Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (2 Corinthians 1:2)

Luke 4:14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. ¹⁵ He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 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. And he stood up to read. ¹⁷ The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: ¹⁸ "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach 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, ¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 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 and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

"When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." These words are from the opening of the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4, 1776.

We had great men who walked among us who were willing to sacrifice their property, their families, and their lives in order to gain freedom from the tyranny of British rule over this country. Jesus, our great God-man, walked among us. He was willing to sacrifice his blood, his body, and his life in order to gain freedom from the tyranny of Satan’s rule on our world. This morning we see that this Jesus, our Savior, walked among us in order to preach forgiveness, to proclaim freedom and sight, and to produce release and favor.

Jesus was returning to his hometown of Nazareth in Galilee. This was an exciting time for the people of Nazareth. A hometown boy made good was coming home. The townspeople had heard about his marvelous miracles and his powerful preaching. This was going to be a special worship service on that Sabbath.

Jesus was honored, as a visiting rabbi or teacher usually was, by asking him to read the Scripture and explain it. Jesus read chapter 61 from the scroll of Isaiah. This chapter points out that the Savior was singled out for a special task and anointed with the Spirit of the Lord to do certain things. This was a favorite text for the Jews for they believed it prophesied that they would be freed from the Romans and other oppressors.

Jesus read: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach 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 to teach. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on their local hero, eager to hear what Jesus would have to say in explanation of this Scripture. He astounded them by saying, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." He was saying, "I am the Savior Isaiah prophesied about."

Jesus was telling his hometown friends that he had been anointed by the Holy Spirit at his baptism. He had been singled out to "preach good news to the poor." Jesus walked among sinners in order to preach forgiveness to the poor in spirit, those poor in God’s sight. The "poor" spoken of here are not those who are without money and are lacking the comforts of life. Many of us could fall into that category. These are those who are spiritually poor, who are rich with sin. All of us fall into that category.

We are poor because we have no righteousness on our own. When we stand before God, the final Judge and Arbiter of all that is right and wrong, he will see no goodness in us at all. We are wretched beggars who bring absolutely nothing to God. We are utterly helpless on our own. We cannot rid ourselves of the guilt of our sins. We are sinners who are so poor that we cannot pay the bills for our sins against God. We are spiritually bankrupt. Since we can’t pay our bills, God isn’t going to throw us out of our homes, shut off our water and electricity. Instead, he is going to throw us into hell for the punishment we deserve for being the poor, miserable, sinful wretches we are.

But that is where Jesus walked in. Jesus came to preach good news to the poor – that he is our Savior. Through faith in Jesus as our Savior we are no longer poor in God’s sight, we are no longer worthless sinners, we are now rich beyond belief. Though we are sinners, our Savior makes us saints. Though we are helpless on our own, Jesus is our strength. He gives us forgiveness. He covers us with his righteousness. Though we should be thrown into the pit of hell for our spiritual poverty, Jesus opens the gates of heaven. We are granted the riches of his glory, now and forever. Our Savior walked among us to preach forgiveness to the poor.

Our Savior also walked among us to proclaim freedom and sight. In his prophecy about the coming Savior, Isaiah was explaining the condition of poor sinners who are in the need of forgiveness. The sinner is described as a captive, literally, a prisoner of war. Sin is like a harsh taskmaster who treats us sinners as slaves. Sin beats us and forces us to do many things that we should not or would rather not do. We have no power or will to fight back on our own. We are prisoners to sin, to shame and to guilt.

Our world is full of people like us who are held in the bondage of sin. They live miserable lives because they cannot overcome their sinful habits. They are unable to rid themselves of those things that drag them down time after time. As sinners we are slaves and prisoners to our sin who need to be set free.

Jesus has come to "proclaim freedom for the prisoners." One of the Bible’s favorite words is "redemption," that is buying back or paying a ransom for those who are slaves. Jesus himself says, "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45) Jesus has released us from the bonds of our guilt. He paid the ransom price that God demanded. He has defeated our taskmaster, sin, with his death on the cross. He has delivered us from death, hell, and Satan. We have now been set free to love Jesus and enjoy him forever.

The sinner is also described as "blind." Everyone who is born into this world is born spiritually blind. Before a person receives the gospel of Christ, he does not see the Creator God who has endowed us with certain inalienable rights. He does not see the heinous nature of his sin, nor does he see the deception of the world. Often the sinner does not think that the sin he commits is sin at all. It is just an alternate way of life. He has no way of seeing his own actions properly. He is spiritually blind and needs to have his sight restored.

Jesus came to proclaim "recovery of sight for the blind." When a person receives the good news of Christ’s forgiveness, he is born again. Then he immediately sees God. He understands the things God loves as well as the things God abhors. He sees the many evil things in this world and is able to avoid them. He sees the path of righteousness and walks in it. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)

World War II’s Nazi concentration camps were filled with oppression and captivity. Elie Wiesel, a teenager then, witnessed the death of many family members. He recalls the day when he, as well as the other prisoners, were finally liberated from Auschwitz by the Allies. On that day, soldiers broke down the fences of the concentration camp to release the prisoners. Frail, gaunt, and near death they were terrible victims of a horrible, criminal evil.

In spite of his condition Wiesel remembers one solider, a strong black man who upon seeing the horror of human suffering was overcome with grief. He fell to his knees sobbing in a mix of disbelief and sorrow. The captives, now liberated, walked over to the soldier, put their arms around him, and offered comfort to him.

I can’t help but wonder what Jesus saw as he looked out at those gathered in the synagogue, he must have seen the same thing that strong black soldier saw -- terrible victims of a horrible, criminal evil. We don’t like to think of ourselves as victims of sin. But we have to admit that evil has had its way with us. Jesus arrived on the scene in order to liberate prisoners from their captors. He came to free us from evil.

Our Ally has arrived. He walked among us. He was our Savior. He proclaimed freedom to the prisoners and sight to the blind.

Our Savior also walked among us to produce release and favor. The next picture of the sinner is that of a man sitting in prison, where he has been beaten by the jailer and is bleeding from his wounds. That is what sin does to the sinner. Sin destroys the body little by little. It causes us pain and suffering. We are oppressed by our sins. We feel like life is hopeless. There is no way out. We have dug ourselves a hole and we can’t get out. We are trapped. Sin weighs us down. It shackles us. It frustrates us and depresses us.

Our Savior produces release from the futility, the frustrations, and the hopelessness. Christ’s love and forgiveness brings a purpose to our life. He brings us into a community of mutual support in a church like this. He promises eternal life after this world of tears is finished. He frees us from the guilt and consequences of our sins. We are freed. We are released. We are excited.

This excitement is compared to the Old Testament Year of Jubilee. The Year of Jubilee was the great equalizer. According to Jewish ceremonial law (Leviticus 25) every fifty years, all slaves were set free, all debts were cancelled, and all land and property was to be returned to its original owners, and there was joy throughout the land. No one could grow really rich, and no one would be perpetually poor. No matter how bleak a person’s life was, the year of Jubilee provided hope. This is called "the year of the Lord’s favor" in our text. Everything would be made right at the Year of Jubilee.

What if we were to try this today? The average American owes seven thousand dollars on credit cards. The ram’s horn would be blown and all the debt would be completely erased. Every person that had declared bankruptcy would be given back all their assets. Every farmer who had lost their farm due to poor crops would receive their land back with joy. Sound like a pipe dream? Sounds too good to be true?

Jesus did not come to reinstitute the principle of the year of Jubilee. He was the fulfillment of the promise spoken by Isaiah. Jesus is the Jubilee! How then do we celebrate this freedom? 1 Peter 2:16 says: "Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God." And Galatians 5:13: "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love." A Christian’s life should be characterized by a freedom that makes others want what we have.

Also, gather around the Lord’s Table. When we gather together for communion, we are celebrating the freedom that Jesus brought us by giving his life for us on the cross. His death delivered us from hell. He experienced the ultimate poverty of spirit by taking every sin that you and I have ever committed on himself. His body was broken to bring healing to our broken hearts. His eyes were swollen shut to bring sight to our blind eyes. He was bound so we don’t have to be. He was oppressed but did not utter a sound. He was bruised and battered and by his stripes we were healed (Isaiah 53:5). This Fourth of July we will watch the fireworks and celebrate our nation’s freedom. This morning we can partake of Christ’s body and blood and remember that Jesus died to bring us spiritual freedom.

Jesus offers new life to all who will trust in him. To the spiritually poor, he offers the riches of his glory. To those enslaved by their sins, he offers forgiveness and freedom. To those blinded by sin, he offers the light of his gospel. To those oppressed by anxieties and problems, he offers a future and a hope. Rejoice and live in this time of "the Lord’s favor." Your Savior has come. He has walked among us. Celebrate your independence. Amen.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Corinthians 13:14)