Theme: Blessings of Freedom
Text: Isaiah 61:1-11
Introduction: The first and foremost larger prophetic book of Isaiah reveals the Secret of Freedom is the Anointing of the Holy Spirit. The anointing is the empowerment of a new life, and new vision. This is the prophecy about the work of Christ consequently becomes the work of the redeemed Church of God. Those who are freed are at liberty. The liberty is sealed with the anointing of the Spirit. The anointed will possess the present and future blessings. Those who are at liberty are entitled to spiritual blessings, material blessings, and posterity blessings. Let’s meditate and enjoy the blessings of God.
Blessings of the Freedom
Isaiah 61:1,11 mentions the word Sovereign Lord (Adonai, the Lord), making the line longer than the preceding and following (Clark). Give more power to understand the greatness of God through reading this passage. It also unfolds the truth that God would give blessings to his people that are far beyond anything they have ever expected or imagined. Those who repent and realize the creative, redemptive power of God could see the wonderous things in their new Life in Christ. God is the Master of Justice and righteousness. He will compensate them for the plundering they have suffered at the hands of their enemies during slavery, captivity, and evil authority. As surely as seeds sprout and grow, the just man will surely bring praise to himself from people of all nations. Those blessings are threefold in this passage, such as spiritual blessings, material blessings, and posterity blessings.
1. Spiritual Blessings (Isaiah 61:1-3)
The word “anoint” means sprinkle on; apply an ointment, lotion, or oily liquid. Literally, oil would be applied, but on the New Testament believers, it is a sign of the Holy Spirit upon their lives and service. Jesus quoted this passage on the day he read this scripture and declared being fulfilled (Luke 4:17-21). He is our forerunner for everything. He has believed and received the anointing and did great works for God. He also declared that those who believe in Him need to wait for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to utilize all authority (Acts 1:8). Jesus repeatedly told his disciples that those who believe in Him will do greater than what he did on the earth (john 14;12).
Prophet Isaiah said “The Lord hath anointed me”, Jesus also repeated this by reading it and made it his own. He wants to communicate to the listeners that He was commissioned with authority, qualified with gifts, and set apart, for important offices. He was holding offices of the Prophets, priests, and kings. Among the Jews, a few “were usually appointed and set apart to their several offices, by anointing them with oil, which ceremony was used by the express command of God.” (Benson). Both capacitating them with gifts and commissioning them with authority (Matthew Poole, Wesley’s Note).
‘Anointing was the sanctification of human nature by the Holy Spirit.’ (Pulpit Commentary). For Jesus, it commenced in the womb of the Blessed Virgin (Luke 1:35), continued as he grew to manhood (Luke 2:40,52), openly manifested at his baptism, and never ceased. This spiritual anointing, all material unction, whether under the Law as per Leviticus 8:10-12, 30; 1 Samuel 10:1, 16:13; 1 Kings 1:39, 19:15, 16 or under the gospel as per Mark 6:13, James 5:14, was symbolical (Pulpit Commentary).
Jesus Christ had the anointing of the Spirit to do ministry. Mere intellectual knowledge and bookish wisdom will not help anyone to serve the Lord. The oil on the head was an outward representation of the real, spiritual work going on inside. We have the anointing from God (1 John 2:20). Apostles became preachers, healers, and deliverers because of the anointing of the Spirit. All of us have that promise.
According to Prophet Isaiah, anointing leads to preaching, anointing helps to bind up the broken-hearted, and anointing motivates to proclaim the good news to the captives. Anointing releases the prisoners from the darkness. Anointing leads a person to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. It helps to comfort all those who mourn and provide for those who grieve in Zion. Usually, mourning disfigures the countenance of anyone and makes it unlovely. So, God bestows on them a crown of beauty instead of Ashes, oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of despair. They are oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord, and display the splendours.
The spiritual gifts for evangelism, encouragement, pastoring, ministering, showing mercy, giving, etc are shortlisted by Paul (Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4). We are each placed into the body of Christ to minister to one another through gifts. The Holy Spirit has been given to us as a comforter (John 14:26). He is a teacher and guide in our lives. Christians to be filled with the Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18)
2. Material Blessings (Isaiah 61:4-7)
God comes into our lives to rebuild, renovate, establish and make it a joyful tent. There is a widespread thought among the believers of any religion that ‘If I have a good marriage, a successful job, a nice home, and lovely intelligent children’ mean that God is happy with me and blessed. Does it work in this way? What is a blessing? A blessing, according to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, is “the act or words of one that blesses,” or “a thing conducive to happiness or welfare.”
Several words are used to indicate “blessing” in the Bible. The Hebrew word is Barak, which can mean to praise, congratulate, or salute. God blessed the sea and its creatures, and birds telling them to be fruitful and multiply. God gave a similar blessing to Adam and Eve to exercise dominion over creation (Genesis 1:22, 28). Another Hebrew word for blessing is esher, which is happiness (Job 5:17, Psalm 1:1-3).
The word blessing visibly refers to physical prosperity in Old Testament. Let me explain on one or two occasions about this. Eliezer tells Laban, “The Lord has blessed my master abundantly, and he has become wealthy.” (Genesis 24:35). Then we read, “The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys.” (Job 42:12). In Psalm 132:15, we read that God will bless Zion with abundant provisions and satisfy her poor with food. In Psalm 37:11, it is recorded that the meek will inherit the land.
But, however, Prophet Habakkuk in 3:17-18 declared the other way around. We read: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”
In New Testament, the word used “blessed” is Makarios. It’s used 44 times in the New Testament. Of those 31 involve descriptions of righteous behavior or characteristics that God considers desirable. The most prominent and familiar usage of the word Makarios is in the beatitudes in Matthew 5. Jesus blesses the poor in spirit, the mourning, the meek, the merciful, the pure in heart, and the persecuted. Luke 6 pronounces a blessing on the poor, the hungry, the weeping, and the hated. So the NT understanding is purely spiritual and not material blessings.
A question was asked to hundred people to respond about the word blessing or blessedness in life. The answers are ‘Anything that gives happiness or prevents misfortune; special benefit or favor.’ ‘Something promoting or contributing to happiness, well-being, or prosperity; a boon.’ ‘The gift of divine favor.’ ‘Blessing is defined as God's favor, or a person's sanction or support, or something you ask God for, or something for which you are grateful.’
God’s original design in creation was for His creatures, including mankind, to experience prosperity, peace, and coexistence. But that design was ruined when sin entered the world. Anointing of the Spirit once again revives such a blessing in the Church and then to all. Material blessing belongs to us but with accountability and stewardship. Therefore, Paul warns us that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil (1 Tim. 6:10).
3. Futuristic Blessings (Isaiah 61:8-11)
The prisoners are released honorably and employed with the dignified duties of their days. Some of them became priests, ministers, and traders. No more shame and stigma but a double portion of the blessings. No more disgrace but rejoicing, and that too an everlasting joy. The idea is an exceedingly beautiful one, that, on the coming of the Messiah, truth, and righteousness would spring up and abound like grass and fruits in the vegetable world when the earth is watered with rain. The rain of anointing brings all these blessings.
‘The earth every year puts forth her bud, the gardens grow green after the sowing time, and, in short, herbs and plants, which appear to be dead during the winter, revive in the spring and resume their vigor. Now, these are proofs and very clear illustrations of the divine power and kindness toward us.’ (Calvin commentary). The germ, the shoot, or the young and tender plant as it comes up from the earth; that which first appears from the seed (Barnes) so shall be the blessings of the blessed.
God blessed the children of Israel after the death of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The very witness of the clan of Jews is the best example of the blessings of God on the posterity of Abraham. God has raised up many generations of the Church. The churches and denominations are the witnesses of the blessings of the Posterity.
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward (Psalm 127:3).
Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments! His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous (Psalm 112:1-4). Every good gift and every perfect gift are from above, coming down from the father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change (James 1:17).
Conclusion:
As long as we live in captivity of Sin, problems, stress, fear, discouragements and failures, and self-pity, we are not able to understand and enjoy the blessings of God. But the anointing of the spirit helps us to trust Him, pray to Him and look for revival, renewal, and rebuilding experiences. Those who are in Christ are blessed with blessings of hope and growth. But sin puts us down, and makes us give up. The eyes with faith and the mind with the word of God can help us to see everything and enjoy the blessings of God. God has kept time for everything. We don’t have the calendar of our times but he has and he does everything beautifully in his time. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11). “The Lord blesses you and keeps you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace” (Numbers 6:24-26).
