THE GOSPEL: Rejected By His Own!

So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. (Luke 4:16)

Jesus is getting around, traveling throughout the regions of Judah and Isreal at that time.  He started in Galilee, where He did the first miracle (see THE GOSPEL: Jesus First Miracle); He went to Jerusalem and cleaned out the temple (see THE GOSPEL: Temple Gets A Makeover); He left there and went to Samaria, where many believed in Him based on the witness of one woman (see THE GOSPEL: Jesus Knows ALL About Us); He returned to Galilee and did His second miracle (see THE GOSPEL: Second Miracle, Healing).  Now He's on the road again, going to his hometown of Nazareth, where he didn't have a very pleasant childhood. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. [Isaiah 61:1-2]”

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  (Luke 4:17-21)

Jesus always used the Word of God when He taught, when He testified about Himself, when He witnessed about God, when He prayed, whenever He spoke.  Why?  Several reasons, but just to name a few: the main reason is because everything recorded in the Old Testament was a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things (Hebrews 10:1); Christ reiterates that by saying, ‘Behold, I have come— In the volume of the book it is written of Me— To do Your will, O God.’” (Hebrews 10:7); And God promises, "So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11) So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:20-22)  Jesus had stated when He was twelve that God was His Father, but He had done that at the temple in Jerusalem (Luke 2:21-52). When He and His family returned to Nazareth after that trip, He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. (Luke 2:51-52)  The people of Nazareth believed He was Joseph's son, eventhough they had "heard" some things and had treated Him badly and talked about Him (see Christ's Childhood: The Missing Years).

He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.’” Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. [I Kings 17] And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian. [II Kings 5:1-19]”  (Luke 4:23-27) Well, Jesus addreses two big issues that we all need to be aware of and understand. 

First, people oftentimes get caught up with "the show" and not receive the message.  The people had heard about the miracles He had done, and they wanted Him to "do something" for them to see.  A lot of people go to a church because "that choir can really sing" or "that minister really got the people going" or whatever... We should not neglect our meeting together, as some people do (Hebrews 10:25), but wherever we go, the main and most important thing is the man of God Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. (II Timothy 4:2)There's nothing wrong with feeling good while enjoying a worship service, but if we leave without being convicted of the sin in our lives and the changes we need to make, through the help of God's Holy Spirit, we've wasted our time. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. (II Timothy 4:3-4) 

Second issue Jesus addresses is the issue of who can be saved.  This is a sore spot for the Jews because God promised them Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. (Exodus 19:5) They misinterpreted that to mean that they were the only people on the earth God would save.  They didn't make the connection of the promise God originally made to their forefather Abraham, No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. (Genesis 17:5) For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”). (Romans 4:13, 16-17) Jesus points out when all the trouble was going on in the land during the time of the prophets Elijah and Elisha, God didn't send them to help Jews, but to help Gentiles (non-Jews), because the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek [Gentiles, non-Jews]. (Romans 1:16)  Well, how did the Jews respond to this? So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way. (Luke 4:28-30) 

This was Christ's first great escape!  This is also our third lesson, that we should expect people to reject the message of salvation, not all people but definitely many, maybe even the majority.  Lord willing we won't risk being killed because of telling the Truth, like so many people are in other countries, but we should expect people to possibly treat us differently, lose close relationships, and even be made to feel that we're wrong.  But no matter what, we are not to deny our faith! And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good?  But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. (I Peter 3:13-17)