Jesus has a great mission statement:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4:18-19)
You’ve got it all here – preaching, healing, liberating. This is enough to unite the Right and Left on a common mission to all those “out there” who need it! We immediately think of the homeless, disaster victims, welfare recipients, and the like.
The only thing is, this mission is not for those “out there”. It is for those “in here”. We forget that when Jesus targets the poor, the captives, the blind, and the downtrodden, he is targeting us.
Jesus is saying that all of us, rich or poor, healthy or sick, are “poor, captive, blind, and oppressed”. In our fallen sinfulness and brokenness those are our defining characteristics. And until we see ourselves in those terms, the gospel does not have much to offer us.
Think about when Jesus said that he had come, “to seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10). Who is he talking about? You and Me! If you want to be sought and saved by Jesus, you have to see yourself as lost.
That means we must stop pretending (minimizing our sin and need) or performing (justifying ourselves in a plethora of ways) and come to grips with our brokenness.
And as painful as this may be, consider what you get – “Good News”, “liberty”, “recovery of sight”, and “the year of the Lord’s favor”! In other words, all that God is for us in Christ!
Sound like just what this poor, captive, blind, and oppressed sinner needs!
The well wisher of your soul’s happiness,
Pastor Tom
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4:18-19)
You’ve got it all here – preaching, healing, liberating. This is enough to unite the Right and Left on a common mission to all those “out there” who need it! We immediately think of the homeless, disaster victims, welfare recipients, and the like.
The only thing is, this mission is not for those “out there”. It is for those “in here”. We forget that when Jesus targets the poor, the captives, the blind, and the downtrodden, he is targeting us.
Jesus is saying that all of us, rich or poor, healthy or sick, are “poor, captive, blind, and oppressed”. In our fallen sinfulness and brokenness those are our defining characteristics. And until we see ourselves in those terms, the gospel does not have much to offer us.
Think about when Jesus said that he had come, “to seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10). Who is he talking about? You and Me! If you want to be sought and saved by Jesus, you have to see yourself as lost.
That means we must stop pretending (minimizing our sin and need) or performing (justifying ourselves in a plethora of ways) and come to grips with our brokenness.
And as painful as this may be, consider what you get – “Good News”, “liberty”, “recovery of sight”, and “the year of the Lord’s favor”! In other words, all that God is for us in Christ!
Sound like just what this poor, captive, blind, and oppressed sinner needs!
The well wisher of your soul’s happiness,
Pastor Tom
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