PODCAST
Christ Our Pattern
October 6th, 2014
Isaiah 61:1-11
Jesus was immersed in the Hebrew scriptures. He was not only familiar with them, but by the time He began his ministry, He knew himself to be the subject of them. That is why, when the attendant in the synagogue in Nazareth gave Jesus the scroll of the prophet Isaiah (Luke 4:16-30), He found the passage we know as Isaiah 61. When Jesus began his comments on the passage, He stunned the gathered worshippers by claiming that they were witnessing, in His ministry the fulfillment of the prophecy.
When John, from his prison cell, sent some of his followers to Jesus to inquire whether He was the one they had been anticipating or whether they should be looking for someone yet to come, Jesus’ description of His work echoed that same passage (Matt. 11:1-19).
For Jesus, the work of God took on concrete, observable, and compassionate expression. It was not vague, theoretical, or philosophical. It was flesh-and-blood engagement with the most desperate needs of the people around Him.
Author: Jesse C. Middendorf
