Day 06 - On a mission.

Jesus reads His missions statement - Luke 4:14-44

That's a lotta 4's...

Basically Jesus gets up to read scripture in the synagogue, in His hometown of Nazareth. He reads out, “the Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then, Jesus announces that day the scripture had been fulfilled. He told them all He was the savior of the world, the Messiah they had been waiting for. 


"Jesus was making a bold, seemingly blasphemous, and potentially suicidal statement...Jesus' statement had all of the ambiguity of, 'I am the Messiah, and this is what the messianic mission is about. Any questions?'"


Oh man. This is intense. 


Diggin' Deeper: 


-From what Jesus reads, how do you see the balance in His mission between caring for the poor and proclaiming the good news, i.e., evangelism?


Jesus' "mission statement" is about freedom. It all ties together. Proclaiming the good news is freeing, preaching the gospel of Grace and Love freed, and frees, the slaves of sin, those captivated by the world. Jesus just cares so much for His people, for His children. He cares so much for the lost, the broken, the oppressed, sick, poor, enslaved. And we're all slaves, in one way or another. Maybe not physically (though there are so many who are), but we are slaves to sin. Jesus comes to set the captives free, from the bondage of sin, from the punishment of death. 


-What seems to be the overarching theme of your life? What's our mission statement and how well does it line up with the heart of Jesus?


Love. Freedom. Being a servant. Adoption. Fighting for justice, especially for slaves (both physically and mentally, I guess). Helping broken and lost people find their Healer, Savior, Father, and Friend. And it all comes back to love, that's where my heart is - loving people, and making a difference in their lives by showing them Jesus. 
I really hope my life theme lines up with Jesus' heart. I really do. I feel so passionate about loving people and serving, but I know I need to grow so much, and continue giving it all up to God. I want my life to be all about Jesus and spreading His gospel of Love, I want to grow to be as much like Jesus as I can, and I know only God can do that in my life. I'm not capable of anything on my own. 


-How would people describe what you're all about?


I've been told before that I have a "good heart" and am "passionate about the right things." I think most people know I'm passionate about adoption and human trafficking, but it can't just be about being known as that kind of person, it can't just be about being, it has to be about doing. Having a "good heart" is all fine and dandy, but what really matters is what that "good heart" does. I pray that God grows and shapes and changes me into the kind of person He wants me to be, to be more like Him, loving, servant-hearted, compassionate. Only by His strength and grace. 


-Sometimes saying "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for you life" would be received a lot better if an act of compassion were able to illustrate the claim. How could you show an act of compassion to someone to illustrate the claim that God loves them?


Honestly what's been on my heart a lot recently is really, truly listening and caring. I can't believe I'm going to reference Fight Club two posts in a row, but here goes:

Narrator: When people think you're dying, they really, really listen to you, instead of just …

Marla Singer: … instead of just waiting for their turn to speak?

Narrator: Yeah. Yeah

Pretty much that's how I don't want to be. That I care what they have to say, not that I'm just waiting for them to take a breath so I can interject my oh-so-important can't-live-without opinion or thoughts upon them. And maybe I do have something that just seems so incredibly important to say, but it can probably wait (aside from, "there's a massively creepy and incredibly frightening monster behind you...RUN!"). Listening, and really listening, with questions to show you're paying attention and care, can mean so much. That's what I've been thinking about a lot recently, just a way to show you care for someone is just to remember details of their life, follow-up, listen to their thoughts, struggles, whatever, and be there for them. Be someone people can go to, be someone they can share their sorrows and joys with, show you care. I believe that can truly illustrate compassion. If you prove you care for someone, then you have the "right" to tell them that God loves them and has a wonderful plan for their lives, even when life is hard. Because they know you know what's going on, they know you aren't just saying that because you "have to," but because it's truly what you believe, for them and for yourself. Did that make any sense? I kinda ramble a lot...

-What might be some beliefs, lies, or misconceptions about the poor and oppressed that keep you from engaging in good works?

I mean there are a number of stereotypes about the poor, especially the homeless, that they somehow deserve where they are. There's an idea that people in those positions are there because they didn't work hard enough, were lazy, or did something bad to merit the short stick in the gamble of life. There's this crazy idea that if you help people, they'll just keep wanting help, and will never get out of the rut they're in, so the clear solution is to never help anyone. I think those misconceptions bar many people from giving and helping. But I honestly believe we should just help people. We shouldn't worry about whether or not their story is legit, we shouldn't be concerned about what they'll spend the $5 on, we should just give and trust Jesus to do the rest. If we have food, we should share it, if we have extra clothes or blankets, we should share them, we should give our time and resources. I'm not saying I'm super good at doing all these things, but it's definitely a goal.

-What is clear about Jesus as we read this passage?

Jesus' beautiful heart for the suffering and needy. As Jesus said at some point in one of the Gospels, the healthy don't need a doctor, Jesus came to save the sick. Jesus came to give life, freedom, and joy as it can only be found in Him.