Claiming the Proclamation

Introduction

I. THE POWER—

Turn to the third Book of the New Testament, the Gospel of

(Comments: Thankful for last week’s stewardship conference with Dr. Charles Shoemaker. Faith Promise Missions commitments have grown over the week! Most excited for the two people who trusted Christ as Savior! We’ll be having baptisms coming up. Those considering being a part of our church, set aside March 4 at 6pm to come to “Connecting Pointe” dinner with me, my wife, and some church leaders.)

We’re considering our own managing of life, so we can each be involved in proclaiming the Gospel. If the Devil can get us to feel like we have no time, no treasure, and no talent to use for God, then the Devil has effectively shuttered our witness for Christ!

Next Sunday, is “All In Sunday.” Be praying and asking God to help you be “All In” when it comes to serving God with your time, your giving, and your treasure. I encourage every believer to recommit to giving their tithes and offerings. If you’re not there yet, I challenge you to try it, and see if God “will not open the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing...” (). The faith principle is that you can live better with 90% when you honor God than you can with 100% and live selfishly.

I believe that every Christian is going to have a desire to share Christ, and it is on that premise we will build today. Whether or not you are effective or active in it yet, I believe because the Holy Spirit is alive in your heart you know others need the change, life, joy, grace, forgiveness, your found in Jesus!

Isn’t it true, though, that sharing Christ can be one of the hardest things we do?

ILL: “I Ain’t Doin’ It” comedian Heather Land is known for her app-enabled buggy eyes and puffy lips partnered with sarcastic humor based on Christian life and popular culture. In her monologues, she mutters under her breath and ends by saying what she’d rather do—which is rather extreme—compared to the situation she just picked apart—and then she ends by saying, “I ain’t doin’ it!” Sadly, borrowing some of her thoughts, some Christians would rather…"eat a fiber brownie while eating an ex-lax milkshake in an outhouse wearing a straight jacket...OR walk through a den of lions in a ham suit…OR put sewing needles in your corneas…OR ride a speedboat through a sewer pond…OR jump in a wheel barrow full of fire ants…OR slide down a razor blade into a tub of alcohol…” than go across the street or to the next cubicle to share Christ! You laugh, but that is how many feel!

Isn’t it true that the Church’s witness for Christ looks more like Jonah’s than Jesus’?

Do you have any doubt that if we could get over the things that hinder us from sharing Christ that we would be more effective at connecting people to Him?

The main reasons people don’t share Christ are:

1. Fear

There is no doubting that Jesus was a preacher. We see Him preaching in our text at the synagogue.

2. Lack of Knowledge

3. Political Correctness

4. Laziness & Unconcern

There is no doubting that Jesus was a preacher. A common misconception of preachers is that they are brash, brazen, loudmouths who aren’t afraid to say whatever comes to mind. This attribute many believe is what enables them to share Christ. We see Him preaching in our text at the synagogue, not brash or brazen, but with gracious words.

We can freely recognize the hindrances to sharing Christ, but there is little motivation to overcome them unless we can CLAIM the Proclamation—Not just seeing it is God’s, but making it our own knowing It’s in us and there’s something very special about it!

Stand and Read Text: . Pray. Sit.

What was so special about the message Jesus took upon Himself? Why would He make His mission to live and die for it? What was so important about proclaiming the Gospel that everything else in Heaven and on earth paled in comparison?

. What Jesus indicated was so important is that the Gospel is the everlasting status-changer!

Jesus reads from ,

A. Jesus reads from ,

Notice these verses carefully, and see that all of man’s needs are met in them.

1. Anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor

2. He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted

3. To preach deliverance to the captives

4. Recovering sight to the blind

5. To set at liberty those which are bruised

(All needs met as Paul says in )

Philippians 4:19 AV

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Christ is interested in your need—He cares—He understands.

David Platt Sermon Archive He Reverses Our Status

You’ve got pictures of shame, the poor, prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed. These are all pictures of shame in the first century. Then, you’ve got pictures of honor, good news, freedom, recovery of sight, and release for the oppressed. You’ve got honor and shame put right beside each other.

David Platt Sermon Archive He Reverses Our Status

shame, the poor, prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed. These are all pictures of shame in the first century. Then, you’ve got pictures of honor, good news, freedom, recovery of sight, and release for the oppressed. You’ve got honor and shame put right beside each other.

An quick comparison of the text the Jews would have easily revealed that Jesus intentionally left off some of Isaiah’s words—Jesus came at the first advent to declare all of these life-changing things—it was not until later that He would return to proclaim “the day of vengeance of our God.” ()

The people “wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth” (v. 22). Jesus was up to something—something big was about to happen as Jesus’ ministry of proclaiming the Gospel “to the Jews first and also to the Greeks” got underway.

Jesus willingly came from Heaven to proclaim the Gospel.

If you think you have it hard telling others the Gospel, think of Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemene humanly feeling the weight of sin, praying to the Father, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine be done” ().

Luke 22:42 AV

Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

Later, Jesus willingly proclaimed the Gospel at the cost of His own life--“who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross” ().

What compelled Jesus to overcome the obstacles to claiming the proclamation of as His own?

Isaiah 61 KJV 1900

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; Because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, To give unto them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they might be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the waste cities, The desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, And the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord: Men shall call you the Ministers of our God: Ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, And in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. For your shame ye shall have double; And for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: Therefore in their land they shall possess the double: Everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the Lord love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; And I will direct their work in truth, And I will make an everlasting covenant with them. And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, And their offspring among the people: All that see them shall acknowledge them, That they are the seed which the Lord hath blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, And as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth Before all the nations.

India used to have a legal class system under the Hindu religion called castes. Essentially, if you were born in a certain caste, you were stuck. There was no hope to advance.

In the first century, it was pretty similar under Roman rule. What you were born into, you usually died as.

Jesus came along, and He says, “I have come to proclaim the Good News. If you’re poor, you can be rich. If you’re broken, you can be healed. If you’re in chains, you can be unshackled. If you’re abused, you can be free.”

I’d like to show you a few ways Jesus embodied and lived out this message we also preach.

Why? Because if we will CLAIM the Gospel, we will PRO-CLAIM It more powerfully knowing it makes a difference in people’s lives.

Proposition: Claim the Gospel’s power! What status can the Gospel’s power change in a person’s life?

1. The Gospel Makes People Who Were Dirty Clean. :12-14

& 14 have a long list of rules for people with leprosy.

Leprosy was a physical condition.

Leprosy was a social condition.

Isaiah uses leprosy as a picture of sin.

Jesus willingly took upon Himself our defiling sin, so we could be made clean!

Some of you have come today, and you are untouchable. You are dirty in your sin, and Jesus says, “Be thou clean.”

Psalm 51:7 AV

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Isaiah 1:18 AV

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Leprosy is a spiritual condition in all our lives Jesus wants to cure. In your dirtiest state of sin, Jesus does not turn away from you; Jesus turns to you in love, wanting to make you clean!

Song: Whiter Than Snow, by James Nicholson, “Whiter than snow, yes, whiter than snow. Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”

2. The Gospel Makes People Who Were Rejected Accepted.

The scene is of Jesus at a meal with a Pharisee, and a woman known for her sensual living bursts in. The religious Pharisee, steeped in ritualism and protocol can’t believe that Jesus, Who had just claimed to be a prophet, could be the Christ because, after all, if He was a prophet He would know who this woman is and the great sins she has committed!

The only person who is thinking the woman should be there was Jesus—everyone else had rejected her because of her sins and her reputation.

Jesus claimed the proclamation of the Gospel because He was willing to call out to the hurting and the helpless who could do nothing to make themselves better—those who were outcasts—the ones on the outside looking in—the ones with bad reputations—why? To show them they could find acceptance.

In the midst of our baggage of sin, Jesus says (

Matthew 11:28 AV

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

(Christians can have the same anointing upon them)

3. The Gospel Makes People Who Were Lost Found. Luke 15:11-32

We have all heard the story of the Prodigal Son. The son asks his father for the inheritance he should get when the father dies—essentially saying, “I wish you were dead.” The son foolishly spends the inheritance and ends up far away from home, feeding pigs, and being jealous of what the pigs are eating.

Then the son has a thought: “I wonder what my dad’s servants are eating…maybe I could go back home and be a servant.”

Deuteronomy 21:18–21 AV

If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

The ONE PERSON who had the power to hurt the son would have been the father under the LAW, but Jesus is illustrating that the Heavenly Father is the one watching for the son to come home! The Father sees the son a long way off and runs to hug his neck and welcome him home and restore him in his household!

Sin will make you feel helpless, but God wants to forgive your sin and make you His child!

Luke 15:24 AV

For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

Transition: This is getting good! Do you want others to realize this in their lives? The story of the Prodigal Son is there to remind “spiritual people” that we can be like the prodigal son’s brother who complained when everyone else was celebrating! The power of the Gospel is great to us and ALL SINNERS needing to be FOUND!

4. The Gospel Makes People Who Were Poor Rich.

B. The fame—“And there went out a fame of Him”

Jesus uses this true story, not a parable, to show us that in Him He can turn the worst of tables and make it right!

The rich man—eating the most delicious and filling meals, clothed in the finest threads, living in the most pampered conditions—is contrasted with poor Lazarus—a beggar eating the crumbs, clothed poorly, and whose only pampering came from the dogs who licked the sores he had on his body.

They both died, and in a moment everything changed. The rich man became poor, homeless, and tormented in the flames of Hell, and Lazarus became rich, a mansion-owner, and comfortable in the glories of Heaven!

Jesus spoke of the poor. We have a hard time understanding being poor in America. We have 5% of the world’s population and over 50% of its wealth.

Being poor is a condition well-known around the rest of the world, and Jesus uses it to speak not to the physical but spiritual condition of being bankrupt with God.

When we realize, no matter our financial status, that we are poor and empty spiritually, we can trust God to make us rich.

This trust produces humility in this life, knowing we are rich in Christ for all eternity!

Those who do not trust God, like the rich man in the story only had riches in this life; while Lazarus enjoyed being rich with the presence of God in this life and the status and inheritance in Heaven!

5. The Gospel Makes People Who Were Blind Seeing.

(The Spirit-filled life attracts people, and brings them to Christ)

Mark names the blind man for us: Bartimaeus.

“Enthuse” comes from the Greek people expressing the enthusiasm of Christians who are filled with the Holy Spirit like Christ was! Greek: en (in)-thus (theos/God)…God inside should be attractive like salt and light!

The blind man sat on the side of the road begging. The poor were often neglected and ill taken care of and abused.

In this story, we begin with the blind man begging on the side of the road to seeing and walking with and praising God!

That is what the power of the Gospel does for us!

“I was blind, now I see!” John 9:25

Spiritual blindness is the condition every person is born with. We are “all sinners” ().

The blind man found light in the midst of his darkness—and any worldling may find his sight by looking to the Light of the World!

C. The teaching—“He taught in their synagogues”

Conclusion: The Gospel Changes People because It Redeems Their Souls!

In , when Jesus says He is there “...to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord,” there’s an allusion to the “Year of Jubilee” that occurred each 50 years in Israel when those who were in debt serving to pay off those debts, or those in prison because they did not pay their debt were set free!

(So important that Christians study—; )

And Jesus was there to say, “The year of jubilee is ME—I will set you free! I am Jesus, the promised Savior of the world!

Does knowing the power of the Gospel not make your desire abound in strength to overcome the obstacles that stand come between you and a lost person to share the Gospel with him or her?!

II. THE PRACTICE—

Fear, lack of knowledge, political correctness, laziness/unconcern, among other things, are obstacles that shrink next to the greatness of the redeeming, life-changing work God does in a saved life.

A. It was Jesus’ habit to enter into the Synagogue

Will you claim the Gospel’s power?

Invitation:

(Read ; )

Will you pray with me...

B. Jesus made it a habit to read the Bible

Who is here today, who would say, “I am unsaved and need the power of the Gospel in my own life.” I have not yet been saved…?

(Very important that the Bible is a part of your life)

Christian, there are lost people needing Christ. It’s sad that our witnessing efforts look more like Jonah fleeing than Jesus’ seeking lost people. With an uplifted hand, who would say, “Yes, I’ve let the obstacles and excuses keep me from sharing Christ.”… Now, you’d pray, “Lord, forgive me for seeing the obstacles as being bigger than the power of Your loving, saving Gospel. Empower me to seek opportunities to share Christ”?...

C. Jesus used the Bible when tempted by Satan

(—Three times He said, “It is written)

III. THE PROPHECY—

A. Jesus reads from ,

B. Notice these verses carefully, and see that all of man’s needs are met in them

1. Anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor

2. He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted

3. To preach deliverance to the captives

4. Recovering sight to the blind

5. To set at liberty those which are bruised

(All needs met as Paul says in )

C. Christ is interested in your need—He cares—He understands

IV. THE PROGRESS—

A. All the people were impressed with Jesus

“All eyes were fastened upon Him”

B. Fulfillment—“Today is this Scripture fulfilled”

(What Isaiah told of is now coming to pass)

C. Read , and see how the people were impressed with the teachings of Jesus

D. Read , , , “The Sermon on the Mount,” and see the great teachings of Jesus

Jesus had power “from above” to do God’s work! We need His power to live the Christian life

Pentz, C. M. (1968). 52 Simple Sermon Outlines (pp. 17–18). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.