Fulfilled

By Fr. Bob Williams

Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account fro you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.

Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, Jesus went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day as was his custom.

He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."

And Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.

The Jesus began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."

- Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21

One of the major contributors to the Bible (so to speak) is St. Luke. His two-volume work, the Gospel According to Luke and The Acts of the Apostles, takes up roughly one quarter of the New Testament. His message is either distinctive, as in the Gospel, or unique, as in Acts.

In the above passage from Luke, we find that he introduces himself formally. But we have additional information that makes him particularly appealing. Of all four gospel writers, Luke is the most congenial to readers of the Western world of which he himself was, in many respects, a representative.

Luke was a Gentile, a Syrian from cosmopolitan Antioch-third city of the Roman Empire, unlike the other evangelists who were Jews from Palestine. He was convert from paganism, and a doctor by profession, a celibate, and an associate of Paul until the latter's death. He had traveled with Paul, who called him "the beloved physician" and listed him as a fellow-worker. He was with the Apostle during the latter's second imprisonment in Rome.

Luke wrote refined Greek, and was an artist with words. He developed a deep, unpretentious theology. His gospel has long been a favourite because of its special accents: joyful thanksgiving, the action of the Holy Spirit, the importance of prayer, the role of women, and compassion for the poor and lowly.

The short preface to the third gospel introduces us to its author and reveals a Gentile concerned about presenting a true account of Jesus and his teaching. It is addressed to someone called Theophilus ('friend of God"), no doubt a Greek convert who may have been in a position to help circulate the writing. A comparison of this opening passage with the preface to the Act of the Apostles indicates what Christian tradition has always maintained, that the author of both works is Luke.

"Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee." With these words Luke begins his narrative of Jesus' public life, calling attention, as he does repeatedly, to the presence of the Spirit in Jesus. The scene opens in the synagogue and is described with consummate art.

Here is Jesus, in his home town of Nazareth, during the routine synagogue service. The above reading suggests that Jesus had a particular text in mind that he wanted to read. We are told that, "He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written …" He was not engaging in some kind of "magic text" game, letting the Spirit guide his finger to an appropriate place.

The passage he found is an excellent summary of who Jesus is and of his messianic work. He is "the anointed" of the Spirit. Those acquainted with the Old Testament would have known that kings, priests, prophets, and the "suffering servant" were all spoken of as being anointed. While Jesus shared all these offices in some way, we can't help but recall the anointing by the Spirit at Jesus' baptism, where he is identified further as God's beloved Son.

The reading breaks off abruptly with Jesus returning to his place, all eyes fixed on him. He sits, and speaks "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." The reading stops here perhaps to let us hear the fullness of the Word and to express our reaction, not influenced by that of others. What will it be? Rejection and continuing in the same rut? Or acceptance and change? It must be one of the other; that's the nature of the Word.
Much has been made of this startling quotation from Isaiah at the beginning of Jesus' ministry. It describes the beneficiaries of God's offer. It defines the nature of the Kingdom; a prediction about a Great Society, a New Frontier, a brave New World. It focused on points that were dear to Luke himself, the gospel as the Good News par excellence, the poor being heeded, freedom regained, vision restored, oppression overcome.

When John the Baptist sent two of his disciples to ask: "Are you the one who is come or should we look for another?" (Luke 7:19). Jesus answers with his own deeds and the same words of the prophet: "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the good news proclaimed to them." (Luke 7:22)

The implication is clear: Jesus has come to free everyone from all that can hold back, and that his Kingdom, where all are meant to be free, begins here. A further implication seems equally clear: that whoever works, in Jesus' name, for the betterment of others, by helping them to see, or hear is to that degree advancing the Kingdom toward its ultimate fulfillment.

We can only try imaginatively to realize just how incredible that announcement was to the congregation that had gathered that day expecting only to perform their usual religious duties.