THE GOOD NEWS FROM JESUS – Part 3 conclusion

Luke 4:18-21 (New Living Translation)

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.” … “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

 

In his earthly ministry, Jesus did heal a number of blind people. However, his message here is addressing spiritual blindness – an inability to see and understand God’s plans and purposes for the world and for our individual lives.

When Jesus states that he has come so the ‘oppressed will be set free’ – the people felt he meant he was going to deliver them from Roman conquest, but as always Jesus was referring to spiritual oppression. A condition that involves wicked Satanic domination over a person’s spirit, sometimes in the form of demonic possession.

The good news for those who heard him read that passage from Isaiah, and to us, is indeed that the time of God’s favor has come through Jesus, and He is destroying the wicked works of the Devil. How can we enjoy this favor from God?

Apostle Paul states in Romans 10:13 (NLT) that whether Jews or Gentiles “Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.” 

FREEDOM from Satanic captivity resulting in ungodly habits, and eyes to understand God’s loving plans and purposes, is now available to us through Jesus. Speak with Jesus in sincere persistent prayers today, asking for freedom and spiritual enlightenment. May the Lord answer your prayers speedily, Amen!

 

Image: Praying Hands (Wikimedia)

 

THE GOOD NEWS FROM JESUS – Part 1

Luke 4:16-21 (New Living Translation)

When he [Jesus] came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.”

He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he [Jesus] began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

 

The above passage is about Jesus introducing his ministry to the people after his 40 days fasting and being tempted by Satan in the wilderness. This is Jesus laying out the five big goals behind the work he will do while he walked on Earth. Let’s consider the first of these in today’s blog – “bring Good News to the poor.” 

Let’s start with the bad news – at creation, Adam was given rulership over the Earth, to rule under the guidance of God. Satan dethroned Adam, gaining authority and power over the Earth, including over our bodies, our soul, and our spirit. Satan uses this power to strongly influence every human person to live ungodly lives.

So, what is the good news?

It is that Jesus has set up the kingdom of God on Earth, side by side with the kingdom of Satan. Jesus has invaded the Earth and is forcefully establishing his own area of authority and power over our spirit, soul, and eventually our bodies. I can now choose to follow Jesus and live under the resurrection power of the kingdom of God.

Believing in Jesus, joining a Church, and diligent study of the Bible to understand God’s character, is how we join the kingdom of God. When God is satisfied with the number of people who have entered into the kingdom of God, this world will end, and a new world made up of only members of kingdom of God, ruled by Jesus, will begin.

This is the good news in summary. Are you in or out? Holy Spirit, please give us all a clear view of the good and beautiful kingdom of God, Amen!!!

 

Image: A street painter’s drawing of Jesus (Wikimedia)

WHEN THE TROUBLES OF LIFE ARE TOO MUCH TO BEAR!

 

Genesis 24:67 (New Living Translation) – And Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and she became his wife. He loved her deeply, and she was a special comfort to him after the death of his mother.

John 14:15-17 (New Living Translation) – “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate [Comforter, Encourager, and Counselor], who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.

 

Despite the wealth of Isaac, son of Abraham, when his mother Sarah died, he needed a comforter. Like Isaac, there will be times and seasons in our lives when the troubles of life seem too much to bear; in those times, some seek comfort in food, alcohol, drugs, shopping, careless sex, and even in violence against others.

We reach out to a comforter or comforting experience because we are in pain, we are hurting, and are struggling to cope or overcome what troubles us.

Jesus understood this, and spent much of his time being a comforter to those who were hurting and looked to him for solutions. Towards the end of his time physically living with us on Earth, Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit will come, and the major part of his work, will be to comfort, encourage, and counsel us.

As Christians, we experience good times and bad times – loss of a job or family member, ill health, difficult times with our studies, false accusations by close acquaintances, race based stress in society, broken homes – I could go on and on. What makes us different is that we have a comforter from God to help us overcome our setbacks.

As Christians, in times of troubles, we need to take time out to pray to God, asking for the comforter, the Holy Spirit to help us overcome, asking the Holy Spirit to give us strength and wisdom to keep going until we emerge out of the darkness into light.

Don’t let the troubles of life destroy you, ask the Holy Spirit for help, ask shamelessly and persistently, and he will answer, Amen!  

 

Image: Rock climbing California (Source: Wikimedia)

HEALING BY REMOTE CONTROL

Proverbs 3:5-8 (God’s Word Translation)

Trust the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths smooth. Do not consider yourself wise. Fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. [Then] your body will be healed, and your bones will have nourishment.

In high school, I never cared much about my health. I was young, very well-fed, and strong. I could do whatever I wanted with my body. As a young adult, I was involved in work that required long hours of standing, long walks in the forest, and short hours of sleep in rough places. I could do all of this, get up the next morning, dust my body, and off I go to punish the body some more.

Now entering middle age, my body does not seem to recover as fast anymore from bruises, aches, pains, and short hours of sleep. I watch my steps when going up and down stairs, and when on wet surfaces. When it snows, I don’t want to go to the office, pick the kids up from school, or go grocery shopping. My health and concern for my body is now a top priority issue on my mind every day.

Consequently, the words of Solomon above have taken on a huge significance in my life as I have gotten older. How can it be that trusting in the LORD, giving ear to his counsel to turn away from evil, results in healing for my body and nourishment for my bones? What kind of technology and medical practice is this? My rational scientific mind fails to see the connection between faith and healing.

Then I asked myself ‘how come I can press the remote control and watch any program or movies I like on TV?’ To be honest I can’t fully explain how the remote control works. I know there are experts out there who can break it down for me to understand; but to me and billions of people around the world, it’s like magic, it’s like spirit in motion, when using the remote control to navigate the TV.

If God be given due respect as creator of all things including our bodies, then it is not too much to acknowledge that God must have a remote link with our bodies, such that at his word, our physical bodies including our bones receives nourishment, which our eyes just cannot see.

I know for that when I fast and pray on a regular basis, I am able to stay off junk food; I sleep better and physical activities seem lighter to perform. My energy levels stay high without need for energy drinks. There must be truth and power in this Bible passage, and it’s available for you too. Trust in the LORD, turn away from evil, and experience healing by remote control for your entire person.

 

Image: Christ heals the daughter of the woman of Canaan. Etching by Simpson after Samule Wale [CC BY 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons]