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Sermon: The Third Sunday after Epiphany (C) - 24th January 2010
St Aidan's Anglican Church West Epping 8:30 am
Readings: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31; Luke 4:14-21
In a few days it will be Australia day and another opportunity to celebrate all the blessings of living in this country. There is much to enjoy in this wealthy country and perhaps we have never enjoyed its wealth as much as we do these days. My family and I went to Darling Harbour to celebrate the New Year and as I walked through Pyrmont I was struck by how much of the suburb had been completely rebuilt and what a prosperous area it now was.
It was certainly a contrast to our trip into town on the train. In our carriage was a large group of youth, boys and girls, who had got on the train at Lithgow and had been drinking at least since then till they arrived at Parramatta. By then they were in quite a state. We could tell from their loud conversation where they were from. but also we hard a bit about the lives they led. And in spite of their celebratory mood, they didn’t seem very happy. They didn’t look like people who had led happy lives. I was at first amazed by their behaviour, but after a while, I was struck by the sadness of their situation.
By the time we reached Strathfield they were in an advanced party mood. The station was manned by many police and soon all these young people were removed from the carriage and taken away. They may never have arrived at their New Years Party. Yet it seemed to me that being in police custody was also not a new experience for them, but just another part of the sadness of their lives.
And all of this reminded me again of that strange tension we experience in life. Why is it that in a country like ours do people still live in misery. Our national anthem that we specially sing at this time of year reminds us of the abundance of the resources Australia possesses, there is much to celebrate, so why is it that so many in this country still live in misery, family breakdown, poverty and alienation? Its not the story we expect. It doesn’t pan out the way it should. We have great hope and great potential, matched by shattered lives, and hopelessness and despair.
We can compare all of this to our gospel reading this morning. It seemed to be a story that starts so well yet by the end, the listening synagogue congregation turns into a murderous rabble. How does this story move from “local boy does good”, to serious attempts to throw Jesus off the cliff?
The problem begins with the reading from Isaiah 61. The prophet wrote these words to Israel at their lowest point. They had been captured by the Babylonians. They were reduced to slavery. They were transported to an alien country to till foreign fields for harsh masters. Their situation was so similar to the holocaust of last century.
But it was in that situation that Isaiah send this message to Israel. And the message was good news For them, it seemed as if God had abandoned them. The same question we all ask in our suffering is where is God? Where is God now in my misery? And here is a message of good news to the poor, the prisoners, the oppressed, in other words – Israel. God had not forgotten them. God would act to rescue them. The prisoners would be released, the oppressed would find freedom. Those who suffered unjustly would be given justice and God would bring his vengeance upon all who attacked Israel.
And as the chapter continues Isaiah describes a complete reversal in their condition. they had lost their lands. They would receive back a double portion. They had been made slaves to till the soil of foreigners. But the day would come when aliens would till their farms. This was simply hyperbole to describe the blessings God would shower upon them in his way of keeping the promises he had made to Israel.
But many in Israel took Isaiah’s words literally. They believed they deserved twice the land. They believed they deserved to be slave masters, with foreign slaves doing all the hard work. They believed they inherently deserved God’s grace, deserved all his blessings, that God’s blessings were specially theirs.
And while they believed they deserved these blessings, they also believed that others didn’t. God and his blessings were uniquely their possession and no one else’s. So as Israel looked forward to the fulfilment of Isaiah 61 they had certain expectations of what it would mean for them and for their place in the world.
And in Jesus’ day the longing for the fulfilment of Isaiah 61 was even more urgent. Again they were under the rule of a foreign power. Again they were reduced to slavery. Again they had to send the wealth of their nation to a foreign land in the form of taxes and tribute. They longed for the day of Isaiah 61 when they would be on top again, where they were free again when they could be rich again and the masters of their world.
And it was into that powder-keg scenario that Jesus stepped. He reached for the scroll of Isaiah, and he turned to read chapter 61. Then he began his teaching by saying, “Today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” So what did they think he meant? no doubt they enjoyed hearing the Isaiah passage. But the problem for Jesus was that they would understand the passage the way they had always understood it – that God would bring great blessings for Israel, and that they should keep waiting until that day arrived. That was the sermon that Nazareth expected.
But Jesus got into trouble because he now preached the wrong sermon. He began by pointing out what a tough group they were. They would not accept him as a prophet until he had proven himself, until he had done the miracles in Nazareth that he had done elsewhere. In other words, Jesus’ warning was that they shouldn’t think that they could be self-satisfied and expect to sit back while all of God’s blessings would rain down upon them.
In the time of Elijah the only widow who received his help came not from Israel but from Zarephath. In Elisha’s day there were plenty in Israel with leprosy but the only man ever cured was Naaman, the Syrian. The point is that God will show mercy on anyone he chooses. We can’t claim exclusive rights to God.
About ten years ago there was a scandal in the United States over a man about to be executed for murder. He had committed several murders. he made a public statement that he was prepared to die, he was guilty of his crimes but he believed he had made his peace with God. Some people wanted him to receive a lesser sentence because of his new found faith. Others claimed that his crimes had been so grievous he had no right to claim he was reconciled to God. he said he didn’t want his sentence reduced. For what he had done he believed he deserved to die. But again he confirmed his confidence in God.
We aren’t bothered when people receive God’s blessing when we believe they deserve it. But we struggle when we believe that people who deserve it don’t get it or get it even when we believe they don’t deserve it. This was Jesus problem in Nazareth. The crowd believed Isaiah 61 was for them alone. Jesus suggested it might be for others too.
Later on we learn that the message of Isaiah 61 is for all the world, which must mean all of Sydney too, for those doing well as well as for the sick and the suffering as well as for the unemployed and those who live on the margins of society, even those removed from railway carriages on New Year’s Eve.
So as we consider our New Year, as we celebrate this country and its vast wealth, as we consider the message of the good news of Christmas, we need to consider what we can do this year to bring those hopes and dreams into reality for those who struggle with life, those who don’t know good health, or prosperity, or hope, or love.