THE UNEXPECTED JESUS - INTRO
Luke 4:16-21
INTRODUCTION: Maybe some of you have heard of Norm Evans. He was an all-pro lineman for the
Miami Dolphins. Several years ago he wrote a book titled On God’s Squad, in which he discusses
his faith, his conversion and his view of football as a result. When it came to his perspective
of Jesus, he wrote, "I guarantee you, Christ would be the toughest guy who ever played this
game. If he were alive today I would picture a six-foot-six 260-pound defensive tackle who
would always make the big plays." Fritz Peterson, who at one time played professional baseball
for the New York Yankees, gave his take on Jesus. He said, "I firmly believe if Jesus Christ
were sliding into second base, he would knock the second baseman into left-field to break up
the double play. Christ might not throw a spitball, but He would play hard with the rules." Not
conventional views of Jesus are they. These two men brought their own experiences and passions
to bear upon Jesus. The things they loved, the things that were influential in their lives
became the framework for their perspective of the Savior, and they shaped their expectations
of the Him by their own lives. At times don’t we do the very same thing?
I. OUR CONVENTIONAL VIEW OF JESUS
A. From the happenings and condition of our own lives we drawn our views of Jesus. This is not
only true as individuals but as congregations.
1. When we are hurting from life’s tragedies, we see Jesus hurting with us. When we are joyful
over an unexpected blessing, the fulfillment of a dream, the completion of a goal, we see Jesus
rejoicing with us. When we are proud of our accomplishments, even our faithfulness, we see
Jesus glorying with us. When we are angry over an insult, a personal attack, or an injustice,
we see Jesus angered with us.
2. In short, we pigeon-hole Jesus, we put Him in a box, wrap Him up in a neat little package
and make Him predictable. We hem Jesus in by our passions, our life, our experiences, our hopes,
dreams, goal and we them think we have Him all figured out. So did the Jews of the 1st Century.
II. THE JEWISH VIEW OF JESUS
A. Their lives, both individually and collectively as a nation, determined their view of the
promised Messiah.
1. It had been almost 1000 years since the Kingdom of Israel had stood. After the death of
Solomon, Israel plunged into division, chaos, wickedness, defeat, and captivity. Their riches
were gone, their credibility destroyed, their strength vanquished and their national pride
snuffed out.
2. They were God’s chosen people and they expected a Messiah who would resurrect the Kingdom
and all its grandeur. A Son of God would bring again respect, power, prestige, wealth, and
holiness to His Own Special Nation. They Saw Jesus through their own biases.
3. They too pigeon-holed Him, put Him in a box, wrapped Him up in a neat little package and
though they had Him all figured out. The Jesus they got was far different from their
expectations. READ TEXT
III. THE VIEW OF JESUS OFFERED IN SCRIPTURE
A. Here we are given a glimpse of who Jesus would be as He lived among God’s creation. And He
would not be who they, or ever we at time, would expect.
1. He would go places they would never go, have contact with people they would never
associate with, do things they would never dream of doing, and be someone they could not
completely understand.
2. Jesus would break down barriers, cross lines, trash tradition, throw away most conventional
thinking about God and, as a result, change lives like no one else. They were not prepared
for Him, and sometimes we aren’t either.
B. Notice what Jesus said of Himself as He read Isaiah 61:1,2, and the implications made for
His ministry and work.
1. He would "preach the gospel to the poor." Simply put, He would proclaim the Good News of
Grace to the Impoverished. It would not matter if they were poor physically or poor
spiritually. He would go to them and not the wealthy and prestigious.
2. He would "heal the brokenhearted." In other words, He would cure the ailments of the heart
and the spirit. It would not matter when the pain and anguish came from; sin or suffering,
discouragement or disease, He would bring healing to them. He would not spend His time with
the well and self-righteous.
3. He would "deliver the captives." His mission was to bring freedom to those in bondage.
Whether it was a physical imprisonment or a spiritual imprisonment, for the sinner or the
saint, He would set them free. He was not going to the ones who though they were perfect.
4. He would "restore sight to the blind." The eyes of those who were unseeing would be opened.
Those would were blinded by tradition, wealth, self-righteousness, sickness or ignorance, He
would bring them a unique vision of God’s love and God’s will for their lives.
5. He would "set at liberty the oppressed." Freedom was His number one tool. To those who were
downtrodden by Pharisaical Religion, physical infirmities, or sordid sins, Jesus would set
them free.
C. Here we have a detailed description of The Unexpected Jesus. He would not be what so many
expected Him to be, because their expectation we biased, self-centered, and corrupt. The true
nature of God would be shown through Him, and then, and only then, would man know the heart of
their Creator and their Savior.
Over the next several days, I hope to present you with lessons designed to show you a side of
Jesus you may have never seen before, or in some cases imagined. These lessons will incorporate
the five descriptions Jesus gave of His ministry in Luke 4: 18 by looking into His life to find
incidents that fulfill each one of the five. I ask you to pray for me as I study and deliver
these lessons, and that you pray for all who would hear these lessons, and that includes
yourself, that they may be touched by Jesus and His work and that they might see how He can
still work in their lives today.
