The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany – 11:30am

I wonder how many of you watched the film Jesus Christ Superstar? There is a moment in the film when Jesus is brought before Herod. The scene captures Herod’s expectation of Jesus. He dances and sings:

“prove to me that you’re divine,
turn this water into wine…
that’s all you need to do,
then I’ll know it is true.”

Prove to me that you’re no fool
walk across my swimming pool.”

Feed my household with this bread
You can do it on your head.

The scene also captures a sense of disrespect towards Jesus, who is reduced to a worker of tricks.

Herod’s attitude was somewhat similar to the Jews in Nazareth. Luke tells us that Herod “had been wanting to see Jesus for a long time, because he had heard about him and was hoping to see him perform some sign.”

In our Gospel reading today, we discover that the Jews are focused on what they have heard about Jesus, and what they what him to do for them.

What happens is strange. The people in the synagogue move from being amazed by Jesus’ gracious words, to being “filled with rage and wanting to kill him.”

Astonishing!

But why? What happens within those few minutes to bring about such a drastic turn?

I believe it is the dissonance between what they were expecting of Jesus, and what actually happens in the synagogue. They were expecting Jesus to perform miracles and signs for them. Instead Jesus confronts them with some hard truths.

 

Last Sunday we heard that Jesus read a passage from Isaiah 61.

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
…to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”

Today, the story continues.

After Jesus reads the scriptures, the people wait for him to teach them something. It still works like that in most churches – after the reading comes the sermon! What the people in the synagogue got was the shortest sermon ever.

“Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Wouldn’t you love a sermon of one sentence?)

What’s not to like here with Jesus’ words? We all love a Jesus who does amazing things for us and promises freedom and God’s favour. So Of course, the people “all spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips.”

Yet, the people actually missed the profound revelation of Jesus. There is no sense that they were awed and astounded that Jesus was the Anointed One. The people merely refer to Jesus as Joseph’s son. Jesus had grown up in Nazareth and now he’d returned and had told them that Isaiah was referring to him. This was a moment of Epiphany. But it doesn’t sink in that He was really the chosen one of God.

Then a few moments later they are “filled with rage and drove him out of town and wanted to kill him.” This is not just anger – it is rage. Not just persecution – but a desire to kill.

Why?

The reading does not tell us what happened to make Jesus respond the way he did. But it’s obvious something had. Perhaps Jesus overheard conversations. Perhaps he already knew what the people of Nazareth thought and expected of him. But, it was quite obvious that the people were somewhat underwhelmed by this profound moment of Epiphany.

They were focused on other things. So Jesus homes in on them.

“You will tell me” says Jesus, “do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.” These people had heard about their lad from Nazareth performing miracles. Now, instead of being overwhelmed by this Epiphany and revelation, they are focused on getting him to perform some miracles for them.

When my cousins and I were children, we were asked to do things at family gatherings or parties. Play the piano, recite a poem, sing a song, or dance. We couldn’t refuse, because we felt that the adults had the right to ask us to do things.

The people of Nazareth clearly felt they had the right to ask Jesus to perform miracles. As with Herod, their expectations show a lack of respect for the Annointed One. They assumed he would perform miracles when asked. What a sense of entitlement! So Jesus is rightly angry.

Jesus always responded to genuine need and suffering. But Jesus did not want people following him because of his miracles and signs. He did not even want people who were healed to talk about it. The people of Nazareth were no different to the crowds that followed Jesus – they wanted to see his miracles and signs.

Instead of performing miracles for them, Jesus tells them about the Widow of Zarepheth and Naaman the Syrian.

This might seem strange to us. But the Jews of the synagogue understood the point Jesus was making.

What was the point? Jesus was addressing the colossal sense of entitlement that the people in Nazareth had when they expected Jesus to perform miracles for them.

Jesus tells them that there were many Jewish widows in Israel in time of Elijah, during a time of famine. Yet, says Jesus, God sends Elijah not to any of those Jewish widows but to a Gentile widow at Zarephath in Sidon, a foreign city.

He also tells them that “There were many in Israel with leprosy” in Elisha’s time. “Yet not one of them was cleansed.” Like salt in a raw wound, Jesus rubs it in. “Only Naaman the Syrian” – A Gentile!

Gentiles were considered outcasts, unclean sinners. They were despised by the Jews. Yet here was Jesus telling them that these were the people chosen to receive God’s mercy and favour. The Gentiles had no sense of entitlement. They were surprised by God.

“Unlike you!” Is what Jesus is saying. “Here you are with your sense of entitlement expecting to be favoured by me. Expecting me to perform miracles for your curiosity. Shame on you people of Nazareth. Shame on you!

Imagine their rage as they heard the words Jesus said. In response to their expectations of Jesus at Nazareth, Jesus gave them examples of two foreign outcasts who were blessed instead of the Jews. And no miracles at all. In fury they drive him out of the town, intentending to kill him.

 

This story of Jesus in the synagogue is about Jesus and the Jews of Nazareth. But it is just as much about us and our responses to Jesus.

It is true that God does far more for us than we can ever expect. Yet perhaps we, like the Jews have a sense of entitlement – and think only of what God might do for us?

Yet, believing and following is not about what we can get God to do for us. It is about living as Jesus did. It means speaking gracious words and speaking words that are unpopular – like Jesus, like the early Christians. Like Jesus, the early Christians were often hounded out of cities. Like him, some were killed.

Closer to our times, Deitrich Bonhoeffer, a German minister and theologian was executed by the Nazis. It was not just for his Christian beliefs, but for his outspoken witness to Christ in all he said and did. He opposed the way the Jews were treated, and refused to remain silent as innocent men and women were murdered.

You see Jesus could easily have chosen to walk away without confronting the people in the Synagogue about their complacency. He could have done a miracle or two. Been a crowd-pleaser. Not caused trouble. Kept safe. Stayed popular. Yet he didn’t.

 

At this time of Epiphany, it is good to pause and ask ourselves where we fit in this Gospel story. Are we like the people in the synagogue, living with a sense of entitlement? Expecting God to do what we want?

Or do we recognise the Annointed One and want to follow him? Bonhoeffer writes about The Cost of Discipleship. Once we discover who Jesus is, I wonder if we are willing to pay the cost of being disciples?

Perhaps as followers of Christ, we should be asking not only what God can do for us, but what we can do for him.