Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he said to the paralytic— ‘I say to you, stand up, take your mat and go to your home.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, January 12, 2020
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: Jesus’ words and actions were shocking and challenging, and can shock and challenge us, too.
When Jesus began his ministry, he started by gathering followers and then by healing and teaching. The first priority for him was to tend to the people.
But then it was time to stir the pot. Jesus started doing and saying things that were confusing and shocking. He forgave sins—a task reserved only for God. Next, he invited a hated tax collector to walk with him. (They were hated because they were corrupt, not because they collected taxes.) He even ate with many of the town’s tax collectors, and on the sabbath, no less! In a short time, Jesus made waves, angering many who were in power at the time. These early events did not directly challenge the powerful, but they were socially (sometimes legally) questionable. Leaders were not yet threatened by Jesus’ actions or his following, but they were upset by his lack of decorum and his brashness.
You could say Jesus was the original shock jock. The things he did angered and upset the status quo. But that was the point. The nation had fallen away from the things of God, and needed to be held accountable for its sin and its apathy. A long, slow discourse about these things were not called for—no, this was a time to throw a wrench in all that they knew, challenging their sensibilities and making them rethink their ways of being.
Where have we become complacent about the things of God? Have we watered down the radical, shocking words and actions of Jesus so that they no longer shock or challenge us? Perhaps it is time to let God’s word shake us to the core.
For supplementary preaching resources, please (Link: bit.ly/proclaim-it-nl)
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