Welcome Here

God’s hand is against the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. In Luke 4:14-30, when Jesus read Isaiah 61:1-2 in His hometown synagogue, He made it clear that the prophesy was fulfilled in Himself. He had been sent to the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the blinded, and the oppressed. He was sent to people who, aware of their neediness, were grateful that He had come with good news, healing, and liberation. But on this day, when Jesus’ teaching caused conviction, His invitation to come to Him and be made whole was rejected as Jesus had predicted, “No prophet is accepted in his own country.”
Perhaps they would not recognize their need.
Perhaps they would not humble themselves to believe. Most certainly they considered Jesus too ordinary and familiar to be extraordinarily honored and used by God among them. Isn’t this Joseph’s son; aren’t His brothers and sisters here with us?
God is working in extraordinary ways in places like China, Pakistan, India, and Cambodia, but in the United States, Christianity has become ordinary and mundane. Our faith has become small, the all too familiar stories of God’s mighty acts in His word fail to move us, and the idea of spending an hour in prayer bores us. Yet we wonder at the strength of believers in foreign lands, and we wonder why God does not often do His mighty acts here, where for so long Christianity has found a home.
Perhaps we don’t recognize our need.
Perhaps we need to humble ourselves to be captivated by the awesome wonder of God revealed to us through His word, the privilege of prayer, and His constant presence among us. When Jesus’ teaching causes conviction, perhaps we should just ask this question: “What does my daily life say?”

May it say in every way, “Jesus, You are welcome here.”