Dear Explorer,
Remember that Jesus is back in His hometown visiting and went to the synagogue on the Sabbath. When He was asked to read the Jewish Scripture, He told them He was the Messiah. That raised a few eyebrows, but…. Well, let's read what happened next.
Read Luke 4:24-30
Then Jesus added fuel to the fire. He told them that many Old Testament prophets did their miracles among non-Jews because of the Jews refusal to believe.
Woah! Stop right there! Aren't the Jews God's chosen people? The Jews felt spiritually superior to all non-Jews. They felt that since God had said that they were His chosen people, they alone would get a Messiah. They were not pleased at all when Jesus kept saying that He had come to save the whole world.
What makes you change from liking a person to really not-liking him in just a few minutes?
I believe it was because Jesus was pushing their beliefs and questioning their traditions. I believe Jesus loved them and wanted them to realize that their cherished beliefs were wrong.
Do you have any cherished beliefs?
What cherished beliefs do you think Jesus would question in our churches today?
Several years ago, we were part of a church in California that had started out as a black church. Now, black churches of 30-50 years ago traditionally dressed up for church. It looked like Easter Sunday every Sunday. The ushers wore suits and ties and little white gloves. The ladies wore fancy dresses and hats and gloves. The preacher would be either in a suit and tie or possibly a robe. But when this church really decided to do what God was calling them to do (love people who didn't know Him) – they set aside their tradition and began to come to church in their jeans and t-shirts. It was really, really, hard for them to not dress in their Sunday best. But they found that they could invite their neighbors more easily if they set aside their tradition – and focused on God instead. When we joined that church, they had grown from 35 people to 5000 people. God blessed their willingness to be obedient and not cling to their cherished belief that you should dress up fancy for church.
God sent Jesus to reach all people, not just one denomination, or group, or language. He came to reach all people – not just church-people.
If you want to review this, look at what the angels told the shepherds when they announced Jesus' birth. In Luke 2:10, the angels said that they had news that would bring joy for all people. Then John the Baptizer made it very clear when he announced that Jesus was the Messiah. In John 1:29 he says, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” (NIV)
So why did God call Israel His chosen people?
Because He chose them to prepare the way for the whole world to receive Jesus. They were to be the cocoon, if you please, for Jesus' arrival. What an incredible honor! But God never intended for them to keep the Messiah for themselves alone!
But let's get back to the story. When Jesus reminded them of God's healing and blessing non-Jews in the past, what did the people in his hometown try to do to Him?