Isaiah 61 Sunday 3 rd February

Isaiah 61:1-2a The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour, and the day of vengeance of our God

Isaiah 61 Previously… Isaiah is prophesying to the Jews, who are going to be captive in Babylon Their history is one of freedom from slavery when Moses lead them out of Egypt Eventually they take possession of the land God had promised them Gods law is established: Keep the law: God blesses you Follow the law and there will be no poverty

Isaiah 61 Previously… God’s principles to stop poverty: If you did become poor you could sell your property or even yourself as a slave This is not like the slavery the Jews knew in Egypt: On the 7 th year the slaves are set free Neither were they to permanently sell the land that God had given them: Every 50 years not only are the slaves released but all land returns to its owner This is the year of Jubilee

Isaiah 61 Previously… God’s people fail to do this At the time of Isaiah 10 tribes had been forced out of the promised land leaving just 2 Despite Isaiah’s call, they fail to repent And the result is the exile to Babylon God reminds them of their history and Isaiah proclaims liberty to the captives; the year of the Lords favour When they return to God’s land they are never fully free This is the context into which Jesus says he is the fulfilment of Isaiah 61

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming Favour and Vengeance to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour, and the day of vengeance of our God What is it to proclaim something? Proclaiming the year of the Lords favour Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of our God

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? Hebrew: קרא (qârâ) Greek: κηρ ύ σσω (kērussō) To preach; to proclaim; to be a herald; always with a suggestion of formality, gravity, and an authority which must be listened to and obeyed When a proclamation is made, action results

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? Example Ezra 1: The proclamation of Cyrus

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? Example: Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation which freed millions of slaves in 1863

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? So when you proclaim something you speak it into being Genesis 1 Psalm 29 The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; The voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, “Glory!”

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? When God speaks things happen Luke 4: Jesus reeds Isaiah 61 in the Temple “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 favour.”

Isaiah 61:2 What is it to PROCLAIM something? 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.” Jesus speaks, he proclaims, and the prophecy is fulfilled God works this out through the church That Jesus sets people free from slavery to sin John 8:34-36 This is the gospel that God proclaims through his church This is the gospel that we proclaim

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the year of the Lords favour How do we proclaim the Year of The Lords favour? Jesus proclaimed it we live it, we are evidence of it Ephesians 2:4-10 God’s grace has set us free from the slavery of sin

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the year of the Lords favour

Liverpool Single Men’s Centre The mission of the Centre: “To provide long term accommodation for vulnerable single men who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless and have a range of needs including mental health and alcohol issues. The centre provides a safe and secure environment with support to enable them to live independently within the centre and the local community.”

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the year of the Lords favour This house was restored, it was saved, for a purpose Not just so it would look nice, like some stately home We are saved for a purpose Not just so we can have nice lives; So we feel better about ourselves But to bring glory to God He has chosen you to usher in his kingdom

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the year of the Lords favour How do we proclaim the Year of The Lords favour? We preach We live it

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God What is the day of vengeance of our God? Isaiah 63:1b-6 Gods righteousness means his enemies are crushed Isaiah’s original audience would not have separated the year of favour from the day of vengeance Their history shows that with release from slavery, comes God’s judgement against his enemies Exodus 1-14

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God What is the day of vengeance of our God? So the Jews were expecting the Messiah to set them free from slavery and to crush their enemies why does Jesus stop at the year of favour in Mark 4?

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God Because at this point this is what he has come to proclaim “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me… to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.” “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” What Jesus audience should have been shocked at was that he stopped there

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God Instead what shocked them is what he said next That he had come to heal the world: From slavery; to sin And so for that reason there is a delay That allows God’s plan for salvation to be worked out Through his church

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God But Jesus is coming back Matthew 25:31-46 Which means the day of vengeance is still to come Which means that Christ’s church proclaims the day of vengeance as well as the year of favour

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God Mission Impossible?

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God No Its Mission Isaiah 61 This is GOOD NEWS

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God We live in a world that cries out for Justice

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God And it means that we are living in the year of favour It means that we have been set free from slavery to sin Jesus proclaims the year of favour The year of favour Jesus proclaims day of vengeance Eternity

Isaiah 61:2 Proclaiming the day of the vengeance of God The church ushers in God’s Kingdom The completion of our mission brings Jesus return and the day of justice, when all God’s enemies will be judged against the righteousness of God And the trumpet will sound And the dead will be raised The mortal will put on immortality And those Jesus has saved will spend eternity with him

Isaiah 61:2 Summary to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour, and the day of vengeance of our God To proclaim is to bring into existence Jesus has proclaimed the year of the Lords favour We are proclaiming the day of the vengeance of our God

Isaiah 61:2 Summary This is Mission Isaiah 61

Isaiah 61:2 Summary This is Mission of Christ’s worldwide Church

Isaiah 61:2 Summary This is the Mission of Jubilee Church Coventry This is OUR MISSION to Coventry