Servants like Jesus
Luke 4:21-30
Bro. John

Servants like Jesus. That is the name of one of the new committees in the new structure of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church. More correctly it is called the Servants Like Jesus Team. It deals with a number of outreach areas. These include home and foreign missions, Society of St. Andrews, Children’s home, Hispanic mission, Kairos – a program that witnesses to those in prison, Methodist Men and Women, and many other outreach programs.

There are a lot of people out there that we don’t want to be “left behind.” Friends, neighbors, relatives, even enemies. The Christian community, the Body of Christ, uses its gifts to be Servants like Jesus. And in the lectionary readings we have been hearing the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.

There was Baptism by John the Baptist, or John the Baptizer, if you prefer. The forty days of temptation in the wilderness - the first miracle at a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee – the return to Nazareth and his reading and preaching in the synagogue.

Note the words of Luke, “He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place.” (TM, Peterson) Now there’s a thought for a Servant like Jesus: “He went to the meeting place, as he always did on the Sabbath.” But we won’t dwell on that this morning. We’ll look in on Jesus in the synagogue.

When Jesus stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Jesus turned to the place where it is written: “ God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, Sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, To set the burdened and battered free, to announce, “This is God’s year to act!’” (TM, Peterson) The congregation at the synagogue were looking for good news.

News of how Jesus had entered Galilee in the power of the Spirit had reached them. They were themselves looking for some Good News – that is the Good News, as they wanted it to be. But Jesus told them that the Scripture that they had just heard had come true in their presence. He was saying to them, I am the Savior, the Messiah.

Now that started a lot of discussion in the Synagogue. Those present began to say to one another: “Isn’t this Joseph’s son, isn’t this the boy we saw grow up, isn’t this the boy we saw running around in diapers? – Playing with the other boys his age? How can he say he is God’s Messiah? He’s not very special! Jesus wasn’t shocked.

Jesus knew that the people would have trouble accepting what he was saying. When Jesus first came to the synagogue, the people listened to his every word, but then he started preaching about things they didn’t like, and they questioned his authority.

Jesus takes charge of the synagogue meeting and says he is, indeed, the Messiah - but he will not prove himself. He won’t do any signs or miracles here - his word is enough. Then things got worse. I know it’s difficult to believe, but things got worse. Jesus so upset the gathering at the synagogue that they had decided not only to run him out of town, but also to kill him in the process. It seemed that this Jesus, preaching and claiming to be the Messiah from God, had said that salvation was for all people. That really opens things up, why even gentiles could be saved by the grace of God. That just couldn’t be right. If that were true, then even things like race and nationality wouldn’t be important to God!

Not only that but the Messiah was going to run the Romans out of land wasn’t he? He would be a new king like David - a king that would lead in battle and bring riches and renown to the Hebrew people. Now here is this man who has no army, no home, no money, only 12 common men following him – they begged for food and taught things that stirred up the people. How could God work through such a person as this?

So they took him and forced him out of town. When they got just outside of town, they took him to top of a hill. People that have seen this hill say that where Jesus was standing was on the edge of a deep bluff. Anyone forced over the edge could well fall to his or her death. But back to the message that Jesus was bringing.

Jesus, who appeared to be an ordinary man, from an ordinary town, in an ordinary nation, was the Messiah sent by God to redeem his people.

It’s easy to forget that God works through the ordinary things of life. God does work through the spectacular, but most of the time, God works through the common, everyday people and things of this world. God doesn’t need a great show – great wealth – a great army. There is an old expression, which says that without God, humans can’t, and God won’t without humans. All God needs are common, everyday people – people that will speak and work for him. And common everyday things like water, bread and wine.

We are called to be Servants like Jesus. To proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. To use the gifts that God has given us for the growth of his kingdom. The harvest is plentiful and the laborers are few. We must prayerfully consider what our gifts are, and what our specific call is. We don’t want anyone to be “left behind.” Of course, some will be. We need to focus on those who need to hear the story of Jesus, who need salvation, and will receive salvation. Remember Jesus, forced by a mob to the edge of a hill, looking down on sure death if he were pushed?

It stopped there. Jesus simply turns and walks away. No one tries to stop him. No one cries out. Back through the people in the crowd that will not hear his message, and are “left behind.”

There are a lot of people out there that we don’t want to be “left behind” as the synagogue crowd was. Friends, neighbors, relatives, even enemies. Remember, the Christian community, the Body of Christ, uses its gifts to be Servants like Jesus. Through prayer and worship we find our mission. And by the guidance of the Holy Spirit we strive to reach the largest number that our gifts, time and resources allow.