Connect360: The Messiah Is on the Scene

• Lesson Five in the Connect360 unit “God Fulfills His Promises” focuses on Luke 4:14-30

Jesus began by declaring, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me” (4:18).

His audience understood the Holy Spirit descended upon individuals for a limited time, temporarily providing leadership, power or an ability.

For example, Gideon saved Israel by the Spirit’s indwelling (Judges 6:34–7:25), and the Holy Spirit left Saul following his rebellious disobedience (1 Samuel 16:14).

As they listened, Jesus’ friends and neighbors probably enjoyed the recitation, perhaps even acknowledging a similarity between Isaiah’s passage and Jesus. After all, he had a growing reputation as a rabbi from God (John 3:2).

Continuing the reading, Jesus declared Isaiah’s purpose: proclaiming “good news” (cf. the same root word in Luke 2:10).

Many Old Testament prophets foretold hardship; good news was sometimes unusual, but quite welcome.

Those to receive the good news are the “poor,” but not limited to those in financial or social difficulty.

The word is derived from the Greek ptosso, meaning “to crouch,” whether from fear or distress.

Meanwhile, Jesus’ audience may have mentally noted the “poor” they knew personally.

Jesus continued: “He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives.”

“Captive” can be interpreted as “prisoner of war,” or one “captured at spear point.”

Jesus’ audience certainly identified with this part of the message since they perceived themselves as prisoners of Roman occupation.

This passage blessed them with its timeliness, and they probably nodded vigorously in agreement, yet missed the deeper truth: humanity is imprisoned by sin (Romans 6:20; 7:23), something far more detrimental.

Isaiah’s message also promised “recovering of sight to the blind.”

The Gospels attest to specific moments later when Jesus healed physically blind eyes (Matthew 9:27–30; 12:22; Mark 10:46–52; Luke 7:22; John 9:1–7), and he may already have healed some with blindness since Matthew 4:23 reports, “He went throughout all Galilee … healing … every affliction among the people.”

Perhaps his audience marveled at the similarities between Jesus’ publicized acts and this ancient passage.

But it’s doubtful they recognized the blindness mentioned here could be the inability to “see” sin the way God does. Jesus knew he would give sight to those who can’t find their way in the darkness of depravity.

Isaiah’s next announcement was to liberate (i.e. “forgive” or “release”) the “oppressed,” a word connoting a bruised or broken heart or body (e.g. grief, depression, or demon possession).

However, he wasn’t merely proclaiming liberty, he was providing liberty.

Lastly, Isaiah’s passage determined: “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:19).

This harkened to the year of jubilee described in Leviticus 25:39–41, wherein every fifty years, servants of indebtedness should be freed and debts erased.

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