What was Jesus’ first recorded sermon? It is from the text we are going to read today.

Isaiah 61:1-2 (KJV)  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;  [2]  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD …

and the day of vengeance of our God…

In Luke we read:

Luke 4:14-21 (KJV)  And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about.  [15]  And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.  [16]  And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.  [17]  And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,  [18]  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,  [19]  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.  [20]  And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.  [21]  And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

We know that Isaiah 61:1-2 is not the very first sermon that Jesus preached, but it is His first recorded reading and preaching of the Scripture in a Church setting. When Jesus preached that day He preached in Nazareth, His home town.

Luke 4:16 (KJV)  And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

It was Jesus’ “custom”to go to Church, and to participate in the services. When He had been in Church at other times the people saw Him as no more than a Carpenter’s son. But this time Jesus came to His hometown Church to announce His calling as Messiah. He wanted those closest to Him to know that He was sent of God, anointed as the Messiah, and that He was given specific ministries. Before Jesus started His earthly ministry He wanted Nazareth to know why He cameand Who He is.

Jesus Is God’s Anointed One – The Messiah

Isaiah 61:1 (KJV)  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me;

When the Spirit of the Lord rested on the Old Testament Saints they were given power to do what God wanted them to do. The Messiah when He came moved in the power of God. He did what He did because the Father directed it. He did what He did because the Spirit endorsed it. When God spoke of the Coming of the Messiah He prophesied:

Isaiah 11:1-2 (KJV)  Andthere shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:  [2]  And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

Jesus Christ is the “Stem of Jesse”. He descended from the line of King David. He is the “Branch grown out of the Roots”. The Spirit of the Lord rested on Christ, endorsing and empowering His ministry. Jesus was not just a Rabbi, not just another Teacher, but He was and is the Messiah sent of God. From a Child Jesus was about His Father’s business.

Jesus was anointed of God as a Baby cradled in a Manger in Bethlehem. The Angel declared:

Luke 2:10-12 (NKJV) “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

To the world He was but a poor child of poor parents. But to Heaven He was the Messiah, the Brilliant Star of Whom Heaven sang:

Glory to God in the Highest
and on earth Peace, Good Will toward men!

We know little of His childhood. He grew up in Nazareth I am certain a sweet and obedient Child. We know little of His forming years. We do know on one occasion Mary and Joseph inadvertently left Jesus in Jerusalem after going to celebrate the Passover. Jesus was twelve years old. When they discovered He was missing they searched for Him frantically. Where is Jesus? Where is He? After THREE DAYSthey found Him in the Temple,

Luke 2:46-48 (NKJV) …sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. 48 So when they saw Him, they were amazed;

His mother Mary asked “Son, why have You done this to us? Your father and I were searching for you anxiously!”Jesus answered simply, and without repentance:

Luke 2:49 (NKJV) … “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?”

Jesus returned home that day with His mother. The Bible tells us that He“increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with both God and man” (Luke 2:52). He was an exceptional Child. But His focus was always His Father’s business. Not that of Carpentry. Not the profession – honorable that it was – of His stepfather Joseph. “His Father’s business”was the salvation of the broken.

Jesus Came To Minister To The Broken

Isaiah 61:1 (KJV)  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek;

Jesus came to “preach good tidings to the meek”. Who are the MEEK?The word translated “meek” is the Hebrewעָנָו`anavwhich means “poor, weak, afflicted, needy”. People often ask me the question “why is there so much suffering in this life? Why the homeless? Why natural disasters?”I do not have a simple answer for any of those questions but I can say this:

If you are hurting.
If you are in pain.
If you are needy.
If you are suffering.
YOU NEED JESUS.
Jesus came for YOU first.
You are the FIRST REASON God sent Him.
He came to tell you that He has GOOD NEWS for you.
You are not alone.
Jesus came to be with YOU!

I am not saying that we should not give physical necessities to help those in need. We as Christ’s Children should give to help those who truly are poor. But what people need more than anything else is not STUFF but JESUS.

He was anointed of God to reach out to those in need. He has good news for you. You are not lesser beings because you are lacking in some way. God came to enrich you, to draw you into His Family, to love you.

Isaiah 61:1 (KJV) … He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted

What does it mean to be “brokenhearted”? It means to have that which you had faith in shattered. You are in a hopeless estate. The human you put your trust in failed you. The person you thought loved you has done despite to you. The job you thought would carry you into your old age is gone. You are betrayed by someone you thought loved you. The Bible says:

Psalm 34:18 (NKJV) The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit.

Psalm 147:3 (NKJV) {God}heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.

Sometimes we seem as humans to seek a broken heart just as an old hound dog would chase a raccoon. We do things that God has told us are wrong. In this current generation young people have been taught by television and devilish tradition that the joy of marriage can be shortcut by “moving in together”. Too many have bought into the idea that love is a swimming pool that you can fall into or climb out of. Too many young lives have been ruined when the physical act of sex is confused with actual love. Nothing is farther from the truth.

If you are shipwrecked on America’s terrible reef of sexual immorality, if your heart has been broken by investing your love in a broken pot, then you are in a good place regardless as to how you feel right now. Jesus came to heal the brokenhearted.

He came to be the One that you can invest in your love in and never go wrong. How do I know this? Because Jesus is the Ultimate Hero. When I was a little boy I dreamed of being like Superman or Batman, the Hero who would save the damsel in distress. But as I grew up I realized that all the comic book heroes were only faint replicas of the Jesus Christ Who loves us all. He came to save us all. How?

Though unregarded, He came into the world to save us from our sins.
He lived a life doing nothing but Good.
He taught the Way of God.
And when we had no regard for Him, He loved us.

1 John 4:15-19 (NKJV) Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. 17 Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. 19 We love Him because He first loved us.

We are loved not because some boy loves me, or because some girl loves me. We are not even loved because our mommy or daddy loves us. We are loved because GOD loves us. We are loved because God loved us so much that He sent His Only Begotten Son to die for us. Now that is love. THAT – my friends – is LOVE!

See love in action.
See Him standing before the Judge.
He has no sin in Himself.
The Judge has said “I see no sin in this Man. He is innocent.”
The world says “Crucify Him”.
He is tied to the stake. He is beaten with whips.
He is mocked. A crown of thorns is forced upon His head.
A cross upon His back.
And as He goes to Calvary the crowd He would save mocks Him.

No one took Christ’s life. Jesus said in John 10:17-18

… My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. 18 No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

Jesus laid down His life for you and for me.

Jesus Came To Free Us From Our Sin

Isaiah 61:1 (KJV) … to proclaim LIBERTY to the captives,
and the OPENING OF THE PRISON to them that are bound;

When Joseph was told that Mary would have a son – an Extraordinary Son from God – the Angel told Joseph:

Matthew 1:21 (NKJV) {Mary} will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.

Sin is the great problem of mankind. We have racism because of sin, that old sin nature in each one of us. Though we are all descended from One Man named Adam and One Woman named Eve we – because of sin in us – make prejudiced and unwarranted decisions about people because of outward appearances. Black degrades white, and white black. In World War 2 the Japanese treated those of different skin colors as inferior to them, as did the Germanic people. There was talk of a“Master Race”. Beloved, all were created in the image of God. What did God say?

Genesis 1:26-27 (ESV) … God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominionover the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

God made man, He made woman, and together man and woman was in His image. The animals were made to be under the dominion of man and woman. God made us uniquely. God told Noah:

Genesis 9:6 (ESV) … “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image

The greatest of sins was to take life. Life is precious. If a person took life, they forfeited their life. Listen Beloved. That dark skinned man you hate is in the image of God. That light skinned man you despise is in the image of God. It is sin in us that draws us to denegrate what God has made, and each of you are made of God.

Jesus Christ came to free us from sin.
He did not come to enable us to live in that mudpuddle.
But He is the Grand Liberator!

Jesus came to free us from the prison of sinfulness and selfishness. The Scripture tells us that:

1 John 3:8-9 (NKJV) HE WHO SINS IS OF THE DEVIL, FOR THE DEVIL HAS SINNED FROM THE BEGINNING. FOR THIS PURPOSE THE SON OF GOD WAS MANIFESTED, THAT HE MIGHT DESTROY THE WORKS OF THE DEVIL. 9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

When you come to Christ your view of “sin” changes. Whenever you saw Jesus, you saw Him in the presence of those known as “sinners”. The religious crowd asked Jesus one day “Why do You hang around those sinners?” Hear Jesus’ reply:

Mark 2:17 (NKJV) … “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are SICK. I did not come to call the righteous, but SINNERS, to repentance.”

Did you read what Jesus said? SIN is a SICKNESS, a PRISON. It is not a PLAYGROUND, nor a place to be PREFERRED. It is something we are to be CURED of. If the Scripture declares what you are doing as SINFUL then Jesus came to free you from that. You say “Well, I am no theologian. How shall I know what is sinful?”

Sin is that which is against the clearly presented WILL OF GOD.
It was SINFUL for Adam to eat that which was forbidden.
It is SINFUL for us to disobey God’s clearly stated order.
SIN puts ME FIRST and GOD LAST.
It is a PRISON that will limit your life.
It will make a hell on earth.

Jesus said in John 10:10 “The THIEF does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly”.

Sin is a thief, a murderer of joy and life, a rot on that which is good. Jesus came to give us abundant life. Come to Him for a great life now, and a greater life in eternity.

IA man goes to his doctor. “I feel run down. I’m exhausted every day. I wake up tired. Life seems so meaningless, without any blessing.”The doctor examines him, schedules him for a PET Scan, a CAT Scan, and bloodwork. A few days later the doctor calls him into his office.“You have a tumor on your liver. It’s cancerous, and needs to be removed. You were born with it, but over the years it has grown till it has taken over your body.”The man tells his doctor “No, I was born this way. You’re wrong. The problem isn’t the tumor, but something else. I’ll seek another opinion.”The man goes to doctor after doctor, each giving him the same information.“The cancer must go or it will ruin your life”. The man refuses to listen to the doctor. He finds friends who tell him it is all right. He finds people who gather around him saying“You were born that way. It’s natural. Let it be”.

This is what the world wants today. That is what many people want. “I was born this way. Let’s justify the sin. God loves the sinner, so He must love the sin.”Not true. God loves you, and wants the best for you. Jesus came that you might have life. He came to …

proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

He came to set you free from that which is sin. Repent. Turn to Him. He will save you. If you look in the Gospels you read that His first Word Jesus ever preached was to REPENT, to TURN from sin and toward God.

Matthew 4:17 (KJV)  From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mark 1:15 (KJV)  And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Repent. Turn. Run to His arms. Jesus will save you from that which binds you!

Now Is The Acceptable Time

Isaiah 61:2To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD …

and the day of vengeance of our God…

Jesus preached the “acceptable year of the Lord”. He did not quote all of Isaiah’s text. Jesus did not read the text that said “and the day of vengeance of our God”.There is a day coming when God shall judge the world, a day of vengeance. God will cleanse the world of sin and its destructive force. There is a judgment day coming. But the Lord calls whosoever will to turn to Him. The Bible says:

2 Corinthians 6:1-2 (NKJV) We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

Turn to Him. Receive Him. Love Him as He loves you, and begin to live. May God touch your hearts with His Word.