Series: Isaiah
Title: Christ Declares His Work
Text: Isaiah 61: 1-3
Date: July 12, 2015
Place: SGBC, New Jersey
Our subject is “Christ Declares His Work.” Our text is the Lord Jesus Christ speaking. These are the words he read in the synagogue. After reading them, he said, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” (Luke 4:17-18, 21) In this passage Christ declares his work.
Isaiah 61: 1: The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek. He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. 2: To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3: To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Christ Jesus was anointed of God his Father, not only to be the gospel, not only to accomplish the work of the gospel, but also to preach the gospel and to make the gospel effectual in the hearts of his people.
CHRIST IS THE PREACHER
First, Christ declares that he is the preacher—Isaiah 61: 1: The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings…
Christ declares, “The Holy Spirit of the Lord God is upon me.” The Lord Jesus is God—one with the Father and the Holy Spirit—he is God, he is the Spirit of Christ. But he is also a real Man. To represent his people he became a real Man—the GodMan. So as the GodMan, Mediator, the Holy Spirit, was upon him to anoint him. When the Lord Jesus came up out of the water at his baptism John saw God anoint Christ with the Holy Spirit.
John 1: 32: And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33: And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 34: And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
Then Christ declares in our text why he was anointed. “because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings…” Christ sent the prophets, giving them the Holy Spirit, teaching them what to write and what to prophesy. In this gospel age, Christ sends forth his preachers, giving them the Holy Spirit, teaching them what to preach. But the LORD God anointed Christ to preach. And Christ has the Holy Spirit without measure, abiding upon him.
Hebrews 5: 4: And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. 5: So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.
Christ did not take this honor to himself. God chose and anointed Christ. This is why the Redeemer is called the Messiah, the Christ, because he was anointed by God with the oil of gladness above his fellows.
So Christ is sent “to preach good tidings.”—the gospel of Christ crucified. Christ is the Gospel. Christ is the Truth. But Christ is also the Preacher of the Gospel. This is why it is foolish to imagine false preachers are speaking by the Spirit of Christ. Christ is Truth. He preaches through the Spirit of Truth, who guides his people into all Truth.
This is what we declare when we preach that Christ is God’s Anointed Prophet, Priest and King for God’s chosen people. As High Priest. Christ is the Power and Wisdom of God, who entered into the Holy Place one time and redeemed his people from the curse of the law, making us eternally free from the law. As Prophet, Christ is the Power and Wisdom of God who preached his word when he walked this earth and who preaches now, as the gospel is preached by his earthen vessels. As King, Christ is the Power and Wisdom of God who sovereignly rules all providence in heaven and in earth, who brings his gospel to all his people in the world, and makes it effectual in our hearts. This is not only so of Christ when he walked this earth it is so right now. On the day of Pentecost, Peter said,
Acts 2:33: Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
While walking this earth, Christ chose eleven then seventy more and he is still sending his preachers today. He charges them—“Go ye into all the world, and preach—not politics, not morality, not current events—preach the gospel of Christ crucified to every creature!” Christ leads his preacher to his people or his people to his preacher. Christ does the true preaching and makes it effectual. We dare not deny Christ his glory as Prophet, Priest or King!
UNTO THE MEEK
Next, Christ declares who God sent him to preach unto—Isaiah 60: 1:...the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek.
In Luke’s gospel it reads “unto the poor.” Our text tells us who these poor, lowly, meek folks are: brokenhearted, captives, them that are bound, them that mourn with the spirit of heaviness—over what?—our sin!
The meek are people brought low in their thoughts of themselves; not proud and lifted up. They bow before the Lord in humility from a sense of their own insignificance, worthlessness, and sin. We saw last week, Christ said, “I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” We got any lowly, poor, needy sinners here today!
True preaching is not persuading men to do something for God; true preaching is proclaiming what God has done for men. God needs nothing from us. God says,
Ps 50:12: If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. 13: Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? 14: Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: 15: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
Telling sinners what they must do for God is not glad tidings! Glad tidings declares there is life for the lifeless, forgiveness for the transgressor, grace for the guilty, mercy for the miserable, salvation for sinners.
Do we have any true bona-fide sinners here today: who are nothing, deserve nothing and can do nothing to save yourselves? If so Christ has glad tidings for you!
BIND UP THE BROKENHEARTED
Christ declares what God sent him to do for real sinners—Isaiah 61: 1:…He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
I am told in Luke’s gospel, our translators included this, but it is not in the original. The Lord left it out when he read this passage in the synagogue in Nazareth. Why? At that point he had preached many times. Also, he had healed many people physically: the leper, the man sick of the palsy, the man with withered hand, Jarius’daughter, the woman with the issue of blood, many, many people.
But the majority followed him, not for the gospel he preached, but for physical miracles. So his countrymen felt he owed it to them to work those miracles in his own country.
Luke 4: 23: And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: [here is the meaning] whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country.
So he left this out. It is why he declared that God passed by many lepers and widows in Israel and healed those in Gentile nations—true sin-sick sinners!
Our Lord’s physical miracles were miracles but they are not nearly as miraculous as this spiritual miracle. He takes out of the heart of stone and gives a new heart—that is the miracle of all miracles. This is the binding up of a heart broken by sin, by God’s grace!
Ezekiel 11:19: I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: 20: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
The first step in salvation is for God to break our hard-stony-hearts of flesh revealing our sin to us. God sent David a preacher and convicted David in his heart “Thou art the man!” The result in Psalm 51 is David’s is broken because he sinned against God, brought reproach upon his Lord. He is praying for God to give him a new heart, a clean heart, forgiveness by grace.
Psalm 51: 15; O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. 16: For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. 17: The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
Christ is declaring that salvation is a heart work. Repentance and faith is a heart work. Has Christ broken your heart because of your sin? Spurgeon said, “Heart disease is Christ’s specialty!” Christ came to heal the brokenhearted. “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” (Ps 34: 18)
PROCLAIM LIBERTY
Christ says God sent him—Isaiah 61: 1:…to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.
You might think, “Preacher, we are not captives, we live in a free country!” But this speaks of a far worse spiritual captivity! Captivity under the curse of God’s broken law. Captivity under the wrath and justice of God! Do you know you broke God’s law in Adam? In yourself, the unbeliever is under the curse of the law and you cannot free yourself. The wages of sin is death and the law will hold you till that wage is paid in full! The justice of God demands full payment!
Here is the good news for those God has made to be real captive sinners.
Galatian 3: 13: Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
2 Corinthians 5:21: For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
On the cross Christ satisfied the justice of God. He paid the wages his people owed. Christ redeemed his people from the curse of the law.
Remember, Christ is the Prophet, Priest and King! As King and Prophet, through the preaching of the gospel, Christ himself PROCLAIMS this good news in the hearts of his redeemed making us to know effectually—“liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.”
A “proclamation” is not a suggestion. The Emancipation Proclamation was not a suggestion; it was the proclamation that the captives were free. So it is when Christ proclaims in our hearts, “liberty”—“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace”—he opens the prison and sets us free to serve him in newness of spirit. How we rejoice!
Free from the law Oh happy condition
Jesus has died and there is remission,
Cursed by the law, slain by the fall
Christ hath redeemed us once for all.
PROCLAIM THE YEAR OF JUBILEE
Christ declares God sent him to Isaiah 61: 2: To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD,…
“The acceptable year of the LORD” is the year of jubilee due to atonement made by Christ.
In the old covenant law God said the 50th year—was the year of jubilee. On the day of atonement a trumpet was to be blown proclaiming liberty to all slaves in Israel, proclaiming all their debts wiped cleaned, proclaiming all their property and possessions restored and proclaiming rest to the whole land.
Christ says God sent him to blow this gospel trumpet—proclaiming the acceptable year of the LORD—jubilee for my redeemed! Since Christ made atonement for the sin of his people, it is his glory to proclaim liberty to each of his redeemed who were slaves in sin, to proclaim all our debts wiped cleaned, to proclaim all our property and possessions restored more than we lost—eternal life, eternal righteousness, eternal redemption—and to proclaim rest in Christ to all his people.
THE DAY OF VENGEANCE
In the gospel, Christ also proclaims—Isaiah 61: 2: the day of vengeance of our God.
The gospel proclaims to every believer that God poured out vengeance on the cross. Christ triumphed over sin, Satan, death and hell. He spoiled them and made a show of them openly--“there is therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus.”
But for all who reject the gospel, the wrath of God abides on you. the vengeance of God awaits all who meet God outside of Christ.
2Thessalonians 1:7: And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 8: In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 9: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
Hear and heed Christ’s word, “All that believe shall be saved. And all that believe not shall be damned!”
EFFECTUAL CALLING
Christ declares that through his gospel Christ makes all of this effectual in his people—Isaiah 61: 2:…to comfort all that mourn; 3: To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them…
This is for his people—them that mourn in Zion—his church. His charge to his preachers is:
Isaiah 40: 1: Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2: Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.
Through the preaching of his gospel: Christ comforts, he appoints unto us, he gives unto us effectually. What does he give us?
Beauty for ashes. In the old testament, men put ashes on their heads to symbolize death. Christ gives us beauty—life; for ashes—for death.
The oil of joy for mourning. Christ anoints his child with the oil of the Holy Spirit, giving us joy for mourning. Therefore, we say with the Psalmist, “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” (Ps 23: 5)
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Christ takes away the garment of sackcloth and puts on the garment of his righteousness and his holiness—taking away our spirit of heaviness. “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness.” (Ps 30: 11)
How does Christ do all this? He does it preaching his gospel through his preachers making it effectual in our hearts. Why does Christ do all this for his people?—Isaiah 61: 3:…that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Amen!