RFORD's fine article/message got me thinking of something I put together some time ago, on occasion I have actually preached it as "When Jesus Visited the Church" then I later changed it to the "Anointing" but either way here it is for those so inclined. You will most likely agree that RFORD and I are basically saying the same thing, I think his style and prose is a bit more elevated than mine.
Text:
Luke 4:17-29
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. 22 And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son? 23 And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country. 24 And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country. 25 But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; 26 But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian. 28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow F16 of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong. 30 But he passing through the midst of them went his way
Background into the text and the setting.
Main points:
Jesus came out of the wilderness in the power of the spirit, prepared for ministry.
Customary for a man of the Covenant to be invited to read a text out of the rolled text, this was a great honor.
Jesus read out of
Isaiah 61, a prophetic text about the Messiah’s coming and the ministry that he would have.
This was a Jesus’ Magna Charta or his mission statement, in a nut shell this was what he was about.
This also reveals the fact that Jesus operated as an anointed man.
Acts 10:38 proves this.
He came to preach the gospel to the poor, in society the poor have always been the most neglected and yet the most receptive to a message of hope and salvation. It should always be that way but nevertheless true.
Gospel=means good news, news is current, something happening or happened in the distant past is not news. If I were to announce the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor and call that news people would laugh, that is not new, but history. News is current and relevant. The gospel works right now; its effect is to be felt in the here and now. The message of the Kingdom will affect you in the here and now (
Luke 10:9)
In what way you might ask:
Good news of deliverance from sin and bondage. You sins can be forgiven and you can be born again.
Healing for your emotional man (broken hearted). Many today need emotional healing. Often physical healing happens when people are healed for inner issues.
You bondage or captivity can be broken by the power of the spirit of God. The anointing is designed specifically to break the power of hell in your life (
Acts 10:38). The anointing is the power of God in the present; it can be felt and experienced.
Another text:
(
Matthew 8:16-17 NKJV) When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, {17} that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: "He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses."
Recovery of sight to the Blind-provides for both spiritual eyesight and physical and I love how Jesus proved that he had the power to heal spiritually by healing physically. The healing of the man with palsy bears this out in
Matthew 9:6. Signs are just that they point the way to a greater reality.
Liberty to them that are bruised-
Matthew 12:20 tells us that one of the signs of the Messiah would be that he would no break bruised reeds or quench smoking flaxes. What does that mean, Jesus specializes in repairing broken lives and healing wounded souls.
For example victims’ of abuse often live broken lives with low self esteem, identity and personality issues and other maladaptive coping skills. They are in bondage and need liberty, Jesus is a specialist at this.
Part 2
Jesus mentioned the acceptable year of the Lord, what does that mean.
It is referencing the Year of Jubilee that is celebrated in
Lev. 25:8, that every 50th year all slaves and debts had to be released and forgiven. Jesus was giving the ultimate fulfillment of that law.
We are living in the Year of Jubilee, we can be forgiven and all of our spiritual debts canceled. We don’t have to live in bondage anymore. This is our year of Jubilee.
If you were to keep reading in
Isaiah 61:2 you will find these words to and the day of vengeance of our God; but in
Luke 4:19 Jesus never read those words. This means that in some future date this will be fulfilled but not now, Jesus instituted the acceptable year of Lord, folks this is the year of God’s favor. You don’t have to pay to be blessed, just come and receive.
Whatever has held you in captivity, slavery or in debt you can be free, right now, no waiting for a special time or dispensation. This is your acceptable time, now!!
In the narrative Jesus actually handed the book to the attendant, in type he has handed this mandate to the church. What are we doing with his mission? Any church organization, people group or community that loses sight of why it exists, abuse and misuse is inevitable.
Look at the UN, corruption and malaise exists because they have lost sight of their charter.
Jesus said this is fulfilled now, not at a later time or a date in the future. We can experience everything he outlined in mission right now.
But many of us respond today the way that first century crowd responded to Jesus words.
First they were impressed and wowed. Then unbelief begins to take over. Unbelief isn’t outright refusal to believe God and his word but often is masked as caution, familiarity or knowing too much.
Look at the excuse those in Nazareth brought to Jesus. Is this not Joseph’s son, in other words they knew him to well. Translation this can’t be true because we know you Jesus. We were raised around you; we know your sisters and brother, your father worked on our furniture, etc.
See we must have faith for the now; those in the crowd had faith that the words that Jesus read were inspired and were indeed revelatory in the days that Isaiah wrote them. They had no problem having faith for the past.
They also believed that the works that Jesus read that day would one day come true; they were words that had Messianic prophetic fulfillment in mind. They had faith for the future.
But when the Lord appointed a time of fulfillment that very day, they had not faith for the now. See faith is not having heard, but faith is hearing. We must continually hear right now. God is willing to do more right now than we are prepared for him to do, faith in the past or faith for the future doesn’t bring that to pass, but faith for the here and now. Faith is hearing now.
If that wasn’t enough to get that crowd angry then Jesus tells using two stories out the OT that they would all be familiar with.
The feeding of Gentile widow in the days of Elijah.
And the healing of Namaan the Syrian.
They all believed in both of these stories, but the application Jesus made is where they parted. See if you have to understand the culture of the Jews at time. They hated the Gentiles, and even called them dogs. They believed that they alone were entitled to the blessing of God because of their position and heredity, instead of faith.
But Jesus was in essence reminding them that God responds to faith alone and not need. If the covenant people of God won’t believe him for the miraculous then he will go to people outside the covenant to those whom have faith and will meet their needs.
Folks we don’t like to hear this but just because we have right beliefs or doctrine this does not guarantee us a move of God; we must have faith in God.
Faith for the present.
Not faith in our way of life or in our privileged position. Could we be missing out because of this sense of entitlement?
And you see their response, they drove him away, even to the point of trying to murder him.
Threaded Mode
