Jan 27, 2019                 The Power of God's Word

This past week, our nation celebrated Martin Luther King day. Now for many, this day has become just another day off, but on Monday I decided to re-read MLK’s “I have a dream speech”, something I hadn’t done since seminary, some thirty years ago. And as I thought about our gospel lesson this morning, I thought I might share a part of that speech with you this morning.

“I say to you today, my friends, though, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up, live out the true meaning of it’s creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’

I have a dream that one day the red hills of Georgia sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream that one day in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with it’s governor having his lips dripping with words like interposition and nullification, one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and girls, will be able to join hands with little white boys and girls as sisters and brothers.”

Now the real power and beauty of this speech is that it put into words, a vision of what the world could be, of what was possible, that America could shrug off the chains of racism, and become a place where people dwell together in peace, and where there was opportunity for all. And in simply holding up that vision, for people to hope for, believe in, and live towards, half the battle for civil rights was won. And even today, when we still find racism in our nation, we still have this mighty Word from Dr. King, to help us face it and overcome it in our lives. Which brings us to our gospel lesson this morning.

This morning, Jesus goes to the synagogue in his hometown, and when he was given the scriptures, he found this passage in Isaiah and read,

  “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor.”

 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Now at the time of Jesus reading of this passage, Israel was a state under Roman rule. Eighty percent of it’s people were poor, meaning they lived day to day, and if they didn’t catch fish, or find some work, they and their families went hungry. If a family had debts, a family member could be held captive until the bill was paid, or they could be forced into working without pay until the debt was payed off.

And so, what Jesus does in this moment is to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor! For those who don’t know what this means, the year of the LORD’s favor in the Old Testament, was called the Jubilee year, where all debts were forgiven, and all returned home to their own homes, and there was peace and joy throughout the nation of Israel. And so, very much like Martin Luther King’s speech, Jesus proclaims a vision of what could be for all, and in so doing, begins his ministry that will free the people of his day from Roman captivity, and the oppression of the Jewish leadership.

And so, what does this have to do with our lives today? Well today, we live in a time that has it’s problems with racism and sexism. We live in a time that has problems with partisanship, classism, and poverty. But as long as we focus on the problems, and the sufferings they cause, we are chasing out tails. What we need today, is a Word, a Word about a world in which we are shown a vision of what the world could be, a Word of hope for those who sit in darkness and suffering, a Word of faith that there is a better world and a better life for all of us. The Good News is, that that Word has come to us in Jesus Christ. And that through faith in Him, we can realize that better world, will be fulfilled in our presence. And that’s the Good News of Jesus Christ!