"Yes! We finally have someone to represent us in the highest court!" a man cheered.
"We've got a voice for minorities," a mother weeps.
"It's about time we had someone standing up for the poor," a tired voice cried out.
"Justice being restored? Never thought I'd live to see the day," exclaimed a man.
"Ha! No more of the old! I thought we were doomed! My heart is so tired," a girl laughed with tears in her eyes.
"I've never felt so... understood. Someone who grew up in poverty, got picked on, and understands my struggles... is going to represent me," a man wept uncontrollably.
"Wait, is it true? They're gunna pardon me?!" exclaimed a man behind bars in disbelief.
"Finally. Finally. One of us is up there," whispered a woman in awe.
I'm sure you've heard the interviews and have heard similar lines. Whether you agree or not, set that aside for a moment and connect with people. I'm not asking you to compromise your political stance-- I'm asking you to listen and try to understand the human emotions. Can you hear the joy in their voice? The relief? The freedom from having the burden lifted?
That... that is the microscopic scale of what it felt like for the early church established by the apostles. That is what is felt by believers worldwide even to this day. There are two passages I want us to examine. The first contains the Messianic promises of what He will bring:
Isaiah 61
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
When Jesus went up in front of the synagogue and they hand Him the book of Isaiah. Jesus "scrolls" to this passage and reads from it (ha). Look what happens right after he reads this portion:
Luke 4:20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
That might as well have been the "Presidential debate" of His day. He went up there and took God's sacred words and said, "Yeah. This passage is about Me." Not different from today's climate as some were marveled by Him, and others tried to kill Him on the spot.
Fast forward down His timeline. Past the crucifixion. Keep going past the resurrection. Let's go to His "Inauguration Day." What does it say about Him when He sat down to rule forever? Turn to Hebrews:
Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. (2:17)
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (4:14-15)
For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. (7:26)
Sift through those verses and come through each wording as if you were finding buried gold. Don't skim it because it reveals to us great truths about Jesus.
JESUS is the candidate we need, but never deserved. Being in the flesh, He felt our pain and agony. Being perfect, He was the only one who could argue a case for us. Being fully God, He both satisfies justice and mercy in one junction. Scroll back up to each one of the "interview" statements and put yourself in the shoes of those hearing the Gospel for the first time and finding out that Jesus is now going to represent them. May you worship Him and rejoice at the Gospel whether it be your first time or your thousandth time.
"Finally. Finally. One of us is up there," whispered a woman in awe.
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