This weekend we celebrate the fourth Sunday of the year. Time is as always passing by and life goes on and sometimes life can be very cruel as the death of the four young men in Donegal (Ireland) last weekend shows and we pray for their families and friends at this sad time. We also pray for all those who need our prayers and all of us know someone who needs a prayerful boost.
In the Gospel reading Jesus’ preaching begins with affirmation from the hearers. “All who were present spoke favorably of him.” Almost immediately the mood changed. The use of the reading from Isaiah was welcomed. It is good news that the people have waited a long time to see fulfilled. But, somehow conveyed in the words was the suggestion that Jesus himself has a role to play in the inauguration of the eternal Jubilee and it is this that is not acceptable. The examples that follow indicate that Jesus was hinting that the word of God was spoken universally, not to one particular person or group of people. The stories of the prophets, Elijah and Elisha, show that God’s love and mercy are to be found wherever there is a need and the faith to receive it. The reaction from the group was swift and indignant. They rose up and wanted to throw him not only out of the synagogue but out of the town.
The hearers hardened their hearts to the word as many today harden their hearts to the word.. Why did the crowd rise up against Jesus? Because he stepped outside the box they had constructed for him. He was no longer the local boy who made good; he was a self-proclaimed prophet. And his signs were not for the edification of the mob, but for the glory of God. In these ways, he rejected the expectations of those in Nazareth, and, so, they rejected him. As a last sign to them, Jesus walked safely through them and, according to Scripture, he never returned to his hometown.
For all of us expectations are always really hard to fulfill as we hear from the readings of this weekend. But, faith is not based upon expectations, but on a relationship with God. We must recognize the difference between the two. And as we recognize that difference we place our expectations before God and he will help us to do what he asks of us. There is a great saying that was often quoted to me by a friend who passed on a few years ago she always pointed out that man proposes and God disposes meaning that god will see and do whatever is good for us whether it is what we want or not for sometimes what we think is for our good is in fact the opposite !!
Fullerton T 