The prophecies of Isaiah and Jesus Christ: The captives are the answer. We read Isaiah 61:1-7. Then look again at the end of verse 3:
They will be called oaks of righteousness, They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities… foreigners will work your fields and vineyards. And you will be called priests of the Lord, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast. Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.”
So who is Isaiah and Jesus (see Luke 4:17-19) talking about in these verses? We just have to look back on the previous verses…
Who were the poor, who were the brokenhearted, the captives, the prisoners, those who mourn, and those who grieve? You and me! Look at the transition on Isaiah 61 verse 3. Before we knew Christ, we were poor, we were broken-hearted, we were captives, we were prisoners, and we were the mourners. God wants to restore us. And when we receive Jesus Christ into our hearts, we become the key to the restoration of the world.
“We will be called oaks of righteousness, We will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated;they will renew the ruined cities… foreigners will work our fields and vineyards. And we will be called priests of the Lord, we will be named ministers of our God. we will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches we will boast. Instead of our shame we will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace we will rejoice in your inheritance. And so we will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be ours.”
The prophecy in Isaiah 61 and in Luke 4 is for us…now! Do not believe to the lies of the enemy that you cannot make a difference in someone’s life. Do not lose your confidence that you have nothing to offer to humanity. You are a threat to the kingdom of darkness and the enemy! If we are followers of Jesus Christ, we will be contributors to the restoration of our neighborhoods; we will be a part of the resurrection of the society, we will be a part of reformation of our government and we are a part of bringing heaven here on earth! We are called to bring transformation to our cities! This is because we received healing from Jesus Christ.
Is Jesus your Lord? In other words, are you a follower of Christ? Does your lifestyle reflect the values of the Kingdom of God? Does Jesus have authority over you? Does He influence your actions and emotions? Is He your King, and your Lord – not just your Savior?
Now, do you view your salvation merely as a means to being rescued from sin? In other words, do you just wait until Jesus comes back so you can go to heaven when you die? No! We are like the Jews who were in exile to Babylon. We are in exile to earth. We are aliens here on earth. God has bigger plan for us while we are here on earth. Jesus has assignments for us while we are here on earth – to heal the sick, to bring comfort to those who mourn and to free the captives. Our final destination is heaven. So do not lose sight while we are in exile here on earth.
Our salvation is not meant only for us to be saved but for us to be a part of the fulfillment of the promises of God. As Christians and followers of Jesus Christ, we have the most important privilege to work with the Holy Spirit to change the world. We are called to be history makers.
The next time you see the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the prisoners, those who mourn, and those who grieve, you are looking at your potential team members of restoration. Do not forget them. They, (the broken people), are the keys to restoration of our world as you and I! The broken are part of our team in the future! That’s why Jesus said in the Sermon at the mount in Matthew 5:3-6,
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
image source: Captives of the Assyrians. From the palace of Sennacherib, approx. 680 b.c.e. (ref. 2kings 18:13-14)
