spirit of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
