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[0:00] Good morning, everyone. Please turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 4. Luke chapter 4. As you all know, just as Jody talked about, we are in the life of Christ.

[0:16] Kind of doing an in-depth study. Getting to know the context of Israel, what it looked like 2,000 years ago. And concentrating primarily on the humanity of Christ more than the teaching of Christ.

[0:30] And my hope as we look at some of these main areas, I pray that it will supplement your personal study and your understanding. And will add to it in a way that perhaps that you never saw before.

[0:48] We understand that Jesus Christ lived 2,000 years ago. He lived in a real country with real people who had real concerns and a real culture.

[0:58] And these people responded often as we do today. That there was no accident at the time that Jesus Christ came. Both as he walked this earth perfectly God and perfectly man.

[1:12] So this morning what we are doing is we are going to look at the Galilean ministry of Jesus Christ. The Galilean ministry of Jesus Christ.

[1:23] And in case you didn't know, there's essentially three phases to the life of Christ. The first phase is what we kind of concluded last week. Looks at both the baptism, the temptation in the wilderness, and the first four chapters of John.

[1:40] And the primary purpose of that time at the very end as we saw, is Jesus is starting to gather that crowd. He's starting to get that critical mass that people are there.

[1:50] They're willing to hear the message of Jesus Christ. That he and the Father are one. And he's going to call them. And he's going to call them to repent. The second phase, which is the one we are beginning today.

[2:05] It's the 18 months that Jesus spends in northern Israel. And in that time, he does essentially three tours of ministry. Going out in the land, both teaching, preaching, doing signs.

[2:20] He's healing. And he's doing all these different actions primarily to the people in northern Israel. And then the last phase of Jesus' ministry, which again lasts a year, is primary his teaching ministry where he begins to prepare his apostles for him leaving.

[2:40] And he's preparing the disciples to get ready to take the message. And of course, we have the crucifixion during that time. Now, before I go any further, I just want to spend a couple of minutes here in prayer with us.

[2:55] Quick announcement, guys. And this is your pastor kind of giving you a little whack on the hand. We start at 10.

[3:07] Worship's at 10, not 10.30. I know we're getting kind of a little bit late going. But for the last couple of weeks, we've noticed that people are kind of rolling in a little bit later than usual. So if we could just kind of keep that time in mind, that would be really good.

[3:21] The other thing that I want to bring your attention to is just, it's really good to see you here, Janet. Just to continue praying for the saints that we have that are dealing with some of the issues. As you know, Tracy Devlin seems to be doing very well, just recovering, taking the meds for her blood clot.

[3:39] Remember Steve Howe? He used to worship here a couple of years ago before we moved to Kelowna. He's having the same issue. Just had surgery this week. And just texted with Melissa Warren this morning.

[3:51] She's dealing with a blood clot as well. So they have her on thinners. So I thought we would just lift up some of the people. These are some of the things that are going on. And just as even Jody mentioned, there's a lot of people out sick.

[4:02] And just for God's continued blessing and coverage, we just long for the day that this is over. Amen? Let's pray. Dear Father, I just ask that you would bring strength to the words today as we unfold this wonderful beginning of your life in Galilee, Lord Jesus.

[4:24] Father, we lift up those who are either sick.

[4:39] We know there's certain families that are sick, whether it's COVID or the flu or the cold. I know just the thought of getting sick brings consternation to people. Father, I pray that you would lift our fears.

[4:53] Father, we just seem to be living in a time where this fear is augmented beyond rational thought. And we know there's a whole bunch of knowledge that comes to us through the press, which seems to heighten these things.

[5:08] And Lord, just even some of the people who are dealing with the after effects, and we don't know why it's being caused, whether it's the vaccine related or to COVID related. But there's a lot of the saints that are beginning to have these blood clots.

[5:22] So, Father, that is a very fearful thing. It can turn quite quickly. Lord, we just pray that you would heal those that have them, that you would bring a fearlessness to the family and a trust in you, perhaps in ways that they've never known.

[5:38] We give you thanks for the advancement in medicines, just the blood thinners and all these things that the medical community can do to alleviate these concerns and, I guess, the effects of having a blood clot, O Lord.

[5:55] Father, but more importantly, I'm just asking you to, even in the mess that is all around us, tune our hearts to Thee. Father, that allow us just even during this brief hour, an unparalleled focus of worship, of just coming before your word, dwelling on the words that are both prayer, spoken, and sung.

[6:22] May you continue to augment our love for you as you challenge us as we grow in you with our own sin, our own foolishness.

[6:35] Lord, the ways you lift us up and encourage us is beyond our understanding. But we give you thanks and we praise that you do and you're active in our lives.

[6:49] We ask these things as we humbly come before your word this morning. In your most holy and precious name, amen. Amen. All right, please take a look at Luke 4.

[7:02] We're going to begin in chapter 14. And I'm going to unfold this passage and it's important for us to understand. And we're going to see something that I believe is no accident. But Jesus, as he begins his Galilean ministry, purposely goes back home to reach those who knew him when he grew up.

[7:24] So let's take a look at verse 14. Luke writes, And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee. And a report about him went out through all the surrounding country.

[7:37] And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. Now the first question that I want to answer for us today is why Jesus Christ begins his ministry in Galilee as opposed to Jerusalem.

[7:53] Jerusalem. Let's be honest. The whole Jewish world believed that if a prophet was going to come, Jerusalem would be the home headquarters of where he'd show up, right?

[8:05] It's the hub of the history of Israel. It is where the throne of David sits. So if the Messiah is coming, he's got to be concentrating his time in Jerusalem.

[8:15] We also know it's the home of the temple. And we also know it is the part of Israel that has the greatest Jewish influence.

[8:25] And we're going to look at this in a second. But the Jews of the Jews lived in Jerusalem and in that temple area. And even when we look at the survey of the history of Israel, Jerusalem and Judea seem to be the people that were more faithful to the prophets.

[8:48] In fact, God held back his judgment over 200 years because of the faithfulness of the Judean people. So when we first look at this, why is Jesus going to go to Galilee first rather than Jerusalem?

[9:06] And I want to share with you a few thoughts on why I believe he does. First of all, we know and understand that the crux of the ministry of Jesus Christ is to call people to him.

[9:18] Amen? He's calling people to repentance. He's calling people back to the Father. That's his first mission. And he's calling them to repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.

[9:34] Now, if that is your message and you want to reach the most maximum, and that doesn't really make sense grammatically, but the most maximum amount of people, Galilee is actually the place that you would do it.

[9:47] Although the land of Galilee had far more Gentiles living in the land than they did in the south, there was still more Jews. The historian Josephus reports to us that there were over 200 villages that contained over 10,000 people each.

[10:05] If you do your math, that's over 2 million people in that northern part of Israel. So that's a significant amount of people. And if Jesus wants to call his own, you go to where more of the people are.

[10:21] Now, the other question that should be on your mind is, why are there more people in Galilee? Well, my hope, heart, and prayer is that one day we'll be able to do a visit to Israel when we get out of this time to be able to go as a church.

[10:35] But we're going to learn that Galilee is a far more, how shall I say it, agreeable land than Judea. Judea is made up of high mountains and low valleys, which makes it very hard to farm.

[10:50] Galilee, on the other hand, is kind of spread out the way the wind comes off the Mediterranean, and then you have the Sea of Galilee. So it's better for farming. It's better for fishing.

[11:02] The Dead Sea doesn't create a lot of fish, right? So you got the Sea of Galilee. And also the major trade routes, which go between Syria and Egypt, all flow through Galilee.

[11:16] So it's a very important part of trade in that area. So you have more tradespeople, more craftsmen. And why? Because Rome is actually doing a lot of building up there.

[11:28] And whenever there's a lot of building, economic activity, people go there, okay? So ever since, we know during the Hasmonean Dynasty, which happened between 160 and Israel had independence in 260 BC, a lot of people moved north because it was a favorable conditions in which to live.

[11:52] And then when Rome came in, they started the building projects. So that created work for people. And there's more space to live.

[12:04] That's one of the simple reasons why there's more people in that area. So you have this booming economy. You have all these different types of people that are there. So that's one of the reasons why Jesus is choosing to be there.

[12:18] Now, there's some other interesting facts that lead us to believe that Jesus was there. If you were to compare the northern Jew to the southern Jew, the northern Jew is going to be far more amenable to Jesus Christ.

[12:33] They're kind of the common people, the folks. A lot of them only go to the temple for the major festivals. And as we learned a couple of weeks ago, massive corruption in the temple.

[12:43] But a lot of the people did it because that is what it meant to be Jewish. You had to go celebrate the four traditional festivals in Jerusalem at some point.

[12:54] But even when you went to the Passover, it was not a very favorable time. And you also had, how shall I say, less legalism.

[13:06] Less legalism in the northern part. Most of the people worshipped in the synagogues. They connected more organically.

[13:23] And there was a bigger, different, more independent of thought. So because there were more Jews, there was also more Gentiles. Which also meant Jews as a whole did not have as much sway with the government as they did in the south.

[13:44] And what I mean by that is, and I touched on this last week. Because of the high concentration of Jews in the south, there was very little Gentile influence.

[13:56] You had Rome. Remember, Pilate is sitting on the throne. He's the governor of the land. And he has two responsibilities. First one, collect taxes. The second one, keep the peace.

[14:08] If you wanted to get your way as a people group, you just start to have little rebellions here and there. You just need to start shaking things up. Far easier to do in the south where you have control of the most people.

[14:23] And that's the tension we're going to see, especially during the Passion Week. That the Jewish leaders, the Sanhedrin, as much as they're slaves to Rome, they kind of got Pilate by the neck.

[14:34] If they want him out, all they got to do is cause a lot of problems. That Rome gets to the point of, you know what, we're just going to send someone else to deal with this. In the north, they don't have that type of political influence.

[14:49] So Jesus is able to kind of run free in a way very differently than we see in the south. So those are the primary reasons why I believe that Jesus Christ chose to minister in Galilee.

[15:05] So let's go back to the text. Verse 14, we find out that this is the land of his youth. And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee in a report about him.

[15:16] So he was known. People were talking about him, the works that he had done during that first year. Remember the first miracle, turning the water into wine, was in Cana. Happened in Galilee.

[15:27] And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. So we're seeing that Jesus' strategy at this point is to go into the synagogues. And what he would do is he was opening up the Old Testament scriptures and teaching them what had previously been unknown to them and showing what the Messiah was to be.

[15:50] And he is that Messiah. So the way it worked in the synagogues is someone would be reading the scroll. And after that time of reading, they would teach.

[16:03] Now, I think it's important for us to understand that as we understand, Jesus becomes known as a rabbi or teacher. And the reason you can be called a rabbi or teacher is not because you went to the University of Jerusalem or Bethlehem Community College and got a degree.

[16:23] The number one reason why you were considered a teacher is you had followers. Simple. You had something to say. People wanted to learn.

[16:33] So they became him. So that person would be revered in that society. So here we go. Jesus has this group of followers. But I want us to pay attention to something here.

[16:46] The first thing that Jesus is known for is a teacher. Okay? Why is that important? Why is that important? We're going to see throughout the Gospels how they place attention on the words of Jesus Christ.

[17:09] Because he came to teach the truth about his father. Amen? That was the most important act that one could ever do, is to teach the gospel.

[17:21] He didn't primarily come to heal the sick. He didn't come primarily to feed the poor, to give sight to the blind, to heal the lepers.

[17:32] Jesus Christ's primary ministry was to teach, to teach the truth of his Father. Wowing the crowd wasn't his goal.

[17:46] Teaching them the truth of Scripture was his goal. Next week, we're going to look at what the role of signs, wonders, and miracles were in the life of Christ.

[17:58] But today, I want to focus here on the teaching. So look at verse 16. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up.

[18:08] And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. Now, did you notice?

[18:19] And he came to Nazareth. What the text doesn't teach us explicitly, that Matthew does, that previous to this, Jesus Christ, who grew up in Nazareth, has now come down from Nazareth, and he set up his home base in Capernaum.

[18:37] Capernaum is a city right on the major trade route, right on the Sea of Galilee. Matthew 4.12 says, Now, when he heard that John had been arrested, and he's talking about John the Baptist, he withdrew into Galilee.

[18:51] And leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali. So what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.

[19:05] The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. And it reads, The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light.

[19:18] And for those dwelling in the region in shadow of death, on them a light has dawned. So Jesus has moved from home. Now, the other reason why he does not stay in Nazareth, Nazareth is actually on a ridge overlooking the plains in Galilee.

[19:37] And the only reason you would ever go to Nazareth is to go to Nazareth. Right? It's not like Squamish. People go through Squamish on the way to Whistler. There's no other reason why you'd go to Nazareth.

[19:50] And the other thing is why you wouldn't want your home base in Nazareth. It's 65 miles to the main roads. So every day you're starting off with a 65-mile trek.

[20:02] Jesus just wipes that out. We're going to be strategic. We're going to be here in Capernaum. So here we have Jesus Christ. And he's going back to his hometown.

[20:13] We don't know how long he's been away. Some people speculate at least a year. And he's going back to his home synagogue, the place where people know him the best. Verse 16.

[20:25] And he came to Nazareth where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. And he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him.

[20:40] He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written. The spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

[20:53] He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind. To set at liberty those who are oppressed. To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

[21:07] This is the exact text that Dave read this morning. This text, which is found in Isaiah, is the key Messiah text.

[21:24] This is the text of all texts that point to the Messiah and his purpose. What will come? Every synagogue going Jew knows this passage.

[21:37] This is the messianic passage. Now if you're wondering why Jesus stops after reading to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. It's because that's where they are in time.

[21:50] That is the Lord's favor. The Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. It's finally come. It is here. If he stated to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God.

[22:05] That's a whole different Jesus coming back, isn't it? That's the Jesus of revelation that we read about. So now we're in that Jesus of the gospel.

[22:17] Verse 20. And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.

[22:31] As I said earlier, the whole purpose now is he's reading this document. They would be looking for him because much like today as a pastor would begin by reading the passage.

[22:42] They're looking for him to comment on it. And he gives probably the shortest, most powerful sermon one could ever hear.

[22:55] Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. Now let's take a look at the initial response to the words of Jesus.

[23:12] And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. So we know and understand that this text doesn't record or this passage doesn't record everything that Jesus taught.

[23:30] But he's teaching more and the people are marveling at what he's stating. And now he's made this statement that he's the Messiah.

[23:40] Now I want us to observe in the people that live in that, that are attending that synagogue 2,000 years ago.

[23:54] They represent us. And I want to show you why in a second. But it's not just us. I really believe they represent Jesus' entire ministry of what he's going to experience on his three years is encapsulated in this relationship that he has with these people in the synagogue.

[24:21] All right? So that's what I want to show you as it's worked out here this morning. So Jesus Christ is teaching. They are speaking well of him.

[24:33] And they ask the question, is this not Joseph's son? So first of all, they knew exactly what Jesus Christ was claiming. They knew this is the messianic passage.

[24:47] When he says that this has been fulfilled in your hearing, they know what he's saying. And remember I said last week, Jesus is very strategic in how he presents himself to the Jews.

[25:03] He will use terms that Jews understand, but the ruling Romans have no clue what he's talking about. If you know your Old Testament imageries and types and prophecies, when Jesus speaks, it's clear as day.

[25:19] And there's a reason for that. If he was walking out through all the land saying, I am the king, I am the Messiah, follow me, guess what the first thing's going to happen? Romans are going to come, put them in shackles right away because the last thing they want is another revolt going on in Israel.

[25:37] But so Jesus is very strategic in how he presents himself. But he's clearly claiming to them to be the long-awaited Messiah.

[25:49] Now in that section it says, marveled at the gracious words. There is praise being given here. They're speaking favorably of Jesus.

[26:04] And this will be the pattern of the life of Christ. When he first meets people, what do they do? They like him. They follow him.

[26:15] They want to know more of what he's going to teach. They want to know more of what he's going to do. There's this favorable experience that comes up when we meet Jesus.

[26:27] Remember Nicodemus last week, John chapter 3. He says, Rabbi, we know you are a teacher from God. The way Jesus spoke was unmistakable that no human man could teach like he taught.

[26:45] And the crowd recognizes the power that are in the words of Jesus Christ. But they're asking this question.

[26:56] Is not this Joseph's son? Now it's an amazing comment to make. And I want you to think about this.

[27:08] If Jesus had grown up in the land and was a bit of a scamp, you know, stealing food from the gardens. You know, you'd hear stories of his rebellious nature about his mom and dad towards his dad, right?

[27:25] Maybe he was the bully at school that could take people's lunch money. You know what I mean? Like if he was any way out of line, sinful in any way, they would have shot that idea down.

[27:40] In fact, they're asking this question like, is he Joseph's son? So if there was anything horrible that he had done, imperfect or sinful, that would have been commented on.

[27:52] The flip side of this, and as I indicated several weeks ago, there were many false gospels that went out about Jesus Christ.

[28:03] And they talked about some of the miracles he did as a kid. And these are false stories. Remember I told you that he blinded a kid because the kid was bugging him?

[28:14] There was a story that Jesus made these birds out of clay, then he turned them into real birds and they flew away. They don't mention that.

[28:27] It was never apparent from any of the works or signs that he did that this would have been the son of God. But there were still signs of sinless perfection.

[28:39] You with me on this? So there was nothing here that someone could accuse him wrongly of. But there's...

[28:54] Let me ask you a question. Who here has non-believing friends that love Jesus? Everybody loves Jesus, right?

[29:07] Wasn't he a moral, great moral teacher? Right? He came to forgive sins. Who doesn't want their sins forgiven? Who doesn't want to be known as a child of God?

[29:21] Who doesn't want everlasting life? Freedom from hell. Those are all good, positive things. Amen? Like the message of Jesus Christ is an attractive message to the whole world.

[29:34] And I believe this is why they are hearing him and they're quite favorable to Jesus. That's most people's initial response. He's good.

[29:47] He helped people. Now notice in verse 23. And he said, that's what Jesus said to them. Doubtless, you will quote to me this proverb.

[29:59] Physician. Heal yourself. What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.

[30:13] What they're referring to is, we've heard your teachings, but we want to see the signs. We want to see the signs. We want to see these miracles that you've been doing all in Capernaum right here in Nazareth.

[30:32] And we're going to see that throughout the ministry of Jesus. No matter how great he preaches, no matter how good that soul-satisfying message is, the people will continue to demand signs.

[30:52] This is the man who teaches so clearly the Old Testament scriptures to the Jew.

[31:04] Would have been amazing to hear all those prophecies come alive for them. To know that he brings sight to where there's metaphorical blindness.

[31:18] The crowd will seem to be with him. But they continually say, show me the sign. Verse 24.

[31:30] And he said, Truly I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. You couldn't have a better testimony than Jesus Christ.

[31:45] Amen? You couldn't have it. In fact, it's kind of interesting. I just shared time with one of my old pastor friends. He was my associate pastor when I first started off.

[31:57] And he remained at the church. And he grew up in the city. He's been there. And the senior pastor's leaving. And some people have asked him if he would become the senior pastor.

[32:09] But some of the people are against him being the senior pastor. And it's because they can go back and remember when he was like a 12-year-old little scamp running around the church.

[32:21] Right? They just remember all those things about him. And when he was kind of the out-of-this-world crazy youth leader that would wear all the crazy clothes and kind of building. And that's what they remember him.

[32:32] But now he's a man. He's grown up. He's graduated from seminary. And he's kind of hitting this wall. And this is the passage I shared with him. I said, If you believe that God has called you to be a preacher of God's word and to lead the saints, it might mean not doing it at home.

[32:50] And for him, that could be terrifying. He's got many kids. Guess what? Grandma and grandpa are both living there. You guys all know that, right? Everybody loves having grandma and grandma around. But it means striking out on his own.

[33:04] But Jesus Christ continues in verse 25. But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah. When the heavens were shut up three years and six months.

[33:19] The great famine came over all the land. And Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

[33:34] She's not an inside person. She's an outside person. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha.

[33:47] And none of them were cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian. See, Jesus Christ says, just because you have a need, or just because you are a Jew, a child of Abraham, do not make the mistake of believing that you were going to receive my favor.

[34:16] That's what he's saying. And what's remarkable is that the life that Jesus offers has a condition.

[34:30] Repent. Repent. Repent. Who doesn't want everything that Jesus offers?

[34:43] But to take what Jesus offers means turning your back on everything that you've ever loved. That's essentially what he's telling them to.

[34:57] You can like all the wonderful words of Jesus all you want. But unless you commit your whole life to Jesus, your words are powerless to save.

[35:11] It's the same today as it was then when Jesus first met with those who knew him when he was a child. And notice he's bringing up Naaman and this widow.

[35:24] And the Jew hearing this message, wait a second. You're talking about Gentiles. You're talking about the sinful of the sinful.

[35:36] And even though there was many lepers in Israel that Jesus could have gone to or Elisha, he went to Naaman, the one who wanted to make war on them.

[35:48] You know what's interesting about Naaman? He went and did as Elisha told him, even though he didn't really know he believed.

[36:00] You with me on that? There's a key point here. A lot of people claim to believe. But it's doing the do that is the problem.

[36:17] Yet you have this foreigner who's faced with leprosy, eventual death. It's the same way when someone presents the gospel with Jesus Christ, everlasting life, to not accept Jesus Christ, is hell and eternal damnation.

[36:37] But Naaman says, I'm going to do it. I'm going to trust you. I'm not sure I believe you. But I'm going to obey you. And what does that obedience turn into?

[36:52] Faith. Eventually he comes to believe. But he surrendered his will before he got to that point because he understood that Elisha was a man of God, a prophet of God.

[37:12] And now we have Jesus Christ. These same people have heard all the works. They've seen the things that Jesus has done at Capernaum. They're just asking for the signs.

[37:23] Hey, give me a show. Because they cannot get over the point that we're going to heaven regardless because we're Jews.

[37:36] You see, belief is not found in the creeds that we speak. Belief is not found in the scrolls that you read.

[37:52] Belief is not found in the verses that you memorized. Believing in Jesus doesn't bring salvation.

[38:04] But believing Jesus brings about salvation. Amen? You get the distinction? One believes in. One believes Jesus.

[38:19] That is why when Jesus will eventually get to the Sermon on the Mount, He unfolds everything for them. That the way you've been living your life is not in accordance with the kingdom of God.

[38:36] It is reflecting a heart that is self-centered, not towards God. Naaman obeyed.

[38:52] He wasn't sure, but he obeyed. And eventually he believed. This is the message that he's bringing to those people that he grew up on that faithful day.

[39:11] This is the same message that people reject today. I believe we've all been there. If we've shared the gospel, whether it be with our friends, our coworkers, our neighbors, our family members.

[39:25] At first we enter into this discussion. Jesus, good. Yes. I love Jesus. That means you can't be sleeping with that woman who's not your wife.

[39:36] You know how you've been cutting corners at work on your taxes and your expenses. Can't be doing that anymore. Well then I don't want any part of it.

[39:47] It means you're actually going to love your wife and your kids and you're going to put them central in your life, not your own ambitions. You see, believing Jesus means you do the things that Jesus calls you to, not because you believe those actions will save you, but those actions are a reflection of your belief in the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

[40:15] And you desperately love him. True belief begins with repentance.

[40:29] The reality is what Jesus asks in return is not much compared to what he offers. But what Jesus does ask us is to give up our own sense of righteousness.

[40:42] Our own sense of what we think makes us good. What we think makes us worthy. And my friends, I'm here to tell you, as simple and clear as that message is, people will hate you for it.

[41:03] Regardless of your family heritage. Regardless of all the wonderful things you do and love towards them.

[41:15] They will hate you. Why? Because they love their idols more than they love Jesus.

[41:29] Verse 28. When they heard these things, all in the synagogues were filled with wrath.

[41:44] Notice it doesn't say they were annoyed with Jesus. They were a little bit upset with him that day at that sermon that he gave. Can't believe Capernaum changed him that much.

[41:57] No. Filled with wrath.

[42:09] And they rose up and drove him out of the town. This is the town where he perfectly lived.

[42:21] No sin, no accusation. But he simply confronted them with their gods.

[42:37] They drove him out of town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built. So that they could throw him down the cliff.

[42:48] It's mind-boggling. It's mind-boggling. And for you who've been faithful in witnessing to others.

[43:01] It's how much some people hold on to their idols, isn't it? Even though those idols have left nothing but immense destruction, whether it be alcoholism, drug addiction, emptiness through sexual relations, destroyed relationships.

[43:20] They still want it more than Jesus. In this case here was their heritage.

[43:32] However, the truth for us is we are not to allow this to deter us. For we know there is difference between light and death.

[43:42] Amen? We know there's a difference between life and death. Amen? We know there's a difference between darkness and light. Between sight and blindness.

[43:53] We know there's a difference between liberty and being free. Being free and being oppressed. We know that truth.

[44:07] And how does Jesus respond to such rejection? He just simply walks through the crowd. Just ignores them. That's it. We're out of here.

[44:17] Now, you want to know the most amazing thing about this story? If you were to turn to Mark 6 or Matthew 13, when Jesus is ending his time in Galilee, guess what he does?

[44:39] He goes back to Nazareth. And he goes back to the synagogue. And he shares the good news with them again.

[44:51] Again, they marvel at his teaching. And they know now the mighty works that he's done. And if you read Matthew, it tells us that Jesus had banished all illness in Galilee.

[45:04] You get that? Not some illness. Not a few illnesses. All illness. The stamp of Jesus being in Galilee would have been the brightest, most glorious thing you could ever know about.

[45:19] No more sickness. No more disease. The lepers are now back to being friends, right? In the family. Everything has changed. You go into the city towns. At the gates, there's no more lame people hoping to collect money to walk.

[45:34] Jesus already came through. He's already healed them. There's none of that that exists anymore. Yet at the end of proving himself for 18 months throughout the land, the most glorious witness in mankind, he lived them enough to teach.

[46:02] And guess what they did? They all became Christian, and Nazareth became a well-known hub of Christian missions, right? Right? No.

[46:14] They rejected him all over again. But it's interesting. Jesus says, the text says, Jesus Christ marveled at their unbelief.

[46:31] belief. What love is this? That you would go back to the people that tried to kill you last time.

[46:49] And even though you were the son of Nazareth and you went around all those towns, the crowds behind him were immense.

[47:00] The proof was there. He still reached out to him. Jesus Christ is still reaching out to you if you're the one who continues to push him away.

[47:21] He's there still asking you, repent. Repent. Repent. For the kingdom of God is at hand.

[47:33] To be honest with you, I'm not sure what I marvel at most. The fact that Jesus returns to his own that rejected him or them still not believing.

[47:52] Jesus is good. Amen? Let's pray. Dear Lord, Heavenly Father, there's this, it's an incredible story in the text that we see before us.

[48:08] We see a picture of your great love, but at the same time, Luke, the gospel writer, is preparing us for what we are going to see in the Galilean ministry.

[48:21] There will be excitement, great applause to Jesus Christ. There will be a calling for signs and miracles. Jesus will prove himself without a doubt who he is and what he is to accomplish.

[48:40] Yet when he calls them to repent, turn their backs from their own righteousness, their own heritage, their own false hope, the crowd finally gels together and cries out, crucify him, crucify him.

[49:11] Father, I pray that these words do not deter us in our own personal evangelism to share the good news because we know that you are still saving people 2,000 years later.

[49:29] You are doing works of miracles in people's hearts as they turn to you. Father, may you bless our prayers.

[49:41] May we continue to cry out for you in your name that you would save those we love and know. Father, I pray that you create these opportunities for us to share the good news of eternal life with those we love.

[50:00] May we speak truth into the lives of those that may hate us. But may we take strength that we follow in the footsteps of the Redeemer who had no more greater love than one who would die for you.

[50:29]  We ask these things in your name. Amen.