Sermon for 26 January 2025, Epiphany 3 C, Luke 4.14-21

Let us pray: Fill us with your Holy Spirit, that through us, your light may shine in all the world. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

 

I don’t know what exactly the men of Nazareth expected, but the fame of their local boy turned healer and teacher had preceded him. As he stood in the synagogue and volunteered to read, an expectant hush might have fallen on the men who habitually gathered to experience the scripture through debate and even argument.

The gospel writer Luke describes the scene in a way that places us there too. So let’s do it.
Our men could sit with the Nazarenes, and we ladies can cover our heads and quietly sit at the back of the room.
Jesus stood up to read. He was handed a beautiful scroll of scripture, and he confidently unrolled it to find what he was looking for; the words of the prophet Isaiah.

We think we hear today what was on that scroll. It was inspiring and exciting to hear but this was no bible study faithfully considering a single passage. No, this was an amalgam of the writings of the Prophet Isaiah, pulled together to create a statement of Jesus’ mission. This was both his authority and his manifesto. Having refreshed his memory, he looked around the assembly and addressed them.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.

He then rolled up the scroll and handed it back. Luke says that everyone stared at him. That’s not surprising considering how he had pulled different texts together to form one. Unlike us, who have taken this passage at face value, they would have spotted what was going on and been shocked.
As if to underline it, he spoke into the stunned silence. “Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.

This was the inauguration of Jesus the Messiah, prophet and teacher, Son of God. Wow! What a thing to witness. Jesus boldly proclaimed liberation for the downtrodden and freedom from what ties us down. It was a declaration for us all and forms a fundamental element of God’s good news to us, that everyone matters. That God’s grace is not shared out according to gender, wealth, colour, ability or even nationality. God loves us all. Full stop.

Talking of inauguration ceremonies, President Donald Trump was sworn in this week and triumphantly declared that God saved him from a bullet, so that he could lead the United States of America. With that in mind, he might have been inspired to follow the teaching of Christ to love and serve his 300 million neighbours, but I think he might be a bit selective about who he thinks worthy of his love, never mind his service.

At the ceremony, surrounded by his unelected billionaire buddies, he put forward his manifesto, for what he intended to achieve in the next four years. Some of his ideas revealed threats of persecution and cruelty, and others showed bias to one group over another.

What a ridiculous contrast-Jesus in the synagogue declaring God’s mission to bring good news to the poor, and to liberate all of us from the guilt that holds us captive. And Trump blustering about expelling or locking up those he does not agree with. I know one of them was full of grace, you choose!

God’s good news announced by Jesus is the mission for all Christians, we must care for the poor, downcast and hopeless, and do it without bias or expectation of reward. This is not always easy and we pray that we can reflect God’s grace to us in the way we treat others.

There was an interesting development to the Inauguration story. On the following day, Trump and his entourage attended the Episcopal Church in Washington and there Bishop Mariann Budde preached a sermon, speaking God’s truth directly into the face of power. ‘Show love’ she said, ‘show mercy’. Mercy for those who will be completely powerless due to the policies Trump wishes to impose.

Unfortunately, Trump and his supporters look like doubling down on their plan, rather than changing their minds,or even considering mercy. The Bishop was attacked verbally, and sent death threats for daring to do what we should all be brave enough to do. We all need to speak hope and love into dark places.

What made the Bishop’s sermon so remarkable the fact that she spoke up to a bully culture. She spoke with the strength of the Holy Spirit . Thankfully we rarely must speak up to someone as powerful as the President, but we too are charged with calling out behaviour that hurts others, and working for justice. That is when we face a dilemma. If we speak up, we risk being shamed or ostracized, we become an easy target for the bullies. Or, of course, you could choose the other option to keep your eyes and mouth closed, but suffer sleepless nights.

Feeling afraid and wanting to avoid confrontations is a natural response. You have to be brave or fool hardy to do this on your own. That’s the thing, though, you are never alone.There will always be you and God as a minimum.

As Bishop Mariann has discovered, often it takes just one person to speak out for many to feel brave enough to speak out too. Suddenly she was being interviewed by the media, and her sermon went viral. People as far away as Scotland and Australia have sent her messages encouraging her bravery and telling her that they are praying for her.

It takes courage to step out from the crowd, but that is what our faith asks of us. Like putting your hand in a stream and watching the water back up in front of your palm, we are called to celebrate difference. To care for those who need help.

We are called to see that greed and competition do not create healthy environments where the weakest can thrive., so we must work for social justice.

We are called to watch out for the needs of the stranger and then see the work of the Holy Spirit in action, as they become our friends.

We are called to celebrate differences among us in our communities, for that is how a healthy Body of Christ is formed. St Paul, in his last letter to the Corinthians, was right, our strength as a community is in our differences, for a group that is identical cannot survive in a healthy way.

In this season of Epiphany, we are watching for the extraordinary in the ordinary, and today it is not exactly in the scripture, but rather the remarkable thing is here among us. We are all extraordinary in our own way.

Our differences are our superpowers, making us unique members of the Body of Christ. The good news is that the Body of Christ is never quite complete, there’s always room for more, and as they join us, we need to make them feel as loved, valued and welcomed as we already do.

I pray you will become bolder at proclaiming God’s love, knowing that you are never alone. God has your back, and so do we.

 

The Lord be with you!