“Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). That’s what Jesus said in His hometown of Nazareth about the first few verses of Isaiah 61. And who wouldn’t be excited to hear such good news? As our own streets are filled with violence, and as we continue to miss lost loved ones, don’t we all long to be comforted when we mourn and to experience the Lord’s favor (Isaiah 61:1-2)?

But that was the problem. For no sooner had Jesus announced to the people of Nazareth that He had come to bring all of these blessings to them that they tried to throw Him off of a cliff (Luke 4:29). And why? Because He insisted that God’s welcome extended not only to the Jews, but to the Gentiles, the people they considered their sworn enemies (Luke 4:25-27).

And the idea of God bringing vengeance on His enemies is still attractive to many people today (Isaiah 61:2, 63:4). Yes, in our increasingly violent, polarized world, we find it easy to be angry with those who disagree with us, and to want them to get what we think is coming to them. At the same time, we long for God to approve of us, to clothe us with salvation, and to wrap His righteousness around us (Isaiah 61:10). We want God to be pleased with us as a groom is pleased with his bride (Isaiah 62:5).

So, are we any more ready to hear Jesus’ challenging words than were the people of His hometown? Are we ready to admit that we are not any more worthy of God’s blessings than those on the other side of our cultural divisions? Are we willing to hear that we might miss out on some of God’s blessings, at least in this lifetime, while others receive them, others that we are convinced are less worthy than we?

No, just as in Isaiah’s time, and just as in the days of Jesus’ earthly ministry, we are called to trust, not in our worthiness, but in God’s salvation. We are called to rely not on our righteousness, but on God’s grace. For Jesus has come to bring the same blessings to us that Isaiah described and that He announced to the people of Nazareth: freedom from bondage to sin and comfort for those who mourn. So even in the midst of our violent, hateful, dangerous world, let us trust the Lord to extend His grace and His justice in His time, and in the manner that He pleases.

Isaiah 61:1-3 (NASB)

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives, And freedom to prisoners;
2 To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,
3 To grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.