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,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
[isaiah 61:1-2]
when Jesus came to be baptized by john the baptist, the heavens opened above him and the Spirit descended on him like a dove. this does not mean he didn’t have the Spirit prior, but this was a significant and special time of Jesus being anointed for his ministry. the path to redemption was to begin. his path to death on the cross was ready for him. in that moment, Jesus’ mission was clear. these things, as prophesied by isaiah hundreds of years earlier, were the reason he had come to earth.
- Jesus came to bring good news to the poor. – for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. [2 corinthians 8:9]
Jesus gave up everything, came as a helpless baby, and humbled himself to death on a cross. in doing so, he gave us hope of an eternity with him filled with inexpressible joy. this true treasure is good news for the poor!
- Jesus came to bind up the broken hearted. – now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. [2 thessalonians 2:16-17]
Jesus gives us eternal comfort and good hope through the healing power of his blood which he poured out for us. we are reconciled to the Father through him. we are made whole. nothing here on earth can break what has been restored through the grace of Christ. this healing is good news for the brokenhearted!
- Jesus came to proclaim liberty to the captives and to set the prisoner free. – do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? but thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. [romans 6:16-18]
Jesus gives us freedom from our own enslavement to sin. before we knew Christ, we willingly walked in our slavery. but he came for our year of jubilee! he bought us out of slavery, gave us freedom to know and love him, to walk in his ways, with a new name, a new heart, and a new purpose. we are his children, his righteous record now our own. this liberty is good news for the captives in bondage to sin!
- Jesus came to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. – and the angel said to them, “fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. and this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” and suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” [luke 2:10-14]
Jesus came to earth because God was pleased to reconcile his people to himself. God had promised all the way back in genesis 3, that he would send someone to fix what had been broken by sin. and he sent his only Son to fulfill this promise. to save those he loved. emmanuel, God with us, is good news to those who desperately need the Lord’s favor!
- Jesus came to proclaim the day of vengeance of our God. – then i saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. from his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. and i saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. then another book was opened, which is the book of life. and the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. and the sea gave up the dead who were in it, death and hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. then death and hades were thrown into the lake of fire. this is the second death, the lake of fire. and if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. [revelation 20:11-15]
Jesus said he came to earth with a sword that would divide the world. for those who would reject him as Savior, their sin would condemn them. but for those who would follow him, the sword meant total destruction of sin, death, and hell forever. Jesus will one day right every wrong, pouring out his wrath fully and finally on evil in the world. for those who rebel, this is devastating news. but this is very good news for God’s children, knowing that he is finally receiving the glory due his name!
- Jesus came to comfort all who mourn. – and i heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” [revelation 21:3-5]
Jesus’ blood poured out for us began a new age of victory. he began to make all things new. all things were put in subjection under his feet. for those who would be redeemed by his blood, this meant comfort beyond all comparison. we are filled with hope that one day, he will wipe away every tear from our eyes. no more sorrow or grief. no more sin. no more broken relationships. all made new. all made right. all made whole. this is good news for all who mourn!
in Luke 4, we see Jesus in the temple, reading this passage in isaiah. he then announced that this passage was fulfilled in himself. he had come to accomplish this mission from the Father, and through his death on the cross, he proclaimed all of these things perfectly to a world who had been waiting for hope for so long.
today, don’t miss the hope we have in Christ. he has come to set the captive free. sit in his presence and let him free you from all the world has burdened you with today!
come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and i will give you rest. – Jesus
~arwen eastman