Reflections on Luke 4:25-29
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord” (Lk. 4:18-19).
Jesus Christ’s proclamation of His mission to bring deliverance and healing is met with astonishment and rejection in His hometown. This tension highlights humanity’s struggle to accept divine truth, a struggle that persists today.
The God-man informs the people of the synagogue, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (Lk. 4:21).
Thus, the Incarnate Word’s declaration that this was the acceptable year of the Lord; the anointed one, or the Messiah, stands before them—astonishing them—saying,
“I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian” (Lk. 4:25-27).
They become so enraged at this they try to kill Him: “And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong” (Lk. 4:28-29).
This passage connects Christ’s mission to the ministries of Elijah and Elisha, as well as the Forerunner, highlighting God’s work through the prophets to prepare humanity for the “acceptable year of our Lord,” the Incarnation. The people are outraged at the authority in which Christ speaks, not as a prophet but as something more, implicitly declaring Himself to be of God, to be equated to God! They reject Christ because His words challenge their expectations and comfort.
The peoples’ anger reflected the rejection of the prophets Elijah and Elias by the idolatrous Israelites and foreshadows the nation’s rejection of the Messiah during Christ’s Passion. This rejection, however, is not unique to the people of Nazareth. Throughout history, humanity has been deceived by Satan, who obscures the truth and fosters a culture of self-worship and pride.
St. Kyril of Alexandria writes that,
“Satan had deceived all under heaven and was himself everywhere worshipped…” While “[Jesus Christ] proclaims deliverance to the captives, having bound the strong one Satan. Those also, whose heart was of old obscured by the darkness of the devil, He has illuminated by rising as Sun of Righteousness… And what does sending forth in deliverance those who were broken in pieces mean? It is the letting go free those whom Satan had broken by the rod of spiritual violence.”[1]
St. Kyril reminds us that Christ’s victory over Satan liberates us from the spiritual violence that blinds us to the truth. Yet, this liberation requires a response of repentance, a turning away from the pride that blinds us. In turning away from pride, we are called back to Christ, Who is Truth and the source of humility and our ability to cultivate it by walking aright on His commandments. However, when we refuse the call to repentance, we remain in darkness and ignorance brought on by pride (cf. Jn. 3:19-20).
The people of Nazareth reveal how pride blinds us, allowing the devil’s spiritual violence to take root when our expectations are challenged. Their wrath (Lk. 4:28) is striking, as it follows Christ’s call to repentance—a call echoed by Elijah, St. John the Forerunner, and the prophets throughout the ages: Repent and return to the Lord our God.
Yet, this message falls on ears not willing to hear and they return wrath for the Gospel. This rejection of divine authority is not confined to Nazareth; it reflects humanity’s ongoing struggle with pride and self-reliance. St. Maximos writes:
“The arrogant intellect is justly made the object of wrath, that is to say, it is abandoned by God… and the demons are permitted to plague it during contemplation. This happens so that it may become aware of its own natural weakness and recognize the grace and divine power which shields it, and which accomplishes every blessing; and so that it may also learn humility, utterly discarding its alien and unnatural pride.”[2]
St. Maximos highlights the consequences of pride and necessity of humility. This invites us to consider: how do we resist divine authority in favor of self-reliance?
How often do we, like the people of Nazareth, resist divine authority and cling to self-reliance? How often do we, like the people of Nazareth, cling to pride and reject God’s grace? When pride takes hold, it blinds us to God’s grace, leaving us filled with wrath—a tragic paradox that separates us from the truth and healing Christ offers.
Jesus Christ overpowers the strong man, breaking the bonds of sin and death that have enslaved humanity for millennia. Yet do we fully embrace this freedom, or do we still fall prey to the pride and arrogance that Satan sows in our hearts? To share in Christ’s victory, we must confront our own pride and wrath, embracing repentance as the path to humility and truth.
Through prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and graciously giving up our time, talent, and energy to those in need and in our communities, we can begin taking the steps toward discarding an alien and unnatural pride that blinds us. St. John of Damacus offers practical guidance on combating the passions with their corresponding virtue:
“These passions should be destroyed as follows: … anger by goodwill and love for all men… self-esteem by doing good in secret and by praying constantly with a contrite heart; and pride by not judging or despising anyone… and by considering oneself the least of all men.”[3]
If we can begin to soften our hearts by denying the self that which it has become accustomed, I pray we can slowly become open to the reality of God’s Word. Only through repentance, humility, and the virtues of Christ can we proclaim His Incarnation, allowing His light to transform our lives and the world around us.
Ο ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΕΝ ΤΩ ΜΕΣΩ ΗΜΩΝ! ΚΑΙ ΗΝ ΚΑΙ ΕΣΤΙ ΚΑΙ ΕΣΤΑΙ
[1] St. Kyril of Alexandria. Homily 12, Commentary, Ch. 4, 89, 93.
[2] St. Maximos the Confessor, The Philokalia, Vol. 2, 213, St. Nikodimos of the Holy Mountain and St. Makarious of Corinth, eds., trans. G.E.H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Kallistos Ware (New York: Faber and Faber, 1981).
[3] St. John of Damascus, The Philokalia, Vol. 2, 338, St. Nikodimos of the Holy Mountain and St. Makarious of Corinth, eds., trans. G.E.H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Kallistos Ware (New York: Faber and Faber, 1981).
Witness, NM 