And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
Luke 4:16-21; Isaiah 61:1-2a
At the very beginning of his public ministry Jesus sent a loud and clear signal regarding what his ministry would be about: Isaiah 61. He not only read 1.5 verses, but he announced those verses fulfilled in him. If you watch the Bible Project video above you will appreciate the three very Old Testament ideas presented in Isaiah 61: the garden (v. 11), the jubilee (v. 2), and the priesthood (v. 6).
Through an “anointed one” (Messiah) the Lord would restore the garden of Eden (now growing righteousness!), provide freedom, justice and restoration for God’s people (jubilee) and create a whole bunch of priests to serve the nations (not just a small tribe to serve the Jewish people).
All of these works of God are complete transformations.
“…To comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.”
Isaiah 61:2-4
The garden of Eden had become a pile of ashes, a place of death, disease and decay.
The jubilee God commanded his people to observe – setting captives free, ensuring justice and blessing for even the most downtrodden – had been abandoned, leaving people in generational poverty and unending slavery and oppression.
Even the priesthood was corrupt with hypocrisy and empty religion (see Isaiah 58).
But from those ashes and ruins God promised to bring new life, beauty, worship and righteousness. How? Through His Anointed One.
“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations.”
Isaiah 61:10-11
Jesus gives us a “robe of righteousness” – imputing His perfectly righteous life to all who put their faith in Him. This is what it means to be “justified”: declared righteous in Christ – “dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne.”
And Jesus makes His righteousness grow in us like a mustard seed that starts small but spreads and expands.
Come Sunday (June 18, 2023) to celebrate our Anointed One – the Lord Jesus Christ!