Removing Oppression for the Glory of God

Lord, we stand or sit right now and we bless you.

! We praise you for you are worthy.

!

The Lamb that was slain for us.

The Lamb who shed His blood.

The spotless Lamb of God who purchased redemption for us.

Who made a way into the very throne room, into the very presence of God.

Through your mercy and compassion, by overcoming the oppression of sin,

by liberating us from the bondage and slavery of our own wickedness,

and leading us into freedom.

Making a way for us to have fellowship with God.

You've broken down the wall that has separated us from you and from your people,

by making a way through Jesus, by faith in you,

because of the work of your Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross.

Lord, it is my prayer this morning that through our time in Nehemiah chapter 5,

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

and through looking into the scriptures, that you would help to call us into a greater appreciation of your worthiness.

God, in God, in expression and understanding, in reverence of your worthiness,

make us faithful and worthy vessels.

Help us to know your heart today.

May we echo the heart of Christ.

The heart of Christ to remove oppression.

First of sin, and then of every other oppression that we see in front of us.

As an evidence of the portrait of Jesus in the work of your ministry here on this earth.

So help us, Lord, to emulate your heart and your ultimate purpose for all nations

to be redeemed and ransomed and purchased back to you.

Lead us in our study this morning in your word.

Allow your Holy Spirit to have your way in us, we pray.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Amen.

Well, it is very special to have all of you here, instead of just preaching to a camera.

It's nice to actually have some smiling faces.

It's good to be with you this morning.

That song expresses the pathway, the end point, really, of where we're going to go.

We're starting in Nehemiah chapter 5.

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

But the culmination of what we see in Nehemiah chapter 5 is to help us see a foreshadowing.

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

A foreshadowing of the ministry of Jesus and the work that Jesus intends to accomplish.

The work of redemption.

The work of ransom.

The work to get us all back to that original purpose.

The purpose that he established at the beginning of creation in allowing us to have fellowship with him

in holiness and perfection.

We broke that.

Adam and Eve broke that in the garden.

We continue to break that every single day of our existence through our sin.

Through our rebellion against God.

But God, by his mercy, is made a way.

And his heart is to ransom all of creation to reset it back to its original design.

As John writes in Revelation chapter 5, 9 and 10,

Revelation 5 · chapter mention

they sang a new song saying,

Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals.

For you were slain and by your blood you ransomed people.

And here it is.

For God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

And you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God.

And they shall reign on the earth.

Now that should sound really familiar because that's what God had established with Abraham

and with Moses and with the people when he built this covenant relationship with them at Mount Sinai.

Abraham, of course, was much earlier.

But they were the covenant people pulled and made distinct because of Abraham.

They were sons of Abraham.

But this covenant relationship, this contract that God wrote up for the people

that was to establish how this relationship was supposed to work,

was signed and sealed at Mount Sinai.

And at that time, God made his people a kingdom of priests.

That was the goal.

That was the plan.

But his people throughout history had broken that contract,

had violated God's purpose in their life.

And instead of saying,

what a privilege of welcoming the world,

welcoming the nations into this same relationship that we enjoy,

of featuring and being an illustration of the welcoming relationship of God,

the presence of God among his people,

they said, ha, we're distinct people.

We're set apart people.

We are God's people.

And you have nothing to do with him.

That was not God's plan.

That was not God's purpose.

God's purpose was to establish in Israel a welcoming cry,

a kingdom of priests that would call the nations to himself.

He will establish that purpose once and for all when the end has finally come.

That's his purpose, to welcome the nations before him.

And this morning, if you are a Gentile like me,

you are an individual who has experienced that mercy and compassion of God,

a part that has come through his son, Jesus Christ,

who is a part of Israel and a light to the Gentiles like God intended him to be.

That's what Israel was supposed to do.

That was their purpose.

Because God had in mind to set all things new,

to redeem all of creation,

to bring them back to himself.

We find in our passage this morning in Nehemiah chapter 5,

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

another breaking, another fracture,

oppression that is taking place among God's people.

That Nehemiah, who is a foreshadowing of the Christ figure,

who echoes the heart of God,

recognizes the oppression that is taking place

and demonstrates a righteous indignation and hatred for what he sees.

We don't have any points this morning.

I don't have any notes to share.

I don't have any three simple truths to convey to you today.

I just want to talk through this narrative.

I want us to look at the history

and to see the relevance of what is happening here in Nehemiah chapter 5.

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

And I don't think there's a better time for us to see this.

You know, by God's providence,

back in late October, early November of last year,

I started putting together the preaching schedule for 2020.

I had no idea what was going to happen on June 7th

in the couple of weeks leading up to this,

but God did.

He knew the fracture and the divide

and the racial tension that is happening across our country.

He knew that was going to happen.

He is not surprised.

And so he put us here in Nehemiah chapter 5

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

so we can understand that God has a hatred for oppression

and God has a remedy for oppression.

It comes through Jesus Christ

and it is a catalyst through his people.

We are representatives of God

to help remedy the oppression

that we see in the world around us.

God has called us to be agents of mercy and compassion,

kingdom of priests,

called by God to be a light to the nations,

to bring in the harvest of worshipers

who will sit before the throne

and say worthy is the Lamb.

What a privilege.

What an awesome privilege.

But what a tremendous responsibility.

It's not going to happen

unless we begin to recognize

the significance of this issue.

This is not a tangential issue.

This is not a superficial issue.

This is a gospel issue.

And we must understand

and have a heart for this issue

just the way that Nehemiah had a heart for this issue

and just the way that Jesus had a heart for this issue.

Nehemiah chapter 5.

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

We're going to begin our time in verse 6.

Nehemiah chapter 5, verse 6.

Nehemiah 5:6

It says this,

I was very angry

when I heard their outcry in these words.

Now if you're wondering what words we're talking about,

it's the words of the people

who have come to present the problem

of their oppression

that they're experiencing.

Now I don't know if any of you

have ever experienced oppression

or some degree of being taken advantage of.

I was trying to think in my own life

how I've experienced some oppression

and it's very mild in comparison

with maybe some of the things

that you've experienced.

I thought about

how do authorities

or people who are put in positions

of honor,

how do they maybe abuse

their privilege?

And how have I experienced that for myself?

And I thought,

well, you know,

many, many years ago

when I went to buy a used car.

Anyone ever buy a used car?

Okay.

All right.

I think used car dealers,

you know, they kind of have,

there's a little title

that goes along with them.

They're kind of known as slippery,

kind of known as those

who want to take advantage.

And so if you're a used car,

Salmon, please forgive me.

It's not against you.

Just recognize that there's some

who are out there

who make a bad name for you.

Okay.

Well, so I went to buy

my first used car,

the first car I'd ever bought

before in my life.

And I walked onto the lot

and I'm sure

they could smell fresh blood.

Okay.

They know,

ha ha,

this guy is a novice.

He has never bought a car before.

Look at him.

And the sharks were swirling.

I could see them.

They could smell blood.

They came all after me

at the same time.

So I'm looking around

and this was the age

before the internet.

So I couldn't do some pre-shopping

and kind of look around.

So I showed up at the lot.

I expected,

you know,

kind of like the grocery store.

You go to the grocery.

I'm kind of a guy.

You go to the grocery store.

Shopping is you find something

you like and you take it home.

Not that you go to this lot

and then the next lot

and you find the best deal in town.

I didn't know how to do that yet.

So look at the sticker.

It was about the price I could afford.

Looked at the car.

Yeah,

that's about the car

that I want to have.

And so I went into the contract place

where you sign the forms

and the contract that they gave me

was $5,000 more

than the sticker I saw on the car.

I'm thinking,

what is happening here?

And, you know,

when they have costs like stereo system

and hubcaps and wheels

and like,

that's not included in the car?

A pole street.

You know, the back seat.

I'm kidding.

Those weren't on there.

But just the inflation of these prices

and then on top of it all,

because I didn't have credit yet,

the interest rate was like astronomical.

I said,

well, I guess this is what you do

when you buy a used car.

So I signed the dotted line.

I drove away out of the parking lot

with my brand new car

and immediately,

buyer's remorse.

Huh.

What was I thinking?

What an idiot.

Instead of having an advocate,

instead of having somebody

come alongside me

and put their hand on my shoulder

and say,

let me just tell you

how things are supposed to work

on a used car lot.

They inflate the prices on purpose

about 50%

so that they can negotiate a little bit.

That's what you're supposed to do

when you go to a used car lot.

You're supposed to negotiate.

Well, I didn't know about negotiating

and I didn't have an advocate.

So I walked out of that place

and they absolutely took me for a ride.

Taken advantage of.

Well, about a week and a half later,

I totaled the car.

Which made matters worse.

Fortunately, God allowed my insurance company

to cover the entire cost

of a car that the price was already inflated.

So God was kind

even though the dealer was not.

And so I never made that mistake again

because I understood

what oppression was like

and I recognized what to look for

in the midst of that issue.

And here we come

to Nehemiah chapter 5

Nehemiah 5 · chapter mention

and here is a group of people

who should know better.

They should know better.

They have experienced oppression firsthand.

It went all the way back to Egypt.

It went all the way back

to their captivity

for hundreds of years

in Egypt.

So much so that Nehemiah prefaces

this chapter,

chapter 5, verse 1,

by talking about

an outcry of the people

which was reminiscent

of the outcry,

same word,

of the people

who were under oppression

in Egypt.

Egypt.

They should have known better.

And God,

by His mercy,

led them out of Egypt.

God,

by His mercy,

led them through

the Red Sea.

God,

by His mercy,

allowed them

to be preserved

in the midst of

40 years of wilderness wandering.

And by His mercy,

established a covenant

with them,

a kingdom of priests

to our God.

By His mercy,

He established

a relationship

with them.

He gave them access

to His very self

through the tabernacle

at the time

and through the ordinances

that they celebrated,

the rituals of sacrifice

through the Lamb.

The Passover Lamb,

which was the very first thing

that they did

to demonstrate

that they'd been

ransomed as a people,

which was a foreshadowing

of what Christ

would inevitably do

for them

in ransoming a people.

That was the pathway

of freedom.

And their wilderness wandering,

the exile out of Egypt

and their entrance

back into the promised land

was marked

by the bookends

of Passover.

It was supposed to be

this clarion call.

You have been redeemed.

You are a set-apart people.

And you are intended

to be the kinds of people

who will showcase

the wonder of your God

in calling the nations

to me.

My presence will mark you.

Be the kind of people

who will welcome others

into a relationship

with me.

You've given them

plenty of opportunities

to do that.

Rahab being the first

in Jericho,

by the way,

who was in the lineage

of Jesus.

Another hallmark

of the redemptive work

of God

in drawing the nations

to himself.

Nehemiah, of course,

understood the challenges

that this people faced.

His heart in Nehemiah chapter 1

Nehemiah 1 · chapter mention

breaks for the people.

We find him in Nehemiah chapter 1,

Nehemiah 1:4

verse 4.

There is a weeping

and a mourning

of fasting

and a praying.

His heart is absolutely

broken and shattered

over the oppression

that he sees

of this people.

He bleeds for them.

His heart is burdened

for them.

He is interested

in their advancement

and helping to remove

the oppression

that they feel.

So Nehemiah begins

to pray

and God says,

Nehemiah,

you're the guy.

You want to see

the oppression

of this people

being removed?

Well, I'm going to use you

as a catalyst

to make it happen.

So I'm sending you

back to Jerusalem.

So Nehemiah goes

and he helps the people

begin to build the wall.

The wall which would be

an extension

of the temple.

The wall in Jerusalem

which was supposed

to showcase

the presence of God

among his people.

This was God's city.

This was Zion.

This is where God dwelt.

This is where you could enjoy

the presence of God

as a people.

So as Nehemiah

begins to build

these walls

with the people,

they encounter

oppression

from the enemies.

It begins

with a small

set of

tidal waves

and opposition

and mounts

into this

great tidal wave

of oppression

by the entire

region

surrounding them.

So they're

totally encompassed

by opposition

all around them.

I'm sure Nehemiah

expected this kind

of opposition

but he wasn't prepared

for what he was going

to hear

in chapter 5.

He wasn't prepared

for the fact

that the people

would oppress

themselves.

Of course

the enemies

would oppress them

but their own brothers?

How could it be?

Nearly takes

his breath away.

You can see that

in Nehemiah

Nehemiah 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6

excuse me

5 verse 6

I was very angry

he says

when I heard

their outcry

in these words.

There were three

groups of people

that came

to Nehemiah

to express

the kind of opposition

that they were experiencing.

The first group

of individuals

is those

they didn't have

any property

so they didn't have

anything to barter with

but they did have

large families.

They were merchants

they were tradesmen

they may have been

shepherds

they were trying

to do business

in Jerusalem

but their

trade was shut down

because there wasn't

anyone coming

through Jerusalem anymore.

All of the tradesmen

from the surrounding regions

avoided that place

because they knew

it was a hotbed

of controversy

a hotbed of conflict

not to mention

the fact that

there was

a lot of work

going on

for the last month

and a half.

So

their merchandise

and their ability

to buy

and to sell

was shut down.

They had no

access to money.

To make matters worse

their families

were large

and so

trying to

make a way

for their family

to survive

was difficult

if not impossible.

Certainly

they would have

gone to the nobles

and to the wealthy

to say

can you please

spare us a little

funds

can you just

loan us a little

cash

but because

there was nothing

in it

for the nobles

they were unwilling

to share

they were unwilling

to help.

They had not

been gripped

by the reality

of God's mercy

in their own life.

They had not

really come to terms

with how

God had called

them to be

a kingdom of priests.

They had not

really understood

the image

bearing testimony

they were supposed

to have

among the nations.

They didn't really

care about that

anyway.

The second group

involves those

who did own

some property.

vineyards

and fields

and homes

we find

them in

verse 3.

They used

this as collateral

these vineyards

and farms

as a collateral

in order

to get some

money in their

pockets

to buy some

food

to buy some

grain.

They figured

that as long

as the harvest

came

and it was

just a month

away

they knew

that as soon

as the harvest

would come

they'd be able

to pay off

those debts.

the challenge

again was

compounded

by two factors.

The first factor

was a famine

that you see

there in

verse 3.

Now the famine

isn't a famine

as you and I

would think

where there's

no access

to water

and everything

is parched

and dry.

The famine

that is talked

about here

in Nehemiah

Nehemiah 5:3

chapter 5

verse 3

is the kind

of famine

that the crops

just don't

produce the way

they would

in a healthy

year.

famine has

come

the crops

are not

producing

the kind

of yield

they need

to pay

off the debts

and to make

matters worse

there is interest

put on top

of everything

they could

never undo

or turn

this thing

around

without a

banner

bumper crop.

So now

they're looking

at a mortgage

that is upside

down.

They're looking

at property

that they're

going to be

handing over

to these

wealthy nobles.

who are going

to now take

it from them

because of

the exchange

that they made

in this mortgage

deal.

As a result

they have no

hope of inheritance

to pass on

to their children.

They have no

hope of future

income.

They're looking

at a life

of poverty

from this point

on.

They were stuck.

The third

group is the

group that

also had

vineyards

and farms

and property

and because

of the heavy

taxation

taxation

of about

40%.

Now

we just

went through

tax season.

Were your

taxes

something that

you really

look forward

to?

Yippee!

I get to

pay my

taxes this

year!

Alright!

It's about

15%.

I love

saying goodbye

to that money

and I don't

think there's

anybody in

this room

that would

raise their

hand on that

one.

Imagine

we think

15%

is bad.

Imagine

40%

and 50%

half of

your income

gone!

This is a

dire time.

This is a

strained time.

And so in

order to pay

their debts

their solution

is we

understand we

need this

property.

We want to

hand it down

as an inheritance

to our

children.

Maybe we

can just

exercise the

option built

into the

law that

says our

kids can

be indentured

servants for

the next

several years

until we pay

off our debt

or until the

year of

jubilee.

Every seven

years things

would reset

back to the

beginning and

regardless of

what that debt

might be the

servants would

be returned

back to their

original position.

That might not

be so bad at

least in

seven years

from now

we'll all

be free.

There was a

problem though.

Again interest

rates were too

high.

And again

the children

that were

given to

these nobles

were then

sold as

property to

the nations.

There was no

opportunity now

for them to

be redeemed

for them to

be reclaimed.

The year of

jubilee didn't

matter anymore.

They were

exercising these

nobles, were

exercising the

option of, which

wasn't really an

option allowed in

the law, they

were exercising

their option of

selling these

kids now into

slavery and

making good on

this exchange.

sons and

daughters sold into

slavery.

Notice what it

says in verse

five.

Yet we are

forcing, this is in

the middle of the

verse, our sons and

daughters to be

slaves and some of

our daughters have

already been

enslaved.

The repetition

that you see there

is intentional

because Nehemiah is

describing an

enslavement that

is in addition to

the enslavement

that is happening

to sons.

Which means that

these daughters

also have been

sold into slavery

in the sense that

they've been given

as wives to

these nobles.

You can almost see

them around the

table.

And I almost

hate to, maybe I

shouldn't.

It's too late now.

I guess I will.

They could have

written the book

The Art of the

Deal.

They could have

written that book

because they're

sitting around

talking to one

another, hey

have you seen

the deal that I

did yesterday?

Doggy, it was

amazing.

I saw this mom

and dad walk up

to me, they were

asking for access

to some money and

I said, I'm sorry,

just don't have

anything to give to

you right now.

I could tell it

had been at least

a week since

they'd eaten last,

kind of an emaciated

bunch and so I

knew they were

desperate.

Because if they

were looking sick

and thin, then I

can only imagine

how thin their

children are.

So I told them,

tell you what,

you know, you

mortgage your

property and maybe

I can find some

cash.

And now the

interest rate is

going to be 20%

but it's better to

have some food in

your tummy than

to all starve,

right?

Or I got another

option for you.

Your sons and your

daughters, they look

pretty strong.

I can put them to

work in my fields and

they can make me

some money.

I understand that

you have your own

harvest to do but

your crops aren't

that good anyway.

And again, if you

want your kids to

survive, then at

least they'll be

getting a good meal

every single day if

they're working for

me.

Or, you know, your

daughter's pretty

attractive and my

wife's kind of sick.

She's not been able

to do her normal

wifely duties for the

last several months.

I could use a good

looking young girl.

why don't you give

her to me as a

second wife?

That's the kind of

abuse we're talking

about in this

passage.

And there's no

wonder why

Nehemiah is so

enraged.

They should have

known better.

They should have

understood and

thought about the

oppression that they

had personally

experienced and the

oppression of their

ancestors.

They should have

known about the

160 years of

slavery that they

have been experiencing

up to this point.

For 160 years,

they've either been

under Babylonian rule

or Persian rule or

underneath the mob

rule there in Judah.

Their parents and

grandparents breathed

and lived the

adversity and

opposition, the

prejudice that was

built in to that

region.

They should have

known it best.

It should have

created in them a

heart of mercy and

compassion for their

fellow brothers, but

it didn't.

They were too

interested in their

own profit.

Injustice was a

means to an end for

them.

They had their own

families to think

about.

They had their own

future to secure.

They had their own

portfolio to advance.

So taking advantage of

their brothers was

just natural.

Adding to their

distress was just a

necessity.

Profiting off of

their misfortune was

a necessary commodity.

But Nehemiah presses

in in verse 7.

He says, I took

counsel with myself

and I brought

charges against the

nobles and the

officials.

I said to them,

you are exacting

interests, each from

his brother.

And I held a great

assembly against

them.

You see, Nehemiah

was familiar with

the Mosaic law.

Nehemiah understood

it and probably had

much of it memorized.

In his prayer in

chapter 1, much of

that is lifted

directly out of

Deuteronomy.

It's clear that he

has a great

appreciation and

understanding of the

law.

law.

And he applies it

here.

He understands that

interest on your

fellow brother is

forbidden from the

law.

Deuteronomy chapter

Deuteronomy 23 · chapter mention

23, 19 to 20 would

have guided him.

You shall not charge

interest on loans to

your brothers.

Interest on money,

interest on food,

interest on anything

that is lent for

interest.

You may charge a

foreigner interest,

but you may not

charge your brother

interest.

that the Lord your

God may bless you

in all that you

undertake, in the

land that you are

entering to take

possession of it.

Charging interest was

forbidden by the law.

In understanding the

law would be to

understand the heart

of God.

because at the

nature of it,

at the very core of

this issue was not

just checking a

punch list of doing

things that God has

asked them to do.

Because the Mosaic

law was not just a

list of good

suggestions in order

to be a happy

people.

The law was a

living illustration

of God among the

nations.

The law was a

portrait of his

holiness, his

righteousness, his

character in his

heart.

To follow the law

was to worship

God and to recognize

the pathway to

fellowship with him.

To enter in and to

express their

relationship with him

as a covenant

people.

And thus, to break

the covenant was

to misrepresent

God's divine

order.

To break the

covenant was to

misunderstand God's

heart.

To break the

covenant was to

pervert God's image

in the world.

And from an Old

Testament perspective,

it was a gospel

issue because it was

a covenant issue.

It was a Godward

issue.

Nehemiah understood

this.

He understood the

significance of the

law.

He understood that

it echoed the

heart of a

compassionate,

merciful,

oppressive,

removing,

powerful God.

That is God's

heart.

It was a portrait

of his personhood.

It was a window

into his holiness.

And through the

law, God

describes how the

people should relate

to him and how

they must relate

to one another.

Both were a

reflection of the

God that they

served, the God

that they worshipped.

Both were a

welcoming invitation

to the nations to

say, here's how

God's people look

because here is how

their God looks.

Here's what their

God does, what their

God values, who their

God is.

Will you be one of

them and represent

their God the same

way?

And it is God's

heart as creator

and sustainer, as the

originator of life, who

imparted his image into

us as his people.

We are image bearers of

God.

We have the

responsibility then to

preserve the dignity

of the image that God

has set upon every

person, wherever they

might be on this

earth.

It's God's intention to

preserve the people,

the image, as image

bearers of him, and to

protect them rather

than to injure them.

Now Nehemiah

understands that heart

and seeks to preserve

that dignity.

We see that in verse

eight.

I said to them, we as

far as we are able have

brought back our Jewish

brothers who have been

sold to the nations.

But you even sell your

brothers that they may be

sold to us.

They were silent and

could not find a word to

say.

Nehemiah committed

himself personally to

ransom.

He echoed the heart of

his future Messiah.

He was a future picture

of what Christ would

accomplish.

He personally redeemed

those who were sold

into slavery in the

nations, redeemed them

back so that they

could be free.

But you can almost see

the cycle happening.

Poverty, it leads to

indentured service to

the nobles who then

sell them to slavery to

the nations.

Nehemiah sees it, rescues

them, and the cycle

continues all over again.

And Nehemiah, who's now

made aware of this issue,

he says, enough is

enough.

Don't you understand the

significance of this

issue?

Don't you see how this is

a perverted picture of

the gospel, a perverted

picture of how God called

you to be his covenant

people?

But his initial

confrontation is met with

silence in verse 7.

Met with silence again in

verse 8.

And in verse 9, Nehemiah

brings it to the

preeminent place.

He wants to bring the

real issue to the

forefront.

He wants them to

understand the real

reason why this is

significant.

In verse 9, he says

this, the thing that you

are doing is not good.

Ought you not to walk in

the fear of our God to

prevent the taunts of the

nations, of our enemies?

You see what's taking

place there?

You see what Nehemiah

understands as the

foundation for this

issue?

You are disrupting the

image of God among the

peoples.

You are making a mockery of

God by your oppression of

the poor class.

Instead of removing

oppression, you are

compounding it and thus

perverting the gospel, thus

perverting the image of

God among the peoples.

Don't you have any fear

in you at all?

Don't you know what God

did to the Egyptians?

Don't you know how he

crushed them?

You put yourself in the

same path of discipline

when you refuse to follow

the pathway of God to

remove oppression.

He is the God of mercy, not

of selfishness.

He is the God who

redeems, not sells into

slavery.

He is the God who removes

oppression, not compounds

it.

Nehemiah understood the

heart of God.

He elevates the primary

purpose for obedience in

the midst of their

attention.

You have been called the

kingdom of priests.

You have been called a

light to the Gentiles.

But all they are doing

now is laughing at you.

They see a God that looks

just like their God.

They see a people that

looks just like them.

There is no distinctiveness

at all.

You are called to draw

attention to the wonder of

a compassionate,

merciful God.

You have been called to

remove oppression, not to

compound it.

We would expect that if

this is God's standard in

the past, that this would

be a feature of the

ministry of Jesus when he

steps foot on this

planet, and certainly it

is.

Let me just draw your

attention briefly to the

person and the description

of Jesus' ministry when he

first steps into the

public view.

It is found for us in

Luke chapter 4, verses

Luke 4:18

18 and 19.

How does Jesus describe

his ministry?

How does Jesus help to

set forth the purpose of

what he came to

accomplish?

How do we understand from

Jesus what he intends to

do through his ministry?

Well, we see it right at

the beginning.

The first stepping into,

the spotlight of Jesus

here in Luke chapter 4,

Luke 4 · chapter mention

we find in verse 18,

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, to proclaim the

year of the Lord's favor.

You see Nehemiah?

The reminiscence of that

Christ-like figure in the

Old Testament now showing up

in the real deal, the real

image of God.

God made flesh and dwelling

among his people and brings

his purpose to bear in his

ministry through his son,

Jesus Christ, to set at

liberty those who are

oppressed.

That's the heart of our

Savior.

But what is the greatest

oppression?

What's the greatest means by

which we need to be

delivered from?

What's the thing that

enslaves us all, all of

mankind, for all of

history has enslaved us?

Sin.

We need God to liberate us

from sin.

He did that through his

son, Jesus Christ.

Jesus who was sent to

proclaim good news and to

liberate mankind by allowing

us to enjoy the freedom that

comes through relationship

with himself.

That is the first and foremost

oppression that must be

resolved.

And Jesus came to resolve that

oppression.

Have you experienced freedom

from that oppression?

Liberation from that slavery?

But in order for Jesus to

demonstrate a commitment to

that eternal reality, Jesus

wanted to showcase or

illustrate that through a

physical reality.

He did that through his

ministry on earth.

To set at liberty those who

are oppressed in a physical

way.

To set at liberty those who

are oppressed by blindness,

by leprosy, and by demonic

activity.

Jesus illustrated his ability

to set people free.

He did that physically to help

to feature and point to that

spiritual reality he intends to

do for us through his son,

Jesus Christ, through faith in

Jesus.

Jesus.

But notice how this happens.

It must happen through a

relationship with God.

You cannot be a catalyst for

removing oppression if you have

not personally experienced that

freedom.

Do you know Jesus this morning?

Have you asked Jesus for

forgiveness for your sins?

Have you come to the place

where you recognize the

bondage that sin has brought

to your life and you've said,

Jesus, please be my Savior.

Please forgive me for sin and

to free me into slavery to you

because your yoke is easy.

Your burden is light.

And notice, secondly, that it

must happen through the power of

the indwelling Holy Spirit.

It was the Holy Spirit that

empowered Jesus to speak this

text.

It was the power of the Holy

Spirit working through Jesus

to provide that freedom.

That same power dwells in every

person who has a relationship

with God through faith in Jesus

Christ.

You can only be a catalyst for

removing oppression if God is

indwelling you with his Holy

Spirit.

But as those who follow in the

footsteps of God, we have been

given this great privilege and

great responsibility.

The privilege and responsibility of

recognizing oppression and

seeking to remove oppression

wherever it may show up.

especially in this day and age as it

relates to racism.

I don't know how that looks, but it

begins with a heart.

A heart like Nehemiah that desires

to be used of God to change the world

around them.

Empowered by the Spirit, armed with the

gospel so that we can be used of God

to remove the greatest oppression, but

that God works in our heart to create a

sensitivity to remove oppression

wherever it may be.

May God help us to do that.

Let me pray.

Father, I feel so inadequate to be used

of you in this way, but I know that you

have given your Holy Spirit to us to

accomplish the impossible.

Paul is praying for the church of

Ephesus in Ephesians chapter 1, and he's

Ephesians 1 · chapter mention

praying that that church would come to

understand the riches of your power

towards those who are in Christ.

God, may we come to really appreciate the

great wealth of your power that's

accessible to us through your Holy Spirit.

Give us a heart of Jesus to address the

oppression that we see all around us.

May we be useful.

May we be a portrait of our beautiful

Savior, we pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Thanks for coming this morning.

Good to see all of you.

Hope you have a great week.

Blessings as you go.

Thank you.