The Day Jesus Blew Up the Bulletin

PRAYER OF CONSECRATION

Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you. 

Jesus, I belong to you.

I lift up my heart to you.
I set my mind on you.
I fix my eyes on you.
I offer my body  to you, as a living sacrifice

Jesus, We belong to you. 

Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen. 

Luke 4:16–19 (NIV)

He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

CONSIDER THIS

After Jesus spent those forty days in the wilderness, led by the Holy Spirit no less, he made his way back to Nazareth. On the Sabbath day, as he had done countless Sabbath days before, Jesus came to the synagogue. That’s why we are here today. We are humbly sitting in that little synagogue. It’s probably much more like your local church than some grand edifice you might imagine—especially if you are part of a small church in a small town. 

As a young rabbi, Jesus stood up to read the Word of God. The attendant handed him the scroll of Isaiah. He unrolled it to the place we would today call chapter 61, and he read these words:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

So far, it’s just another Saturday in the small town of Nazareth. We are clicking down through the order of worship. It reminds me of my childhood Sundays sitting next to my grandparents. Peepaw would start by looking through the bulletin and bookmarking (aka dog earring) the pages of the hymnal with the day’s hymns and the Bible with the Scripture readings. He wanted to be ready. 

No-one could have possibly been ready for what Jesus would do next. Let’s just say it wasn’t in the bulletin. Watch this:

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  (Luke 4:20)

Yep, Jesus just blew up the bulletin.

Back at the turn of the century I had the good blessing to visit that small town and enter that little synagogue. I even got to read the very text Jesus read on that day so long ago. As I came to verse 21, a minor miracle (if there is such a thing) happened deep within me. As I read it, I heard it. In other words, the scripture reverberated, as the text says, “in my hearing.”

“Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

It wasn’t the echo of an ancient time. It was as though it was happening for the first time. I wasn’t reading about Jesus saying “today” two thousand years prior. It was as though he was saying “today” on that day through my voice. It was not an echo but a real living, live word—today! 

“Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

TODAY

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me . . .”

TODAY

“to proclaim good news to the poor.”

TODAY

“He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners . . .”

TODAY

“and recovery of sight for the blind, . . .”

TODAY

“to set the oppressed free, . . .”

TODAY

“to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

TODAY

“Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

It’s all happening today. In retrospect, I woke up that day in the little synagogue in the town of Nazareth. I woke up to the today of Jesus and his right here, right now, coming kingdom. I wish I could say I have awakened every day since. Unfortunately, I have sleep-walked my way through too many todays. Yesterday’s awakening is not enough for today’s assignments. And today’s awakening won’t be enough for tomorrow. But the most beautiful thing, with Jesus, it’s always today, and he’s always fulfilling his Word; whether we are awake for it or not. Let’s not miss another today. 

THE PRAYER

Our Father, thank you that it is never yesterday. And thank you that it is never tomorrow. Thank you that it is always today. Thank you most of all that today belongs to Jesus and because Jesus belongs to us, we can not only make it through today, we can sing; even in the dark; even in the valley of the shadow of death. Thank you that we can forget what is past and cease worrying about what is in the future. Thank you that because of Jesus we can thrive in the present, no matter what comes against us. Today, Jesus. By your Spirit, awaken me today that I might be an agent of your awakening today. Praying in Jesus’s name, amen. 

THE QUESTION

How do you know you are really awake today? Is this Wake-Up Call helping you awaken each day? How so? Have you ever tried listening? Are you sharing it with others? 

THE HYMN

Today we will sing a song most of you know by heart and if you don’t you quickly will. It is called “This is the Day.” And it’s the kind of song you will sing the rest of the day. 

P.S. Coming Soon on the Wake-Up Call

As mentioned, Dan Wilt will be our Wake-Up Call host through the forty days of Lent with Jesus in the Wild. Following Easter, we will begin a sixteen-week series on The Letter to the Romans. We will be releasing our first ever Wake-Up Call companion journal in advance. We are inviting local churches to join us by preaching through Romans and reading the Scripture together each day alongside the Wake-Up Call. The Farm Team, with our preacher friend Brent Parker, will be hosting a weekly sermon preparation workshop via Zoom with any pastor who wants to join in the journey with their community. Stay tuned for more details coming soon. 

For the Awakening,
J. D. Walt

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