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<DIV><FONT size=4><FONT size=5>FREE PREACHING RESOURCES FOR JANUARY 24
</FONT><FONT size=4>(4 of the 68 plus preaching resources available at
GoodPreacher.com for this Sunday)</FONT><FONT size=5>:<BR><BR></FONT><FONT
size=4><B>EXEGESIS: Luke 4:14-21<BR><BR></B>One of the fundamental principles of
biblical exegesis is to honor the literary integrity of a text. That is, the
interpreter is to respect the natural beginning and ending. Unfortunately, the
lectionary violates this principle by splitting Luke 4:16-30 into two
parts4:16-21 and 4:21-30. For Luke, these two excerpts form one scene that
is so important scholars usually refer to it as the paradigm for understanding
these two books. The preacher might combine these two passages for one
sermon.<BR><BR>Luke’s congregation lived during Roman oppression in a time of
widespread poverty, taxation, social inequality, demonic possession, sickness,
and violence. Many Jewish thinkers believed that to keep God’s promises to Sarah
and Abraham, God would replace the present age with a new world, the Realm of
God.<BR><BR>Luke told the story of Jesus’ birth and early life to establish that
Jesus had unquestionable credentials as an authentic interpreter of the
traditions of Israel (Lk 1:5-2:52). The preaching of John, the baptism of Jesus,
the genealogy, and the temptation signal the reader that God has empowered Jesus
as end-time prophet (Lk 3:1-4:13).<BR><BR>For Luke, geographical references have
theological overtones. Galilee (Lk 4:14) is not Jerusalem (the center of Jewish
power where Sadducees and priests had conspired with Rome). In Galilee, Jewish
and gentile peoples lived alongside one another thus presaging an important goal
of the gospel and the Acts: To show God’s plan to restore community between
Jewish and gentile peoples.<BR><BR>Well-regarded visiting rabbis were given the
chance to teach. Luke underscores that Jesus had such a reputation (Lk 4:15).
The crowds are ambiguous for Luke-Acts. In Luke 4:14-15, they welcomed Jesus. In
just a few verses, the congregation in the synagogue initially cheers Jesus’
preaching but then turn against him. Luke thus implicitly asks the reader, “Do
you respond to the ministry of Jesus and the church with the imperceptivity of
the crowds or are you more faithful?”<BR><BR>According to Luke 4:16, Jesus
regularly attended synagogue services. This detail joins others in reinforcing
the picture of Jesus as a fully practicing Jew. Luke wants readers to recognize
that the gentile mission in Luke-Acts was not an innovation but arose out of the
deepest traditions in Israel and under the leadership of Spirit (Lk 4:17a). Here
we see with unusual clarity that for Luke, the Spirit leads people towards the
Realm. What the Spirit does through Jesus in the gospel of Luke, the Spirit also
does through the church in Acts.<BR><BR>The leaders of the synagogue in Nazareth
asked Jesus to read and comment on Isaiah 61:1-2, a text that describes the
vocation of Third Isaiah. Used here, it places Jesus in that prophetic line
while also describing the calling of Jesus.<BR><BR>The excerpt from Isaiah
contains five elements. For Luke, these notions are double entendres that speak
of the transformation that will take place in both the larger world as a result
of the coming of the realm and also among Jesus’ own followers. The church thus
partially embodies the community of the Realm.<BR><BR>In the world of Luke, the
promise of good news to the poor meant the coming of a world of abundance for
all and, obviously, an end to poverty. The book of Acts foreshadows such a world
by showing that God provided for the poor in the church through the church’s
holding all material goods in common (Acts 2:42-47; 4:35-5:10;
6:1-6).<BR><BR>The captives are the imprisoned, including those who are
otherwise harassed because of their witness to the Realm. In Acts, faithful
disciples are jailed, and three times God releases them (Acts 5:12-26; 12:6-11;
16:25-40).<BR><BR>Blindness was a significant problem in antiquity. The blind
often suffered not only from the ravages of blindness but poverty. Many blind
people were reduced to begging. The physically blind do receive sight through
the ministry of Jesus (e.g. Luke 7:21; 18:35). Beyond that, Jewish literature in
antiquity sometimes uses the language of blindness for theological
imperceptivity. In Luke-Acts, some leaders fail to recognize Jesus and the
church as representatives of the Realm. The classic illustration of such
blindness is Saul. Saul actually becomes blind as part of his call on the road
to Damascus but is then made to see (Acts 9:11-13), thus proving the truth of
Luke 4:18c.<BR><BR>The oppressed are those possessed by demons. Luke’s subtle
theological artistry comes into play as Luke portrays not only simple acts of
demons possessing individuals but suggests that demons operate through aspects
of the Roman Empire (Lk 4:33ff., 6:18f., 8:2, 8:26ff., 9:37ff., 11:14ff., Acts
5:16ff.; 8:7ff., 19:13ff.).<BR><BR>In Isaiah the acceptable year of the Lord
(“the year of the Lord’s favor”) is the Jubilee, that occasion every fifty years
when the land in Israel was to be returned to its original owner. This custom
was intended to distribute the means of support as widely as possible and to
prevent the concentration of power in too few hands.<BR><BR>This passage is both
a mission statement and a promise. The mission is to bring good news to the
poor, etc. The promise is that in the very act of doing these things, Jesus’
followers will experience the presence of the Spirit and will find them coming
true in the life of the church. The church will become a community of the
realm.<BR><BR>When Jesus had finished reading, he rolled up the scroll “and the
eyes of all in the synagogue were on him” (Lk 4:20). The eyes and ears of the
reader are thus focused intensely on what Jesus says next: “Today this scripture
has been fulfilled in your hearing.” These words are a powerful statement that
God is using the Spirit through Jesus to point to the end of a present evil age
and to birth a new worldthe realm of God.<BR><BR>The crowd responds with
the same religious awe that they later feel in response to the miracles (Lk
4:20). If Jesus had ended at this point, the service in the synagogue would have
ended on a high and joyous note. However, the crowd becomes unruly when the
Lukan Jesus draws out the fuller implications of the coming of the Realm of
God.<BR>.<BR>Ronald J. Allen<BR><BR><BR><B>SCRIPTURE & SCREEN: Luke
4:14-21<BR><BR></B>Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61 and his brief sermon on it form a
stunning moment of public reading and speaking that has reverberated around the
world and across the centuries. Many films contain profound speeches and the
like that are profoundly revelatory. Below are a couple examples that could
serve well in a sermon without the movie from which they come overshadowing the
sermon.<BR><BR>The <I>Elephant Man</I> (1980; dir. David Lynch), which was
nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, is based on the true
story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the movie), a nineteenth-century
Briton who was terrifyingly disfigured. Dr. Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins),
a compassionate physician, rescues Merrick (played magnificently by John Hurt)
from being a sideshow attraction. Treves keeps Merrick as a resident at the
hospital where Treves works. At first, the doctor thinks that Merrick is
probably severely mentally challenged but then realizes that the patient is
actually intelligent and sensitive. Treves teaches Merrick some words to say to
another physician (John Gielgud) as a way of showcasing Merrick’s ability. After
leaving Merrick and going to another room, the physician expresses to Treves
that he is unimpressed, because he believes that Merrick is simply parroting
what Treves has trained him to say. Then the two men hear coming from Merrick’s
room the recitation of the 23rd Psalm, which is extraordinary because Treves has
not taught Merrick that passage. This recitation of Scripture, then, becomes a
turning point in the film by revealing to both physicians that this hideous man
is even more intelligent than they had supposed.<BR><BR>Jesus’ reading of
Scripture and subsequent epiphanic homily have a similar impact on his hearers.
That luminous moment shocks Jesus’ hearers. Of course, while their initial
response is positive, shortly they will try to kill Jesus. In any case, <I>The
Elephant Man</I> provides a similar moment that can underline the profundity of
Jesus’ worship moment in his hometown.<BR><BR>Moreover, the hideousness of
Merrick also ties well with Jesus, not because Jesus is hideous, but because he
identifies with the oppressed and afflicted, and because he is somebody who
utters words far greater than what those in worship with him would ever expect.
The Elephant Man is in part a film about the lifting up of the lowly, and so is
Jesus’ story.<BR> <BR>Another film that features
revelatory public-speaking moments is the magnificent <I>Gettysburg</I> (1993;
dir. Ronald F. Maxwell), which is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning historical
novel <I>The Killer Angels</I> by Michael Shaara. With a run time of over four
hours, the movie tells with faithful detail the story of the battle of
Gettysburg, a three-day fight of exceptional brutality that produced around
51,000 casualties and marked the beginning of the end of the South’s defeat in
the Civil War. While the movie relies a bit too heavily on dramatic speeches,
those speeches are so well delivered that the viewer can easily forgive the
volubility and related melodrama. <BR><BR>One especially noteworthy speech comes
early in the movie. The film’s greatest hero is Colonel Joshua Lawrence
Chamberlain (played with Oscar-caliber brilliance by Jeff Daniels), a college
professor who ran away from his teaching position so that he could fight in the
Civil War. He has recently been promoted even though he is greatly lacking in
military experience. Chamberlain is uncomfortable with the promotion, knowing
full well that he is under-qualified. To make matters more challenging, he is
presented with arrested, mutineering soldiers. He has been told that he can
shoot them if he wishes. He also has orders to prepare for a confrontation with
the Rebel Army at Gettysburg; the battle is about to start. Chamberlain needs to
decide quickly what he is going to do with these mutineers. He decides to try
talking to them.<BR><BR>His speech is humble and eloquent, and the writing and
acting are beautifully convincing. He does not threaten, chastise, or intimidate
the soldiers. He has heard a summary of their grievances from a spokesman and
acknowledges that some of the grievances are valid. He goes on to explain that
he cannot address the grievances now because he needs to prepare for battle. He
asksnot ordersthem to help with the fighting. He promises that he will
do what he can afterwards to help them. Then he walks away to give the men time
to discuss things. Almost every one of the mutineers agrees to
cooperate.<BR><BR>The speech is momentous, not only because it resolves a
significant conflict, but also because it reveals to the viewerand to
Chamberlain himself just what an extraordinary leader Chamberlain is. He is
new to the ways of the military, yet he appears to have great power as a speaker
and thus as a leader. As the movie progresses, the viewer sees more and more
just what an impressive and admirable leader Chamberlain is, and the first
glimmers of that greatness twinkle in this early speech.<BR><BR>The same is true
with Jesus. His public-speaking moment in our reading offers an early picture of
his greatness that will grow in brilliance as the gospel progresses, reaching
its most intense brilliance in the darkness of the cross and the breaking dawn
the following Sunday.<BR><BR>Speech prefigures death and
resurrection.<BR><BR>David von
Schlichten<BR><BR><BR></FONT></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>