Since Jesus was from Nazareth the people were amazed by what he said, but then they became angry with him because he said he was fulfilling this prophecy. They were infuriated with him because they believed he was just one of them. His own countrymen rose up against him and tried to throw him off a cliff, but he passed through them (Luke 4:29). They did not recognize that he was the Messiah. So, he went on his way and minister to the people in Capernaum. Here, the poor people received him and he cast out a demon, and the man was set free.
Jesus’s heart was always for the poor and the marginalized. He was born to a young woman of little means, Mary who was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit and conceived the son of God. He was born in a manger where animals feed, not a castle or a palace where rich men dwell. The angels announced his birth to a ragtag group of shepherds, who were on the lowest rung of the social, political and religious ladder of the times.
He came to set the captives free, to heal the brokenhearted and preach the gospel to the poor. Are you poor? Not only those who don’t have money are poor, but those who are poor in spirit can receive the good news. If we are too rich in ourselves, we think, what is the need of a Savior?
If we recognize our need to be reconciled to God then indeed, we see and are not spiritually blind. It is only those in need of a Savior who will take the gospel message to heart.
Jesus illustrates this in a parable of the rich man who invited all of his friends to a wedding feast Luke 14:15-24). They all had excuses and said they couldn’t come. So, he told his servants to go out to the highways and the byways and invite them. The banqueting table was filled with the poor and the needy. However, they were clothed in the wedding garment of the lamb, who is Jesus Christ.
Have you accepted Jesus’s invitation to God’s wedding feast? Christmas and New Year is a great time to think about it!
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