The Perfect Work of the Messiah

Isaiah 61:1-2a
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor…”

As we get closer to the celebration of our Lord and Savior’s birth, I’m reminded of His mission as “God in flesh among us.” Jesus read this passage in the temple as it was written in Luke 4. Luke 4:14 says, “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee…” So, full of the Holy Spirit of God, Jesus makes a bold claim as the Messiah. He came to:

1)  “…The Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.” Because sin separated us from God, God provided good news of the Gospel to us who are poor in spirit because we were burdened with sin and the frustration of a life without God.

2)   “He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted…” The broken hearted, have been broken because of sin in this world. We suffer heartaches a lot in this fallen world, but when Jesus comes into our life, He is the perfect healer who heals all of our broken hearts. We may from time to time experience a broken heart for things that happen to us, but Jesus comes in to bind up those broken hearts. And one day when we are with Him forever, there will be no more broken hearts.

3)  “He has sent Me…to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” We were once held captive by sin, but Jesus has given us our liberty once and for all and forever. Whom the Son has set free is free indeed. (John 8:36) The confinement and condemnation of sin no longer has a hold on us. We ARE the fulfillment of Jesus’s prophecy 2000 years later.

4)  “To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” You and I have found that favor. Yes, we can walk back into bondage and sit in the spirit of lack once again if we choose, but why would we choose to do that? If we live in His favor and have been freed from guilt and shame, then we need to show proof by the deeds we do and the fruit we bear. We have His Favor bubbling over in our lives.

***Jesus stopped reading Isaiah 61 and the beginning of verse 2 because the rest of the prophecy concerns the end time work of the Messiah. Jesus wanted to reveal His work at this time in His life but not reveal the end time work.

Prayer:
Father, thank you for sending Your Son, “God with us”, to lead us out of darkness and condemnation and set us free. We are free in Jesus, and today we choose to worship You in that anointing and freedom that we experience everyday through Your Son. In Your name Mighty God, Amen!