Luke 4:18
Dive Deeper
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”
Luke 4:18
Behind the Scenes
This is one of my more favorite passages. Jesus returns to His hometown of Nazareth in Galilee and is with a crowd at the temple on the Sabbath. He stands to read from the scroll of Isaiah, a practice that was very common in that time. I can imagine the people waiting patiently, His hands delicately unfolding the parchment paper and spreading it out before Him. He specifically scans down the scroll to what would later be labeled as Isaiah 61 and begins to read.
This passage would have been one often read; one they were familiar with. No one would have thought twice about His selection of this passage. Until He finishes. Today’s passage continues in verses 20-21 and it says, “And He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all the people in the synagogue were intently directed at Him. Now He began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’” That would have raised a few eyebrows!
Can you imagine? This man who had grown up among them, who they remembered playing in the streets as a boy, this man now returns to them and makes this bold statement. Some were amazed and excited, others were angry and put off. Jesus, their Jesus, had just made a proclamation that He was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. He had boldly stated it as fact, not up for debate. Can you imagine the hush that would have filled the room before whispers and murmurs invaded? The tension was probably palpable!
Make it Real
What I love so much about this passage is that Jesus knew exactly who He was and why He was there. And He wasn’t afraid to proclaim it. He didn’t hold back, afraid of what people would think. There in the midst of everyone He had so much history with, He makes this incredible proclamation, declaring exactly who He is. He just lobs it out there for them, take it or leave it. He doesn’t apologize. He doesn’t tip-toe around it. He doesn’t try to frame it in a way that would make it more appealing. He just states it, plain and simple.
I truly believe that Jesus was able to come in human form and accomplish all that He did because He wasn’t weighed down with insecurity or doubt. He didn’t question who He was or why He was there. He knew exactly who He was and lived it out every day. Any shred of doubt or fear would have been contrary to who He was at the core. As God in the flesh, He walked in confidence, set on a course that He chose, for the people He loved so much!
You and I do not have the benefit of being God in the flesh, nor do we have all heavenly wisdom and insight to draw from like Jesus did. But we can walk in confidence like He did, knowing who we are… or should I say whose we are. See one of the reasons that Jesus could so boldly proclaim the good news is that He knew He belonged to the Father. And we can have that same confidence!
Like Jesus, we have been called by God to proclaim the good news, to proclaim all that Jesus has done. We, like Jesus, were born with a mission. We have a higher calling on our lives that is rooted in our identity in Christ. We belong to Him and from Him we can draw every ounce of identity, security, and hope we could ever need.
But all too often we look to the world around us to tell us who we are. We let other’s opinions of us define us and dictate when or what we speak. We shy away from our calling, afraid that perhaps others might reject us, revile us, or leave us. And when our eyes are off the One who called us, we become fearful and shy, always afraid to say or do the wrong thing.
This is not what God wants for us, friends! He wants us to look to Him alone for our strength, our identity, and our purpose. Because He never changes and He never fails. Like Jesus, when we have our identity firmly rooted in the truth of God, we can walk boldly into the world proclaiming the Good News in all we do!
Crystal Garnett
ACF Digital Discipleship Pastor
End in Prayer
Jesus,
Help me to live like You. Teach me to reject every outside voice that would try to find a hold on my identity and my peace. I want to be defined by You alone, but honestly, I don’t even know exactly what that looks like. But I know You do. So please guide me and show me how to sluff off the opinions of others, how to reject the definitions of this world, and to push away the doubt that so easily tries to invade. I want You and You alone. Help me to take a step in the right direction today. Please show me one area where I am believing lies about who I am and help me to replace it with Your truth. And then, Lord, please keep showing me those lies. I want only You and only Your truth.
In the name of Jesus Christ,
Amen