{"id":20728,"date":"2025-01-28T20:27:36","date_gmt":"2025-01-28T19:27:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/?p=20728"},"modified":"2025-01-28T20:27:36","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T19:27:36","slug":"luke-421-30-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/luke-421-30-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Luke 4:21-30"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany | February 2, 2025 | A Sermon on Luke 4:21-30 | by Luther H. Thoresen |<\/h3>\n

Luke 4:21-30\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h2>\n

(Text New Revised Standard Version copyright \u00a9 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.)<\/p>\n

Luke 4:21-30<\/h3>\n

21<\/sup>Then he began to say to them, \u2018Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.\u2019\u00a022<\/sup>All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, \u2018Is not this Joseph\u2019s son?\u2019\u00a023<\/sup>He said to them, \u2018Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, \u201cDoctor, cure yourself!\u201d And you will say, \u201cDo here also in your home town the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.\u201d\u00a0\u2019\u00a024<\/sup>And he said, \u2018Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet\u2019s home town.\u00a025<\/sup>But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land;\u00a026<\/sup>yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.\u00a027<\/sup>There were also many lepers\u00a0in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.\u2019\u00a028<\/sup>When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage.\u00a029<\/sup>They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff.\u00a030<\/sup>But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.<\/p>\n

Note #1: <\/strong>The initial paragraphs in italics<\/em> of this sermon might be used as the basis for a Children\u2019s message. If not used that way, one might adapt it as the beginning of the \u201cusual\u201d sermon, or insert part of it later in the sermon\u2026or earlier in the service.<\/p>\n

Note #2: <\/strong>\u00a0One or two pair of shoes could be visible on the edge of the chancel or in\/near the pulpit so that the preacher might gesture towards them (or pick one up occasionally). One might also, begin in the aisle with the shoes and go to the pulpit after the first couple of paragraphs. If the Children\u2019s portion is used, the shoes could be.<\/p>\n

Good morning. Shoes. What are they good for? (accept answers…and add as needed\u2026things like \u201cThey keep our feet warm\u201d and \u201cThey protect our feet from rocks or thorns on the ground and from Legos on the floor\u201d and \u201cThey protect our toes when we are walking among sticks or might stub our toes on the furniture\u201d and more). Also, why is it important for shoes to fit correctly? (accept answers\u2026and add as needed\u2026things like \u201cIf they are too tight, our toes will be pinched, or our joints will be jammed\u201d and \u201cIf they are too loose our feet will slide and we can get blisters on our heel or toes\u201d and \u201cIf they are just right they feel good and support our walking\u201d). <\/em><\/p>\n

You might know that it is likely that Jesus walked nearly everywhere he went. He needed good sandals that fit well. At the end of today\u2019s Gospel, Jesus went on his way \u2013 he walked away from the trouble he seemed to be in. I\u2019ll talk more about shoes and the trouble Jesus was in during the rest of the sermon. But for now, would you pray with me? God, thank you for shoes! My feet would often be hurt without them. Thank you for my parents who provide my shoes, and thanks for the people who make my shoes. Thank you for the great love you have given us in your Son, Jesus. As I walk this week, help me to walk my way with others, and may I share your great love with them. Amen.<\/em><\/p>\n

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.<\/p>\n

Have you ever heard the phrase \u201cIf the shoe fits, wear it\u201d? Once a man we will call \u201cBob\u201d told his friend, \u201cMy athletic trainer says that because I\u2019ve missed 2 or 3 sessions I am not making much progress. He says that I have a lack of motivation.\u201d How did the friend reply? \u201cIf the shoe fits, wear it.\u201d I think the friend meant, \u201cListen to the trainer. He\u2019s right, you lack motivation.\u201d How many of us would agree with the friend?<\/p>\n

Did you know that the phrase, \u201cIf the shoe fits\u201d began to be used in the 1800\u2019s? This was an adaptation of an earlier British saying from the 1700\u2019s. What was that? \u201cIf the cap fits.\u201d And even earlier there was a saying, \u201cIf the coat fits.\u201d You get the idea. Similar sayings have been around for a while. We will leave the shoes for now\u2026and maybe come back to them later.<\/p>\n

In the Gospel reading today there is a huge shift\u2026from \u201call spoke well of him\u201d to \u201call in the synagogue were filled with rage\u201d\u2026from \u201c[they] were amazed at his gracious words\u201d to \u201cthey got up, drove him out of town\u201d\u2026from people saying \u201cIs not this Joseph\u2019s son?\u201d to they \u201cled him to the brow of the hill\u2026so that they might hurl him off the cliff.\u201d Wow!<\/p>\n

It is like the hometown crowd is delighted with the hometown boy. But then, it becomes, the hometown crowd is running the hometown boy out of town\u2026or worse. The hometown crowd becomes a lynch mob. What is going on??<\/p>\n

We know crowds can be fickle. We have heard that a person or crowds can \u201cturn on a dime.\u201d The image behind that is usually someone thinking of a car or truck or semi which a good driver has \u201cturned around\u201d in a small space. Yes, crowds can be fickle. Crowds can \u201cturn on a dime.\u201d Crowds can turn from approval to rejection; from joy to rage\u2026quickly. If you don\u2019t believe me, all you need to do is watch some sports fans when the home team is winning\u2026and then starts to lose. The fans \u201cturn on a dime\u201d\u2026against their team.<\/p>\n

There are lots of tales about the \u201chometown boy or girl that makes good.\u201d I recall in my first call in the 1980\u2019s with a congregation in Wheaton, IL, one of the suburbs of Chicago. Chuck Long became the quarterback of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football team. His parents lived down the street from our home. They were not members of our congregation, but they were good friends with a couple families that were members. Lots of people were proud of Chuck as a \u201chometown boy\u201d who made good.<\/p>\n

I also recall moving to Ruthven, IA in 1987. There was a freshman on the local basketball team. He was a tall, lanky kid who played as a freshman on the varsity team. His name is Loren Meyer, and we watched him play 4 years for the local high school team. There was excitement when coach Johnny Orr from Iowa State University came to town to watch Loren play. Loren went to play for Johnny, and we watched him play as a Cyclone for 4 more years (usually on TV)\u2026and then he played 4 or 5 years in the NBA. The town was proud of the hometown boy. If I am correct, his high school jersey and his Cyclone jersey hang in the hallway of the local school.<\/p>\n

Yes, there are lot of stories of a woman or man from some place who does well in business, sports, music, the arts\u2026whatever. The hometown crowd is usually proud of the hometown boy or girl that makes good. I\u2019m from Iowa, so, I think of these\u2026Winterset is the hometown of John Wayne, Cedar Rapids is the hometown of Ashton Kutcher, Denison is the hometown of Donna Reed\u2026and there are more. (Preachers could substitute people from their state\/province\/country\/etc.)<\/em><\/p>\n

Jesus is the hometown boy from Nazareth. In last week\u2019s Gospel, Luke 4:14-21), we heard that \u201cJesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and the report spread through all the surrounding country\u201d. Last week Jesus read the scripture in the synagogue at Nazareth on the Sabbath. After he sat down, all eyes were fixed on him. Jesus said only nine words, \u201cToday this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.\u201d This Sunday\u2019s reading begins with those nine words, and we hear, \u201cAll spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, it is almost as if Jesus picks a fight. In response to their amazement, \u201cIs not this Joseph\u2019s son?\u201d Jesus retorts, \u2018Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, \u201cDoctor, cure yourself!\u201d And you will say, \u201cDo here also in your home town the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.\u201d\u00a0\u2019\u00a0And he said, \u2018Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet\u2019s home town\u2026\u2019 Then, to make matters worse, Jesus reminds the hometown folks about two stories in the Hebrew scriptures. He reminds them of two stories of prophets that did NOT help their hometown. In both stories, the prophet helps someone in someplace else\u2026someone from beyond the borders of Israel. One that was helped was in Sidon, the other in Syria.<\/p>\n

It is almost as if Jesus says that the message, the good news that he read from Isaiah, is not just for you. The message belongs to you. I\u2019m part of this town, but you do not own me or my message. With the story in the Gospel last week, the scripture promises were for the hometown crowd. There was good news for the poor, release for the captives, recovery of sight, the oppressed were to go free, and the year of the Lord\u2019s favor was announced. In this week\u2019s text, Jesus emphasizes \u201cfor others\u201d and his words become offensive.<\/p>\n

Have you ever heard something like, \u201cWe are to take care of our own first\u201d? That is sometimes OK, but it often becomes, \u201cWe will take care of our own and let others fend for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, what if the church does not exist to meet your needs? What if the church does not exist to meet my needs? What if the church exists for the sake of others? What if the church exists for the sake of those who are not a part of the congregation? Yes, along the way, God gifts us with life, salvation, community and more in the church. Yet, the gifts of God are given to us for the sake of others. You know this, right? Some of the ministries of this congregation are<\/u> for the sake of others, they are<\/u> to benefit others.<\/p>\n

I once read1<\/sup> about something that happened near the end of the life of William Booth. Booth was the founder of the Salvation Army. As Booth was dying, he pulled one of his associates close to his mouth and whispered. What did he whisper? One word – \u201cOthers.\u201d St Augustine was a bishop in northern Africa in the 4th<\/sup> century. He put it this way once, \u201cThe Church is the only club in the world that exists for people who are not yet members of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, back to the shoes. Put yourself in Jesus\u2019 shoes for a moment. At the end of today\u2019s reading, Jesus goes on his way. He has been driven out, led up the hill so that they might cast him off a cliff, and he has experienced the rage of the crowd. Yet, Jesus goes through their midst, and simply goes on his way \u2013 no getting even, no retribution, no fire from heaven, no \u201cI\u2019ll show you!\u201d Jesus, without violence goes on is way.<\/p>\n

A quick aside \u2013 no one knows \u201chow\u201d Jesus went through their midst. Did he stare them down? Did angels push back the crowd? Did Jesus simply call their bluff and walk through their midst? We don\u2019t know<\/u> how it happened, but it is clear \u2013 Jesus went on his way without violence. Jesus went on his way to help others. Yes, Jesus\u2019 way will lead to a cross on top of another hill. But for now, he goes to other towns and villages and peoples.<\/p>\n

Can you put on Jesus\u2019 shoes and respond to anger with non-violence? Can you put on Jesus\u2019 shoes and focus your ministry, your serving on others? \u201cIf the shoe fits, wear it!\u201d But first, can you put on the shoes of the crowd? Can you ask yourself, \u201cWhat triggers me? What moves me from joy to anger? Am I offended when I don\u2019t get my way? Am I offended when I hear that the church is NOT here to meet my needs?<\/p>\n

I invite you to take a piece of paper \u2013 a piece of the bulletin will do. With your finger or with a pen or pencil, I invite you to write the first name of someone with whom you are at odds. I invite you to pray for that person specifically each day this week. You know who that is. I also invite you to put the piece of paper in this basket as you come forward for communion. After we have distributed the bread and wine, the body and blood of Jesus, I will pray for all of us, and all of the people you have named. NO, I will not read any names aloud, and NO, I will not even read them to myself later\u2026I\u2019ll burn all of them after the service. But maybe, just maybe, you could share some good news with the person you named for yourself. This person may or may not know that you think the relationship is at odds. All the people we have named to ourselves are \u201cothers.\u201d Maybe you could write a card or drop off some cookies. Maybe you could write something simple like, \u201cI\u2019m praying for you. Will you pray for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

If the shoe fits\u2026wear it. Amen. In the name of the Father, and of the +Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.<\/p>\n

\u00a9Pr. Luther H. Thoresen, ELCA, STS, retired; thoresenluther54@gmail.com<\/a>; Grundy Center, IA, USA<\/p>\n

1<\/sup> My source for the William Booth anecdote and the quote from Augustine, was a sermon on this text by Pr Steven Molin on the website, www.lectionary.org<\/a> .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany | February 2, 2025 | A Sermon on Luke 4:21-30 | by Luther H. Thoresen | Luke 4:21-30\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Text New Revised Standard Version copyright \u00a9 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.) Luke 4:21-30 21Then he began to say to them, \u2018Today this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38,157,853,108,110,453,1132,3,109],"tags":[],"beitragende":[],"predigtform":[],"predigtreihe":[],"bibelstelle":[],"class_list":["post-20728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lukas","category-beitragende","category-bibel","category-current","category-engl","category-kapitel-04-chapter-04-lukas","category-luther-h-thoresen","category-nt","category-predigten"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20728"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20728\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20729,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20728\/revisions\/20729"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20728"},{"taxonomy":"beitragende","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/beitragende?post=20728"},{"taxonomy":"predigtform","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtform?post=20728"},{"taxonomy":"predigtreihe","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtreihe?post=20728"},{"taxonomy":"bibelstelle","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bibelstelle?post=20728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}