Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10 Luke 4:14-21
All the people of Israel gathered together into the square before the Water Gate.
This morning we have another “slice of life” from ancient times, as we join the Children of Israel in front of the Water Gate. The early Church would have known what and where that was, but, as usual, we are historically too far removed from those times to immediately catch on to what is being said.
The Water Gate, as some of you may have surmised, was one of the four gates of Jerusalem. So, we know two things immediately. First, that the Children of Israel have come home, and second, that the walls of the city, destroyed by the Babylonians, have been rebuilt. But let’s back up just a little bit.
A new king has come to the throne in Babylon, a man named Cyrus, and he has decreed that the Jews can go back to their homeland. This sounds like wonderful news, but there’s only one problem. It’s been seventy years since the Children of Israel were taken away as captives of the Babylonians. When you figure in the average lifespan of a person back in those days and compare it to our average lifespan now, seventy years for them would be like one hundred and forty years for us. In that span of time, a lot can happen.
For one thing, the people taken away from Jerusalem have all died. There is no one living who remembers “home” being in that distant city so far away. And there’s something else. In that amount of time, people have been assimilated into Babylonian society. What distinguished the Jews from their neighbors wasn’t just customs, or costume, it was their faith. Daily life before Babylon flowed in rhythm with the religious year, but for many, that is no longer the case. Jews have intermarried with the locals, diluted their religion, and settled down. They own shops, or businesses of some kind, and they’re quite comfortable with secular life and new religious practices. When Cyrus gives the order that they may return home – a lot of folks choose to stay behind in Babylon.
Not only does their comfortable situation keep them from “going home”, Ezra, who today reads the Law of Moses to the gathered group by the Water Gate, has made some seemingly outrageous demands. If a man has married a non-Jew, he must leave that wife and their children behind in Babylon. Only what Harry Potter fans would call “pure bloods” are to return to the homeland. Needless to say, that stopped a lot of folks from heading home.
Ezra brought the law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with understanding.
Ezra isn’t taking any chances. Over the years of exile, many have forgotten the Hebrew language, so there are even interpreters present, so everyone might understand what they are hearing. And why is it so important for the gathered crowd to hear the Law of Moses? Because, along with forgetting their native tongue, many have forgotten what it really means to be a Jew.
And as they hear the Law read aloud, the people wept. Some must have been relieved to hear their story, hear the Law, and feel the affirmation, and thus weep for joy. Some must have been ashamed of the sinful lives they have led in Babylon, and weep with contrition. No matter what the cause of their tears, it is not going to be easy to live as God has called them to live, to change, to reset their priorities.
Then Ezra said to them, "Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."
Our Gospel this morning takes place several centuries after our first reading.
Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about Him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.
There is no question about Jesus’ status within the Jewish community at the time of our reading. He is a devout, Jewish man – and he attends synagogue regularly. He is a rabi, which means “teacher”, and thus He will read from the scrolls, and then interpret for the gathered congregation what He has read. The fact that He was praised by everyone indicates He is very well-educated and knows of what He speaks, adding the enlightened criticisms and comments that have built His reputation. And – it seems what He says is well received.
But this morning is going to be very different from His other appearances in synagogues. If we set the scene, we find both women and men seated together – because in the first century, women were permitted to pray alongside men in the synagogue. Women might not be taught Torah, but they were certainly allowed to pray with the men.
Jesus gets up and reads from Isaiah: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
These words had a specific meaning for Jesus’ listeners. They were always understood by the Jewish people as pointing to the Messiah, the promised one who would save Israel. It is not a long passage, and once He has read it, Jesus looks out at the gather crowd of worshippers and says simply, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Jesus is telling the people that He is the Messiah.
What do these passages say to us?
Ezra, the priest, is a purist, and in a very human way he looks to the past, to the time before the Babylonian captivity, for direction. He believes that things were better before the Jews were taken from their homes and their way of life – before they were “corrupted” by life in Babylon. His demands, reflect his belief that to move forward, one must look back and return to things “as they were before”.
Jesus does not look back, because Jesus Himself is the present and the future. Hearing this, one might wonder why we read the Bible, since what is recorded in it happened centuries ago, but if that is our thought, we have missed the point. Jesus is not yesterday; He is now, today, and tomorrow.
Ezra’s perception of today reflects a very human way of viewing things. All through history we have examples of individuals who rose to power motivated by the belief that returning to “the old ways” was the best path to follow, the best course of action. And this outlook is popular, because it sounds reasonable and easy. The rationale is, go back to what worked before, to what is familiar, to what is – for some – comfortable. Unfortunately, what is comfortable for some is often painful and destructive for others. And going back does not move a person, or a community, or a nation forward.
Jesus offers the only real alternative. Himself! But this is less than popular because it requires both work and sacrifice on our part. One must sacrifice the rosy dream of making things like they were before. One must accept that clinging to the past does not lead anywhere. And then, one must do the work it takes to follow Jesus, to be in contact with Him, through the Holy Spirit, through prayer, as He is and where He leads today. This requires more than just “being a good person”. It requires prayer, dedication, devotion, vigilance, and sacrifice on our part. Simply put, it requires work. So much easier to look back, than to struggle on the path that leads ahead. But that is what Jesus calls us to do.
As the hymn puts it, “We know not where the road will lead, but follow day by day, or where it ends: we only know we walk the King's highway. We know not if the way is long, and no one else can say; but rough or smooth, up hill or down, we walk the King's highway.”
It is a choice. No wonder many people prefer the road that goes nowhere but back – to what was known, to what many find comfortable, to yesterday. But we have been baptized to bring good news to the poor. to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
Knowing what Jesus expects of us is simple, but rarely is it ever comfortable or easy.
Let us pray:
Lord Jesus, help us to place our lives and times in Your hands. Please, help us work, sacrifice, and rejoice – knowing that when we live in accordance with Your will and obey your commands, You will take care of everything. We ask for Your Love and mercy’s sake. Amen.
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