Listen to His Voice

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Isaiah 63
Jesus echos the words of the prophet Isaiah in:
Luke 4:16–17 NIV
16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
Luke 4:18–19 NIV
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Luke 4:20–21 NIV
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Why did Jesus come:
1. To proclaim good news to the poor
This is the gospel. And what is the gospel?
Mark 6:7–9 NIV
7 Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. 8 These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra shirt.
Mark 6:10–12 NIV
10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 They went out and preached that people should repent.
Matthew 10:7 NIV
7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’
So, the gospel is this: repent, turn from your sin, embrace a new idea..and that is that the kingdom of heaven has come near...
Or, Jesus is here accept Him...
Paul puts it this way:
1 Corinthians 15:1–3 NIV
1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
1 Corinthians 15:4–5 NIV
4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve.
2. To proclaim freedom for the prisoners and to
3. recover sight for the blind
4. set the oppressed free
It is not likely that Jesus is talking about literal prisoners here as He is referencing:
Isaiah 61:1 NIV
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
Which notes a release from darkness...
Which parallels
Isaiah 49:9 NIV
9 to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill.
So, Jesus is likely talking about those who are in bondage, likely from some sort of spiritual oppression, whether it be by their own doing or circumstantial...
Now, is likely the Israelites in Isaiah, or the Jews in Luke would probably associate this with their bondage in Egypt...
Nonetheless, Jesus is likely saying that he has come to set people free..
For us, it is likely not a literal bondage either, but a spiritual or emotional one..
Because of our sin, we have sold our soul to the devil…he like to keep us in bondage…but, there is freedom found in Christ!
Likewise, he came to open the eyes of the blind…based on the context here, He is likely talking metaphorically blind, those who can’t see His kingdom...
However, we do know that Jesus literally restored the sight to the blind as well...
All this to say:
Jesus doesn’t want you in bondage...
And, finally,
5. To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
Jesus is likely talking about the year of Jubilee where the debts would be wiped clean and prisoners would be set free...
Hence what Jesus came to do, set you from your bondage and pay the price for your debts...
So, I think we have a good backdrop for the point of todays message:
Jesus wants to set your free!
Let’s talk about what this freedom looks like:
Read Hebrews 3-4
This is what freedom looks like:
Resting in Him and hearing His voice..
This thought comes up 3 times in these two chapters
Hebrews 3:7–8 NIV
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness,
Hebrews 3:15 NIV
15 As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”
Hebrews 4:7 NIV
7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”
Freedom happens when we find our place in the Lord’s rest..
Where we can hear His voice!
So, what are some obstacles to find our place in the Lord’s rest?
Rejection or Disbelief
In Acts 3 Peter and John are arrested for healing a man who was lame from birth and for preaching Christ’s resurrection
When questioned, Peter says
Acts 4:8–10 NIV
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
Acts 4:11 NIV
11 Jesus is “ ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’
The pharisees and other leaders of the church saw the things that Jesus did, yet they rejected Him, rather than surrendering to Him...
Don’t be like the pharisees, who, though they saw, rejected Him!
Here’s the thing, we can see God do things, but then forget or choose to not believe that it is from God!
Don’t be like them!
Find a place of rest in the Lord!
Today, if you hear the Lord’s voice, don’t reject it!
Come to Him for freedom!
1 Peter 5:7 NIV
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Matthew 11:28–30 NIV
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Allow Him to free you from the things that weigh you down!
John 8:34–36 NIV
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
I want to end with a couple more Isaiah verses
Isaiah 43:18–19 NIV
18 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
Do you want to allow Jesus to do something new today?
Do you want to find freedom this morning?
Do you want to rest in His perfect rest?
Do you want to hear from the Lord this morning?
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