Gettysburg Presbyterian Church

What Do You Know?
Luke 4:38-44
Gettysburg Presbyterian Church
Rev. Lou Nyiri
October 7, 2007

We continue this morning in our sermon series through the Gospel of Luke.
And as we do, we encounter a Jesus who is currently on the move, shaking things up in such a way as to bring the kingdom of God here to earth.
This morning's text is not different then the ones we have been reading in previous Sunday's up to this point in the Gospel.
Three weeks ago, Jesus coming off of his baptism goes out into the wilderness to wrestle with his call and discovers he has choices in life and can do what God would have him do.
Two weeks ago, Jesus goes home to Nazareth and is run out of town when he declares the words from the prophet Isaiah “…The Spirit of the lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me 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…" have been “fulfilled in your hearing." (Luke 4:18, 21)
Last week, Jesus heals a man with an unclean spirit and begins to fulfill the promise he made to just moments earlier in the chapter. Jesus had declared release to the captives is possible and then he actually released one who had been held captive. In response, the crowd gathered in amazement and questioning pondered, "What kind of utterance is this? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and out they come!"

And we were challenged, rightly so, by Rev. Hans to consider, would we “Stay At Home” being content in our faith or would we “Go Big” with our faith following Christ out into the world in order to show the world a faith that is living, breathing and active.

II
This week, we see Jesus once more declare release to the captives by healing Simon’s mother-in-law of her high fever.
This was no ordinary fever. It was not a symptom of some greater illness. Her fever was the cause of her illness. The language Luke uses to describe the fever is synecho and it suggests she is oppressed, ruled or “held captive” by the fever.
Jesus then takes a commanding position “over the fever” and commands the fever to leave.
" …and it left her."
Immediately she gets up and begins to serve them.
Now, quickly let me say, this is not evidence that a mother-in-law’s place is in the kitchen preparing food for her son-in-law (unless you’re my mother-in-law and you make the world’s best lasagna, in which case you should make that every time you come to visit).

This scene is an example or symbol for all who find themselves through the grace of Jesus Christ delivered from that which had at one time possessed, oppressed, ruled or held them captive and limited in their experiencing the fullness of all life has to offer.
When we are set free from that which holds us back our response is hopefully to share our excitement with others by living in gratitude to the grace we have received.
For Simon’s mother-in-law she served the people around her AND the Lord who saved her.
For us we live in gratitude to God’s grace by serving the people around us AND the Lord who saves us by doing things like soup kitchens and mission trips and being the spouse, parent and/or child those closest to us need us to be.
This is also why as we enter into Stewardship every year we remember the reason we give back to God is not because God needs our time, talents or tithes to feel good about all He is doing for us…we give to God in gratitude for all God has given for us.

III
After healing Simon’s mother-in-law, Jesus is approached by a great many people who were sick with various types of diseases and he lays hand on each of them and cured them.
As the Demons came out of many they shouted, “You are the Son of God!”

The declarations by the demons greatly enhances Luke’s Gospel story.
Chapter 4, which we end today, opens with the Devil tempting Jesus, “…if you are the Son of God…”(4:3,9).
The townspeople of Nazareth supposed Jesus not to be Son of God, rather son of Joseph (4:22).
Today we end this chapter with the demons declaring of Jesus “You are the Son of God!”

We will not get another clear statement of Jesus’ identity again in Luke’s Gospel until Luke 9:20 when Peter (the very same Simon whose mother-in-law Jesus releases from fever) makes his great confession about Jesus “you are the Messiah of God.”
Then again we will read in Luke 20:41 how Jesus raises the question about the Davidic sonship of the Messiah.
But not until those two places will we hear Jesus identity so clearly voiced.
And hearing what the demons have to say Jesus tells them to be quiet.

It’s peculiar how Jesus does not want these demons to share that he is the Messiah.
I mean the end of our passage today has Jesus so clearly stating, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.”?
Now this isn’t the first time Jesus has done this.
Just a few verses earlier in verse 35 Jesus tells the unclean spirit in the man to be “silent, and come out” after it too had declared Jesus as “the Holy One of God.”
You would think that Jesus after hearing what they know would want their message broadcasted loud and clear.
It doesn’t matter what they know because Jesus doesn’t want them telling anybody.

IV
Theologians call it the “Messianic Secret.”
And I think the reason for it is because Jesus knew that while the demons knew he truly was the long awaited Messiah – the one who would bring God’s kingdom in.
The problem was that Jesus also knew the people had other ideas about what God’s messiah would look like.
Many people, like the religious establishment and the crowds to whom Jesus was coming all had their own popular ideas of the Messiah.
To them Messiah was to be a conquering King.
Someone who would lead rebellion against the Roman authorities.

Jesus knew that his ministry was beginning inside a tinder box that was just waiting for a spark to ignite it into burning flames.
Rebellion was always brewing just below the surface and often rebellion broke out.
Jesus knew that if the reports of the Messiah were to leak this early in the ministry it could cause a flare up that would scorch any success of bringing God’s kingdom to fruition.
So before they could call Jesus Messiah, Jesus needed to teach them that Messiah did not mean a conquering king but a suffering servant.
Jesus knew that if news of his Messiahship entered too soon amid the corrupted ideas of what God meant by Messiah that it would lead to premature death and destruction, rather than God’s planned death and resurrection.

I think Jesus knew that like religious people today, people back then had their minds already made up about what the Messiah would look like.
They expected a certain type of Messiah.
Jesus came as a completely different type.
Is it any different for us today?
Are we willing to let go of pre-conceived notions and allow God to have the freedom to surprise us…to work outside of and beyond our preconceived notions?
The answer as I see it is, “I don’t know…though I hope so.”
I hope we are still able to be surprised by God. I hope that amid life’s uncertainty we can still hold out hope that good can shine through…especially through the one’s we love and who love us.

Angeles Arrien has written in the book Walking the Mystical Path with Practical Feet, about learning to navigate what he calls “four rivers” in order to keep our souls fed and healthy.
He writes,

“One is the river of inspiration: I know I’m still alive if I can be inspired, expanded and uplifted by events, by beauty, by other people.
Another is the river of challenge: I’m still alive if I can bring energy to the experience of being tested and challenged. This river is about being able to accept an invitation to stretch, to move beyond the familiar, to grow.
The third river is the river of surprise. Children love surprises; as adults, unfortunately, we often lose that love. Navigating the river of surprise means being able to be shaken out of our need for control and reawakened to the awe of the unexpected.
The last is the river of love: I know I’m still alive if I can be deeply touched and deeply moved by life. If I’m not easily moved by life, my heart has begun to close.

(Angeles Arrien, “Walking the Mystical Path With Practical Feet,” in Nourishing the Soul, eds. Anne Simpkinson, Charles Simpkinson and Rose Solari, HarperSanFrancisco, 1995, pp. 104, 5.)
The difficulty of life is to remain open to inspiration, challenge, surprise and love, especially when life is not going as we had planned.

If we are so set in our ways and in our definitions of faith that we can’t think outside the box, then we have handcuffed ourselves and arrested any chance for further growth.
When our faith becomes so rigid we can’t see anything else, except our own little definition

we leave very little room in life to be inspired by others…besides who needs inspiration when you’re always right;
we don’t need to be challenged because we’re never wrong;
we don’t need surprised since it all already makes perfect sense just the way it is; because we define how it is.
and we certainly don’t need love because why do we need to let anyone else in if we’re content with our perfect thoughts.

The more comfortable we are in our faith the more sedate we become.
The more sedate we become the more likely we are to be closed off to the surprises God has in store for us in order that we might learn more fully who God is and where God is active in this world.
The more closed off we are to being surprised by God the more likely we are to be putting God on a shelf in a neat little box.
The more boxes we put God in the more difficult it becomes to find God when we really need to find God. And God knows there are times in life when we desperately need God!

But wouldn’t life be simpler that way?
I mean, what if we could keep God up on a shelf and in a box.
I’ll admit, many times in life I would rather have a God-in-the-Box, who wouldn’t come out until I lift the lid. But like the Jack-in-the-Box, just when I think I’ve got it all “under control” and planned perfectly, out pops God, smiling and weaving in ways that I could never anticipate.
And it usually shows up in the people who love me during those times when I can’t feel God because of what’s happening around me.
I’ll also admit that – for me – this is exactly what makes being a Christian so much fun…waiting for God to show up in the most unexpected places.
I want it to work out decently and in order…but let’s be real for a moment…life is never lived decently and in order. Many times life is lived out in much and mire.

It would be nice, if we could pick and choose what to believe, when to believe it and how often we would live our lives by it?
Sure, life would be simpler…but would it ever be lived?
These healing, exorcism stories in Luke’s Gospel show us that there is still a freedom to God’s grace that is not controlled by human response.
God has latitude to show up whenever, wherever God wants…whether God’s received permission from us or not.

V
May we never forget that no matter what life throws at us God has decided to show up in this place…in our lives…around this table…in order to help us understand more clearly what we know AND to help us take what we know out into the world – Because unlike those demons Jesus spoke to this morning – it’s no longer a secret!
We don’t have to worry anymore about sparking the fires of confrontational revolution.
But if we whisper loud enough, maybe, just maybe, we can start a fire that will shout from the mountain tops that God is alive and well AND moving in and through this place we call GPC?

What do you know?
The table is set.
The Lord is here.
Are we ready to be liberated from that which holds us back from all God has created us to be?
Are we ready to be surprised?

I don’t know…I sure hope so. Because that is when life is lived. Amen.

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