Faith+ICSGA


 * Gospel Passage:**

Luke 4: 14-22 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.

He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the Sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.

Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.

Jesus preached in the synagogues around Galilee and word spread like wild fire because people were so impressed with what he had to say. He then came to Nazareth where he had been raised. He went to their synagogue to read from the scrolls to the people there. He read to them and they were all amazed by the compassionate words that he proclaimed.
 * Summary:**

Jesus is teaching us in the passage that he is the one sent by God to fulfill Isaiah's prophecy. This relates back to modern day life because in the gospel passage it is telling us to take care of the poor. This is what modern society is telling us to do today in time. If everyone could follow this passage, then the world would be a better place. An advantage that we have now that the people of Nazareth did not have is that Jesus has already died for our sins and then Resurrected. So we know now that in this passage, Jesus is talking about himself. Back then, people did not know that. So the people of Nazareth just thought he was talking about doing good deeds.
 * Reflection:**

People can live out Jesus's teachings by being a disciple of Christ through works of charity and service. We need to live this message because God our Father and Creator told us to do so. Another reason may be because it is the right thing to do. No matter what, helping someone or a group of people is never wrong in God's eyes. People can do many things to live Jesus's teachings. One prime example of this is the contraction of the Ebola virus by volunteers that went to Africa. This goes along with Jesus's teachings because they are essentially risking their life to go help others in need. Another example of doing a good deed and helping the poor is volunteering at Metropolitan Ministries. This organization is a community out-reach center that my class volunteered at last year, and I can tell you first hand that this is fulfilling Jesus's word. These examples show people living the message because they are sacrificing themselves, time, and talents simply to help others less fortunate.

Almighty Father, please grant me the strength to live out your word. Let me always use my talents and my efforts to please you. In my daily life, assist me to make the appropriate and necessary sacrifices in order to help others. I promise to strive to always do my best. In your name we pray. -Amen
 * Prayer:**