Luke 4:18

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Welcome welcome welcome

welcome to youth 4:18

let me ask you

by a show of hands

who in here does not know what youth 4:18 stands for?

we don’t call our youth group Youth 4:18

because it sounds catchy, or i think its cool

we call it youth 4:18 because it carries

a purpose

it comes from this

Jesus said in Luke 4:18 and this is where the 4:18 comes from ““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,”

these aren’t just random words

This is Jesus announcing His mission

This is Him declaring why He came

and what He came to do

His whole mission and purpose

wrapped up in one verse

but there is something even more powerful happening here

Jesus actually isn’t saying something new

He is reading from the book of Isaiah

where Isaiah prophesied

over 700 years before Jesus was on earth

that God would send a Messiah

a savior to the world

so lets look at isaiah where it started

and i want to give you a little bit of background

to whats going on

and at this time

Isaiah was a prophet to Israel

and Israel was not in a good place

they had turned from God

the where worshiping idols

there was tons of corruption going on

especially in their leaders

there justice system was broken and corrupt had no justice

they were living in rebellion

in hypocrisy

they were spiritually blind

really the nation was spiraling out of control

and away from God

and because of that

God’s judgment was upon them

and in the middle of all this

Isaiah God’s prophet for Israel

one of the most influential prophets in the Bible

served under 4 different Kings

He lived through

political chaos

times of great war and threats of war

He lived and served through the moral corruption of Israel

He saw religious hypocrisy

He served during extremely tough times

His job wasn’t to give motivational speeches

or cute advice that made you feel good

His job was to hear directly from God

and speak the truth people didn’t always want to hear

Isaiah warned Israel “if you don’t get back to God

if you don’t turn from your wickedness

destruction is coming

they ignored Isaiah and continued in their ways

and everything Isaiah prophesied happened

Israel was conquered

they were taken away from their nation

their temple was destroyed

their land was stolen

they were brought into exile

humiliated

their identity was shattered

and then we reach Isaiah 61

the people had experienced

traume

exile

poverty

shame

loss of purpose

loss of identity

they weren’t just homeless

they were hopeless

They questioned

is God still with us?

Has He abandoned us:

“Has He abandoned us?”

“will life ever be good again”

and its in that moment

not when they are strong

but when they are broken

that God speaks through Isaiah in chapter 61

THings move from judgement to hope

and restoration

God steps into the despair

and says

this is not the end. i have a plan

Isaiah 61:1–2 “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come, and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies.”

this isn’t a pep talk

this was a promise of a savior who would come at a future time

who would being

healing

freedom

restoration

God’s favor

a prophesy that gave the Nation of Israel something to look forward to

a day of restoration

and then 700 years later

Jesus walks into a synagogue

opens the scroll of Isaiah

reads these words

Luke 4:21

And says “The scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day.”

meaning the one Isaiah prophesied

what Israel has been waiting for

for the past 700 years

the one

to bring salvation

to restore what was lost spiritually

to bring healing and comfort

the one God promised

through the words of isaiah

i am Him

see whenJesus read Isaiahs words

He isn’t reading History

He is declaring His sovereignty

he is revealing His identity

as God

as savior

as King

this moment is Jesus’ mission statement

HIs purpose in this earth

His assignment from heacen

700 years of waiting

700 years of praying

700 years of longing

all fulfilled in Jesus

but why name our youth group after Luke 4:18

what does this have to do with us?

These are Jesus’ Word

and He is God

what could His calling

His purpose

His mission

have to do with you and I?

Let me tell you what this has to do with us

Jesus didn’t just declare His mission

He hands it off to His followers

Romans 8:29 “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

see Jesus went first

so we could follow

He stepped out of Heaven and into His mission

so that we could step into our

Jesus lived a life empowered by the Holy Spirit

The Bible says He set aside His divine attributes

and humbled Himself as a human

just like you and me

fully relied on the Holy Spirit

And He did that

so that you and i could be transformed into His image

by relying on the same Spirit and Word of God just like Him

you and i cannot save the world

but we can partner with the One is the savior of the world

and if we fully follow what He says

we can do what He did

John 14:12 Jesus says ““I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.”

Jesus went first

He did what He did

the miracles He performed

the compassion He displayed

so we could go further

so that you and i would take up our cross

and follow Him

He blazed the trial

so we could carry the torch

He started a movement

so we could expand it in His name

for His glory

Jesus wan’t insecure about His power

He invested it into His people

God didn’t save you for you to sit in a chair

He saved you to carry His mission

God didn’t fill you with His Spirit

so you could be comfortable

He filled you so you would be powerful for Him

God didn’t call you to watch Jesus do miracles

He called you to be a vessel He works miracles through

Jesus did the first work

so HIs followers could do greater works

not because we are better

but because His spirit is in you

in you in you in you

and if we are called to do as He did

then all of us together

will have greater impact than one man

Jesus didn’t show us what God could do through Him

He showed us what God could do through us

1 John 2:6 “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.”

See Youth 4:18 is not just a catchy Lable

this is our mission

this is our calling

its a calling we accept

it is an identity we carry

if Jesus didn’t come to improve people

but to raise the dead

heal the broken hearts

to free those that are bound by addiction

or anything that is holding them back

then that should be our mission too

the message He carried delivered people that have been bound their whole life

the words He spoke brought healing

the faith he carried opened blind eyes

healed the sick and raised the dead

but this is the thing

Jesus didn’t come to create spectators

He came to make disciples

The mission of Jesus was never to gather fans

who cheer on what he’s doing from a distance

it was to raise followers who would step into His shoes

step into what He did and continue it

Jesus didn’t build crowds

so people could clap and go home

have a feeling moment

and stay the same tomorrow

he didnt come to entertain people

He came to transform people

He came to rock the very core of who you think you are

and make you different

the problem though

Everyone wants to watch

everyone wants to feel something in a moment

but few want to commit

we like the idea of being inspired

we love emotional moments

we enjoy the church experience

but we don’t want to be challenged

we dont want to be corrected

and we definetly don’t want to change

this is the thing

spectators are excited during the moment

they clap

they cheer

they feel the energy

but when the moment is over

they leave unchanged

a spectator may get hyped on wednesday

feeling all the feels

excited for Jesus

but spiritually careless by thursday

committed people are different

someone who is committed doesn’t just enjoy something

they invest themselves in it

they study it

they learn it

they talk about it

they examine

they grow in it

they integrate it into their life

because its not just hype

its idenity

think about a die hard sooner fan

they don’t just watch a game

it shapes their schedule

why?

because ther’re not just a spectator

they are committed

many of us will commit

we commit to sports

we commit to screen time

we commit to school

we commit to hobbies

or relationships

so i know you know what commitment is

its not that we lack passion or ability

but because we misdirect it

we fall in love with feelings of faith

but avoid the follow through of fiath

Jesus didn’t say “Come watch me”

He said

“come follow me”

“Learn from me”

“take up your cross”

“die to yourselef”

“and put my yoke upon you”

He isn’t looking for an audience

He is looking for disciples

who will walk in his annointing

who will carry His message

and who will represent his Kingdom

not someday

not when life gets easier

now whn you feel ready

but now

many of you struggle

with feeling good enough

or like you know enough

but this is what i know

Jesus doesn’t call the equiped

He equips the called

Jesus said “many are called, few are chosen”

not because God only picked a few

but because only a few will say yes

God is calling you tonight to be a Luke 4:18 Christian

to walk in His mission

to push against comfort

to live in purpose

but you must respond

many of us want to follow Jesus

but we feel stuck

we have doubts

we feel the pull toward God

but we also feel the pull of everything else

outside pressure

temptation

fear

shame

our reputation

insecurities

comfort

we have distractions

we hear the call of God

to be a Luke 4:18 Christian

but we also tell ourselves

“not now”

why me?

im not ready

i don’t know enough

im not good enough

and listen to me real quick

if you have those thought

that doesn’t make you weak

it doesn’t make you bad or fake

it makes you human

even the disciples had doubts

even Peter doubted

Even Thomas quesitoned

Even Paul wrestled with wanting to do the right thing

but heres the truth

Jesus cannot transform what you refuse to surrender

and He cannot heal what you pretend it not broken

so tonight i want to do something different

i want you to be honest with yourself

this is a personal moment

just between you and the Lord

i want you to write down one to three things

that are holding you back from fully surrendering

not what sounds spiritual

not what you think would impress someone else

because no one else is going to read this but You and God

this isn’t for instagram

this isn’t for your neighbor

this ins’t for your family group

this is for you to bring to the Lord

what i want you to do with this

is you are going to take that home with you

and i want you to keep it somewhere you’ll see it

in your Bible

on your mirror

in your backpack

put it on your lockscreen

and every day this week

i want you to pray over it

not “God make me perfect”

but God, i give this to you

help me grow

help me overcome

help me to follow you

remember spiritual growth doesn’t start with pretending

you are perfect

or pretending you are strong

it starts by inviting Jesus into it

and i promise you this

God can do amazing things with your honesty to Him

pray then go back over announcements