Jesus Declares His Mission

Luke 4:16-30

GOLDEN TEXT: “For the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost.”—Luke 19:10

THE passage of Scripture read by our Lord from Isaiah’s prophecy was quite probably the stated lesson for that day, for it would appear that it was a custom of the Jews to have Scripture reading each Sabbath day, taking up various parts of the Law and the prophecies.

The lesson which our Lord read is readily identified as a Greek translation from Isaiah 61. He read the first verse, and the first part of the second verse, and then closed the book. How much of an explanation of the Scriptures He gave His hearers is not definitely told, but doubtless He commented liberally upon the various features of the prophecy, summing up His remarks with that which is recorded, namely, that the prophecy was in process of fulfillment at that very moment.

His audience apparently had mixed sentiments with respect to Him and His message. As they listened to His exposition of the prophecy they were filled with admiration—“And all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.” However, they were evidently not in an attitude of faith, not therefore in the proper attitude of heart to receive God’s blessing. The wrong condition of their hearts was manifested by their actions when our Lord refused to gratify their curiosity.

The effect of our Lord’s illustrations was almost electrical upon the proud hearts before Him, whose only interest apparently was a superficial pride in Him as a fellow-citizen, and the hope to see evidences of His wonder-working power. Their pride was now turned to bitterness and they were ready to murder the One who had spoken so disrespectfully of them. The congregation became a mob filled with angry passions and surging forth with Him, the crowd led in the direction of a precipice with a view to casting Him headlong from it. But by the exercise of some power, possibly a power natural to a perfect man, our Lord mastered them with His mind, and passed through their midst, and went on His way.

Let us note carefully the message which our Lord declared was in process of fulfillment that day. He declared Himself to be the Anointed One mentioned by the prophet—His anointing of the Holy Spirit dating from the time of His baptism, when John bore witness that the Holy Spirit descended upon and abode with Him. The anointing was for a purpose, as the prophet declared and our Lord confirmed the same, saying that He was anointed to preach the gospel.

Let us note this true gospel message which our Lord declared and which should be proclaimed by all who have been anointed with the Holy Spirit. It is divided by the Lord into five parts: (1) deliverance to the captives; (2) recovering of sight to the blind; (3) setting at liberty them that are bruised; (4) the announcement of the acceptable year of the Lord, as preceding these blessings; and (5) the announcement of a day of vengeance in the close or end of the acceptable year of the Lord This last part, although proper to be proclaimed by the anointed “body,” was not to he proclaimed by the anointed “Head” at the time of our Lord’s discourse. All mankind are captives, all are blind, all are bruised; hence it is announced in this Scriptural “Gospel” message.

Through disobedience the race was born in slavery, “born in sin, shapen in iniquity.” Some of the sin-enslaved race have already passed into the great prison-house of death, while all others are on their way thither. The good tidings which Jesus preached, and which all of His followers under the same anointing of the spirit must preach, is the resurrection of the dead, or as the apostle expressed his teaching, it is “Jesus and the resurrection.”—Acts 17:18

The blindness that is upon mankind, the “gross darkness” that covers the people in general, is described by the apostle as being the work of the great adversary, who has misrepresented the divine character and plan. Comparatively few blind eyes are opened during this present age—only the few now get the eye salve. But in the Millennial Kingdom the eyes of all shall see out of obscurity, and all shall know the Lord from the least even unto the greatest.

“To set at liberty them that are bruised,” gives the thought of sin’s captives sorely distressed by the manacles with which they are bound. This promise for their deliverance means restitution in active operation (Acts 3:19-21), thus lifting up the world of mankind during the Millennial age to all the glorious perfection of life which was lost for all through father Adam’s disobedience.

“The acceptable year of the Lord” is the Gospel age, which began, with our Lord’s consecration at His baptism, and His anointing of the Holy Spirit, and which will continue until the last member of the body of Christ has “filled up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ.” This age is called the acceptable epoch, because during this time God is willing to accept sacrifices for sin. First He accepted the sacrifice of His only begotten Son, our Lord, and secondly He has been accepting throughout the age, all those who come unto the Father through Jesus, and who, justified by His merit, present their bodies living sacrifices to God as a reasonable service. These thus become joint sacrificers with Jesus, and joint-heirs with Him in the coming Kingdom, as it is written, “Heirs of God, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together.”—Rom. 8:17

QUESTIONS:

What was Jesus’ purpose in reading Isaiah’s prophecy in the Synagogue at Nazareth?

Why did He not read all of the first three verses of Isaiah sixty-one?

How, and through whom is the latter part of this commission fulfilled?

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