February 3, 2007 Luke 4:22‑30

AIsn=t this Joseph=s son?@ they asked.

Jesus said to them, ASurely you will quote this proverb to me: >Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.=@

AI tell you the truth,@ he continued, Ano prophet is accepted in his hometown. 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. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansedConly Naaman the Syrian.@

All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.

AIsn=t this Joseph=s son?@ What is the harm in such a question? When someone asks me, Aare you Glen=s son@, it doesn=t bother me. The only reason it would bother me would be if I were embarrassed to be his son - if Glen were an absolute schnook. But Glen is not an absolute schnook - so it doesn=t bother me. Yet in today=s text, Jesus didn=t seem to like this question at all. It made Him give His fellow Jews a stiff warning.

Jesus Gives Warnings From a Widow

I. They come to those who reject the gracious words

Why didn=t Jesus like this question? Joseph was a sinful human, yet he seems faithful enough from the Scriptures. Perhaps they were ridiculing Joseph because he was poor - or a rather run of the mill person? We don=t know for sure. I don=t really believe that was what really irritated Jesus. The problem with the question was that they were basically insinuating that Jesus really wasn=t anyone special - because they knew Jesus and grew up with him and knew his father.

In his divinity, Jesus knew what their ultimate endgame was. They wanted more than words from Jesus - they wanted actions. So Jesus said to them, ASurely you will quote this proverb to me: >Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.=@ Mark 1 shows how Jesus dramatically healed a demon possessed man in the middle of the synagogue at Capernaum. Mark 2 also shows how he healed a paralytic. News of this spread like wildfire - even back to his hometown. Jesus knew that they wanted Him to do some miracles.

In reality, they were treating Jesus like a type of carnival show worker. AOh, hey - it=s Jesus! I remember when he was just a little guy - the son of Joseph. You were a good kid, Jesus. Boy, you sure can preach some nice things about God=s mercy! But that=s enough of that. Let=s see you heal a sick person! Bring a demon possessed guy here, this should be entertaining!@ This angered Jesus. They didn=t care two bits for his gracious words. They just looked at him like a next door neighbor that could do some interesting miracles that might help them out. That=s it.

You see, what so many people want is a next door neighbor Jesus. You know how you deal with your neighbors. You might say hi to them from time to time. Perhaps you have fond memories of hanging out with an old neighborhood friend. But you don=t have any life long connections with them. You just do your best to tolerate most of them and get along with them. That=s how people try to treat Jesus. Perhaps they might say, AI believe Jesus was a great prophet. He taught nice things. I remember learning some nice stories about him in Sunday School. He taught me good morals. I don=t mind listening to his advice about marriage or how to turn the other cheek - things like that. Now, if Jesus can perform some neat miracles - maybe heal my sick mom - or get rid of myy cancer - or make me have a nice crop - I wouldn=t mind seeing that. That=s all nice and dandy - but - I=m not going to worship him or anything like that. I=m not going to revolve my LIFE around him.@ That=s NOT GOOD ENOUGH - it=s nowhere near good enough. You just can=t treat Him with such disrespect - and act as if he=s just another prophet or some sort of rodeo clown who=s here to do some miracles and keep you entertained from time to time. That=s not the way he works. He demands your soul - your life - your all. Either bow on your knees and call Him Lord and Savior or call him a phony and a fake. Don=t try to claim the AI grew up with him@ approach. He will have none of it.

II. The meaning behind the widow

In order to show his anger over their attitude, Jesus used a little Israelite history to preach the law at them. AI tell you the truth,@ he continued, Ano prophet is accepted in his hometown. 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. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansedConly Naaman the Syrian.@ It wasn=t that God didn=t care for the widows or the lepers in Israel. The only reason He sent Elijah and Elisha outside of their region was because prophets aren=t accepted in their hometown.

So what was Jesus really saying with these examples? He was comparing Himself to Elijah and Elisha - the prophets. He was also insinuating that He would not do any miracles for them - because they were as unbelieving as their forefathers were. Therefore, even if they had any lame or sick within their town - they didn=t really believe He could do anything anyway. Mark 6:5 even says, AHe could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.@ Therefore - all they could do would be to remain in their unbelief and suffer.

It was really quite a statement that Jesus was insinuating towards them - was it not? There is a progression in the way that God deals with us. For those who demand God to act a certain way in order for them to believe in Him - He gives no signs. For those who wanted Jesus to come down from the cross - Jesus gave nothing of the sort. Their Aprayers@ were not answered. But for those who still went to the grave three days later - they ended us seeing proof they never expected to see. This is the way God works. He will not Acome down@ from the cross in order to create faith.

Think about it. For those who want to treat God as nothing greater than a next door neighbor - who are they to then try and demand that He act like more? When an unbeliever has been ignoring Christ His whole life - and has a loved one dying in the hospital, how can he then expect God to all of the sudden come to his rescue? Yet those same people who have rejected Christ their whole lives have the nerve and the gall to demand God to prove Himself in their emergency - as if God had some duty to them - that He has to prove Himself to them and meet up to their standards. The young couple who has the nerve to abuse God=s gift of marriage then still pray to God and expect Him to listen when their pregnancy is in jeopardy. You can=t reject Christ as your Prophet, Priest, and King - and yet still in the same breath demand that He perform some miraculous sign to prove Himself. Why should He if you=ve already rejected Him? He didn=t do it with the Israelites - and He didn=t do it in Nazareth.

That sounds mean. But in reality - God=s Word also said He COULDN=T do any miracles there. Why not? Because the people really didn=t believe He could do anything. What kind of faith is it - for someone to say, AJesus, I don=t really believe you died or rose from the dead for my sins. I don=t even know if you really existed. BUT - if there is any truth to the fact that you really are out there - I want you to heal my son.@ When we approach God from that point of view - where we demand to SEE His signs in order to believe in him - we will always be disappointed - and God will always be angry. Listen to the warning from the widows. Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we DO NOT SEE. If you need to see it, then don=t really believe it.

III. How do you respond?

Jesus= old neighbors didn=t take too kindly to what He had to say. All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. Wow. That=s pretty bad. Think about it. In a matter of minutes the people went from being amazed at His gracious words to being infuriated. They couldn=t bear the thought that God would reject them because of their unbelief and leave them to suffer. It infuriated them that Jesus would say such a thing.

It=s infuriating to people yet today to hear Christians speak of an Almighty and merciful God - who still allows devastating catastrophes like hurricanes, earthquakes, tornados, and tsunamis to wipe out thousands to millions of people. It is infuriating for them to see their own children die of cancer or some other disease - while this Almighty God stands by and watches it happen. It is even more infuriating when they see God treat thousands and millions of other people seemingly a lot better than He does them. They get downright angry and say, Awhere is your almighty God! Don=t tell me about a merciful God! How can you believe in a God who just sits on His hands and allows these things to happen?!? How doyou expect me to believe in a God who has treated me this way?@ They would like nothing better than to shove Jesus from a cliff. To be honest, we probably have felt the same way at times - when Jesus didn=t give us a raise, a date, or something that we really wanted. So we push and shove God with our remarks - our temper tantrums - our little accusations - things like, AGod doesn=t love me. God doesn=t care. I never get anything I want. I don=t know if I really believe anymore.@

How did Jesus respond? He let them push and shove, and push and shove - to the brow of a cliff. Right when they thought they were going to commit murder, what happened? ABut he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.@ Jesus didn=t go around the crowd. He didn=t some how miraculously land on the bottom of the cliff and save Himself. He just walked right through the crowd - and went on his way. Isn=t that amazing? How did He do it? I don=t know - but I could envision Him getting really angry and telling them to get their hands off of Him. The same Jesus who chased the money changers out of the temple - I bet He could be pretty scary when He wanted to. I find it ironic that those who were going to demand a sign - saw a sign in this action. Yet I=m sure they didn=t get it.

Think for a moment about how arrogant and how foolish it is for sinful and weak humans to try and push the perfect God in the flesh off of a cliff. They had no idea who they were dealing with. Think again about how arrogant and foolish it is for us - sinful beings - to actually get angry with God for treatiing other people Abetter@ than us - for healing other people=s diseases instead of ours. Isn=t it sad that we think we actually have the right to get angry with God or complain to Him about how He is running the world? What kind of people do we think we are to convince ourselves that God should somehow be catering to our every need - when we are nothing but sinners? Yet we do it all the time. How should God respond to such behavior? Do you think He should laugh and shrug it off? No way.

Here=s what Jesus did. He didn=t destroy them all immediately. He didn=t beg them to come back. He simply walked through the crowd and went to the next town in Capernaum - amazing them with His teaching. He moved on to the next chapter in His ministry - on His way to His ultimate goal - the cross. Nazareth was left to live in their unbelief - without Jesus - just as they wanted. What a sad thing it will be for them on Judgment Day - to see Jesus again - in all His power. Think about how sad and depressing it would be to have grown up right next to Jesus - and never seen Him for who He is. I can only imagine how those people of Nazareth now wish they could have this day back - as they are languishing in hell. How they would have begged Jesus not to leave - but to stay and teach them more gracious words.

Have you disgusted Jesus with your words? With your complaints? With your treating Him like no more than a next door neighbor? It=s not too late for you. Repent of your sins. If you=re still alive, run after Him with your prayers - and ask Him for the forgiveness. The good news is that we know where to find Jesus. It=s not too late to pick up the pieces - and find Jesus in the very next town - the next chapter of His life - doing the same thing He was doing in Nazareth. You will find Jesus opening His heart to you with the same gracious words. As you see Him move on throughout the book of Luke - you=ll see Him go on to the cross. You will see Jesus dying for the sins of the world - for the same people that tried to shove Him off of a cliff and the same people that nailed Him to the cross. You=ll hear Jesus praying for the forgiveness of those who did this to Him. You=ll see Jesus rising from the dead. Then you will realize that even though you have done awful things to God - He has done an awe-full thing for YOU. You will see how good, gracious, and merciful God really is. You will then realize that even though God doesn=t need you back, He wants you back, and He welcomes you back. He wants you just as much as He wanted that little widow in Zarephath, and just as much as He wanted that Syrian leper. No matter how poor, sick, or filthy you are, and no matter how far you=ve gone astray - God wants you to be forgiven and healed.

The story of Elijah and the widow in 1 Kings 17 is really a touching story. Here this poor widow was out gathering sticks to make her last meal for herself and her son - and then die because of the famine. Yet God saw that poor widow=s troubles. He sent Elijah up to her from way south in the Kerith Ravine to provide miraculous food for her and and her son. It=s a wonderful story of God=s love and compassion for people that everyone else has forgotten. Yet Jesus also mentioned this story to show how God is not afraid to reject His own people and even let them starve if they will take Him for granted. He will walk away if He is being pushed away. This gives us an extra insight of God that many people seem to forget.

In many ways we could be tempted to be like those widows of Israel - who when starving would feel as if God owed us preferential treatment. Jesus warning of these widows makes it clear that God owes us nothing. Even though - like the widow of Zarephath - we have nothing to give in return - God graciously gives us everything. He gives us His only Son. Jesus is more than Joseph=s son. He is God=s Son - who came to die for the sins of the world. He doesn=t need to heal himself - because He has already done that by raising Himself from the dead. We don=t need to see any miracles from Christ - because we=ve already seen the greatest miracle ever - His death and resurrection - which was given to you through your baptism. If this doesn=t seem like enough to you - then remember the warning from the widows. Amen.