The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord‘s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn… —Isaiah 61:1-2a
Jesus read this passage at a synagogue in Nazareth to define his ministry (Luke 4:14-19). He came to preach good news for the poor, to bind up the broken, to announce freedom for those who were captives, to bring deliverance from the powers of darkness to the prisoners of addiction and evil, to proclaim grace because of God’s favor, and to offer comfort to those grieving. Jesus also made clear God had a sharp edge to his justice, settling the score with those who were exploiters and abusers of the powerless. Since Jesus has sent us into the world as the Father sent our Savior (John 20:21-23), shouldn’t our mission be to do something similar to what our Lord did?.