Luke 4:18-19 – “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”   NKJV

As I begin this devotional, I urge everyone to remember that Jesus is our example and pattern for life and ministry. He said that what He did, we would do, and even greater works because He was going to the Father. The Holy Spirit has come to empower us!

The Gospel is called “The Good News” for a reason.  If all I heard about the Gospel was how difficult it is to live a Christian life and the fiery judgment of God if we sin or how we go from one struggle to the next in life once we become Christians, I would probably pass. 

Not that those things do not have validity and an element of truth in them, but Jesus did say, “My yoke is easy and My burden light.”  He did say, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  He did say, “That once I have departed, I will send the Comforter (The Holy Spirit) to be your Helper.”  So, even though we face difficult times, it is still Good News that He preached, we receive, and are to share with the World!

Notice Jesus’ quote or reading from the Prophet Isaiah concerning the coming Messiah:

1. The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me…

If nothing else were said, that would be enough.  If you have ever experienced the incredibleness of having the Holy Spirit Upon you, then you understand the impact of this statement.  It goes beyond human explanation, and this is one of those things that is genuinely better felt than telt, as an old preacher used to say in East Texas.

• Because He has ANOINTED Me TO…

The anointing has a purpose, not just to make us feel good or impress people around it.  God has a purpose in granting His anointing, and there is always ministry in view when the anointing comes.

• Anointed to preach “The Gospel to the Poor.”   The Good News to the Poor.  It is not good news to tell the poor that you will always be poor and there is no hope of achieving a better status in life, but God loves you.  Somehow, that would have the same sound as rain on a tin barn and be nothing more than a tinkling cymbal or a sounding brass.  NO!  The Good News is that “in Christ,” you can break free from poverty!  You can break free in every dimension of life.

• Sent to HEAL the Broken Hearted.  The Good News to the Broken Hearted is that this is not your ultimate state.  Your heart can be healed.  Your brokenness can become rejoicing.  Your disappointments can be transformed into reasons for optimism and joy.  That is Good News!

• To PROCLAIM Liberty to the Captives.  The Good News is that you do not have to remain captive or enslaved in any situation or to anything.  The Gospel Message is one of Deliverance and Hope!  It is not some political hype. It is a reality in Jesus.  Jesus came to set you Free.  Free from sin, free from bondage, free from hang-ups, free from addictions, and free from attitudes that destroy.  Freedom is part of the Good News!

• Recovery of sight to the Blind.  That is Good News!  If you are blind, you can see!  Some insist this does not include the natural, but I am not willing to relegate it to the spiritual.  However, I know that even if you do not recover your natural sight, you can gain more sight or insight than most seeing people. Most assuredly, you will achieve Spiritual Sight and walk out of your blindness into spiritual freedom and opportunity.

• To set at Liberty those who are oppressed.  This is almost a repeat of number three, but it identifies the Good News: if you are under the oppression of the devil, circumstances, finances, health, or whatever, there is Hope.  That is a message of Good News.

• And finally, to Proclaim the Acceptable Year of the Lord.  Wow!  Today is the day of Salvation.  The Jews had a year of Jubilee in which everything was restored, and here Jesus identifies that in Him we have Jubilee!   That is Good News!

I sometimes wonder why we fail to focus on these points in our presentation of the Good News of the Gospel.  The term “Good News” carries the image of a lamb skipping and leaping for joy, which is how our hearts should respond to the Gospel Message!

So, no matter what you face today, know that Jesus came to bring us The Gospel – – Good News!  So, rejoice in that Good News and allow it to penetrate your spirit and become such an integral part of your makeup that it oozes out and touches those around you.

May God Bless you richly is my prayer!