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About-Him Devotional 03-22-03
The life of Christ, from His baptism to His ascension, following the Harmony of the Gospels.
58: The Imprisonment of John Mt. 4:12, 14:3:5; Mk. 1:14, 6;17-20 ; Lu 3:19-20
John had shaken the religious and political establishment. His final public act was to denounce the unlawful marriage of King Herod to his brother's wife. Herod had John cast into prison as a result.
60: His discourse at Nazareth - Lu. 4:16-27
Luke 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Shortly after returning to Galilee Jesus attended a Sabbath service at His boyhood home of Nazareth. He was asked to read and expound an assigned portion of Scripture from Isaiah 61. The custom was to first read the word, expound on the text and answer questions from the congregation. The people were happy to have Jesus in their midst because they had heard of His many miracles. Jesus began to read and claim this six-fold anointing as His own. As He spoke in the power of the Spirit, the people wondered at the gracious words that came from His mouth.
Conclusion and Application:
He has anointed me/you to preach the gospel, the good news, to all who will hear.
Are you oppressed because of poverty? Many people are bound by the effects of poverty that carry on from generation to generation. You can break this bondage by believing and accepting the gospel.
Are you broken hearted? As the old hymn states, "Tell It to Jesus Alone." He cares and listens. He will heal your broken heart, when no one else cares.
Are you a captive? To sin? To drugs? To illicit sex? The good news of the gospel is that Jesus spilled His blood to deliver you (1 Corinthians 6:11 ). You can be set free (John 8:36)! Are you blind and bruised? Come to Jesus., you'll see things as you have never seen them before.
This is your year, your day. Jesus is calling to whosoever will to come and partake of the waters of life. His heart goes out to you. He is listening for your faintest cry (Matthew 12:20). His hand is extended to you. He promised to never cast out anyone who would come to Him (John 6:37).
Jesus spoke with gracious words. We should do our very best to always do the same. Unfortunately, our preaching is often not much more than harping, which only destroys. It is very sad to see some who seem to be trapped in a vicious cycle of building up the kingdom on one hand and tearing it down on the other, all because of ungracious words! Let us never be guilty of that.
Next Week: Rejection at Nazareth
In About-Him
Tell It To Jesus Alone.
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Humor
A friend took her dog to the parlor for a haircut, and asked what it would cost. Being told that it would cost her $60, she was shocked.
"I only pay 50 bucks for my own haircut!"
The groomer replied,
"But you don't bite, do you?!"
Quote
"I have been driven to my knees many times because there was no place else to go."- Abraham Lincoln.
Keep Looking Up!
Don & Marie Spooner
About Him! Ministries
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