The Life and Ministry of Jesus

Early in His public ministry, Jesus traveled to Nazareth, in the region

of Galilee. This was His hometown, and the local people already had

heard of His work and miracles. As His custom was, Jesus attended

Sabbath services in the synagogue. Though Jesus was not the officiat-

ing rabbi, the attendant handed Him the Isaiah scroll and asked Him to

give the Scripture reading. Jesus read Isaiah 61:1, 2.

Read Luke 4:16–19 and compare it with Isaiah 61:1, 2. (See also Luke

7:19–23.) Why do you think Jesus chose this specific Scripture?

Why would these verses in Isaiah be deemed as Messianic? What

did they reveal about the work of the Messiah?

Because the religious leaders apparently had overlooked the prophe-

cies that spoke of a suffering Messiah and had misapplied those that

pointed to the glory of His second coming (which should serve as a

reminder to us of how important understanding prophecy really is),

most of the people believed the false idea that the Messiah’s mission

was to free Israel from its conquerors and oppressors, the Romans. To

think that the Messiah’s mission statement came from Isaiah 61:1, 2

must have been a real shock.

The poor usually were looked down upon by unscrupulous officials

such as tax collectors, those in business, and even their own neighbors.

It commonly was thought that poverty was the curse of God and that

their unfortunate condition must have been their own fault. With this

mindset, few people had any concern for the poor and their unhappy

plight.

Yet, Jesus’ love for the poor was one of the greatest evidences of His

Messiahship, as seen in how Jesus answered John the Baptist’s ques-

tion about Him as the Messiah (see Matt. 11:1–6). “Like the Saviour’s

disciples, John the Baptist did not understand the nature of Christ’s

kingdom. He expected Jesus to take the throne of David; and as time

passed, and the Saviour made no claim to kingly authority, John became

perplexed and troubled.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 215.

“Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this:

to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself

unspotted from the world” (James 1:27, NKJV). How should this

verse help us set our religious priorities?