Under pressure. You've gotten that gist a little
bit over the course of this service. Maybe you
caught the Ash Wednesday devotion where I kind
of introduced this theme and where we're going
to be in the Gospel of Luke. But this understanding
of pressure is something that we feel on a day
-to -day basis. I would say, and I'm not even
making this stat up, probably 50 % of the people
that come into my office on a week -to -week
basis talking about some level of pressure in
their life. Some level of pressure, whether it's
job performance, relationships, finances, that's
a huge one, that we put pressure on ourselves.
And believe me, I'm looking at myself first in
the understanding of what pressure actually is.
Pressure is sometimes things we put on ourselves
that aren't really there. That sometimes we are
our own worst enemy, or this is the enemy, the
enemy of the world, right, the evil one, Satan.
He and his demons have a way of putting and making
us feel pressure on us. And what the hope is
for this sermon series, what my heart is, is
as we prepare, that we prepare for this season,
in this season of Lent, that Jesus sees the pressure
you are under. And he is going to enter that
pressure in a variety of ways. We saw that in
Luke, in the beginning of Luke, when he's driven
out to the wilderness. Where Satan tempts him.
Satan tempts the Son of God with things like
power, prestige, and money. Things that we put
pressure on ourselves to get or achieve all the
time. And as Luke tells us, he leaves him for
a more opportune time. And we see in these different
scenes that we're going to jump in every Sunday.
The pressure that gets put on Jesus. So we're
going to start in Luke chapter 4. And we're going
to start with being rejected at Nazareth. Not
that we were rejected at Nazareth, but Jesus
was. And so my first kind of conversation point
this morning is this understanding of when familiarity
breeds rejection. And you may be wondering, what
in the world are you talking about? You've heard
it said at times that maybe a prophet's not welcome
in his hometown. Maybe you've been told that
about certain aspects of your life. Maybe you've
heard that in church speak. Maybe you haven't.
It's going to be clear today what that means.
But there is a strange pressure that comes when
something happens in your life that you deem
as holy. whether that's a birth of a child, whether
that's a covenant of marriage, that we have these
things in life. I will still remember that first
week in June 2022 when Jess Fisher, then now
Fisher, came into my office and I got to see
the scales over her eyes fall as she accepted
Christ as her Lord and Savior. And we go through
that kind of honeymoon period. We talked about
it last week, about when you join a church, it's
new and exciting, ways to get involved, all of
those things. But what happens when it's just
kind of there, and it's that holiness and that
relationship with God, it's there, it's fine,
you know, that those highs you're not sensing.
Or maybe you go into the pastor's office, you
talk to a friend over coffee, and all you're
sitting in is in valleys. Valleys of life, valleys
of depression, valleys of sadness, valleys of
pressure, broken relationships. You have to engage
a conversation. What happens when the holy in
your life becomes just the mundane? Now, if we
really center on it, it should never be. God
is holy. He saved you from sin. You're going
to heaven when you die. Whatever it is that faith
means to you in this moment should never just
be ho -hum. But in church and in being a believer,
it can happen. You've heard it before. You're
like, oh, I've heard Jim preach on Luke 4 before
probably six times. I'm weird that you're counting,
but understanding that we are going to look at
it maybe a little different, but the word of
God stays the same. It's everlasting upon everlasting,
and it means the world to us. But even in church,
sometimes we have the mentality. We've sung that
song before. Not this last one. That's a new
one. It's a teaching song. But we've sat in the
same chair or pew. We've heard the gospel. We
hear it almost every Sunday if Jim's on. And
what happens when it doesn't mean much to you
anymore? Friends, I think that's a problem. What
you once felt amazed about, the grace of God
coming into your life, just kind of, all right,
I'm saved. Great. That can be a real struggle
for people. We're going to see that as Jesus
enters back into the town of Nazareth. You see,
Nazareth knew Jesus. They knew his family. They
knew the childhood stories. They grew up with
him. They knew him in the way they believed they
needed to. And all of a sudden, that familiarity
becomes a pressure. That pressure turns into
rejection. And Luke starts us off with something
stunning. The first sermon that Jesus ever gives,
and we're going to break it down, is not met
with applause, is not met with an altar call,
is not met with a way to go, let's have you back.
They actually try to kill him. So we're going
to ask today, what happens in our life when Jesus
gets so close to us, he offends us? What happens
when truth presses against our comfort? Friends,
that is the season of Lent. Revealing the heart
and the solution that Jesus gives us. So let's
dive in. We'll be in Luke chapter 4, starting
with verse 16. And we're going to start by reading
verse 16 to 29. And he, Jesus, came to Nazareth
where he had been brought up. And as was his
custom, that's important, remember that, he went
to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. He stood
up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah
was given to him. 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. He has
sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and
recovering the sight of the blind and has set
at liberty those who are oppressed. to proclaim
the year of the Lord's favor. 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. And he began to say to them,
Today the scripture has been fulfilled in your
hearing. And all spoke well of him and marveled
at the gracious words that were coming from his
mouth. And they said, Is this not Joseph's son?
And he said to them, doubtless you will quote
to me this proverb, physician, heal yourself.
What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here
in your hometown as well. And he said to them,
truly I say to you, no prophet is acceptable
in his hometown. But in truth I tell you that
there were many widows in Israel in the days
of Elijah. And when the heavens were shut up
for three years and six months, and a 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. And there
were many lepers in the time of the prophet Elisha,
and none of them were cleansed but only Nahum
the Syrian. When they heard these things, all
in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And
they rose up and drove him out of the town and
brought him up to the brow of the hill on which
the town was built so they could throw him down
the cliff. This is the word of the Lord. So pressure
point one. We're going to look at these pressure
points in the story and the gospel of Christ.
First is Jesus reveals who he is. Notice, this
was his... custom. Jesus was known as a teacher.
The only way he could stand up in church and
would be given a scroll is if it had happened
before. This wasn't just some random day. This
was the Sabbath in the synagogue. Jesus was there
and he was going to read the scroll. This is
something that average ordinary people did not
do. They did not. This is something that Jesus
We need to understand that because this is just,
again, this is just kind of an average Sabbath
day. This is just a Saturday service. But Jesus
does something different today. He reads Isaiah
61. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. This is
Messianic text. So if we understand the culture
of the time, they are looking for the Messiah.
But as we're going to see, the Messiah they want
to the Messiah Jesus is, is not going to be the
same. The people hear about good news to the
poor, a good flag is going to go up in their
minds. Freedom from the captive, well, two for
two. Sight to the blind, three for three. Jubilee
for the oppressed, four for four. They're amazed.
They're staring at him. No one has done this
yet in a complete way. There have been little
M Messiahs all over. People that all try to thought
that they were the coming of the Messiah. And
maybe you're thinking to yourself, I've heard
that before. Why in the world would they do that?
Because if you're an Israelite, you've had centuries
of stories. Going all the way back to the Old
Testament. Minor prophets, we just did it. Pointing
towards this person. We don't fully grasp that
today. We're in a post -resurrected society.
Though we are looking to the time that Jesus
is going to come back, he's not even named yet.
This is still ongoing. So all the family heritage,
all the family lineage, all of the Israelites
are pointing toward this capital M Messiah. And
Jesus now goes four for four. And then he...
Really, he ties a nice bow on it, exclamation
point, if you will. Today, this scripture has
been fulfilled in your hearing. What is he saying?
I am the Messiah. Luke 4, here we go. We're starting
it. I am the Messiah. the Messiah. He didn't
say, I might be the Messiah, or hang with me,
friends, we'll get to the Messiah. This isn't,
I'm one of the other Messiahs, little m. I am
the Messiah. Friends, Nazareth was small. 400
people. Everybody knew Jesus. Again, he doesn't
just come in as this secret character. It's a
large family. Everyone knew him. He was Joseph's
son. And what did Joseph do? He was a carpenter,
right? So he's a carpenter's kid, right? He's
a laborer's kid. He's a local kid. So the reaction
isn't theological at first. It's relational,
and that's okay. I think that's fine. Then all
of a sudden we see it start to turn. You see
some people go, who? Who do you think? Or who
does he think he is? The familiarity, well, this
is just Joseph's son. How could Joseph's son
be the Messiah? People are starting to put kind
of the dominoes effect in their minds. And this
is why I think the Heidelberg Catechism Lord's
Day 12 is important. Because the question is
asked, why is he called Christ, meaning anointed?
The answer, because he is ordained by God the
Father and anointed by the Holy Spirit to be
our chief prophet, only high priest, and eternal
king. Nazareth hears from a prophet. And we just
talked about last week, they're going to go through
centuries of silence. John the Baptist is going
to step on the scene, but now Jesus is on the
scene. But they don't want a king. They certainly
don't want a priest who just says that they're
all sinners and be better. So they admire him
until the pressure comes, until he pushes back.
In your life, friends, isn't Jesus great? Having
this Savior, the WWJD culture, right? I know
where I'm going when I die. I love this Jesus.
I will follow this Jesus. But what happens when
the truth of Jesus' life starts to bump up against
our comfortability? Whoa! I'm all about this
Jesus thing, but that means I have to stop doing
this, this, and this? Well, if it's bad for you,
if it's a sin in the Bible, yeah, you do. Because
you can't follow Jesus that way. Munster Church,
this is us. This is where the rub of the relationship
that we have with Jesus individually, corporately,
when Jesus starts to bump up against our comfortability.
I think we would agree. Right? Umbrella of grace.
But I think we would agree that we love Jesus
as long as he stays manageable in our life. As
long as I can fit him in my calendar. As long
as I can give him the time that I have or else
it's just going to be too much. We love Jesus'
teacher, but we don't like him as the Lord of
our pocketbook. We love Jesus' healer, but we
don't want him to be the judge of our pride.
We love Jesus' Savior. Until he tells us that
we're not in control. Friends, we can't have
it both ways. Pressure reveals what we really
believe. When life starts to fall apart, when
you're in the valley, we see who we really are.
And the hope and the prayer is that we recognize
that Jesus is with us every step of the way.
Why? Because Jesus is going to start to reveal
their hearts and ours. You see, at first, people
marvel. But then Jesus quotes two stories. Okay?
First one, Elijah helping a Gentile widow, and
Elisha healing Nahum the Cyrene. Why these stories?
Why couldn't Jesus have just done something about
King David, or building up the temple, or the
good things about the people of Israel? Because
what Jesus is going to show? is that God's grace
is also for outsiders. You see, he's talking
to a pretty exclusive group. He's talking to
the Jews. He's talking to the Israelites, right?
Put it in our context, he's talking to the CRCs,
right? He's talking to the Class Siciliana. He's
talking to all these churches that Munster Church
helped start over the last 156 years. It's insider
language. He should be for us, not for them.
But Jesus says no. Just like Elijah and Elisha
were called to help Gentiles, so the grace of
God is going to be extended to everyone. Oh,
we don't like that. They didn't like that either.
Why? Because what is Jesus saying? Why did the
room all of a sudden turn? What Jesus is saying
is God's grace is sovereign. God's grace does
not belong to you. It is not controlled by your
heritage. It is not earned by your morality.
It is given to whom God wills. Whoa! Time out!
What is this one, Dan? 30 seconds. This is full,
right? Full stop! Okay? Full stop. I did baseball.
We don't call time outs. The Israelites have
tried to keep the law. They tried to keep the
Torah, the first five books of this word. They
heard the stories. They heard the prophecies.
This is now generation, heritage, lineage of
doing all the right things, 50%. But we did our
best. Jesus is saying something radical. It is
given to whom God wills. Well, God's will better
be the life of the elect. That's what they're
saying. That's what's making them uncomfortable.
What do you mean there's going to be Gentiles?
What do you mean there's going to be Lutherans?
What do you mean there's going to be Methodists?
I thought this was just all reformed all day,
every day. Wrong. Putting that in the context
there weren't Lutherans back then or reformed.
But that's how we can be. That's how the church
can be. That's why the church can be seen as
a group of jerks. Instead of the holiness of
God extending God's grace. Because one thing
that Jesus is bringing everybody to in the synagogue
then, and hopefully here today, is that we're
sinners. The Heidelberg Catechism, Lord's Day
2, reminds us we know our sin and misery by the
law of God. We know our sin and misery by the
law of God. The Ten Commandments help us with
that. Reflect on that this week as we go to come
to the table next week in communion. We know
our sin and misery by the law of God. Nazareth
thought they were fine. Jesus shows that they're
actually in need. When grace exposes pride, what
erupts? Not being okay with it, but anger. Wanting
to reject it. Nazareth expected Messiah to bless
what they were already doing. They were waiting
for their local hero and they thought they were
all good. But Jesus shows a kingdom bigger than
their tribe. Bigger than their denomination.
Bigger than their family line. Bigger than who
they are. That what God was creating through
Christ was a vision of every tribe and tongue.
And guess what? They fail. the pressure gets
to them and it breaks. So what does that mean
for us? What does that mean for a church that's
over 150 years old? I think this church has faced
that temptation before. We might be facing it
even now. We start thinking, this is our church.
This is our tradition. This is our way of worship.
This is our history. But what Jesus is saying,
what the gospel is saying, is this has been and
always will be Christ's church. He saves whom
he wills. He brings people we don't always expect.
He changes things that we thought were permanent.
This Luke 4 sermon's a doozy. Sometimes the pressure
we feel in church life is actually God expanding.
Our heart and our mind. But here's the thing.
As Jesus is taking on this pressure, he's also
going to show early on he is faithful. How do
we know? Because friends, this could have been
the end of Jesus' story. They're so angry. He
has so broken what they wanted to hear that they
drag him out to a cliff. Imagine the scene. Childhood
neighbors, family, friends of Joseph and Mary,
people who watched him grow up, maybe the person
that received the first table he ever built with
Joseph, dragging him out to the cliff. They wanted
him dead. I know I've said things in the pulpit
that you probably haven't liked, right? And a
lot of you let me know, usually by one o 'clock.
Some of you wait and have discernment and do
it at noon the next day, and I appreciate that.
But I've never gone out, and this is not a challenge,
I've never gone out to flat tires, right? I've
never gone out, well, that's not true. I have
had my car teepeed by the youth group years ago,
but I don't think that was because of a sermon.
I may have said things that offended you over
time, and I'm sorry, I probably will again, but
I don't think any of you want me dead, and if
you do, please don't tell me. They not only want,
this doesn't an email string after this email.
This wasn't a call to all the elders going, get
them out of the pulpit. Emoji, prayer hands,
no. They actually take matters into their own
hands. They take them to the cliff. They're going
to stone them. Because again, what is stoning
back in the days? Either the stone comes to you
or you go to the stones. It's either one. They
want them dead. And what does Luke tell us? But
passing through their midst, he went away. Why?
Because his time hadn't come yet. He is going
to move towards the hill, but it's not this hill,
it's Calvary. The height of our catechism, Lord's
Day 1, is a great reminder that he has fully
paid for all of my sins with his precious blood.
Nazareth's rejection is a preview to the cross.
The pressure is building, and Jesus walks into
it willingly. Not because he is weak, but because
he loves us. And here is that Messiah insight.
Every prophet was rejected. We just went through
it. But Jesus, the final prophet, and his rejection
comes with something much greater. Isaiah 53.
He was despised and rejected by men. Why? So
we could have everlasting life. Nazareth is the
beginning of the road. So what does this mean
for our Lent? Where's the pressure coming in
the weeks to come? Lent is a season of pressure.
It's not a punishment. It's not doom and gloom.
It should be honest reflection. And what is that
reflection? Well, for this week, the reflection,
my friends, and we'll send this out in an email
and on our socials, where do you reject Jesus
in your life? When he challenges our politics.
Our comfort, our habits, our pride, our spending,
our unforgiveness, our disinterest. Where do
we say, all right, Jesus, you're great, but really
you're only Joseph's son. Where do we make Jesus
small in our life? Friend, Jesus should never
have that position in your life or mine. I liken
it to now my son's learning the art of rolling
their eyes. Like when a kid hears dad's advice
and rolls their eyes. Drives me absolutely crazy.
And I know where they learned it. Carrie. Because
familiarity makes wisdom easy to ignore. Yeah,
mom. Yeah, dad. I hear it all the time. Or like
hearing the gospel every Sunday. Let me ask.
Has it stopped moving you? I can lovingly say
that's not a me problem. That's a you problem.
That could be an us problem, and that's a big
problem. You can be close to Jesus and still
reject him. When we only use Jesus like some
kind of get out of hell free card, right, or
some kind of card that we only like to use when
it's convenient for us, we miss the point. But
the good news of today is that The gospel is
for rejecters. There's good news for us who reject
Jesus and the small things and the big things,
and that is the hope of Lent. Jesus does not
stop preaching. He does not pass through them
and look up at the Father and go, we're not doing
this. No, he enters the scenes. He enters our
lives. He goes to Capernaum. He goes to Jerusalem.
He goes to the cross for Nazareth, for Jim. For
Munster. For you. Lord's Day 23 reminds us. God
grants and credits me the perfect satisfaction,
righteousness, and holiness of Christ. Even when
your heart dares to resist him. So at the end
of these sermons, we're going to look at a then
and now to see the comparison. Then. The Messiah
came to his hometown, and they rejected him because
he was not the Savior they wanted. Now, Jesus
still comes close to us today through word, through
sacrament, through discipline and community,
and asks us to surrender what we cling to. I
know a lot of people use the season of Lent to
give things up, right? It's a practice that the
Catholic Church uses and some other high liturgical
denominations. We don't necessarily talk about
it that way. Is it a bad thing if you do it?
No. It's a bad thing if you're doing it so you
can have everyone go, look at me, look what I'm
giving up. Right? Or you gave up caffeine and
by day two no one could stand to be around you
so you picked it up again. I'm not talking about
anybody here. Maybe 12 people. But what do you
need to surrender that's your go -to instead
of Jesus? The pressure reveals our hearts. It
also reveals God's grace. Because the one rejected
at Nazareth is the one who welcomes sinners.
Who will welcome you to the table of the Lord
next week in communion. Who shows us that the
road from Nazareth is the road to the cross.
You see, Nazareth is the first step to Calvary.
Rejection is going to lead to redemption. Pressure
is going to lead to salvation. And the question
today is simple. Will we marvel? This is great.
Or will we trust? Will we admire Jesus for what
he does? Man, he's a great guy. He's my homeboy.
Or will we surrender our life to him? Will we
cling to our traditions and our heritage and
our familiarity? Or will we follow him to new
obedience? Because the same Jesus who walked
through that angry crowd walks into our sanctuary
every Sunday. The Holy Spirit hangs low for us
to receive him. Into our church, into our council
rooms, into our children's ministries, our youth
ministries, into hopefully one day small group
ministries, into families and into hearts. And
he says, today this scripture is being fulfilled.
Today grace is offered. Today salvation. My friend,
you have a choice. Please don't reject that message.
Trust him even when it's hard. And let's do it
together. Let's pray.