Liberty!
What does it meant to have true liberty? Man has argued that point for centuries, but could it be that they do not understand its true nature, and could it be that they do not understand that it is a gift from God?
16 So He came to
Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went
into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. 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 has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”
20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Luke 4:16-21, NKJV
Liberty!
Jesus read a portion of the Jewish Scripture from the book of Isaiah, and then calmly proclaimed, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." What did He mean?
It is interesting to note that the Jews were expecting a Messiah who
would come into Jerusalem and free them from Roman oppression, setting
up His throne in Jerusalem, not understanding that Jesus was not there
to just set up an earthly kingdom, but rather, Jesus came to free them
from the oppression of sin which was keeping them enslaved in Satan's
earthly kingdom!
How did Jesus bring this freedom? He brought this freedom to them by
preaching to them a Gospel of repentance, calling them to turn their
hearts to God. In just a few short years, the time would come when that
Gospel would be fulfilled through the Lord Jesus Christ's death, burial,
and resurrection! Dying for the sins of His people, all men who turned
to Him would be freed forever from the slavery of sin.
Even today, that Gospel is still to be proclaimed by God's people,
calling all men to repent of their sins and turn to Christ, for He alone
can provide true liberty. Does that mean that Christians do not sin?
No! It does mean, however, that when we turn from our sin we have an
Advocate, the Lord Jesus Christ, who comes between God and man. Man,
condemned by the wrath of God, has no hope apart from Christ, but in
Christ, we are covered by His precious blood.
Did the people of Jesus' day understand these things? No! Even His
disciples were left wondering. Only after the death and resurrection of
Christ did the disciples understand who Christ really was, and how He
fulfilled the thousands of prophecies about Him in the Old Testament
Scriptures.
We have a great advantage; we have the complete Scriptures at our
disposal. Yet, what good do the Scriptures do if we do not read and
study them? As children of God, let us lift up the banner of Christ on
high, and let us live and serve Him all of our days. This is our
calling! Even today, let us proclaim liberty to those who are held
captive by sin!
In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
here in the love of Christ I stand.
In Christ Alone lyrics by Stuart Townend, Keith Getty
That is our true calling in the Lord Jesus Christ! What an amazing God
we serve! Go, then, in the strength and power of the Lord, and live for
Christ today!
God Bless You,
Linda
Devotional Reflections from the Bible
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