The Meaning of Miracles | Miracles 1

In which John and David begin a new series talking about the miracles of Jesus. While many of us are aware that Jesus did miracles, we wonder whether stop to think about the meaning behind them. Do the miracles of Jesus teach us anything? Is there depth beyond the surface level. In this second season of Two Texts we want to talk about exactly that.

• Click Here to read the text from Luke 4:14-21

Episode Outline

• 4:59 Luke 4
• 10:00 Finding your place in the text
• 13:01 What was Nazareth like?
• 16:36 The scripture is fulfilled
• 22:03 When Jesus quotes scripture
• 32:31 Every miracle of Jesus becomes a message
• 43:44 A kingdom message
• 48:02 People are not a problem

Don't miss the second text for this week available from Thursday June 24. 

Episode 18 of the Two Texts Podcast | Meaning of Miracles Series 1

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Music by Woodford Music (c) 2021

Transcript

David Harvey: [00:00:00] Hi there. I'm David Harvey. I'm here with John Andrews and you're listening to the two texts podcast. In this podcast, we're two friends in two different countries here every two weeks talking about two different texts taken from the Bible. This is the first episode of season two and it's called. The meaning of miracles.   Okay, John. So we're back for season two of two texts. How are you doing.

John: [00:00:38] Oh, very excited. About season two, I've been so blessed by the reaction to season one. I've been like blown away by the comments and the downloads loads and it, people seem genuinely connected and excited about it. So, yeah, it's been Brill.  Can't wait to get into this. 

David: [00:00:54] It's been really exciting, hearing back from everybody about their excitement about parables  so, thanks to everybody  who's reached out on social media or email or, or through some other methods.

Like we really appreciate that. I appreciate how much people have shared the podcast as well. , I don't know about you, John, but I was a little surprised as to how many people were listening.

John: [00:01:14] Yes. Yes. I mean, we, we literally didn't know how that was all going to go. touched 

David: [00:01:19] just be me and my uncle, 

John: [00:01:20] I thank God for your uncle, but it sounds like a few other people have joined in, so that's really good. So we're okay. 

David: [00:01:27] Okay. So season two we, we want to continue talking about Jesus. As the podcast continues, we want to dive in various different places in the Bible, but for us, I think how we want to read the Bible. Kind of getting a grip of, of some of Jesus's ministry and his ideas of the kingdom of God. What he's calling us to live seems really important as the sort of framework for how we're going to see other things, right.

John: [00:01:52] yeah. 

David: [00:01:53] So really what we want to do with season two then is dive into another aspect of the gospels, which is, which is the miracles of Jesus. And these are again stories that were probably familiar. Uh, I think you, you, you learn the parables often in church life. They come up in sermons and studies and if you've been in church a long time, you've heard them, in, in children's church, parable seem to have got out there.

Even outside of church, people are aware of them and some of the miracle stories of Jesus. Little bit the same.  Would you say it like this, John, that even if you've not read the gospels, you're probably aware of the fact that they tell stories about how Jesus does stuff.

That's a little out of the ordinary

John: [00:02:33] Yeah.

Yeah.

totally. So I think there's some miracle moments that have phoned her way out into mainstream thinking and, and people, may be at least vague. Or broadly familiar with some of the, of the classics of Jesus turning water into wine. And he doesn't. so you've got, you've got, you've got those sorts of things  I think there would be an, a word. Right there. But of course in my upbringing, we tended to look at these wonderful miracle moments, healing moments for example purely just, just looking at the miracle itself. Here's what Jesus did. Here's how Jesus did it, but we rarely. Really delved into why Jesus did it.

And of course, there's the obvious reason why Jesus did it. There's, there's a sick person. Jesus wants to help that person. There's someone who is in need. Jesus wants to help that person. But, but actually as you really like, we've done with the parables, dig into these magnificent stories. We're seeing layers of, of not just a, an incredible supernatural model. But there's a messaging going on here at multiple levels. And even the way the gospel writers use some of those incredible miracle stories, they clearly have understood that. Jesus, wasn't just performing a miracle. Can I say this, please? Forgive me randomly. But, but even within the miracles, there is meaning there is message there's method, there's trajectory towards something.

There's something dynamics going on here out of both our macro level, as well as a beautiful individual macro level. And and, and that's some of the stuff we're hoping to explore together. I think. 

David: [00:04:26] Yes. That's why I would encourage someone to keep listening to this. So this isn't a series of podcasts just going, oh look, and Jesus did this amazing thing. It'll look, Jesus did that amazing thing. But, but to say, yes, Jesus did these amazing things, but.

for us who might not do those amazing things, there are lessons and principles and notions underneath these stories that tell us about the way of Jesus, that, which ultimately then I think the gospel writers want it to be the way of us, the way that we live things out. Right. 

John: [00:04:58] Yeah. Yeah, 

David: [00:04:59] So a really obvious place to start, or at least perhaps seems obvious to, to us.

John is, is we, we want to begin with, with a sermon from Jesus in Luke chapter four, because it kind of following the pattern of, of not us. Kind of putting our interpretation down on. So here's what we think is going on rather let's begin in the text and let's see, what does the text seem to say? So right at the beginning of Jesus's ministry in Luke chapter four, I know you're excited that we're starting in Luke again as alive, but right here at the beginning of Luke chapter four, Jesus  lays out uh, a sort of narrative of sorts.

There's going to help us make sense of his ministry and in turn. I understand some of the meaning in the miracles.

John: [00:05:43] Mm. Hmm. Yeah. for sure. For sure. So shall I jump in Luke chapter four, start reading, start reading that. So, we're going to jump in at verse 14 of Luke four on says these beautiful words, Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the spirit. So suppose we should just pause there and let our listeners know just, just in case.

I have never read these stories before that Jesus has just been baptized in the river. Jordan. The holy spirit has descended on him. He's being led by the spirit, into the wilderness, and then he returns in the power of the spirit. And the thing from a Lukin point of view, that's a very important note to be made in terms of what happens next, that, that Jesus is operating.

It seems in the power of the holy spirit and

David: [00:06:31] And of course that point in the, in the wilderness, just to preempt too, it's coming, the, the, the story in the wilderness is where the temptations of Jesus happened, right? So you've had this, this clash of Jesus and the forces of evil which, which Jesus has navigated well and. And confidently , but even that's programmatic for what's coming.

So, so as soon as Jesus has started his ministry, the clash between the forces of God, the forces of good and all that is broken and evil in the world has instantly started. And I wonder if the listener should, and the reader of Luke's gospel should have that in their mind. As we now roll into this story, that there is a, there is a clash.

Between things, which we'd like to break the world and things, which we'd like to put the world back together 

John: [00:07:20] Yes. Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. So as he returns to Galilee in the power of the spirit user, Bodom spread through the whole countryside, he was teaching in their synagogue and everyone. He went to Nazareth where he'd been brought up and on the Sabbath day, he went into the synagogue as was his custom love that he stood up to read.

And the scroll of the prophet, Isaiah was handed to him on ruling it. He phoned 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.

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. And he began by saying to them today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. Wow.

Fabulous. Fabulous. 

David: [00:08:24] There's a couple of moments in the Bible that I would love to be at. And more than a couple, if I'm really honest, but if I had to narrow it down, my, my top three, I think this would be in the top three. It's just, just this cause because there's so much tension around this and, and I love. There's just so much stuff in here.

I love jump, but I love the intentionality of it. So he turns up it's familiar space to him. He's been here before. I don't know if he's ever preached there before I do it. You get a kind of feeling from Luke that he hasn't right. Or maybe he's read scripture there before, but it's it's I love the fact that it's not this isn't the daily reading this isn't by the way, here's, here's the lectionary Jesus, this is the verse for today.

He gets there and he finds it. The bit where it says, and there's something about that, that I love that bear mind. This is a scroll and not everybody has a scroll. The scroll is probably are only in the synagogue and he kind of knows where it is, which suggests he's been there. And he's read this before he knows the bit.

He knows which turn of the, of the leaf is where this particular text 

John: [00:09:32] It's beautiful. And of course you, you, you and I have had the privilege of, of maybe through our research, seeing what a scroll like that would look like, and it's just a scroll of continuous text. 

David: [00:09:44] Yes. Yeah. There's no verse. These are 

John: [00:09:46] no, there's no helpful. Oh, this is Isaiah 61. That bit you want to read. It's just continuous tax to the, the fact that he's able to find that suggests he knows what that is.

And 

he knows exactly what it is. 

David: [00:10:00] I remember, visiting an exhibition with one of my professors when I was studying was one of the world's kind of leaders in dead sea scrolls research. And he took us to actually see some dead sea scrolls for a private exhibit once. And, and it's worth helping the listener know there's not even spaces between . The words in Hebrew, so it's not like just a wall.

Words like you would see a wall of words or I would see a wall of words in a novel there's no chapters verses or spaces or vowels. It's just a string of continents. And to find something that means you've got to have read it before, you've probably memorized chunks of it. And you also knew all the vowels that are missing because it was just written to up, so there's, there's a real, kind of just beautiful image here of Jesus. He's confidence in the text. Isn't 

John: [00:10:47] Yeah, well, I, I mean, I can just about negotiate my Hebrew taxed with, with, vials present and it could reading. So I for me, if I didn't have those veils in, I would be scratching my head somewhat. 

David: [00:10:59] Most of us, most of us are actually quite happy to just be able to recognize all that Hebrew that feels like a good day.

John: [00:11:07] Yeah.

So, so here's Jesus, probably in the synagogue where he attended the bet Midrash, the host of learning the synagogue, where he memorized the Torah. And here he is on ruling the scroll and reading probably one of the most evocative. Exilic post exhilarate tax that it would be possible to read, this, this sort of. For our listeners, this sort of Isaiah 60 to 66 section is like per stain with restorative rebuild, recall restore type language. This is God calming in all his glory and given his people, everything that they've ever dreamed of and more in this it's incredible. Post Zelig world. And of course, if you want it to raw synagogue crowed this would be, this would be a tax that we'd get lots of our mans, lots of, in a Western context hand claps and, and Yeah. come on preach, bro.

Because it's. It touches the very nerve of the nation. A nation literally live in an exile and a nation looking for the hope of Messiah and Jesus. This is his opening text in his home synagogue as a teacher, quite striking, quite striking. 

 David: [00:12:27] I, I was noticing that the, the word, like, I think our translation reads where he was brought up, but it is the word is quite literally trefle. Where he used to nourish to feed to, to, so it is literally like, I love the idea of, he went to narrow Nazareth where he had been nourished, so this is home for him, and he goes to the synagogue and he stands up to that's customary as well.

Isn't it? So it's not like you're standing up making a scene, when you read scripture, you would stand up to read that. And then the kind of whole thing changes for the teaching in a synagogue context. 

John: [00:13:01] And, and w what's fascinating, David, just, again, as a little aside for our, our listeners, if they ever get the chance to visit Israel well,

and I've had the privilege to go to Israel three times if you're in the Nazareth area, you should go and visit the Nazare experience. It's absolutely outstanding.

And it is a mixture of archeological reclaim. On sort of imaginative, but, but fairly accurate cultural rebuild. So you get a beautiful little mix of, oh, this is what we discovered when we dug under this piece of earth. And then this is what we knew about village life in the first century. And we've reconstructed this, what are the things they've reconstructed in the Nazareth experience is the synagogue under fairly constant.

That the dimensions of the synagogue that are there are, are an accurate representation of the sort of synagogue that a village like that would have. And many scholars in our cultural research research reckon that is as little as 300 people lived in Nazareth at the time of Jesus. And therefore the synagogue would reflect that.

And the cynical David is. Absolutely tiny. And it, it really blew my mind that Jesus on falls, this on rules to scroll of Isaiah under known, says his messianic ministry and a synagogue that probably would have struggled to get all of the residents of Nazareth. It's a tiny little place and, and does not lean back to our conversation previously.

Jesus just has this confidence in the, in the word he has this confidence and the purposes of God. And he has this confidence in the tax that, okay, we're going to start small. We're going to almost start hidden, but this thing's going to go. And literally the, the context of the synagogue sort of leans into that tiny little place in a little village, not even on the trading route of its day.

If, if Nazareth had been assigned a postcode, it wouldn't have had one, Google would struggle to find Nazareth in the first century world. It was that tiny. So it's a, it's a remarkable little thing to remember. Because when we read this, we think Jesus is standing in front of like thousands of people.

And, and, and we're probably talking less than a hundred and reality and that little synagogue. 

David: [00:15:17] There's often a blurb popular level, I think between synagogue and temple. And so we see a lot of this sort of temple and the temple was huge. Like where are you to have gone to heritage temple known as the second temple? Because it was the one rebuilt after what goes on in the old Testament. Like, where are you to go to the full site of, of, of Herod's temple today?

You would think it was massive. So by, by modern standards, it was huge. And I think sometimes what we do is that, that idea of synagogue that can a local gang like literally gathering together place. That's what that word means. Isn't it? We, we almost blur that sometimes in our minds between that and the temple.

So exactly, as you say, w we imagine Jesus, similar to what we see in acts two, and that's quite interesting, isn't it? The act two, you do have this beginning of the holy spirit falling on the church, they appear to be in this sort of temple space is thousands of people respond, but this is the contrast, isn't it?

That Jesus son of God's ministry begins. Not just with a handful of people, but for a handful of people that have watched him grow up, I think I remember the first sermon I ever preached in the church I grew up in. I was probably one of the most nervous sermons I've ever preached 

John: [00:16:28] for sure. 

David: [00:16:29] because these people knew all my stuff.

Yeah, 

John: [00:16:34] as well. Yeah, yeah. 

yeah. 

David: [00:16:36] And and so let's get into the content then. So, so he finds this, he stands up, he reads the text. He, he rolls it back up, sits down. So you've got all the very classic stuff. Stand up, three, sit down to teach, but his sermon. Is simply one line today. This scripture is fulfilled in your hearing, 

John: [00:16:54] Yeah. 

David: [00:16:54] which as far as lions go, it's pretty powerful because it's a hundreds of year old text that as you said, Is rooting into a bigger section of Isaiah that has huge resonance or the people of its of its day, because this is where they look for the Messiah.

This is where they look for God's new creation. This is where they look for gods for the hope that God's not abandoned them. And he's going to be kind of putting everything back together again. So it's. It's a text that you see as a favorite of all the new Testament writers at some level there's resonancies of it all through the new Testament.

And Jesus brings this section of it out to talk about what it's going to look like when God starts putting everything together again. Right. So. There's a lot of excitement, I think, in that for the crowd, but then the text becomes quite programmatic for us to make sense of what Jesus is going to do, particularly this sort of well, there's two things I see in it, John, and then, one is that there's this opening line that I just think is worth pointing at that he has anointed me.

Right. And I, and I just want to draw a little parallel there that isn't always apparent that the word Messiah. Literally means the one who is anointed. So, so the Hebrew, it means to anoint yeah. The word Christ is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word Messiah and Christ literally means to anoint.

Right. And and so that, and the word that's used here, he has anointed me is literally where to increase that in which is Creole, which means to you to, to anoint. Right. So, so there's, there's this. I think it's helpful to hear that when the spirit of the Lord has anointed me, you've immediately.

When you hear those words in that historical context, you're now talking about the Messiah. So, so Jesus has said something messianic already with this sermon. Would that, Would 

John: [00:18:54] Beautiful. And I absolutely. And also I would, I would add to that in terms of even the trajectory of Luke's gospel programmatically, that there is a real link now between Jesus being anointed by the spirit and everything you're about to see Jesus do, as far as Dr. Lucas concerned is led by.

Empowered by driven by the power of the spirit. So there's a beautiful, and of course we knew that Luke rates, his cul the book of acts, which leans into the very idea. So you've got this anointed person, the Christ, the Messiah, and then this anointed community and the parallels start to gel there within that.

So it's a, it's a beautiful observation. Yeah.

David: [00:19:41] And then he gives us this list of poor prisoners that blind and oppressed. And I, and I, I love this because of how much it resonates with Jesus. And there's this sense? The kingdom of God, this message and ministry that Jesus has come to fulfill has taken a group of people who live on the margins of society.

These are, these are the outcasts. These are the, the broken, the prisoners like a society in those days, going to prison. Wasn't the same as it is in, in modern Western society. If, if you're listening to this on an iPhone, the likelihood is that prison has. All sorts of human resources, protocols, involved, human rights protocols involved, you have terms of stay, you'll be cared for.

You'll be treated, in particular ways. And I know this huge problems with the Western prison system, but in Jesus he's time, if you went to prison, Like you're on your own. Like you just put in a sale and, and, and that, and who knows when you might get out, if ever, and how will you eat and how will you be cared for?

So there's real sort of, marginalization goes on there and the language of oppression. And so, so all Jesus groups together. These people who'd be on the margins, but places them at the center of his opening sermon. So the spirit of the Lord is on me to proclaim good news. Well, what's to think about this.

You're set. Yeah. You're not imprisoned. Okay.  All the eyes of , of everyone are staring at him. So, so you're,  you're able-bodied you, you can see you're not oppressed. And Jesus says I'm here to became good news. You think? Fantastic. I need some good news.

And then he starts listing. A different group of people, not the group you would expect. And yes, the Roman depressions there. So people would get that, but it's not the way you would normally hear somebody start to lay out their manifesto for what they want things to do. And so for me, even this point, we see this aspect of Jesus's ministry, that, that he is looking at the people who would ordinarily be marginalized by their, by their situation.

And he's looking at them as full society members. This is for. Everyone. 

And I think that's phenomenal.

John: [00:22:03] Totally. And I think that's driven home by the the way he concludes this passage. So he concludes it. I've come to proclaim the year of God's favor, but but of course, if our listeners go back to Isaiah 61 and we would always encourage as a little hermeneutical exercise, if Jesus ever quotes.

To knock if he ever quits the Hebrew Bible or any of the new Testament writers do always go back to the original quilt and see it in its fuller context. And sometimes they're not, well, I would argue many times, most times they're not simply quoting a text. They are often then interpreting the meaning of the text in a certain way.

So Isaiah 61 says to proclaim the year of God's favor. The day of vengeance of our God. And then it launches Isaiah 61 launches into this sort of this tension between fever and vengeance. So God is a known senior year of fever to his people, post exhilaration, but he's also a day of vengeance under two things then raid together and under seen in the most remarkable way.

So if you, if you read on an Isaiah 61, it says things like to comfort all who. Provide for those who grieve in Zion, bestow on them, a crown of beauty instead of ashes. Now that. word little word there instead is a to heart, which by my reckoning, if I'm reading this many passage correctly, there's at least a five, six references.

Of hotness, this, this juxtaposition instead of, instead of instead off. Absolutely. And he says, ah, beauty instead of ashes or of joy instead of mourning the garment of praise instead of the spirit of despair. And they will be called Oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

And so the whole force of ice ax, 61 is restoration restitution, revenge. And, and it seems like God himself, the Lord himself is sort of driving the revenge program which is going on. So, so you see it in the next few verses for verses four to six, they will rebuild the ancient ruins, restore the places, devastated, renew the ruined cities.

And then it says this, and this is where it gets tasty. And this is where it leans. And the, maybe your, your observation, it says stringent. We'll shepherd. Your flux on foreigners will work your fields and your vineyards. And then it goes on to say, you will feed on the wealth of the nations. Now the word there's go, yean, which often.

Almost without exception points to Gentile nations, the goyim, you will feed on the wealth of the Gentile nations on their riches, in their riches. You will boast and it goes on that goes back to the heart and it goes, instead of your shame, you'll receive double portion instead of disagreeing. You will rejoice in your inheritance.

And, and so we get this beautiful attention and Isaiah 61, that part of the fever of God is the restoration. But the vengeance of God is that there will be restitution and there will be a juxtaposition. So where the Gentiles had been ruling and kicked you out, not only are you going to get your land back, but the Gentiles are going to serve you.

They're going to actually play your feelings for you. They're going to look after your flux for you. You're going to be the boss. You're going to be the head and not the tail. And isn't it fascinating that an unknown scene, his program, Jesus stops short deliberately INMED I mean, you could argue in mid sentence, he stopped short and he says, no, no, I'm not going to go to the next bit.

It I'm here to pre-clear them this year of God's favor, which is you say is a year not of exclusion. 

David: [00:25:56] Hmm.

John: [00:25:57] inclusion. And I would argue not a fire in terms of judgment, which I think John, the Baptist, his, his relative won the John, John and Luke three wants a lot of fires. He wants he's the winnowing fork is in his hand.

John says, John's looking for a little bit of action going on here. And yet Jesus seems to be even pushing back on Jordan, the harbinger and saying, no, I'm not here to bring. Fire of judgment. There is a fire of division that Jesus brings, but it's not the fire of judgment. But I'm here instead to bring forever.

And it's not going to be exclusive. It's going to be totally inclusive, including by, by inference, even to the Gentiles, the margins, not just the margins of Jewish society, but even beyond those margins into the Gentile world. And I think that's where the sermon itself starts to get very, very testy in the Luke forklift. 

David: [00:26:53] Well, I mean, I'm totally with you. I think Jesus stops. Mid-sentence in fact, if you look at it in your English translation, you'll get to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. And then there's a period there. I often think that it would be almost fun to put it in a lip. You know, The three dots. 

John: [00:27:08] Yes, 

David: [00:27:10] And I, I, I try and imagine this text, that's why the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him.

Well, you just stopped reading halfway through Jesus. You were about to get to the good bit. You're about to get to the bit where we bash all our enemies and make them work for us. You're about to get to the bit where we learned that God's on our side and not their side. And not only does Jesus stop reading halfway through, he then says today, this script.

I was in the bit that I've just 

read 

is now fulfilled. And I think that's quite fascinating because, because then you look at what happens in this story. So, so all spoke well of him. Chapter four, verse 22, the story continues, all spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips.

I just, that word gracious there. I think that's a fascinating little thing. You could have read longer here. Jesus, you could have said more. You could have talked to the vendors, but you didn't, you stopped and you said gracious, but some people say, say, isn't this Joseph's son. So immediately. The, the sort of slight criticism comes in, so Jesus then says to them, but we'll well, surely you're going to quote this proverb to me, physician heal yourself, and you'll tell me, we'll do here in your hometown and what we've heard you did in component.

And then he says, truly, I tell you no prophet is accepted in his home. And then he does this thing, which is really fascinating, right. Where he cites just a couple of of bits from, from the old Testament. Right. So, so bear in mind what he's done. So he's just said God's bringing liberation. He's just refused to see, God's come to bash up all the Gentiles, right?

The people have said, well, you're, you're just Joseph's son. Jesus says, well, there's always a problem being accepted at home. Right. But of course, I think he's talking about his whole message now. Not just him himself. And then he says, I assure you, this is Luke chapter four, verse 25. I assure you there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time when the sky was shut for three and a half years.

And there was a severe famine throughout the land yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zara. In the region of Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of elation, the prophesy, the prophet, yet none of them was cleansed only named the Syrian. So, so, so Jesus goes here.

I'm going to read this text, but I'm not gonna read about God's judgment of the Gentiles and the people kind of imply, well, why have you not done that when you were about to get to the good bitches and you pulled it and then Jesus makes the point. God has been working for Gentiles for a long time. In fact, when, when he, when he blessed the widow that was in an Arab, not a Jewish widow.

Yes. There was plenty of Jewish waiters to choose from. And there was plenty of Jewish people with leprosy, but the God chosen. Amen. So then you get the next bit, which is brilliant. Luke chapter four, verse 28. All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this and they got up, drove him out of the town and took him to the B-roll of the hill on which the tilt 10 was built in order to throw him off the cliff.

But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way. It's just, it's, it's an incredible scene where, where it goes from. Wow. This is amazing that he's brave enough to say this is fulfilled and then somebody goes, but wait a minute. What about all the means? To Gentiles. And my way of reading this, John is, is Jesus saying, we talk about this whole, the pulling of people from the margins to the center, Jesus has responses.

God has never been against the Gentiles. In fact, if you listen closely to the old Testament that we've lived with for years, I learned it in this very room. God has always been, been gracious towards Gentiles. So, so the Mo God has never had margins. He's never had people in the outskirts. And then of course, you see this aspect that we as humans, Are not always so happy at being told that maybe everybody's, everybody's treated the same, the guard and they try and they try and log them off the side of the cliff.

I mean, there's two things often think when this, I think, well, this is an incredible sermon to give as your first sermon in your hometown. And then I always find myself thinking. My first sermon in my home church, didn't go as badly as this. We all had a cup of tea afterwards, and everybody was really proud of me.

Jesus' first sermon. They try and throw him off the cliff after.

John: [00:31:26] Well, I mean, as, as we discussed in the, in the parables, we, we talked about the analogy of, of some of those parables being hand grenades that were just dropped in the grind and in count to 10 and boom off it goes. And I think this is a hungry need moment. This, this is it absolutely everyone in the synagogue.

Totally. Without. Um, Hesitation gets exactly what he's saying. There's no ambiguity here. There's no sort of hidden this of a parable here. This is in your thesis. And he's essentially saying not only have I not come to bring vengeance, but the very people to whom vengeance is. Promised and Isaiah 61, they're going to be the ones included in this story and it then sets the trajectory.

And I think then, cause we're, we're leaning into miracles, not just the teaching of Jesus, but the miracles. I think then when you get that, when we get that from the very start that this is a messy. Inclusion, not exclusion that this is a message of fever or not fire. Then every miracle of Jesus becomes a message. 

David: [00:32:35] Yes.

John: [00:32:36] Everything he does is not just, is not just ministering to infirmity or illness or our physical restriction, but it's also messaging something, later on in Luke seven. John's disciples pop up and they said, John sent us along, are you the wonder come or should we expect somebody else?

And Jesus says, well, go and tell John what you see. And in repeating there's a nuance from the Isaiah 61, the Luke four moment. There's also nuance in the Isaiah 35. There's these beautiful nuances where Jesus is saying, actually look around you. I'm not. Bringing the fire Joanne wanted, I'm bringing the fever and I will dispense that favor to whoever I like.

And of course, if you lean then as we've done many times into the context of Luke seven, you've got Jesus bringing fever to a widow. Who's lost her son. He's he's died, not just lost him, but. He heals her. And we will talk about that little healers him. We'll talk about that little miracle. Jesus allows himself to be anointed by. 

At best a sinful woman. So mate suggest they prostitute though. That's not in the text. And of course in Luke seven, he declares a Roman Centurion as having theater gridded, and anyone he's seen in Israel because he recognizes Jesus with Ms. Messianic authority. So, so that trajectory of the margins is just then grabbed.

And if our listeners can really see that dynamic. Programmatic positioning of Jesus' ministry. Through these words, then everything he does is shipped. This there's nothing random or, or accidental. Every single thing he's doing, I would suggest has message and meaning and weight attached to it.

David: [00:34:34] I think about the, so he's essentially building you a set of lenses through which to see the kingdom of God. This is what the kingdom of God is going to look like.  Do you remember those. There's telescope.

She used to get, if you were ever a like a, a beach side or a Riverside, and you could put a coin in and it will allow you to see the land on the other side .  It's almost as if the kingdom of God is like, one of them is , this is a window into the, into God's future and to what God's going to do for everyone in Isaiah 61 is now we're seeing it in a micro level happening in Jesus' ministry.

I love that in Luke chapter seven. So it begins, runs verse 20 doesn't to it. John, the Baptist is in prison now and he's thinking John's maybe. I mean, I thought Jesus came set prisoners free and he's coming, I've gone to prison. It seems to be a little backwards. So, so the doubt is beginning to sink in, even, even amongst John, like I, and this is where I think this perfectly fits with what you were saying.

John's expecting a bit of fire is expecting a bit of fight. He knows the Messiah is coming and he thinks this is gonna, this is going to sort out, is going to Jesus is going to come and bash some heads, right? And then it goes, it's not going the way he expected. And this happens all the time. Even in acts, the disciples are still saying to Jesus.

So are you going to sort everything out with the Romans yet? Or this is an underlying theme that Jesus isn't quite doing. What everybody expects. So are you the one to come or actually John seeing, did I get it wrong? Are we supposed to expect someone else? And so Jesus says, and it's interesting because if you listen if you read the text at that time, Jesus cured.

Many who had diseases, sicknesses, and evil spirits and gave sight to many who were blind. So Jesus replied to the message. Go back and report to John, what you've seen and heard, but then he, he lists off the blind receive sight. The lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf, hear the dead are raised and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

And like you say, he rifts on this, this idea that has developed. And I don't know if our listeners were always be aware of this, but these are ideas that have developed over the previous 400 years perhaps that there will be. Messianic SANEs, which will help you know, that the Messiah has come and join Isaiah 35.

Those signs are that people who cannot walk, will walk, that people who cannot see will see, and the people that cannot hear will hear and speak again. Now what's interesting is of course, if you think really hard, it's like one of those Bible class quizzes, but if you think really hard, where have you ever seen that happen before?

Where have you seen the blind? See, when have you seen, a person who is deaf here? And you think, oh, it must have happened somewhere. And then you read through your whole old Testament and realize it never happens. The dead are raised, there's one circumstance we just alluded to of name and being healed of leprosy.

But the people who, but sight and hearing and walking and as to what happens in Jewish culture and the time of Jesus is these have developed into, into signs. That will be hugely significant. If you see these things happening, then that means the deliverer, the Messiah is here and with us. So again, there's this level of when this.

From Luke chapter four, that the blind will receive their sight is, is fitting very much into this program for the people who are there to interpret it, that this, that God is now doing something amongst us. They're delivering what is is here. So it, so this kind of doubles down on what you're saying, John, doesn't it?

These, these miracles. Okay. Are considered significant. And there's one text that I always love is in John chapter 11 when Lazarus has died and, and Jesus is at the tomb. I think it's verse 37 and he's at the tomb. And there's some commentary from the background. The people that are there watching all of this and, and and Jesus is upset and somebody says one of the Pharisees, I think says Well, couldn't couldn't he who healed the blind also raise the dead.

And as a westerner, you've sort of read this thinking. That's a really strange comment because now I know we're going to just go into the slate absurd for a moment. But if I said to you, which do you think is most difficult healing, the blind or raising the dead? You would probably go. I think raising the dead, that sounds a little harder than healing the blind, but in the Jewish context of Jesus, he's right.

Any old prophet can raise the dead that happens at several points in the old Testament. Doesn't it, but only the Messiah can heal the blind. So the bystanders are sort of thinking this guy could heal the blind. So he's gotta be, he's got, he's gotta be the Messiah, therefore better than a regular old prophet.

So why can't he, why can't he do anything here? About Lazarus. So you're seeing again little insights into the, the perspectives that people had at that particular time about what it means for Jesus to, to heal people who can't see.

John: [00:39:30] Yeah, very, very good. And, and I think you're absolutely right. That there was a sort of a, a developing mentality around certain types of miracles that the Messiah would do. One being, for example opening the eyes of the blind. And, and of course the John nine illusion that you're alluding to, which I think is one of the we'll pick up on, I mean, it's not just it's, it's not like the mom was blamed it by an accident he's born blind.

So, which has a whole layer of other implication too, which we'll get to when we talk about that it's quite striking. So, so that sort of.

David: [00:40:06] Okay.

John: [00:40:06] The eyes giving sight to those who were blind is a big one. I think the other one that people lean into is the cleansing of the Lapar in the context of the Torah, I, my, my research 116 verses devoted to leprosy in the Torah.

It's quite incredible. So, so it's a serious issue. And as we've already alluded to from the Luke four passage, There, there doesn't seem to be a single example of a Jewish leper being healed in the Hebrew Bible. So when Messiah comes and he starts hailing Jewish lepers that's a sign that something's going on.

And then the other big one, David was this idea of delivering people who were demonized and the result of that demonic activity left them without the ability to speak. So in the days of Jesus, especially under his great research to help people on this, if they want to look into this, but in the days of Jesus, that  in terms of exorcism, they needed to be able to. Speak to the demon in order to get the name of the demon. And in fact, you see Jesus actually doing this on a number of occasions. He seems to follow a sort of a general religious protocol and some things, but of course, we're Jesus Stans is that he's able to deliver someone.

Who can't speak from this demon. And in fact, when he does, so there's a beautiful example of this in Matthew 12 when he does. So it says, and all the multitudes were amazed and said, can this be the son of David? Now, if, if the religious community were casting demons out of people, so to speak, then, then why the reaction? Because, because, because a bit, like you said that there's some miracles of. And the old prophet could do, but then there were other sayings that leaned into the massage. And sometimes when we come to read the gospels, we're just, we're just clumping all these beautiful miracles of Jesus together. And of course that's okay out of surface.

But in terms of his messianic program, in terms of the nuance of Luke four and Isaiah 61, I think you are leaning into some activity that clearly has strong messianic overtones. And I just one last little reflection. Yeah. One of the, one of the first miracles that Jesus does, for example, in the gospel of mark, as he heals the leper And and our listeners make know that if a Jewish leper was healed, they had to go unsure themselves to the priest.

And then they would have a seven day investigating. To ensure that this was like a proper bonafide miracle. And of course the investigation would be about who did it, how did it happen? Where did it happen? And under something almost magnificently intentional about Jesus, that if he wants to get the attention of the religious community, if he wants to get the attention of the priest.

The sort of a hierarchy of his day into the people, what does he do? He heals a leper, knowing that that lapper would have to go fierce public investigation, and then the word would be, oh, Jesus of Nazareth healed a leper, which leans into this magnificent. Inclusion and fever idea as the Messiah.

So it's, it's a lovely little nuance to some things we miss in the text without digging into that.

David: [00:43:41] And it's interesting because building then, so Jesus comes in here, notice he's in this sermon, this, this program of liberation of which, which is quite disruptive to, to the way of life. So if the, if this is the new kingdom, Jesus says how, by the way, in the new kingdom, oppression, prison, poverty, and infirmity and disability are all being adjusted and changed this of course.

Is disruptive to the old way of being. And I think it's important that on one level, what we're going to see when we look through these miracles. Yes. That Jesus is doing something by the miracles. You choose you. I a hundred percent agree that these are not, these are not random or look, there's something there.

Jesus is making points very, very significant biblical points, but what he's doing with this ministry, but of course, unsurprisingly, what Jesus is also doing his. Is changing the dynamic of how people are treated, who would ordinarily be on the margins. So if you were disabled in the time of Jesus and, and that's a kind of word with a lot of resonance to it in the context, and sometimes we talk about impairment, but I've kind of think about disabled disability is where there's also, it's not just simply that there's something that you're struggling with that can be diagnosed medically, but disability is where you then find yourself.

Often a social disadvantage because because society isn't supporting you in the way that you are. And I think this is, I think this is true in our data is very, very true in Jesus's day that, that, that if, if a person had a disability. They, they would be perceived as perhaps being punished. That would sometimes be the case that maybe God has done this to you.

They would be perceived as, as deficient flawed, aberaeron sometimes, demonically it would be considered the power's evil against that person. And therefore those people with disabilities were, were socially stigmatized. They were, they were kept separate from society.

And so I think it's Mrs. Young, who says that whatever disability is. It is also the experience of discrimination, marginalization, and exclusion from the social, cultural, political, and economic domains of human life. And so, so it's fascinating to me that we also see Jesus not treating people with disabilities, just as part of a picture that he's painting of the kingdom, but he humanizes in a society that dehumanize.

People with disabilities, Jesus humanizes them. So, so what does it mean for Jesus to heal people with miracles? It means the kingdom of God is here. It means the kingdom of God is doing its work. It means, but it also means that the people, that Jesus encounters who society suggests. Not to be included are included as full humans in the story.

And you, you see this, this very significant social change in, in the Jesus movement around how these people are treated in contrast to how people are ordinarily treated right down into just little highlight back to our parable seasons. In, in Luke chapter 14, Jesus says, when you throw a banquet, who do you invite?

Well, you invite this demographic of people that fits not the social orders rule of who you invite, but the people who would normally be kept separate, including the blind and the, you see what I'm saying? That he's building this picture of the kingdom to see these people. Included. They are not a problem for society.

They're actually welcomed into this new society and you can't help, but think that that's a layer for followers of Jesus to live in that Jesus has first place. They think about that Luke 14, this is who you should invite. Not simply to hear. Right. So sometimes what happens is we go, oh, well, you're healed.

So now you're back in the normal membership of the community, but Jesus has welcomed people with disabilities fully into the community in advance of, or despite what may or may not happen in their, in their journey. And I think that's a lens to see the miracles of Jesus with, and to not lose as we explore this season.

John: [00:48:02] Absolutely. And to see people as not a problem to be fixed, but as a person to be embraced. And I think that's really important. And I think, dependent in your upbringing, certainly the Pentecostal upbringing I would have had would have interpreted these wonderful, magnificent stories of Jesus. Into a modern context as fixing a problem. And therefore by almost unintentional conclusion, you then look upon people with disability as a pro. And that's exactly what Jesus is trying to reverse. So it's, it's ensuring that we're not just looking at people as something to be fixed, but as people to be embraced.

And I think, I want to be part of a Christian community that believes in the supernatural power of the holy spirit. To step into a natural moment and transform it. And I still believe that I still believe that what we read about in the gospels and the book of acts can happen today in the 21st century.

Even though I know there's a lot of cynicism and skepticism around that, but, but at the same time, I want to hold intention. The idea. Well, But people are unique special, valuable, loved accepted by the Lord himself and are reflective of his image in every way, shape and form. And we must hold both of those things.

I think in tension, which Jesus seems to manage to do. 

David: [00:49:40] Yes.   That's what I'm hoping we can wrestle through throughout this series. I love that word tension, John, just holding together the idea that these are true stories about Jesus. Luke definitely has an agenda that when you get to acts these stories through the holy spirit are ongoing stories of Jesus, but, but primarily for those of us that live and breathe within our context and culture, now we're seeing in the miracles of processes to how.

We live as Jesus followers in relation to others and the societal and social problems that you encounter in the course of life and, and being in the world.

John: [00:50:25] Hmm, totally.  And I think if we can lean into that in Jesus himself and, and hear those words, both. In terms of an understanding of the image of God and us, as well as the purpose of God to his and through us. And I think that is genuinely transformational as a world.

view. And then we, we, we see an empathetic Jesus. 

David: [00:50:52] Hmm.

John: [00:50:52] As well as a super natural Jesus, he's not just dispensing miracles, but he's also getting under the skin of his world, of his community. He understands those around him. He connects with those around him. He feels for those around them. And then he, as it were, can I say this carefully reverently earns the right to minister to those around him because he has.

Drawn near to them in, in all of our brokenness.

David Harvey: [00:51:28] Okay. So that's it for the first episode this week, our second texts for this week, we'll release on Thursday. If you want to get in touch with either office about something we said, you can reach out on podcast@twotexts.com or by liking and following the two texts podcast on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or YouTube. 

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But until then, Goodbye.