The Upload
Posted on Jan 22, 2016 by
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I pray you had a blessed week.
Well, here we are entering our third week in the Season of Epiphany. Epiphany is that time of year when we read about the various ways God revealed to the world whom Jesus really was and is. “Epiphany” means a sudden realization or awareness. It is an “Oh, now I get it!” experience. An epiphany is when you see something in an entirely new way, in such a way that you feel like you are seeing it clearly for the first time.
This Sunday, January 24, we will read about Jesus teaching in the synagogue where he grew up (Luke 14:14-21), and we will learn that Jesus is not merely a carpenter’s son. This story will make two things very clear: First, Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, and secondly, we will learn what it is the Messiah is supposed to do.
Now, for those of us who call ourselves Christians today, we are well aware that Jesus is our Messiah. That is not new news, but I do believe we often get confused on what Jesus was supposed to do while he lived on the earth and, in turn, we get confused on what we are called to do as followers of Jesus.
When it comes to what Jesus was supposed to do, we often speak about how Jesus came to save us from our sins and die on the cross so we don’t have to. And this is very true, but is dying on the cross all that Jesus came to do or was there something more? And is there more to a Christian life than living freed from the fear of death?
Well, what we will learn on Sunday is that Jesus came to “bring good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, and to let the oppressed go free” (Luke 4:18). Notice that Luke says nothing about sin and salvation; however, he says a lot about tending to the needs of those who are not in a position to tend to themselves.
Our “epiphany” this week is that, like Jesus, our mission is to do the same. We are invited to be an “epiphany “people,” people who bring good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and let the oppressed go free.
Have a blessed week!
Shalom,
Pr. Dave