Gospel freedom

Luke 4 : 16 - 30

"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."

When one is hungry, any food tastes good and similarly when one is thirsty, drinks really quench and refresh. It is sad that in our day, in our upper middle class settings, there is nothing much people really hunger and thirst for. Well, there may be 'wants' and 'wish lists' but nothing that really matters or life and death issues. How do we expect people to reach out for the gospel of Jesus Christ?

Jesus came to bring good news to the poor, freedom for the prisoners and the oppressed and sight for the blind. Do we know what it means to truly experience a need? Or is the gospel just another add on to an already full life, another insurance policy perhaps?

I have learnt a lot from reflecting on these questions because it helps me when I try to share the good news with others. There are some people who know their need immediately. They are among the poor and oppressed, both materially and spiritually. They hunger and thirst for the Word of God that feeds and refreshes, that gives life as it were. There are also people whose lives are going very well. These are people who are often unaware of their deeper needs. They do not hunger or thirst materially. In fact they live with much excess. It is a long process to bring them in touch with their real needs. For all who have not given the Lord rightful place in their lives are poor, are imprisoned, are blind......spiritually. I would have to start where they are before I can even share the gospel.

It is also good to reflect on our own poverty, our own bondages and blindness.....and how our Lord has freed and delivered us. Our recall will help us share with others the way the Lord's freedom has transformed our lives. The gospel cannot be reduced to just explaining to people the 'four spiritual laws' and asking them to believe. True, the Holy Spirit is the one who convicts a person of the reality of God's truth. But our faith is an incarnational one and the Spirit often works through the honest sharing of lives. He often helps others trust and open their minds when we walk with them and share our journeys.

To be a bearer of God's truth does not always ensure a welcome reception. God's truth will sound interesting to some, but they may remain skeptical; and it may 'offend' others who have closed their minds and hearts. Jesus himself bore the consequences of speaking truth openly. We need to always be guided by the Spirit as he was, in our own efforts to share God's message of freedom.