Epiphany 3C (Luke 4:14-21)

How should we interpret the following saying of Jesus from this morning’s lesson: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”? What is this scripture? It comes from the Book of Isaiah, which Jesus reads from the scroll in the synagogue. Is he referring to himself when he reads, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…has anointed me…has sent me”? Certainly, he applies the “me” in the text to himself.

But that is not the whole story. His proclamation that “this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” can also mean that the prophetic words of Isaiah are meant to be applied to you. I invite you to read the Isaiah passage that Jesus reads and apply it to yourself, allowing the “me” to refer not to Jesus, but to you. See how it feels to read, recite, and reflect in this way. 

Nevertheless, this is not the end of the practice. Embody it through your breathing. The Spirit of the Lord is upon you. The Breath of YHWH, breathing in and out, is literally, physiologically, and spiritually both upon and within you.

Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing of breathing!