January 27,
2013 Third Sunday of Epiphany PLC
Rev. Sarah
Friesen-Carper
Luke 4:14-21
In his inaugural address this past week President Obama
quoted from the constitution. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that
all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness.” He used these words to frame the rest of what he said. And the rest
of what he said was honest about our reality and hopeful about our future.
I don’t know if it was intentional or just good public
speaking, but he followed the format Jesus models here in chapter 4 of Luke’s
Gospel. Jesus begins with a quote from the prophet Isaiah to frame his speech. “The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to
proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight
for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Granted, his speech
is a bit shorter than our president’s speech only a few more words: “Today this
scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” But these words also serve to frame
both this gospel and more importantly the work of Christ on earth. This is
Christ’s inaugural speech. Yes, it has far less pomp and fanfare than the one
last Monday, the immediate audience was likely to be quite a bit smaller. But
this speech does what inaugural addresses are meant to do, to announce
priorities and to give vision. It tells us what Christ’s work on earth is going
to be about and therefore what our time on earth ought to be about as well.
Let’s take a step back and check out what has happened up to
this point. Jesus began his public ministry with his baptism. Remember that
after he was baptized the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him
like a dove and God said: “You are my Son whom I love; with you I am well
pleased.” Then right after that amazing blessing, the Spirit led him out into
the wilderness for a 40-day fast and retreat. But remember that those days were
marred with temptations like turning a stone into bread and being the most
powerful person in the world.
This scene in his hometown synagogue then is his first
public act of ministry according to the Gospel of Luke. Before he calls any
disciples or heals any sick people he is filled with the Holy Spirit and goes
home to preach. And these inaugural words reveal the essence of Jesus’ life,
ministry and purpose in a succinct few lines. He tells his friends and family
back home and all of us hearing the words again today who he is, what he will
do and for whom he has come.[i]
First, he is anointed by the Spirit of the Lord. Anyone
hearing these words will automatically think of the anointing of the kings of
the old days of Israel who were anointed with oil to initiate their reign. And
they will immediately think “Messiah” because that word actually means
“anointed.” And so Jesus reveals that he is the anointed one promised from of
old by the prophets to be a new kind of king.
Second he is here to do the work of bringing good news,
proclaiming release, recovery of sight, freeing the oppressed and proclaiming
the year of the Lord’s favor. And third, he’s here specifically for the poor,
the captives, the blind and the oppressed. And the rest of this gospel is full
of Jesus fulfilling his inaugural promises. His second act of public ministry
is to free a man bound by an unclean spirit. And don’t forget about his sermon
on the plain where he blesses the poor and the hungry and the grieving.
Now, as Americans we may or may not agree with the vision
and priorities laid out by our president and that is our prerogative. But as
Christians who dedicate our lives to following Christ, we are beholden to the
vision and priorities set out by Christ. When he defines his work on earth, he
also defines the work which we are to be about.
St. Paul reminds us that we are the body of Christ, and each
of us has a vital part to play within the body, a gift with which we have been
endowed to use for the good of the world. Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said, “Being
a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and
actively doing God’s will.” And this will Is what Jesus outlines here;
courageous acts of bringing good news to the poor, releasing the captives,
giving sight to the blind, freeing the oppressed and proclaiming God’s love.
These are acts of justice and mercy. Now “justice” and “mercy”
are words we throw around a lot in the church just assuming everyone knows what
they mean. So here’s a quick little vocab lesson: Mercy is an act of care from
one person to another; Justice is on a larger scale, changing a system of oppression
etc. Compassion International is one of my favorite examples to use. Through
Compassion Int’l, individuals or families can sponsor one child in need
providing money for that child to receive food or health care or schooling,
whatever is needed. That is mercy, one person to another. But the organization
itself, Compassion Int’l, works for justice on a larger scale, working to end
poverty and hunger within entire communities.
So, I want to invite us to consider making an inaugural
address of our on, maybe not on the grand scale of Jesus or the president. It
doesn’t need to be a life-long mission statement or even a vision statement for
the next four years. But let’s consider taking on one act – one courageous act –
of justice or mercy and then inaugurate that act today by sharing it with the
person sitting next to you. For example,
I have decided to take on an act of justice and write one letter a month to my
governor or president or representative. I’ll write about whatever is on my
mind, whatever issue the Holy Spirit inspires me to write about. I’ll write
about what I believe is the Biblical witness for that issue. And you can hold
me accountable because I’ll post the letters on my blog as well.
So, think of one act of mercy or justice, an act of proclaiming
God’s love or bringing good news to the
poor or releasing those in captivity or whatever you feel called to do. And
then tell your neighbor. Then you will be accountability partners for one
another.
The good news for us is that in his leadership, Jesus gave
us the grace both to accomplish our goals and to be forgiven when we falter.
Through his life and death and resurrection we have a model of mercy and
justice as well as compassion and grace. May we be inspired to act courageously
in justice, mercy and love. Amen.
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