Just Jesus Jubilee
Jubilee’s Message – Part 2

Scripture Reading: Psalm 117

Key Verse: Luke 4:18
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,”

Let’s look a little closer at Jesus’s proclamation of good news. Notice that Jesus adds the words “to the poor” to His statement of purpose. Why would Jesus seem to be exclusive to preaching the good news just to the poor?

We can find some interpretation from Jesus’s own words in His Sermon on the Mount. Jesus proclaimed in this sermon: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

In theological terms, the term poor takes on new meaning. It points to an attitude of neediness. It describes people whose hearts are open to help from another, a humble spirit.

“Rich”, on the other hand, paints a picture of an independent spirit; one who needs no savior.

Jesus came to preach good news to the poor. One might say: Jesus’s preaching was good news to the poor, not so much to the rich. The rich, too often, don’t feel the neediness of the soul. They are not open to instructions from another person. The rich didn’t find Jesus’s message of letting go of this world’s stuff and clinging to the eternal a good news message.

In Matthew 9:16 we start reading the story of a rich man coming to Jesus to ask how to get eternal life. Jesus looked deep into his soul and knew he relied too heavily on his wealth. Jesus told him to sell all his possessions and come back to follow Him. The rich man went away sad.

Jesus’s message is good news to the poor in spirit. What would Jesus say to you?

Father, look into my heart and reveal my true loves. Help me, by Your grace, to sell out to You. In Jesus’s Name, amen.