Hope for the Lost (Luke 4:16-21) by: Francis Jackson

            Often times there are those who characterize their faith by social status, financial well-being, knowledge of the Scriptures, or by some other kind of superficial, arrogant approach.  Even worse, these kinds of people look at those not in these categories as less spiritual.  We should be thankful that God is not like man because his take is completely different.  When Jesus came to His hometown in Nazareth, He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath to read in the presence of others as was their custom (Acts 17:2).  Christ read from Isaiah 61:1-2a which outlines our hope for salvation.  This is the category of people God came for.  Christ came to proclaim the gospel to the poor. The Greek word used for poor is probably the term ptocheuo “to be poor” or ptocheia “poverty.” This word speaks of someone who is reduced to begging, being forced to depend on someone else for basic needs.  These are the people whom the gospel of salvation is for.  The New Testament theme for captivity is one who submits to any power other than the God of the Christian faith. The term was often used in Old Testament as one taken as prisoner.  The Greek work for blind is typhlos which is used literally as well as metaphorically.  Jesus used this term as a metaphor describing Pharisees as blind guides (Matt. 15:10-14).  Jesus also used blindness literally in healing the man born blind in order to communicate something spiritually to the Pharisees (John 9).  Oppress means to bruise, crush, overpower, put down, or burden (Ex. 3:9; Prov.14:31).  According to Luke, Jesus is saying, “Look, if you are not spiritually poor to the point of absolute dependence or begging, then the good news of the gospel is not for you. If you don’t see yourselves as spiritually imprisoned by sin, spiritually blind as the Pharisees were, and burdened and overpowered by sin, then I didn’t come for you.”  Unfortunately for those who don’t fall in line with this criterion, they remain lost because salvation is only in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12; John 14:6).  He is the only One who can save us, and these are the ones He came for. He is the hope for the lost.