Thursday, April 30, 2020

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.." - Luke 4:18-19 (NASB)


A portion of this passage from Isaiah 61:1-2 was recited by Jesus when He was in the Jewish temple at Nazareth, which was His boyhood home. 

The two versions of this passage are similar but read a bit differently; I will be referring to the Isaiah 61 passage, which gives us much more detail than the Luke 4 account.

Jesus begins with, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me.” Jesus is making a fantastic claim here; He is invoking the name of God “Yahweh” by saying that God does not only exist and reside in the heavenly realm but that God also resides upon Him in the form of His spirit which imbues the natural man. 

In other words, God is revealed in the triune form here, (Yahweh/God) the Father, the Holy Spirit (the spirit of the Lord God), and Jesus (the natural man).

The first time “Lord” is used in the first verse is the Hebrew word Adonai, which by definition, is a general recognition of superiority like a master, king, or Father. Adonai is a word used as a title of respect or honor.

The word “God” and the second “LORD” in the first verse are the same words, they are the word, Yahweh. 

It reads: “Yahweh has anointed me,” the word anointed means to smear, rub, or spread with oil, or to consecrate for a special purpose. Pouring oil over the head of a person was symbolic of the Holy Spirit poured out over a person revealing God’s peace.
  
“See how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters live together in harmony! 
It is like fine, scented oil on the head, running down the beard—down Aaron’s beard—running over the collar of his robes.” 
Psalm 133:1-2 (GW)

The special purpose of the anointing is to “proclaim,” to announce or speak out, to demonstrate with one’s voice the heart of the Lord. 

I have heard many people preach on the subject of Jesus reading the scrolls out loud in the temple, but I have never heard anyone speak on the topic that Jesus was anointed to “proclaim.” 

That is what the Holy Spirit does, He reveals the true heart of “Yahweh” the Father God to us, and we are exposed to God’s true character to proclaim it so that others may know His mercy. 

When you read the detail of Isaiah 61, you become aware that the tender mercies of God are on display.

“All praises belong to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he is the Father of tender mercy and the God of endless comfort. He always comes alongside us to comfort us in every suffering so that we can come alongside those who are in any painful trial. We can bring them this same comfort that God has poured out upon us.” 
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (TPT)

The purpose of the Holy Spirit upon the man Jesus is evident because God wanted everyone to know that He loves His creation through His proclamation. when Jesus spoke He began clearing the air and removing doubt, by speaking the truth about God’s loving character.
  
“So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” 
1 John 4:16 (ESV)

In the temple, Jesus stopped His recitation short before speaking out about “...the day of vengeance of our God.” I believe there is a lot of confusion regarding the vengeance of our God. In the context of this prophecy, the Lord is exalting and blessing the afflicted, not exacting retribution.

The Lord is revealing His heart and speaking of the good He is bringing to His people. The vengeance He is speaking of here is bringing an end to everything that prohibits the practice of love, for love is His true nature. His vengeance is going after anything that hinders love and replacing it with mercy.

Jesus demonstrates the proclamation of the Good News, which is declaring God’s tender mercy. The descriptive actions which follow are healing the wounds of those who possess a spirit of sadness or brokenness, and speaking from the heart of God to those held captive in the darkness of the prison of their minds that they are now truly set free to live.

“..all creation longs for freedom from its slavery to decay and to experience with us the wonderful freedom coming to God’s children.” 
Romans 8:21 (TPT)

One last proclamation which Jesus made before the priests in the temple is “to declare the favorable year of the Lord.” Jesus then rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue were gazing [attentively] at Him.

He then began to speak to them: “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled while you are present and hearing.”

As co-operators with God Himself, we beg you then not to fail to use the grace of God. For God’s word is—
‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, 
and in the day of salvation, I have helped you.’ 
Now is the “acceptable time,” and this very day is the “day of salvation” 
2 Corinthians 6:1-2 (PHILLIPS)

That is our service we offer to the Lord, to be proclaimers of the mercy that God has demonstrated toward us all.

Be Blessed;
Stephen Barnett

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