Thursday, February 7, 2019
Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me . . . to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and . . . to release the oppressed.
FOR SIN-CHAINED PRISONERS . . . SWEET FREEDOM!
Another way the work of Jesus is described by Isaiah: He was chosen by His Father to be the One through whom prisoners would be granted freedom and liberty.
Who are these prisoners? The Bible is clear in its teaching that all people are by nature captives to sin, death, and devil. We are captives to sin because we were guilty of sin and unable to pay God the debt owed because of our sin. We are slaves to death because the penalty for sin is death, and there was no way we can escape it. We are captives to the devil because he has succeeded in winning us from God and taking us prisoner to do his will instead of God's.
But we are slaves no more! Why not? Because Jesus paid the price to liberate us from these three evil masters. Since He was punished for our sins, we don't have to be. When God looks at us He doesn't see our sin anymore, but Jesus' perfect life lived our place and credited to us by faith. Since Jesus rose from the dead we have the blessed assurance of rising from earthly death, too, to live with Him in heaven endlessly. Death has become a sleep from which He will awaken us to usher us into Paradise-glory. Then, too, Jesus has freed us from the power of the devil's temptations and accusations. He can't harm us. He's been crushed and annihilated. It is as the author of Hebrews was inspired to write: "Since the children have flesh and blood, [Jesus] too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death-- that is, the devil-- and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death" (Hebrews 2:14-15).
What sweetness is found these precious Gospel truths! What joy is ours to be able to sing with the hymn writer, Paul Gerhardt:
Christ, from heav'n to us descending And in love our race befriending,
In our need His help extending, Saved us from the wily foe.
Jacob's star in all its splendor Beams with comfort sweet and tender,
Forcing Satan to surrender, Breaking all the powers of hell.
From the bondage that oppressed us, From sin's fetters that possessed us,
From the grief that sore distressed us, We, the captives, now are free.
(Lutheran Service Book, 375:2-4)
