Third Sunday of Epiphany: Proclamation and Release

Unedited Transcript Follows:

In the name of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy. Oh man. We had a joke when I was going through like youth Bible classes. Like when you did like with the youth group Sunday school or we were talking about Bible passage and we would say, the answer is always Jesus.

So like, if you weren't listening And someone asked you hey what do you think about that? You could just say Jesus And you'd probably be right, right. The answer is always Jesus. So we could just say Jesus and you're probably right. You know, a few years ago, I was praying Conklin with my kiddos.

So Coplin is our bedtime prayers, right? So, I was praying compliment with our with my kiddos. We were reading Psalm 4 Zone 4. It says know this, the Lord has chosen for himself. The one that is Godly. And Zoe said that's Jesus. And I I was at first, I was just brought back to those days when I said the answer is always Jesus, right?

But I also realized, she's exactly right. That's Jesus. Jesus is the Fulfillment of Psalm 4. When it says, the Lord has chosen for himself, the one that is Godly Jesus is the Fulfillment of that passage. Jesus is the Fulfillment of the law, the prophets, and the Psalms then he taught us to read the Bible that way he taught us in several places that if we're going to read the Bible rightly, we're going to see that.

It's a book about him. Me the answer is always Jesus then huh? And in this brief gospel reading, we're going to see the same thing Jesus by his very presence. Claims to, to be the Fulfillment of all the longings of the prophets. So today, we'll see that Jesus is the Fulfillment of the Prophet Isaiah's longing and particularly in his longing for the year of Jubilee, right?

We'll see that this good news or the promise being fulfilled is good news. That requires the people of God to be about both Proclamation and about release. So first, let's look at how Jesus is that fulfillment? The Fulfillment of the year of Jubilee. So right after Jesus reads the scroll, Luke records, very short interpretation.

Right. It's very short. He says, he says one sentence, right? Jesus says today. This scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. Now that's quite an efficient homily. Say James give homies more like that. You know, uh, Jesus said today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing and then that's the end of the homily.

Move on to the next thing, right? Now, the use of the imperfect tense is probably a sign that he said more. So it says he began saying to them, right? He began saying to them, but Luke is able to summarize all that. Jesus said in one sentence today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.

There it is now today. The scripture has been fulfilled. And what scripture has been fulfilled? Well, the one he just read, right? The one he just read from Isaiah, And it's interesting that he He chose a passage from Isaiah so the scroll of Isaiah was given to him and then he finds a place in that scroll so there's like Electionary thing happening and then also like a Choose Your Own Thing but Jesus gets to make a choice for himself with what passage he's reading.

So a little bit of both happening at the same time but he gets the prophet. Isaiah handed to him not a different scroll and then he finds the place where it's written. He says, he talks about proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor. Proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor.

Now, this is technical term. It's a reference to the year of Jubilee. So if are we familiar, maybe not with the year of Jubilee, right? The year of Jubilee was every 50th year. So it's kind of meant to happen once a lifetime For people. All captives. All those who are enslaved are meant to be released of the people of God.

They're supposed to be released. All debts. We're supposed to be canceled. Right. So all debts, were supposed to be canceled, Seems like a pretty cool thing, right? So like When you think of like the economic system of the scriptures, you're going to have a recognition that there's such a thing as like private ownership.

So we you don't want to read modern economic systems into like the old Covenant, we usually will mess that up. But what's cool is you you do have private ownership. So, something that like like what we would see in capitalism we're like I can own something and it can be mine, right?

And it can be viewed as mine. So, God gave people the land and that was theirs, you know, that their land was their land, right? And, um,

Them that like once a lifetime all debts, are going to be canceled and that the land is going to be restored, anyone who had lost their land through their participation in economic activity, was going to have their land restored to them every 50th year. Once a lifetime, we get a big reset button and we get a fresh start.

And the people of God were even supposed to not think about how soon is that year of Jubilee before they loaned money to people. That'd be hard to do, right? Like so before they loan money, they weren't even supposed to ask the question. But wait. If I loan you this like, there's no way you're paying this back before the year of Jubilee comes.

Because it's like, it's in five years, they weren't supposed to regard when the year of Jubilee was coming when they were to loan out money. Sounds impossible without the grace of God, right? Seems like that's not happening, right? And it didn't happen. The Jewish people didn't live that out really ever.

They didn't really live out the year of Jubilee as they were called to. They didn't restore all the land to the people. They didn't release all the cavities, they didn't cancel all the debts. They didn't live out the year of Jubilee, but the idea was built right into the system that there were going to be Releas.

And Fresh Start economically for the people of God. And then Jesus applies, this imagery of the year of Jubilee to his ministry. It's what his ministry is about, is to Proclaim. It is. Now, the year of the Lord's, favor it is the year of Jubilee.

So that, that forgiveness of debt is turned. Toward that, that forgiveness of debt is is turned to us thinking about release from sin. And the Forgiveness of sin. He's, he's turning us toward the ministry. He's going to do, which is going to be about releasing the captives. Those of us who enslave, not only economically, but enslaved to sin, and evil and death.

And then he gives his homily. Today, this scripture has been fulfilled. In your hearing. And that's a really brief homily, and it's also probably a surprising one, right? There's still an occupied people. They're still Jewish people in the land, which is occupied by the Romans. No one's been freed.

No one's debts have been canceled, not like In many ways, nothing's changed from when Jesus started reading from the prophet. Isaiah right? And yet Everything has changed. Because just what Jesus is saying is just the act of God's anointed. One reading, this passage in the synagogue. By itself changed everything.

Having the Messiah read. This passage in the synagogue by itself was enough to Proclaim its fulfilled. It's happening.

You know, Jesus had done some miracles by now probably like, Luke hasn't recorded a bunch of them. It says he came in the power of the spirit. Is really all all. It says, this is like right after Jesus, Temptation in the wilderness. But other gospel readings will put some miracles in between, obviously, people are starting to talk about Jesus, words getting around, he's coming into his hometown.

He's done some miracles, but that's not the point. Luke is making here. He's saying even without the Miracles, I'm not even mentioning the Miracles. I'm telling you that just by Jesus reading, this passage in the synagogue. It's being fulfilled. Just that Proclamation. I think there's a couple lessons, we could learn there.

First lesson is just the power of reading the word of God aloud. Reading Holy Scripture aloud. It's why in worship? We have, Holy Scripture. Read from four different places, every single Sunday. Out loud. Right. It's because there's a power in reading the scriptures out loud and Brian had to read a lot of names out loud today.

Right. And he did a great job. Yeah. Good example. For any of us reading the scriptures out loud. I, he got a couple warnings not only for me, but he had a couple people warning him about. There's a lot of names there. Uh, so just be prepared, but there's a power to just standing up and reading the scriptures out loud in the assembly.

So we should know the power of just reading the scripture out loud. It's why we value the daily office so much you know, praying the daily office with a family of seven. Life, we pray at every like every morning and every evening. We pray the daily office and it's sometimes a wrestling match.

Oh man, you know, our our newest thing has been. Hey, here's the deal. I'm gonna start reading a passage and if anyone talks, I'm just gonna start back at the beginning. And then, They're learning to not talk if they don't want to be reading Jeremiah for 45 minutes, you know.

Uh yeah, like because we'll read Jeremiah for 45 minutes, if that's what it takes to that, just learn how to be quiet, you know, and to learn how to sit still but it can be a wrestling match. Quiet and to sit still and to wrestle a family of seven through reading the daily office.

But I can tell you this. Even the many times when it feels like nothing's changing, no one's learning. If I ask my kids, what did I just read about? There's no way they could tell me. Which is maybe more times than not because more times than not, when doing the daily office.

It feels like, if I asked someone I read about, they couldn't tell me, right? That might be more often than not. But I'll tell you, it's a sanctifying thing to just read the scriptures aloud in your home. And to walk through the process of continually bathing your home in, Holy Scripture.

And reading the Old Testament every year and reading the New Testament twice a year and reading this altar once a month and walking through that process of just letting scriptures. Be the foundation of of family life. There's nothing better. It's why we believe it's why we do it.

Second lesson though is Jesus is the Fulfillment of the year of Jubilee. Just him being there. Is fulfilling what the year of Jubilee was pointed toward the year of Jubilee was all about a big reset and all the economic injustices can be righted and all can be made right again.

And that was just merely a picture of what the real reset that we need. The big reset where we can receive forgiveness of sins and Redemption. And New Life. Jesus is, is the end that the year of Jubilee was just pointing toward. It was just the air Jubilee was just scratching the surface of what Jesus came to do which was to set the captives free us.

Who are encaptive, who are captive to sin and death and evil, and participated in our own in, in our own ways, and Jesus is the Fulfillment of all of that. So just him being there is the Fulfillment of what that was all pointed toward. And as Jesus reads, the passage aloud in the Gathering, the promises fulfilled.

Now's the year of Jubilee. And what we learn from, What Jesus, the passage Jesus chooses to read, is we learn a little bit about what that message means. We learn first that the year of Jubilee is a time of proclamation, it's a time of proclamation. So it's a proclamation of good news to the poor, that's what he says, they Proclaim good news to the poor.

You know, one of the things I reflect on, when I read those words, it's just like How often do the poor? Receive good news. Like people that Struggling. Financially. How often do they receive? Good news. How often is a trip to the mailbox? Good news for a poor person.

Not often. Um something you expect, how often is is a trip to the mailbox, good news for you. And I I mean it's it's not often good news, like we we Where we've maybe find out. Oh, that that medical bill. I thought was in cover was covered by insurance turns out.

It's not now I'm I'm either in a fight with an insurance company or I owe someone a lot of money or whatever, right? How often is a trip to the mailbox? Good news for the poor. You know. And Jesus came to give to Proclaim good news to the poor.

To the poor. To those who often don't hear good news. He came to Proclaim. Good news to them. The poor as the central. Beneficiaries of Jesus gospel is a central theme. In Luke. If you're reading Luke, it's about the poor receiving, the benefits of the gospel, it's all through, Luke.

So like, uh, the other gospels don't emphasize that quite as much. That's an emphasis of all the gospel because it's just the emphasis of the good news. It's good news to the poor, but Luke in particular is going to zero in on how this is. Good news for the poor for the people that don't hear.

Good news very often it's good news to them, right?

It's proclaiming the needs. The poor will be met. He proclaims Liberty to the captives. This is likely more focused on spiritual Liberty or those encapted to sin and evil than probably in literal prison. But I'll tell you something about that, all of us are to look at prisoners. And see ourselves.

It's one of the measures of someone that's rightly related with God, according to Matthew, 25 is when I was sick and in prison you visited me. Often we're just Tempted to look at prisoners. The people who couldn't get their act together and now they're locked in a cage. Um, where they can't be a danger to themselves or to others anymore.

And there's truth there. But we're supposed to see our story when we see prisoners. All of us were locked in the cage. Of evil sin. Death Satan And we've all participated. And evil in our own lives and we need set free. When we look at a prisoner, it's easy for us to kind of stand in judgment over them, but they need set free.

And we need set free. We should see us when we look at the prisoner and he's proclaiming release to the prisoners to those who are in prison. And sometimes that's a literal prison someone in a cage. But, but that's just parallel of all of us, all of us, walk our lives in prison and we need set free.

And Jesus came to Proclaim freedom to the captives. The year of Jubilee is a proclamation that Victory has been won and the captives are set free.

I think like when I think about that and while I understand that like you have to have a society that has like laws, right? If Christians understand the gospel message, They shouldn't be the loudest ones. Proclaiming for exacting. Justice on perpetrators. That shouldn't be the loudest thing coming out of their mouth.

One of the things I'll turn to my kids when they say someone did this and they need to be punished, I'm like, okay, do you want me to like spank them right in front of you? Would that bring pleasure to your life to watch me spank your sibling right?

I'll ask them that because I'm helping them process. Hey, my place in life, shouldn't be exacting Justice, making sure everyone gets what's coming to them, right? We understand the gospel. Should be hoping for repentance and renewal and restoration. More than Justice and Punishment being meted out all's necessary. I'm not saying stop punishing.

People that commit horrific crimes. What I'm saying is that our heart should be that these people are Set free that they're able to repent and be made new and be restored. That's our posture because we're gospel people. And the good news is about Restoration and release for those who are imprisoned.

He talks about proclamation of recovering sight to the blind.

Right, and this is probably talking about a spiritual blindness, right? Jesus said, blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God. The ones who appear and are will see God. And Jesus is going to take those who aren't pure in heart like us and make us appear in heart.

So that we might see God. He's going to give her. He's going to give sight to the blind. The people that can't see God, because they're not pure in heart. He's going to transform our hearts. Make us new. Give us pure heart, so that we might see God. Might see the glory of God.

So, the year of Jubilee is a year of proclaiming good news, But the year, Jubilee isn't just that it's also a time of actual release. See, one thing to recognize is that Jesus isn't simply reading from the scroll. We know that because he starts reading in Isaiah 61, I think it is and then he ends up in Isaiah 58.

Well, so he's not just reading from the scroll, obviously, because if he's just reading from the scroll, if he was started in Isaiah 61, he'd stay in Isaiah 61, right? But he starts in Isaiah 61, he ends up in Isaiah 58 and he purposely Works in a passage that says set at Liberty.

Those who are oppressed not just Proclaim Right. It's not an accident. The people in the synagogue would have noticed, we might we're less familiar with the prophet Isaiah than they were. And so we might not notice that he starts reading in one part of Isaiah and then switches to another part of Isaiah.

But they would have noticed. They said, hey, that's not where that Falls that falls earlier, right?

So they knew they noticed and they would have known that, he's making a point with this. And he purposely is working in this. Call to Israel that says that where it says this is not this the fast that I choose to loose the bonds of wickedness to undo the straps of the Yoke to let the oppressed go.

Free said, Liberty, the oppressed Ray and to break every yoke. Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house when you see the naked to cover him and not to hide yourself from your own flesh, huh? Purposely brings this in.

He purposely pulls this passage in to say it's not just about Proclamation. Of release. It's about actually an acting release. It's about actually doing Justice with our hands. It's about actually doing Mercy with our hands. You know, and some people are proclamation, people only they they the the year of jubilees about Proclamation and release a lot of people Second being only Proclamation people, so like, sometimes you'll find homeless Ministries that are like we're not feeding anyone until they like listen to the sermon first, right?

Like they have to listen to the sermon. If they don't sit through the sermon, we can't give them a burger and I I yeah. And I get it. Um, you, you need to gather some people together and they need to hear good news Proclaim to them, right? That's true.

Failed maybe to recognize that just the act of giving a hungry person, a hamburger is in itself. A gospel act because the gospel is about release it. If they don't hear any message attached to that, and they just receive if a hungry person receives food, they have received good news, they have received part of that release.

And so some people are like only Proclamation people, it's only about saying the words of the good news, right? Look at those people and they'll say, oh my gosh, they're so backwards. They feel like they have to say the, it's a bait and switch, they're making them listen. Just so that they can provide some release.

We're going to be only about release here. We feed the hungry and we don't care about proclaiming all that stuff. It doesn't matter about that. We're just being the gospel, we're being the good news. Be problematic because I these people never hear the good news Proclaim to them, how they might have lasting Freedom, right?

The gospel is always about both and it doesn't pick. It doesn't pick. It's not all about Proclamation without release and it's not all about release without Proclamation. It's always both. It's people. Proclaiming good news. And at the same time, being agents of that, good news and being good news.

It's always both and Jesus was about both and he was always about both. Aiming people how they can get their sins forgiven. Yes, I'm also Releasing them from the effects of sin and death and evil that they're experiencing and are and that they're struggling with. It's why there's all these healings happening.

Ministry, right.

So Jesus was a proclamation and release person. He was always doing both. And so, he's inviting us to be a people of proclamation and release. So I ask you, where can you Proclaim? Good news. Where are the relationships in your life where you can proclaim the good news where you can tell people?

About a Who has come to set them free. A God who loves the world, who's ready to forgive their sins, who's ready to receive them into his family? If they will repent and believe where are the relationships in your life, where you can Proclaim that? And I want you to ask yourself the question, where is God calling you to be an agent of release?

Whereas God calling you into situations where you see Brokenness, where you see the effects of sin. Whether they're physical. Spiritual emotional mental health. Like where are the areas that God's calling you to be an agent of release? Whether it's providing food for Hungary. Laying hands on someone and praying for their healing.

Giving of your money. Generously to help support the poor. Where is God calling you to just be good news to the poor to be good news to those who are in captive, who are captive, or is God calling you to be an agent of release? See, we have good news.

Today, we see that Jesus is the good news, his presence by itself with nothing else added is plenty to be the good news that we've all longed for. Because he is here. It is the year of the Lord's favor. That's what we were taught here. And he's called us to be people that broke that are people of proclamation and release were to proclaim the good news of Jesus.

We're to Proclaim. Hey, God is with us and because God is with us, all that we need is here. God has come. God has come to set us free? We're to Proclaim. Good news that God is saving the world from all the effects of sin and evil. But he's also called us to be release people.

We're to be writing Injustice. We're to be giving sacrificially of our time, our money and energy, so that the poor the sick, the imprisoned. And the outcasted might be released and set free. We're to pray for healing. We're to see God reversing the effects of sin.

Demonstrate that good news by being good news. Let us be people of proclamation and release. Amen.