The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

for he has anointed me to bring Good News

to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim that captives will

be released,

That the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free,

and that the time of the Lord’s favor

has come. (Luke 4:18,19 NLT)

If this is what it means to have the Lord’s Spirit on you, to bring Good News to the poor, proclaim the freedom of captives, preach that the blind will see, the oppressed be set free and the Kingdom of God is here, I wonder how many of us have the Lord’s Spirit on us. As a preacher I wonder how many times I’ve actually done this. This text brings lots of questions to mind.

Who are the poor Jesus and Isaiah speak of? Considering this is at the very least a veiled reference to the year of Jubilee when all debts are forgiven, doesn’t it make sense they he speaks at least partially of the worlds starving and truly poor?

The same question can be asked of the captives, blind and oppressed. Who are they and what does Jesus mean?

Is this, year of the Lord’s favor, still with us or did it have a shelf life of some type?

This text haunts me. It makes me question everything I believe and have thought I understood. It puts the Kingdom in a different light. It puts Jesus in a different light. It puts me in a different light.