JESUS CAME WITH A GLORIOUS POWER AND PURPOSE -FOR US….

 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”- Luke 4:18-19

 Jesus took the book of Scripture and read this prophecy and said afterwards this prophecy had been proclaimed in their sight. He is whom the prophet Isaiah referred to! He had come to heal the Great damage sin does! To do so needs a Great Savior and Great redemption and Jesus is that One.

JESUS CAME TO…

1. – “PROCLAIM GOOD NEWS TO THE POOR”– it is “spiritual poverty” that is in mind here. The word,”poor,” is “ptochos, “it comes from a verb that means “to cringe” “to shrink back,” or “to cower.” It is the used of a beggar, cringing in the shadows.In Classical Greek, it was used  of a person who was totally destitute, who was crouched in a corner, begging, in need of someone outside of themselves to meet their need! It was used of a beggar who would put one hand over his face to cover himself from being recognized due to the shame he felt and with the other hand held out for help! This person is totally destitute, totally bankrupt, dependent on others to meet their need, at their mercy. The LORD Jesus came to proclaim good news to the spiritually bankrupt and spiritually impoverished. Having no means within them to be right with God. Totally bankrupt spiritually we all are and He has come to proclaim good news for our spiritual poverty!

2. – “PROCLAIM FREEDOM FOR THE PRISONERS”- To those who are spiritually imprisoned, shackled, mastered by sin,under the dominion of darkness, satan. The word “Freedom, or as some translations use”release” is to proclaim release, “aphesis,” and the word “aphesistranslated,” “release” really has the idea of forgiveness. People were put in prison because they had committed some offense and were been punished for it. Here Jesus is speaking of spiritual prisoners who are in bondage to guilt, shame, sin and the consequences, waiting to be executed .They are incapable of freeing themselves! No human can free them. Their condition is impossible outside of Jesus!  These are captives, “aichmalotos,” which literally means prisoners. It was used to speak of prisoners of war. Enslaved and in many cases unaware, unable to free themselves or to be freed by any other outside of  the LORD Jesus! Jesus came to liberate them!

3. – “RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND”-
To those who are spiritually blind to God, the things of God, whose senses are darkened, depraved, who cannot seem understand the spiritual realities about God and the things of God. Hopelessly blind. They cannot see the glory of God apart from God granting spiritual sight through. Jesus is God’s gift to open they eyes of the blind!

” Spiritual blindness is commonly discussed in the Bible. It is natural to fallen man. Psalm 82:5, “They do not know nor do they understand. They walk about in darkness.” Jeremiah 5:21, “Hear this now, O foolish people without understanding, who have eyes and see not, and who have ears and hear not…” This is the state of the unconverted. “The natural man understands not the things of God, he can’t know them, he can’t understand them,” “because they’re foolishness to him.” So naturally, just by virtue of being a fallen sinner, the sinner is blind. Judicially, another category of blindness, he’s also blind because God has blinded him. John 12:40, “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn and be healed,” and that’s quoted from Isaiah 6. So God literally judicially blinds. So here is the natural mind blind to start with, then God compounds his blindness by sentencing him to blindness for a punishment for his sin. Isaiah 29:10, “The Lord has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep and has closed your eyes.”

A man is further blinded by Satan. He’s blinded naturally. He’s blinded judicially by God. He’s blinded satanically. Second Corinthians 4, “Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded.” So we’re talking about very, very comprehensive blindness. Blind naturally, blinded further by God judicially, blinded further by Satan who has blinded the eyes of those who don’t believe.

And then Romans 1 says this is the reason that when we know God we don’t honor Him as God and our foolish hearts are darkened. There are many other passages along that line. So the sinner is seen as a blind person…can’t see, can’t know the truth. That’s why you can take the greatest scientists in the world, you can bring them together, let them fuss around forever trying to discuss origins or anything else for that matter that relates to the creator God, that relates to the supernatural dimension and they are utterly unable to come to the right answer…to say nothing of salvation. The natural man cannot solve the dilemma of his blindness spiritually on his own. John said, “Unbelievers hate the light,” John 3:19 and 20, “because their deeds are evil and they love their evil deeds.- “John Mac Arthur

4. – “TO SET THE OPPRESSED FREE.”
– The word means, “shattered,” or “broken in pieces.” Lives that are shattered, broken lives, for these HE CAME Those who are under the tyranny of satan, sin, without liberty and hope,- He came for these ones. Shattered lives, people who are broken by sin. Jesus came to liberate and make them whole spiritually!

5. – “TO PROCLAIM THE YEAR OF JUBILEE” – {Read Leviticus 25:8-12.} Once every so many years- fifty- a trumpet would sound and those who were in debt had it wiped clean, those who were in slavery were released and could return to their families. Lands were restored to their original owners. JESUS IS THE JUBILEE for the spiritually bankrupt, prisoners, blind and oppressed!

 Spiritual Freedom is found in a Person not an Event!

JESUS CAME and JUBILEE -LIBERTY , TRUE FREEDOM is now found in a PERSON not an event, BUT IN CHRIST THE LORD-THIS MOMENT!

 Jesus Came, not only to Proclaim deliverance, or even to deliver but He Himself  to be our Deliverance! He is the Power to set the captives free!

The spiritual condition for all was and is spiritually hopeless outside of Christ- and yet in Galatians 4 we read, “in the fullness of time God sent forth His Son…” Jesus was sent. Jesus willingly, gladly and with purpose came, to do the will of His Father and to proclaim Jubilee to the souls of mankind. Jesus is “THE Way, THE Truth, THE Life….”

Oh COME LET US ADORE HIM!

Let us go forth with confidence to proclaim JESUS our Jubilee! “Unto us a Child is Born, unto us a Son is GIVEN…”

PEOPLE need the LORD. People need to hear the good news of why He came. Look again at Luke 4:18-19 and why He came… and pray and seek to share the good new with someone!

PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY;

A. – COME TO JESUS IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO, YIELD YOURSELF, YOUR SIN THE AUTHORITY OF YOUR LIFE TO HIM. TELL HIM AND BY FAITH DO SO. HE WILL TAKE YOU AND LIBERATE YOU FROM THE INSIDE OUT.

B. – CELEBRATE JESUS CHRIST AND HIS WORK ON YOUR BEHALF. SPECIFICALLY THANK HIM FOR THE FIVE REASONS HE CAME FROM THIS VERSE.

C. -TAKE A 3 BY 5 CARD AND WRITE LUKE 4:18-19 ON IT. CARRY WITH YOU AND WHEN APPROPRIATE READ IT WORD FOR WORD, PHRASE FOR PHRASE AND MEDITATE UPON IT

D. -FAMILIARIZE YOURSELF WITH THE ABOVE VERSES TO SHARE WITH SOMEONE FOR ETERNITY’S SAKE!