A Walk Through the Bible – Introduction to the New Testament
Text for Sermon: Luke 4:14-22; Galatians 4:4-5
Introduction.
Imagine yourself in the first century, you are a faithful Jew, around 30 AD, living in Palestine in Nazareth. You were raised on the OT, you know the prophecies, you know the covenants with Moses and David. You grew up hearing your parents and relatives talk late into the evening about how someday a Messiah would come. For 400 years your people waited with expectation. 400 years since the last great prophet had spoken.
Malachi’s final words burned in everyone’s ears, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes” (Malachi 4:5).
400 years is a long time to wait. The children of Israel languished for 400 years of slavery in Egypt before God raised up a deliverer, a savior, a Messiah of sorts in the person of Moses.
For the Jews in Palestine the past100 years of waiting were the hardest, 100 years under Roman rule and the thumb of distant Caesars. “How long, O Lord” was the common prayer. “How long, O Lord.”
Now imagine you are a faithful Jew in your synagogue on the Sabbath and a young man of about 30 walks in. You recognize him, He grew up in Nazareth. He has developed something of a reputation throughout the countryside as a teacher and preacher. He was well spoken of. Sort of a local boy makes good story.
He stood up, took the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and deliberately unrolls it to the very familiar words of Isaiah 61. You know this passage by heart, how many times have you heard this promise of a coming messianic king who would come to proclaim good news, and freedom for the captives and liberty for the oppressed.
Here is this man reading these words but it isn’t the same, something is different, everyone’s attention is riveted on the speaker.