Luke 4:18 Amplified Bible (AMP)
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me (the Messiah),
Because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent Me to announce release (pardon, forgiveness) to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed (downtrodden, bruised, crushed by tragedy),to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord [the day when salvation and the favor of God abound greatly].”
One of the very first things that Jesus did as he begun His public ministry was to declare His mission and vision. This happened right after he came back from being tempted by the devil in the wilderness. He goes back to his hometown Nazareth and on the Sabbath, He goes to the synagogue where He is handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah to read and what He reads is our key scripture today.
After reading, He goes on to say “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing and in your presence.”
He came to preach the good news which was to announce to mankind that God had come to release us from the bondage of sin and to forgive us of our sins through the blameless sacrifice that was Christ. He had come to set us free from the oppression of the devil and to reconcile us back to our Father. Through that reconciliation, we who were once slaves, lost, blind and in bondage destined for death would now be fully restored as sons of God and we would get to enjoy all the benefits that come with that restoration.
When He hang on that cross as the lamb of God crucified, His body broken and His blood shed, He said it is finished and He gave up His spirit and He died.
Mission accomplished, what the Father had sent Him to do was now done, the price for sin was fully repaid and now we can become the sons of God through Christ.
Indeed, IT IS FINISHED.
Reflective Thoughts
What does the phrase “It is Finished mean to you?”
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From your answer above, what then should be your outlook towards life?
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What are some benefits of you being reconciled back to the father as a son?
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