LUKE 4:14-21 - FULFILLED THIS DAY

LUKE 4:14-21

FULFILLED THIS DAY

Luke 4:14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about.

Susie: Jesus had been baptized in the Jordan River in the region of Judea, and had been tempted in the Judean wilderness.

Susan: Jesus left Judea and returned to Galilee at the urging and in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Susie: The Gospel of Mark chapter one describes Jesus teaching in Capernaum near the Sea of Galilee.

Susan: Exponential admiration of Jesus spread throughout the region.

Luke 4:15 And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.

Susan: Everyone was eagerly anticipating the Sabbath that Jesus would teach in their synagogue.

Susie: Jesus’s fame spread word of mouth, and respect for His teaching grew.

Susan: The people who heard Him teach exalted Him, considered Him far above other teachers due to the authority with which He spoke.

Luke 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

Susie: Jesus entered His home-town synagogue on the sabbath day and stood up to read from the scroll of the scriptures. Don’t miss the fact that it was His “custom” to be in a place of worship on the sabbath.

Susan: This should be a reminder to us of the need to gather together with other believers to worship and learn about God. We must not let Pastor Pillow and Sister Sheets win on Sunday mornings. LOL

Hebrews 10:25 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Luke 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias (Isaiah). And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,

Susie: I was wondering whether Jesus had specifically asked for this scroll or if was just the reading for that week. Therefore, we looked at the notes in one of our favorite resources when dealing with the Jewish background of the Bible:

The Complete Jewish Study Bible:

Note on Luke 4:16-17 – The custom in the synagogue now is to read through the Torah in a year. Another regular reading on Shabbat is called the haftarah (conclusion) consisting of portions from the Prophets or Writings related to the Torah portion of the week. It seems clear that if Yeshua (Jesus) was given the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, then He was being offered the haftarah reading, which is an honor given to a special guest.

Susie: The portion Jesus was given to read was Isaiah 61:1-2. He only read the first half of verse 2 because the second half relates to His future second coming to earth and was not applicable at the time.

Luke 4:18-19 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Susie: Some viewed this portion of Isaiah as applying to the prophet himself, but others see it as something that could only be accomplished by God, i.e. the Messiah.

Susan: The Spirit—the anointing, power, the impassioned purpose—of the Lord was upon Him. The passage lists six pillars of this prophesied purpose:

1.       To preach the gospel to the poor—perhaps related to the “poor in spirit” of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3)

2.       Heal the broken hearted—“them that mourn” (Matthew 5:4)

3.       Deliverance to the captives—those “oppressed” by Satan (Acts 10:38)

4.       Restore sight to the blind (John 9), and, also, those in dimly lit dungeons would now see the light of day

5.       To free the bruised or crushed—those suffering oppression, physically, mentally, and spiritually

6.       To preach the acceptable year of the Lord—the day of salvation (Isaiah 49:8) which was the primary reason the Son of God was incarnated as the God-Man.

Luke 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.

Susan: As Jesus sat down to teach, the people were hanging on His every word because of the authority with which He preached everywhere He went.

Susie: However, Jesus’s home town peeps were not prepared for what was about to come out of His mouth!

Luke 4:21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Susan: This was clearly a declaration that He was the long-awaited Messiah of the Jews.

Susie: I’m pretty sure this was not the sermon they thought they were going to hear that morning!

QUESTIONS

1.       What is the significance of Jesus teaching in the synagogue in Nazareth?

2.       Jesus was in the habit or custom of going to synagogue on the Sabbath. Do you believe we should see this as an example for us to follow regarding church attendance?

3.       Rather than teach on the passage He had read, Jesus made a seemingly simple statement. What was it, and why would it create a stir?