The Lighthouse Devotional (Nov 14–20, 2021)
Author: a WLCN Contributor
SCRIPTURE VERSE
“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 broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1 NIV).
SCRIPTURAL REFLECTION
Isaiah prophesied about the works and identity of our Lord, Jesus Christ—the One whom the Old Testament prophets longed to see and hear (cf. Luke 10:24; 1 Pet 1:10–12). Jesus, himself, read Isaiah’s prophecy one Sabbath day in the synagogue (Luke 4:18), and after closing the scroll, he said to those present, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (4:20).
As we commit this passage to heart, may the Holy Spirit reveal to us the mystery of God’s work in the lives of ordinary people—i.e., “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him” (Acts 10:38).
We, too, were once broken-hearted, imprisoned, and in darkness. Now, because of Christ’s finished work, we who were dead in trespasses and sins are made alive in Christ. Clothed in his righteousness and led by the Holy Spirit, we can declare that “we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph 2:10). Understanding that God redeems us by His grace through faith (2:8), we labor faithfully in His kingdom, no longer entangled by the empty promises of the world, but “looking forward to the city with foundations whose architect and builder is God” (Heb 11:10).
Having found Christ, we need to look no further than him. Therefore, amidst the ups and downs of life, let us keep our gaze fastened on the One who once and for all reconciled us to God (Heb 7:27).
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, let Your kingdom come, and let Your will be done in and through us whom You have released from darkness. In the name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.