Episode 775
No Neutral Ground: Jesus' Call for Justice in Luke 11. | Ep 775
In today's compelling episode of "Daily Bible Refresh," Rev. Dr. Brad Miller takes us on an enlightening journey through one of the most thought-provoking passages of the New Testament. Reading from Luke 11:14-23 in the Message translation, Dr. Miller delves into the profound narratives of power, liberation, and the necessity to take a stand in the face of injustice. This episode is not just a reflection on scripture but a call to actionable faith.
Dr. Miller starts by setting the context—Epiphany season of Year C as per the Revised Common Lectionary. His mission is clear: to make the reading of the Holy Scriptures understandable, relatable, and applicable. The chosen passage, "No Neutral Ground," powerfully illustrates Jesus delivering a man from a demon, which evokes a mix of astonishment and skepticism from the crowd.
Key Takeaway 1: The Power of Voice One notable aspect that Dr. Miller brings to light is the notion of breaking silence. In the scripture, Jesus liberates a man from a demon, enabling him to speak. Dr. Miller draws a parallel to contemporary issues, emphasizing the importance of giving voice to the voiceless and breaking systematic silence around oppression. He suggests that marginalized people speaking truth to power are often met with skepticism and accusations, much like Jesus was.
Key Takeaway 2: Systems of Power and Oppression Dr. Miller vividly portrays Jesus' metaphor of a strong man armed to the teeth, symbolizing systems of oppression maintained through force and fear. He stresses that these systems can be dismantled by stronger forces, advocating for collective action and divine justice as the means to overcome institutional violence and militarism.
Key Takeaway 3: No Neutral Ground Perhaps the most impactful takeaway is the idea that there is no middle ground in the fight for justice. Dr. Miller cites Jesus' words, "If you're not helping, you're making things worse," challenging the myth of neutrality. Christianity, he asserts, views silence in the face of injustice as complicity. Thus, active participation in the struggle for justice and liberation is crucial.
Action Step: Practice Breaking Silence Finally, Dr. Miller suggests an actionable step: identify an issue in your community where silence perpetuates injustice and take concrete action. By taking to social media, participating in local forums, or engaging in community organizing, one can amplify marginalized voices, fostering a culture of speaking truth to power.
To help listeners delve deeper into the scriptures, Dr. Miller offers a free resource, the ABC 123 Bible Study Guide, available at voiceofgoddaily.com.
As the episode concludes, Dr. Miller leads a prayer for courage, wisdom, and strength in the ongoing fight for justice and peace, reminding us that God's merciful love renews every morning. With this, he invites listeners to join in daily Bible reading and to bring others on this journey of faith and action.
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The "Daily Bible Refresh" is presented each day by Rev. Dr. Brad Miller who has a goal of speaking a bit of the bible into two million ears (one million people) in three years (2025-2028).
He is the author of "The A, B, C-1,2,3 Bible Study Guide" Free to you by clicking HERE.
Brad served as a local church pastor for forty years and has a background in radio and podcasting. Moreover, he is a life-long student of The Bible.
He believes in the words of Jesus that “scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21)
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available seven days a week by 6:00 am ET. The episodes are no longer than ten minutes long and are...
- Understandable: A reading from the New Testament (usually the Gospel) selected from the Revised Common Lectionary using "The Message" translation.
- Relatable: You will have a couple of "points to ponder" from the text which will relate to your life
- Applicable: Every episode includes a way you can take action based on the reading
- A recommended resource to help you go deeper in biblical study and spiritual direction.
- A prayer for your day.
A companion resource to the Voice of God Daily Podcast is the “ABC Bible Study Guide” available by clicking HERE.
The "Daily Bible Refresh" is available every day at VoiceofGodDaily.com on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcast directories.
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Please make listening to the "Daily Bible Refresh" a part of your daily life.
Remember… “All scripture is God-breathed and useful”(2 Timothy 3:16)
Transcript
Hello, good people. Welcome to daily biblerefresh with
Speaker:doctor Brad Miller, brought to you by voice of
Speaker:god daily.com. This is a daily reading of
Speaker:the holy scriptures. We use the revised common
Speaker:lectionary. We're in year c in the epiphany
Speaker:season, and we offer you a daily bible reading that is
Speaker:understandable, relatable, and applicable.
Speaker:We make it understandable by reading the new testament lesson only
Speaker:from the message translation of the bible. We make it
Speaker:relatable by offering you a couple of points to ponder, to think about regarding
Speaker:the scripture and applicable by giving you an action step. We have
Speaker:a prayer, and we do it all in less than 10 minutes.
Speaker:Our reading for the day is Luke 11
Speaker:verses 14 through 23, reading from the message.
Speaker:No neutral ground. Jesus
Speaker:delivered a man from a demon that had kept him speechless.
Speaker:The demon gone, the man started talking a
Speaker:blue streak, taking the crowd by complete surprise.
Speaker:But some of the crowd were cynical. Black magic, they said.
Speaker:Some devil trickies pulled up his sleeve. Others were
Speaker:skeptical, waiting around for him to prove himself with a
Speaker:spectacular miracle. Jesus knew what
Speaker:they were thinking and said, any country in civil
Speaker:war for very long is wasted. A
Speaker:constantly squabbling family falls to pieces.
Speaker:If Satan can't cancel Satan, is there any Satan
Speaker:left? You accuse me of ganging up with the devil, the
Speaker:prince of demons, to cast out demons, but if you're
Speaker:slinging devil mud at me, calling me a devil who kicks
Speaker:out devils, doesn't the same much stick to your own
Speaker:exorcists. But it's God's finger I'm pointing to that
Speaker:sends the demons on their way, then God's kingdom is here for
Speaker:sure. When a strong man arms to the teeth stands guard in
Speaker:his front yard, his property is safe and sound. But what
Speaker:if a stronger man comes along with superior weapons? Then he's beaten
Speaker:at his own game. The arsenal that gave him such confidence
Speaker:hauled off and his precious possessions plundered.
Speaker:This is war. There is no neutral ground. If you're not
Speaker:on my side, you're the enemy. If you're not helping, you're
Speaker:making things worse. Wow.
Speaker:Profound reading there of the scripture. It's
Speaker:really about breaking silence, about the politics of liberation. It's
Speaker:about power struggles and taking sides in the
Speaker:in a call and a struggle for justice. Here's
Speaker:a couple points to ponder. One of them is the
Speaker:power of voice. The story begins with someone being
Speaker:liberated from an enforced silence. In
Speaker:our context, this speaks to the importance of amplifying and helping be
Speaker:a voice for suppressed voices, and breaking
Speaker:systematic silence around oppression.
Speaker:When marginalized people speak truth to power, those benefiting
Speaker:from the status quo often respond with skepticism
Speaker:and accusations. Another point
Speaker:is the systems is regarding the systems of power. Jesus
Speaker:uses the metaphor of a strong man armed to the teeth and
Speaker:reflects how systems of oppression maintain their power
Speaker:through force and fear. However, the message is clear.
Speaker:These systems can be overcome by stronger forces,
Speaker:namely collective action and divine justice.
Speaker:This speaks to our modern struggles against militarism, police
Speaker:brutality, and institutional violence.
Speaker:Number the 3rd point to ponder has to do with no
Speaker:neutral ground. If you're not helping, you're making things worse
Speaker:is what the scripture says. This quote
Speaker:challenges the myth of neutrality in the face of injustice.
Speaker:Christianity recognizes that silence in the face of
Speaker:oppression is complicity. We must
Speaker:actively choose sides in the struggle for justice
Speaker:and liberation. Here's your action step.
Speaker:Practice breaking silence. It's a hard thing to
Speaker:do, but it's a direct thing to do. Identify an
Speaker:issue in your community where silence perpetuates injustice.
Speaker:Maybe it's racial inequality or environmental destruction or
Speaker:some sort of exploitation of those who are economically disadvantaged.
Speaker:Take some concrete action to amplify marginalized
Speaker:voices in this issue. It might be through a social media post
Speaker:or participating in some local government
Speaker:forum or community organizing. Just remember
Speaker:that speaking truth to power isn't about speaking for others, but creating
Speaker:space for silent voices to be
Speaker:heard. We're gonna pray in just a moment. I do wanna
Speaker:share with you our about our Bible study guide that we have as a gift
Speaker:for you as a resource to help you go deeper into the scriptures. It's
Speaker:called the ABC 123 Bible Study
Speaker:Guide. You can find it over at our website voiceofgoddaily.com.
Speaker:It's It's also where you'll find all the episodes of the
Speaker:daily Bible refresh along with the complete transcripts
Speaker:of those episodes. You can find the ABC 1, 2, or
Speaker:3 Bible study guide right there. Let's pray.
Speaker:God who liberates us, give us courage to break
Speaker:silence when comfort would keep us quiet. Help us
Speaker:recognize where we have been complicit in systems that
Speaker:suppress and silence others. Grant us wisdom to know
Speaker:when to speak, when to listen, and when to amplify others'
Speaker:voices. Strengthen us for the struggle ahead, knowing that
Speaker:there is no neutral ground in the fight for justice and
Speaker:peace. May we find hope and collective action
Speaker:and faith in your liberating presence.
Speaker:It's been great to be with you here on this episode of Daily Bible Refresh.
Speaker:We're here every day, bright and early. We're always post
Speaker:our episodes before 6 AM EST. My name is
Speaker:doctor Brad Miller. It's my pleasure to be with you. Hope that you'll join me
Speaker:again tomorrow and invite invite someone else in your life to join us here in
Speaker:the daily bible refresh. Until that time,
Speaker:please live with a sure and perfect knowledge that
Speaker:God's loyal love doesn't run out. His merciful love
Speaker:hasn't dried up. It's created new
Speaker:every morning.
