Awake Us Now

Luke 4:14-30: “Hometown Visit.” This story of Jesus going to His hometown appears to be a different trip than those told in the other gospels. This is a story of those listening to Jesus in Nazareth (His hometown) in comparison to those hearing Jesus in Galilee and who willingly received what Jesus had to offer. But those in Nazareth because of their pride and arrogance and boastfulness and being skeptical, did not get to experience what Jesus has to give us! Jesus was born in Bethlehem but Nazareth is the town Jesus grew up in. As He returned home for a visit, He went to the synagogue as was His regular practice on the Sabbath. Here is some information about synagogues in Jesus’ day: 1. Opened with singing (mainly Psalms 145-150) 2. Recitation of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4) 3. Recitation of the Tefillah (18 benedictions and prayers) 4. Reading of the Scriptures (torah, prophets and writings) 5. Message of Interpretation of what was read 6. The Aaronic Benediction Jesus comes home to a town that had heard all