The Nazareth Manifesto

Canada has it's speeches from the throne, the US it's inaugural addresses, but Jesus sets out his agenda as king in Capernaum by quoting the prophet Isaiah. 

Transcript

In the countries with parliamentary systems of government, the king or his representative convenes parliament and explains what their government intends to do. Maybe raise or lower taxes, start or end certain programs, tackle certain problems. This is called the “Speech from the Throne.” The Americans kept this idea with the Inaugural Speech of the President, and their State of the Union addresses. 

We speak of Jesus as a King, and in Nazareth he takes on his kingly duty. He reads the Scripture and, as was done in Jewish synagogues, he sits down to explain the reading. He takes the Word of the Lord from Isaiah, and makes it his throne speech: 

“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.”

Some Bible teachers have a name for this sermon of Jesus, of which we only have a short snippet. They call it his “Nazareth Maniesto.”

What is Jesus’ vision for his work, his person?

There is a special structure to the Lord’s words in Isaiah. It is called a chiasm, after the Greek word for the letter x which is Chi. The beginning and the end match, then the almost-first and almost-last phrases match, and in the middle, you have the main point. 

A. Proclaim good news to the poor
B. Proclaim liberty to the captives
C. Recovery of sight to the blind
B’. Set at liberty those who are oppressed
A’. Proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor

Recovery of Sight to the Blind (the heart of his message)
Jesus is talking about much more than just physical blindness here. In the ninth chapter of John’s Gospel Jesus explains why he healed the man who was born blind. He said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” (John 9:39). The religious leaders ask Jesus if he considers them to be blind. He replies, “f you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.” What is it that we do not see, if not the Lord? Who is it that we do not know, if not God? That is our blindness. And it is blindness to God and his mercy and his ways that Jesus has come to cure. 

Many Christians and even non-Christians know the hymn “Amazing Grace.” “I once was lost, but now am found. Was blind, but now I see.” It was written by John Newton. John was a slave trader who became an abolitionist and a Christian teacher. He couldn’t see the oppressed and the captives he was buying and selling as people like him, because he was blind to his own captivity!
At Christmas we often hear “O Holy Night” sung in churches and even shopping malls. The words in English are not quite the same as the words in French, because the original words were also about freedom from captivity and Good News to the poor: 

Le Rédempteur a brisé toute entrave
La terre est libre et le ciel est ouvert.
Il voit un frère où n’était qu’un esclave :
L’amour unit ceux qu’enchaînait le fer !

The Redeemer has broken all fetters
The earth is free and the sky is open.
He sees a brother where there was only a slave:
Love unites those who were chained by iron! 

How Can Sight be Recovered to Blind Captives? By Proclaiming

To proclaim: “to declare publicly, typically insistently, proudly, or defiantly and in either speech or writing : announce.” (Merriam-Webster). We often think Christian witness is a matter of convincing, pleading, arguing with people. It is not. Our witness is a proclamation of fact. It is a bold assertion that in Jesus of Nazareth we see the true way of God, and the true evil of men’s hearts. We don’t offer the world a diatribe. We offer a speech from the throne.

ILLUS: The Speech from the Throne IS the government’s plan. Governments agree with it. The opposition picks it apart. You know “who is who” by the reception the proclamation gets.

We proclaim to the poor and the captive so their sight may be recovered. The wealthy and the free do not need this proclamation. They are the opposition. Because this proclamation makes the poor rich and sets the captives free. The wealthy need no money, and the free are no captives.

Everyone of course is poor and captive. Poor, because we are cut off from God and each other. Who is poor but the one who is lonely? Captive, because it is Satan and our sinful nature that dominate us And keep us blind to the Truth, to the Good, to Honesty. So we proclaim – that the blind might see, and in seeing, become rich in Christ and free in Christ

Conclusion

Jesus cuts short his quote from Isaiah before the end of verse 2. The passage goes on: (Isaiah 61:2) “to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God.” 

Jesus knows when that day of vengeance will come in the year of the Lord’s Favour. It will be on Good Friday, at the cross. That is part of our proclamation, that at the cross all these things happen. But for now we have Jesus’ NAZARETH MANIFESTO: 

“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.”