E12 - Hope’s Harbor Gritty Bible Devotions - Heart and Mind of Jesus - Freedom for the Oppressed
Hope’s Harbor
Gritty Bible Devotions
Episode #12
Title: Freedom for the Oppressed
Date: 6/21/2021
Contact: info@hopesharbor.net
Key verse(s): Luke 4:18 – “…to set at liberty them that are bruised.”
Intro: In Luke 4:18, the last portion of that verse, Jesus completes His declaration of His mission by stating He came to set at liberty the bruised, or oppressed.
This means He gives an opportunity for us to become free if we want it. The only thing hindering us is whether we believe, no, more than believe: it’s whether we will commit our lives to acquire a conviction that we know freedom is possible. The work is up to us. We looked at this in the last episode on Beyond Belief. And what is beyond belief? Commitment, rock-solid faith, and confidence in GOD no matter what we see or feel.
Devotion focus: Freedom comes to those who pursue it -
Key verse(s): Luke 4:18D – “…to set at liberty them that are bruised.”
Liberty means: Aphesis af'-es-is From G863; freedom; (figuratively) pardon: - deliverance, forgiveness, liberty, remission. (Remission means sin is atoned, paid for and done away with, forgiven)
Remission is found in numerous verses in the New Testament. Listen to a few of these and a common thread is seen in how crucial remission is to salvation.
Matthew_26:28 - For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Mark_1:4 - John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
Luke_1:77 - To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins,
Luke_3:3 - And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,
Luke_24:47 - and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Acts_2:38 - Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts_10:43 - To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins."
Hebrews_9:22 - And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.
And Bruised means: thrauō throw'-o A primary verb; to crush: - bruise. Compare G4486. Re G4486: rhēgnumi rhēssō hrayg'-noo-mee, hrace'-so
Both are prolonged forms of ῥήκω rhēko (which appears only in certain forms, and is itself probably a strengthened form of ἄγνυμι agnumi (see in G2608)); to “break”, “wreck” or “crack”, that is, (especially) to sunder (by separation of the parts; G2608 being it’s intensive (with the preposition in compounds), and G2352 a shattering to minute fragments; but not a reduction to the constituent particles, like G3089) or disrupt, lacerate; by implication to convulse (with spasms);
Now, let’s compare these descriptions with what we know from experiences of having been bruised, oppressed, wrecked, or shattered in our minds, in our lives and relationships.
Is there anyone listening who has experienced feelings of rejection so deep you could hardly function? This level of rejection causes even strong people to withdraw in pain.
Here are a few events I’ve gone through that collectively destroyed my self-esteem and feelings of self-worth:
· When my father left us and my parents later divorced I asked why he left and was told I was too young to understand. I was 7 or 8. My childish reasoning led me to believe there must be something wrong with me because in the mind of a child the parents are perfect. It couldn’t be their fault. As children, we must believe this so we don’t fear not being provided for and consequently death.
· Being made to wear nothing but a diaper when 10 years old as punishment for doing something my stepfather took exception to. What, I did I don’t remember. And being made to wear it by the side of a 4-laned road heavy with rush-hour traffic while I shoveled a pile of dirt he had delivered for yard work.
· When caught crying because my dog disappeared and being told if I didn’t stop crying like a baby I would be given something to cry about. This meant a beating. I was probably 9 or 10. I found out later my stepfather took the dog off and put it out on the side of the road.
· Being ridiculed when a stack of cement blocks fell on me, fracturing my leg and I lay there in pain. Then being made to get up and go back to work, limping. I was 15 or so.
· After being dragged along a barbed-wire fence by my horse when my hand got caught in the bridle, it ripped the skin covering my abdomen, legs, and upper arm. After I ran to my grandmother’s house nearby, she was told to stop tending to me when my stepfather showed up. I was told to get home. The following day I had to apply waterproofing to the foundation of a home we were building even though I couldn’t stand up straight for fear of the lacerations bleeding again. I was told if I was a man the pain wouldn’t bother me.
One more question: has anyone listening ever been abandoned or had sufficient cause to fear abandonment as a likely
The cumulative effect of these and other events shattered my belief in having any worth of my own. I didn’t see at the time the issue wasn’t my doing.
It took counseling years later before the truth was uncovered and see the causes clearly enough to make corrections in my beliefs.
But in the intervening years between the events and the counseling I lived with a psychological pain I didn’t understand. And as a young child, I stumbled upon a stash of porn magazines and discovered what I thought was a way to relieve the pain. (Viewing porn releases dopamine in the brain, a pleasure chemical and addictive.)
Little did I know the addictive power of porn that would later oppress and ‘bruise’ me mentally and emotionally.
May I ask you to do something? Would you take time today to look at anything in your life you know oppresses you? Is there something or someone wounding you in your mind and spirit?
Are you willing to ask Jesus, the Son of GOD to liberate you from the pain? If your circumstances don’t allow you to escape the cause of your oppression for the time being, by faith in GOD’s promise to give you freedom, you can ask GOD to help you find how to be free from the causes of pain.
The first step to freedom involves freedom of your mind from feeling worthless, unneeded, unloved. Others in your life may not love you, but Jesus said in John 15:9 He loves you the same way His Father, and your Father, love Him.
Choosing to believe just this one truth will help you become free from self-hate and feelings of worthlessness. How? Because GOD knows all about you and me and He still chooses to love us.
In Colossians 3:3 we are told our life is hidden with Jesus, in GOD. Since GOD cannot have anything evil in Him, this promise means we are good and pure in our new life in Jesus. GOD sees us the same way He sees His Son, perfect in our spirits.
Now, this doesn’t mean there are aspects, parts of our old nature that are good. Not at all. But Jesus paid the penalty against that old life when He took our punishment on the cross as He died.
And just before He died He cried out, “It is finished!” This means all your sin is forgiven when my faith you asked GOD’s forgiveness.
Summary: The promise to free us is primarily freedom in our spirits, in our minds. Although I know from experience GOD does set us free from bad circumstances according to His will. But keep in mind so you don’t get discouraged if circumstances don’t change, and you can’t change them for now: there are Brothers and Sisters in the Christian faith around the world in very bad circumstances they cannot change.
Some of them are in prison. Still, they know the freedom to worship GOD and love Him where they are. They had to choose this attitude, this belief that all things work together for good, even prison. (Romans 8:28)
We too must choose how we will live in the freedom of faith, prayer, and love to GOD and others around us. Even if it is a prison guard.
Action to consider: When Jesus declared He came to set at liberty, give freedom to us, He said the way to be free was accomplished already by His coming and now past death on the cross. He did His part making it possible for us to do our part. Our part starts with daily Bible reading and then living our lives according to Jesus’s teachings found in the New Testament. The Action to Consider is to read through the 4 Gospels looking for His teachings and then choose one to obey, to put into your life by practice.
To give GOD the chance to help you by the power of His Holy Spirit in your mind.
Next week’s episode: Is unknown at this time. I’m waiting to hear from GOD what He wants to teach us from His Word, the Bible. Amen -