David's Son

Can you imagine sitting on that hill, waiting in anticipation for this new rabbi to begin teaching, and He opens with, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 5:3)

The people immediately could identify with Jesus' words. Many had dragged themselves to that hillside, having rushed to finish the day's work and having made sure the animals were secure, left home with anticipation in their hearts. They walked with their children, their parents, worried that not having done a full day's work, they were losing money, and yet, everyone that would have done business with them was on the road as well. Mothers sat down, tired, but excited to hear something, anything to refresh their souls.  Children saw their parents excited and although they didn't know why, they were happy to see their parents chattering away. 

The disciples were open to anything!  They had seen this rabbi heal, preach, and become, in short order, a rock star. Matthew indicates that Jesus was the one to watch: "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him." (Matthew 4:23-25)

So, can you imagine how the disciples felt when Jesus sat down, and all eyes were on Him, and by extension, on them?  They must have felt ecstatic! 

Wow!  Who would have thought?  We had some inkling this Man was special, but now do other people!  They seem to adore Him, and us too!  

But when His opening statement was about the poor in spirit, were they flabbergasted?  Was the crowd?  

Did you hear that!  No one cares about the poor in spirit?  The religious leaders certainly don't and all our faith seems to do is make us aware of how imperfect we are--how sinful--how unloved. We don't need to be reminded of our failings--our leaders do a great job at that. They rarely speak to us.  We get plenty of scornful looks, to be sure.  Who is this Man? He starts His teaching with an affirmation that we exist--that alone would stop us in our tracks.  But He is inviting us to walk with Him: not to be condemned, but to be included. 

Then, more astonishing words fall from His lips: "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." (verse 4). 

Wait a minute.  If I am poor in spirit, and you bet I am, mourning is my constant companion.  I have no resources, no help, and no sense that anyone really cares.  So, yes, here I stand, poor and in mourning.  I am listening, Rabbi. Please continue.    

Luke places Jesus in the synagogue to inaugurate His ministry with the words of Isaiah.  So, I do not believe it is a coincidence that Jesus inaugurates the Kingdom of God with the same idea, drawn from the same deep source. In this hillside sermon, Jesus is summarizing the verses in Isaiah He read in the synagogue: 

"'The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the Lord
for the display of his splendor...

And you will be called priests of the Lord,

you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
and in their riches you will boast.

Instead of your shame
you will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace
you will rejoice in your inheritance.
And so you will inherit a double portion in your land,
and everlasting joy will be yours.

For I, the Lord, love justice;
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
In my faithfulness I will reward my people
and make an everlasting covenant with them.

Their descendants will be known among the nations
and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
that they are a people the Lord has blessed.'

I delight greatly in the Lord;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness
and praise spring up before all nations." (Isaiah 61:1-3, 6-11)

The people knew these verses were from an earlier part of their history.  Isaiah was writing as Assyria was gaining power and Israel was losing power. (Sound familiar?  Replace "Assyria" with "Rome.")  Isaiah saw Israel becoming a captive of Babylon but also he saw their eventual return from captivity. It was another redemption, just as had happened in Egypt.  Cyrus the Persian conquered the Babylonians and allowed the Jews to return home. A greater deliverance awaited them: being freed from sin through Christ. [1]       

But Jesus wasn't speaking as a soon-to-be Liberator from the hated Romans.  He was using these verses, distilled into words describing those who were "poor in spirit" and "mourning," as a foundation for the very reason He came: to save the lost.  Liberated Jews from the Romans would still be in bondage to their sin.  A change of place does not change the heart itself. 

Reversals are replete in these verses! All of the elements of grief--the ashes, mourning, despair--were  replaced with a crown, anointing oil and a beautiful garment.  Former captives were now tall and strong as oaks, free and out in the light of day, rejoicing that God had delivered them.  People who once slaved away under a cruel foreign yoke were now once again wearing priestly garments, and lived with abundance.  People had no more shame, and the land before them was large, inviting and full of all that God wants to give His children.  

Isaiah exulted in these words and saw himself as adorned and adored for it is God Himself that made this freedom possible. 

God does not allow sin to reign forever--it goes against His very nature. He was and will be faithful to His people and acts in might ways.  

He brought righteousness to His people and will bring it again.  Why?  Because it all springs from the  "everlasting covenant" He made with David: 

"When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.” (1 Chron. 17:11-14)

The following verses still ring in our ears as we just celebrated Christmas.  The angel tells Mary:

“Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:29-33)

David's Son is seated on the hillside. He is teaching these people that God has not overlooked their captivity, their bondage and will not allow sin to reign forever.  The Lord delights in His children and how He loves us shows His character to all the nations. 

It wasn't Assyria, Babylon nor Rome that posed the greatest threat to freedom:  It was the sin that lives in all of us, shackling us to shame and causing us to despair as its promises turn to ashes. It is death that robs us of those we love and causes us to shrink from the unknown it poses. 

Jesus was showing the people that liberation from sin and death was the greatest redemption of all. The Kingdom of God swings wide open its gates to those whose spirits are crushed and who mourn the loss of all they depended upon.

David's Son is seated on the hillside.  His words will drive the people to remember the promises of God. 

Maybe under their crushing loads they had forgotten. But God had not.   

How do we know?  David's Son is here. 

[1] p. 1015