To make the world new is Jesus' mission and our mission

This happened at the early part of Jesus’ public ministry, immediately after his baptism by John the Baptist at the Jordan River and after his 40 days in the desert and his encounter with the devil in the wilderness.

Jesus went to Nazareth where He had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day He went to the synagogue, as was his custom. And He stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.

Unrolling it, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the “Good News” to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor”.

Then He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fasten on him, and He began by saying to them: “Today, this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing”. (see Luke 4: 14-21).

The passage He read was a messianic prophesy that envisioned a future messiah who would be both king and servant. Most probably, this was his first public statement of his identity as Messiah. It was a declaration of who He is and why He had come. What He said laid out the great promises of God to those who receive the Him and his Kingdom.

 

We could see three components in this passage:

First:  The proclamation of the “Good News” of salvation. The recipients of the good news were to be, first and foremost, the poor, just us Jesus promised in the Beatitudes.

Second: The recovery of sight for the blind which indicates that the “Good News” includes compassion for the sick and the sorrowful. The concern is not only for the spiritual well-being, but also, the physical well being. Jesus was always concern for the physical well-being of man. He healed the diseased and the lame, showed empathy for the poor, feed the hungry, and restored sight to the blind.

Third: A commitment to justice. Jesus came to proclaim freedom to prisoners, to release the oppressed and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. (see Luke 4: 18-19). The allusion to prisoners and the oppressed would certainly meant those living under the Roman occupation and in a broader sense, anyone who had been the victim of injustice, whether political, social or economic. The proclamation of the Lord’s year of favor, was a reference to the Old Testament year of Jubilee when slaves were set free, debts were forgiven, and all land  was returned to its original owners. The year of jubilee was God’s way of protecting against the rich becoming too rich and the poor getting too poor.

Proclaiming the Gospel thern, is more than winning souls for Christ. It also encompasses tangible compassion for the sick, the poor, as well as efforts to right the wrongs that are so prevalent in our world.  God is concerned with the spiritual, physical, and social dimension of our well-being.

The Gospel is “Good News” for the poor. It is the foundation of a social revolution that has the power to change the world. To make the world new  was Jesus’ mission and the mission of all who claim to follow Him. It is our mission. It is the mission of the Church.