When Jesus preaches His first sermon in Luke 4:18, He summarizes His mission on earth. He states He is sent “… 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.”

He makes Himself available to meet our needs in life. He first addresses the brokenhearted.

The word broken is used in the intensive meaning to crush, which is illustrated by forcefully kicking down a door. The brokenhearted are those whose will is broken or spirit crushed. Our lives may be shattered because of a horrible divorce, abuse or neglect. His healing can cure us making us stronger than we were before.

He next addresses the captive. This word means to be taken by force or to be conquered. It is to be under the influence or addicted to a power greater than we are able to overcome. The answer is deliverance, which is used in three ways, with one being to release from a legal transaction. Our sins are a legal debt against a Holy God. Christ, however, satisfies our balance by paying it in full.

Deliverance is used morally when the sinner’s nature changes enabling him to resist sin. Another way it is used is to us personally. God forgives us and never remembers our past, which restores us to a relationship with Him. The third point of Jesus’ message is recovering our sight. Blindness is a reference to our lack of spiritual understanding. Sin affects our minds making us believe we are smarter than we actually are. We are not able to understand who God is. The word recover gives us comprehension with God’s perception. Spiritual sight enables us to know the truth over lies, avoid dead-end choices and recognize exaggerations that will cause us fear.

The song writer says, “I once … was blind but now I see.” Jesus also says, “ … to set at liberty them that are bruised.” The word bruised means to be broken or oppressed. These extreme burdens are harassments from memories. Liberty means to be released by permanent forgiveness, not by a temporal solution such as drugs or alcohol. We can receive forgiveness for our sins against others and be able to give forgiveness to those who sin against us.

Freedom is to be released from the guilt and bitterness of our past. These four promises are available only to the poor which are those who are not able to help themselves. Jesus offers these solutions freely. Why not take this opportunity to be forgiven, pardoned and restored to a relationship with God by trusting Christ today.

STEVE CONWELL, pastor of Maranatha Baptist Church is heard mornings on WFLO and WVHL in “A Thought For Today.” His email address is SteveConwell@outlook.com.