Luke 4:14-30

So this blog comes from me pondering over some scripture that was discussed in my class last Sunday (7/29). The scripture is Luke 4: 14-30. Since it is very long, I am not going to post it, but I encourage you to read it right now. If you do not own a bible or have one near you, you can easily go to a online bible site (like http://www.biblegateway.com) and read it there. As I said before, this blog is the result of me thinking and praying over this set of verses during the week. In class, the question was asked why Jesus would speak to a crowd that he knew was going to reject him. Several answers came up, but I felt like there was something more to this story, which lead me to think about it some more. Now, here is my little disclaimer. I am not saying this is the answer or the only answer, but I felt led to share this with anyone who reads my blogs. I know for myself, as I grow, I gain new information from scriptures and Biblical stories that I previously read over and over again. Here is what I would like to share with you today.

We don't like wasting our time and energy because we know how short it will be. So when we are working with someone who is showing no signs of change or cooperation, we are more likely to give up on them and focus our energy and time on someone who will give us the time of day. Remember, God still loves us and is not like us. That love was made as an example in front of those people. Jesus told them who He was even if they reject him because Jesus stills loves them. Sometimes we do not like to be made to think and wish someone would just say what is needed to be said. In this case, Jesus could of just said "I love you", but those three words are not able to completely comprehend His love. The words do not give His love the justice it deserves.

There was also another love in that scripture and that came from the people that rejected Jesus. Some of you may have a difficult time in seeing this because verse 28 mentions the people being filled with rage, which is quite the opposite of love. Here are some things to remember. Jesus was returning home as their hometown boy. These knew His family and what He did when He was little. His teachings was getting great praise, which made the people the knew Him very proud. On the other end, at the same time of Jesus ministry, other people were proclaiming to be the Christ, which was heavily frown upon and for good reason. So when Jesus said He fulfill the scriptures right before them, they were trapped in their thoughts and emotions because their hometown boy just did something that they could not respect. For me, the example that came to mind was Chris Benoit, the pro-wrestler that killed his son, wife, and then himself. Before the tragedy, the wrestling community respected Chris Benoit because they watched him developed into a great wrestler and athlete. Chris was not a guy who was into gimmicks, pyro, and weird outfits. He just went out and wrestle his heart out every time. He probably would of been in several Hall of Fames and respected across the globe, like in the US, Canada, Mexico, and Japan. When the wrestling world found out that Chris killed his family and himself, they were confused on how to feel about him. Some people quickly turned and wished for Chris to burn in Hell, but some people still could not believe he would do something like this. I am not saying Jesus and Chris Benoit are alike in any way, but the reaction from the people were very similar. These people were mad at Jesus, but they still loved Jesus. I believe that if Jesus proclaimed that anywhere else on that day, Jesus would of died right there. If Chris Benoit did not commit suicide and had to stand trial, the prosecutors would not allow a jury full of wrestling fans to happen for very similar reasons.

Another thing to look at was the missing tipping point. What I mean is no one had the guts to throw the first stone or make the first push. If you seen the movie "Do the Right Thing", you may remember that start of the climatic destruction really came from one person throwing the trash can through the window. In this story of Jesus and the raging crowd that never happened because they were trapped in their feelings about Jesus. The crowd may of agreed with what He just said, but they were not just going to kill Him because of this love and respect they previously had for Him. I am not saying this is the only explanation, but I believe their were two love stories in that piece of scripture: the love Jesus had for the unbelieving and the love the unbelieving had for Jesus. That is why no blood was shed that day. No offense to Huey Lewis and The News, but thats the power of Love.

If you are someone who is interested in studying the Bible, a fun assignment is to find the love story in every Bible story that you read, whether its from the old or the new testament. Trust me it's in there, some are just harder to find than others. If you ever get stuck, you can always talk to God about it.

But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. ~1 Cor 13:13