Reading: Luke 4v38-44

As with most readings in the churches lectionary, our gospel reading today is not meant to be read simply as one brief story. It’s from Luke’s gospel, and where Luke places it is important. It needs to be read in context. Chapter 4 of Luke begins with Jesus’s temptation in the wilderness, where Jesus quotes Hebrew scripture as the devil tempts him. Jesus withstands the devil’s tempting, and it seems like a high point…and yet, as the narrative continues, life does not appear to be going smoothly. Jesus stands up in the synagogue on the Sabbath, and proclaims his mission in the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me” (Isaiah 61). Jesus has claimed Isaiah’s words for himself, and although we may now read them and find encouragement and inspiration, it was not well received at the time. Those from his hometown do not accept his messianic claim, and he barely escapes alive.

So, Jesus moves on, to the town of Capernaum, where he gets a very different reception. He begins by preaching in the synagogue, which provokes an unclean spirit there. Jesus will not allow the spirit to stay in the man, after all, he is here to “set at liberty those who are oppressed.” Nor will he allow the demon to speak, for it recognises who he is, yet is no match for his power and authority.

Word of Jesus’s actions spread, and he moves to Simon’s house, where he finds his mother-in-law sick with fever. He has preached with power and authority, he has cast out an unclean spirit, so what now? The fever is rebuked, and she is well. Jesus’s healing power is clear, and word begins to spread. As the sun sets, signalling the end of Sabbath, many come to Jesus for healing, and he obliges. Again, Jesus’s identity is clear to the demons, even when others around him seem to miss it.

So, in a few verses, Jesus has been hounded out of his hometown, and then he has become a mini celebrity. There is no challenge to his person or ministry recorded by Luke here in this second phase. People seem more than happy he is here. Surely there is another temptation here…to stay put. But what does Jesus do? The next morning he seeks out a deserted place. It’s a theme echoed throughout the gospels. Jesus retreats to a deserted place, he seeks solitude, often to pray.

That time alone leads him to action. This is not solitude for the sake of solitude, but a solitude that energises and reminds him of why he has come. It is a solitude that helps, by the grace of God, give him the strength to move on. His mission was not to enjoy the fame and acclaim, to be sought after as a healer and wonder worker. Those things are not necessarily bad. But Jesus has come to proclaim the kingdom of God, to proclaim the good news.

What are we to learn? Well, as with most biblical texts, there is rarely one lesson. But perhaps this is a good place to begin: we can easily become distracted when things are going well. Failure can certainly lead to despair, but success also can have a way of distracting us from our true purpose. Success and acclaim are invigorating, but they can also lead us away from our calling.

We are all called to love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbour as ourselves. How we do that will change from person to person. Frederick Buechner once wrote, “The place God calls you to is where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Times of prayer and solitude help us to reorient ourselves, to renew our purpose, to recommit to what God is calling us to be. To play our unique part in proclaiming his kingdom, through word and deed.