In Luke 4, Jesus says, “There were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”
Jesus seems to be clear that his message will upset those who are nativist or nationalistic. Oftentimes I need to put aside my preconceived notions of God in order to hear Jesus’ words in a fresh and sometimes dizzying manner.
The people who were praising Jesus just a few verses earlier in Luke’s gospel are now angry. In fact, they are so angry that they want to throw Jesus over a cliff! Does it surprise you that Jesus’ words awakened that much opposition? Do you see such opposition in our world now?
Foreigners have often been treated as suspect because of their “otherness.” How does Jesus push us to listen to scripture anew so we can approach outsiders differently in our day? How do you think we will respond?
God is not confined by our boundaries, but is revealed by people outside our in-group. When have you experienced that in a way that stuck with you?
