Short sermons are always welcome! Brevity and simplicity always go down well. And so I hesitate to continue. Maybe a sermon on our Gospel reading this week could be simply, ‘Well, there you have it.’ 

Often, after hearing Jesus’ instructions on how to live, I am tempted to preach, ‘You heard him. Do it!’ But in contrast to such brief and direct statements, we do have the art of conversation. And who hasn’t enjoyed the company of a great raconteur! So, let’s strike a compromise: There’s a time to be precise, and there’s a time to expand and embellish.

 

Jesus went to Nazareth, and in the synagogue he read out a passage from the prophet Isaiah – a passage that was widely known to be about the hoped-for Messiah. After reading the scriptures, it was usual for a teacher to sit down in front of his audience and teach. And so, when Jesus sat down, the people in the synagogue expected an erudite and enjoyable teaching session. Instead, Jesus was brief. He simply told them, ‘You have just heard what the Messiah will do. Well, I am that man.’ Of course, the sermon wasn’t just a one-liner. Jesus’ chosen passage from Isaiah was part of the message. The sermon was a three-liner. In three sentences Jesus declared what his ministry was about, who were the focus of his attention, what he was promising to do, and how he was the one to deliver the goods. This ability to summarise would later on be seen in the way Jesus summarised the Law – Love the Lord, you God, and your neighbour as yourself. Having said that, Jesus did on many later occasions go on to expand and embellish his message. His was the perfect art of conversation. He was the master of his message, and its perfect communicator. 

The danger for us is that it is easy to lose ourselves in the longer conversations, discussion and arguments. At times we can feel a great sense of satisfaction after a good chat in which all manner of things are aired and very little is agreed. We love the fun of banter. So did Jesus. But what we have to face up to are those moments when Jesus looks straight at us and tells us exactly as it is.