First Thoughts: Today we read about Jesus' first sermon, delivered in his hometown of Nazareth. The statement made by Jesus is bold, to say the least. First he reads a passage from Isaiah, in which Isaiah describes the "year of the Lord's favor," and then Jesus pronounces that this prophecy has come true in Jesus' reading of it! The year of the Lord's favor has long been associated with the practice of Jubilee as it is defined in Leviticus. According to this text, every fiftieth year all debts were forgiven, all lost property restored, and all slaves freed. It is a pronouncement of profound restoration. In the words of Isaiah that Jesus reads, this pronouncement extends to prisoners and those suffering physical oppression. Anything that wounds us, separates us from others, or makes us less than what we really are will be removed. At first glance it's hard to see anything wrong with this pronouncement, but then we consider the implications more carefully. Not only will our debts be forgiven; anyone who owes us is completely released from obligation. Their transgressions are wiped away, and we can no longer hold onto them. This is difficult for those who are not yet ready to let go of old grudges, or who actually benefit from maintaining an inequity of power. Spend some time reflecting on your own life. Where are areas in which you would welcome Jubilee? How about areas that it would be difficult for you? Bring your reflection with you in a time of prayer.
Teaching on Your Own: (holds letter) Hey guys, you'll never believe what I have here -- it is a letter from the library! See, I like to check out lots of books from the library. I only have one problem with that -- sometimes I forget to return them. And what happens when you forget to return library books on time? Right, I've been building up fines. In fact, last week my fines were so high they told me I couldn't check out any more books until I paid them. I was going to try to scrape together some of that money this week, but then I got this letter. You know what it says? It says my fines have been waived! They're going to wipe them out and let me start checking out books again. Isn't that great? It sounds like the library is practicing Jubilee.
Have you ever heard the word Jubilee? It comes from our scripture passage today. Jesus was preaching his first sermon ever, and he read from Isaiah about the year of the Lord's favor, Jubilee. In the year of Jubilee prisoners will be released from bondage, the blind will be able to see, and all debts will be forgiven. Like my library debt! Jesus told everybody that this was his work on earth, to do just what Isaiah said -- to give everyone a fresh start. Everyone needs a fresh start now and then, don't you think? I sure did! And now I can try harder to get those books back on time!
Teaching As A Team:
(Leader 2 looks excited, holds letter)
Leader 1: Hey (name), you seem pretty excited this morning. What's going on?
Leader 2: I just got this letter from the library, and you'll never believe it!
Leader 1: Believe what?
Leader 2: You know that I like to check out lots of books from the library, right? I only have one problem with that -- sometimes I forget to return them.
Leader 1: Which means you've been building up fines.
Leader 2: Yeah. In fact, last week my fines were so high they told me I couldn't check out any more books until I paid them. I was going to try to scrape together some of the money this week, but then I got this letter.
Leader 1: What does it say?
Leader 2: It says my fines have been waived! They're going to wipe them all out and let me start checking out books again. Isn't that great?
Leader 1: It sure is. Sounds like the library is practicing Jubilee.
Leader 2: What's Jubilee?
Leader 1: It comes from our scripture passage today. Jesus was preaching his first sermon ever, and he read from Isaiah about the year of the Lord's favor, Jubilee. In the year of Jubilee prisoners will be released from bondage, the blind will be able to see, and all debts will be forgiven.
Leader 2: Like my library debt!
Leader 1: Right. Jesus told everybody that this was his work on earth, to do just what Isaiah said -- to give everyone a fresh start. Everyone needs a fresh start now and then.
Leader 2: I sure did!
Leader 1: And now you can try harder to get those books back on time, right?
Leader 2: Right.
Closing Prayer: God who restores us, thank you for your gift of Jubilee. Help us to receive the gift of having our debts forgiven and the challenge of forgiving the debts of others. In Christ's name we pray, Amen.
Follow-Up Lesson: To reinforce this message in a home or classroom environment, continue the conversation about the year of the Lord's favor. Explain to the children that it's really all about restoration, about making things whole again, and putting things back the way they were. The purpose of Jubilee is to remind us that, even though we make mistakes and come upon hard times, we are not defined by those things forever. What really defines us is the fact that God loves us and wants us to be free from the past to live powerfully into the present. Ask the children if they can think of any problems that might come with a Jubilee year. Use a few examples, asking the children to put themselves in these situations. For example, how would they feel about Jubilee if they had stolen something from someone and were now being released from prison? How would they feel if they were the person who been victimized by that crime, and now that prison sentence was being reversed? How would they feel if they had borrowed a large amount of money from the bank and now had that debt removed? How would they feel if they were the bank and weren't allowed to collect that money back? Jubilee can be a real challenge for us sometimes, since it reminds us that the most important thing in our community isn't getting even, or even necessarily "fairness," but in loving and forgiving relationships with others.
As an activity for this lesson, you might take some time to investigate the Jubilee USA movement (jubileeusa.org.). Check out some of their current campaigns and see if any of them are ones you think your children would be interested in. Explain the campaign to the children and then on a large writing pad help the children to compose a letter on behalf of that campaign. Then give the children a chance to sign all their names at the bottom and mail the letter. Explain to the children that, just as Jesus dedicated himself to bringing the year of the Lord's favor, we're doing that same work today. Close with a time of prayer.
