What is the Gospel? Such a simple and yet complex question today in a world where the gospel often gets hijacked by extreme variations of subjective emotionalism.
A passage from Isaiah that was spoken to a people facing devastation and captivity, a time of hope deferred.
Jesus uses this very passage as his introductory sermon to his ministry in Luke. This is His work.
These are the words I want to leave you with.
HOPE looks like this…
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
Isaiah 61:1-3
This hope is the extension of comfort, healing, freedom, and transformation and not just an outward transformation of a headdress that is worn but the spirit is also altered by this good news. Who receives this hope, it is to the poor, the imprisoned, those suffering physically, mentally, and emotionally. Remember the extension of grace that is offered not because we are good people but because God sees the marginalized, the suffering, and the outcast and extends His hands toward us.