What is ministry? What is the focal point of Jesus’ ministry? How does that apply to us today? God has called all who believe in Him to minister in different ways. Fulfilling that call using Christ’s role model is finding fulfilment in life.
Presentation Overview
Matt 4:12-25, Lk 4:14-37; Matt 12:15-21 Mark 1:39; John 4:44
- What is Ministry
- Christ’s Anointing
- Preach Good news to the poor
- Proclaim Liberty to the captives
- Recovery of sight to the blind
- Our Ministry
Discussion
What is ministry?
To understand how:
- Satan uses temptation to divert us from our purpose
- Jesus withstood temptation
- We have the same power to overcome that he had
Jesus starts and finishes at Galilee
Galilee was:
- the most despised area in Israel
- contained a large mixture of Gentiles,
- politically unstable region.
Galileans were considered
- unlearned and ignorant
- troublemakers
Making Disciples
After His baptism and John’s arrest, Jesus moves to Capernaum and chooses his first disciples.
Matt 4:19 And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Christ’s anointing
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Luke 4:18,19
Christ's Anointing
In Luke 4:17, the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He unrolled it to Isaiah chapter 61. Why did he turn to Isaiah and why chapter 61?.
It tells specifically about Christ’s work as Messiah.
To preach good news to the poor
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor…” 18a
Who are the poor referred by Jesus?
They are the poor in spirit not finances.
They are the poor in spirit not finances.
To preach good news to the poor
They are the poor in spirit not finances.
The poor in spirit are those who:
- Know that they need God.
- Admit spiritual destitution due to sin and helplessness to deliver themselves from their dire situation.
- Recognize utter worthlessness of spiritual currency and inability of their own works to save them
To preach good news to the poor
Humbleness is what fertilizes the soil of our heart in which to prepare a home for Christ to live.
To proclaim liberty to the captives
The prodigal son never understood his freedom and thought he should:
- Not be restricted.
- Have freedom from his father
- Have full financial control
His idea of freedom made him a prisoner.
- “Testing God” never draws people to God
- Neither do miraculous signs
- Genuine understanding and love ignites a genuine relationship with God
To proclaim liberty to the captives
Adam and Eve thought freedom was:
- Rebelling against God
- Listening to the devil (Gen.3)
- Becoming like God
Instead mankind lost real freedom and became a slave to sin
How do we chose to use the freedom God has given us?
To proclaim liberty to the captives
Without Jesus:
- There is no real freedom.
- We struggle to find the meaning of life.
- We become more thirsty and empty and restless.
- We become a prisoner to despair and fatalism.
Jesus’ completing God’s work in this world provides the real freedom that men need.
To proclaim liberty to the captives
The secret to freedom in Christ is given in John 8:32, “If you hold to my teachings you are truly my disciples, then you will know the truth and ..
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
Recovery of sight to the blind
(Jn.9:25)When Jesus heals the blind man in John 9, he not only physically heals him but points him to “The Light of the World” (john 8:12) and opens his spiritual eyes.
This put the spotlight on the ones who were truly blind i.e. the pharisees and religious leaders.
Spiritual blindness is far worse than physical blindness 2 Cor 4:4
Recovery of sight to the blind
People can be blinded by their desires for:
- Money
- Lust
- Glory
Jesus truly opens our blind eyes to see.
(John 9:25)
To set at liberty those who are oppressed
Physical oppression is abuse. Spiritual oppression is:
- Hurt from a life of sin.
- Fear and captivity under the devil (2 Tim 2:25-26).
To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor
The year of the Lord’s favor means:
- Salvation
- Year of Jubilee (once in 50 years)
- Liberty in the land.
- Time to cancel all debts
- Free slaves.
(Lev.25:8-55)
Response of the Nazarenes
En masse they wanted to slaughter and throw Jesus over the cliff.
They threw out their Messiah who had grown among them and lived a life unparalleled to any other.
Even his family did not recognize his grace
So humble and gentle, with no airs about him – that was his life for 30 years.
If we have difficult surroundings, so did Jesus.
Are we still shining lights in this dark world?
Our Ministry
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of servicOur Ministrye [diakonia], so that the body of Christ may be built up. (Ephesians 4:11-12)
Matthew 4 concludes with Jesus appointing Peter and Andrew to be his disciples – in the 2nd year of His ministry.
Our Ministry
The previous year, Andrew, who had followed John the Baptist turned to Jesus and brought his brother Peter as well. (John 1:35-39)
They were now full time disciples.
Never could they imagine how their life would change, how the world would change as a result of this choice.
Are we fulfilling our calling?
Our Ministry
“When we seek to glorify God in all we do, all we do becomes ministry.”
Discussion
- In what ways, using our gifts, can we continue the ministry of Christ to proclaim:
- Good news to the poor?
- Liberty to the captives?
- Recovery of sight to the blind?
- Liberty those who are oppressed?
- The year of the Lord’s favor?
- What is the importance of discipleship? What lessons do we learn from Jesus?
Referennces
- bible.org