Messiah’s Mission: Oaks of Righteousness
Filled with lights, holiday parties, and all of the traditions that mark the season, we celebrate the Christ-child, that babe born in a manger. But if we are honest, who Christ is and what He came to accomplish often eludes us. There is no better place to meditate on the mission of Jesus than from the truths of Isaiah 61:1-3. These aren’t familiar verses for the Christmas season, but they are powerful truths that speak to His mission, that He came to make us “oaks of righteousness”. While Isaiah prophetically spoke to God’s people languishing in exile in Babylon, Jesus declared that these words were fulfilled in Him, as He began His earthly ministry (Luke 4:16-19). What do these verses tell us about our Savior and about His mission in donning human flesh? He came…
To bring good news to the poor
The Spirit of the Lord was upon Christ for what purpose? Because the Lord had anointed Him to “bring good news to the poor” (Is. 61:1a). The Gospel is good news, and it is good news for the poor. Who are the poor? The poor are not necessarily those who lack physical resources in this life. The poor are all those who know that they are sin-sick and in desperate need of a physician. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom heaven (Matt. 5:3). Being poor requires deep humility, a broken-hearted acknowledgement that we have nothing apart from Christ. It is not those who are well who need a doctor. I didn’t come to call the righteous but sinners (Mark 2:17). Are you one of the poor? The good news is for you!
To heal the brokenhearted
In addition to bringing “good news to the poor,” what else did Jesus come to do for His people? The Lord sent Him to “heal the brokenhearted…” (Is. 61:1b). Those who are brokenhearted over their sin and misery, He came to heal. But His healing is also for those of us who by faith exist as strangers and aliens in this fallen world. There is pain, sorrow, sickness and death as we walk this broken road. He came to apply healing balm to those who are brokenhearted over the loss, grief and trauma of this life. Speaking of the Day of the Lord, when all wrongs will be made right, Jesus is described as “the sun of righteousness who will rise with healing in its wings” (Mal. 4:2). Jesus will truly heal every hurt, if not completely in this life, it will certainly be true in the life to come. He is near, and He heals the brokenhearted (Ps. 34:18). Are you brokenhearted? The good news of Jesus’s healing balm is for you!
To bring liberty to the captives
Jesus also donned human flesh to proclaim liberty to the captives. We were all slaves to sin. Whether we realized it or not, our sin and misery held us captive in a prison of our own making. But Christ came to release the captives, those who were spiritually bound in chains. He preached the good news of release from the chains that held us. Once imprisoned slaves, we are now sons and daughters of the King by faith in Jesus. Liberty means freedom in this new kingdom, a freedom that brings joy and peace to those who have been freed. The prison doors have been opened by faith in Jesus. And those who are free are free indeed! (Jn. 8:36) Are you captive to sin, feeling more like a slave than a son? The good news of freedom in Christ is for you!
Recovery of sight to the blind
Luke 4 includes this phrase that is not in the Isaiah 61 passage. Jesus includes “recovery of sight to the blind.” Blindness in the Scriptures is often used as a metaphor for spiritual darkness and the need for illumination by the Holy Spirit. The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness (Is. 9:2). Even blind Bartimaeus knew that he needed the mercy of Jesus, and Jesus healed him (Mark 10:46-52). Apart from Christ, we are spiritually blind, but in Him we see. Are you struggling to see the Lord clearly and to understand His dealings in your life? The good news of Jesus bringing sight for the blind is for you!
To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of our God’s vengeance
In Christ’s coming, we have the “year of the Lord’s favor,” the acceptable time, the glorious fulfillment of the Old Testament’s promise of a Savior. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men on whom His favor rests (Lk. 2:14). This was the beginning of His mission to vanquish death and hell, sin, and Satan. His earthly life culminated at the Cross, where he defeated the powers of darkness once and for all. The fullness of that judgement will be seen on that great day of our God’s vengeance, the Day of the Lord, when Christ returns again to make all wrongs right. No condemnation remains for the child of God, for all of God’s justice has been satisfied at the Cross (Rom. 8:1). Often injustice seems to win in this life, but there will be a day of complete and perfect justice. Are you wondering if God’s favor is upon you or if you remain under God’s heavy hand? The good news is for you, that Jesus took all of God’s just wrath against sin upon Himself at the Cross, so that by faith in Him, all that remains is God’s favor toward you!
To comfort all who mourn
Christ came to bring comfort, to comfort to all who mourn. 2 Corinthians 1 speaks of the Lord as the “God of all comfort…” The Holy Spirit is the “paraclete,” the Comforter. Jesus came to comfort those who mourn, those who grieve over their sin and misery, as well as those who mourn under the weight of suffering in this broken world. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted (Matt. 5:4). Are you mourning over sin or suffering in your life? The good news is for you, because Jesus came to bring comfort to all those who mourn!
To give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning and splendid clothes instead of despair
Ashes, mourning, and despair are eternally replaced by a crown of beauty, festive oil, and splendid clothes. A man who endures trials is blessed, because when he passes the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him (Jas. 1:12). With a crown of beauty for the head, the festive oil illumines the face, a vibrant countenance for those who put their hope in God. And the splendid clothes signify the righteous garments worn by the saints, Christ’s own robes of righteousness given to His own by faith. Our filthy garments for His splendid clothes. What a marvelous exchange! Are you weighed down by ashes, mourning and despair? The good news is for you, because Jesus came to give life abundant in His name.
What is the result of this marvelous mission of the Messiah? The result is that His people would be called “righteous trees” or “oaks of righteousness,” planted by the Lord (Is. 61:3). “He will do all of this for His people. He will cure their wounds, release them out of bondage, and comfort them in their sorrows that they may be called ‘oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord.’”[1] The result of the Lord coming to proclaim, to heal, to release, and to comfort is that His people would grow, mature, and be firmly established in faith. Like oak trees, God plants us and creates in us a hardy resilience with deep roots to withstand the storms of life. He also plants us for flourishing and fruitfulness in the world that He has created. We are like a tree planted beside streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers (Ps. 1:3). The man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed. He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear when heat comes, and its foliage remains green. It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit (Jer. 17:7-8).
Being “oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord” is for our good, but it is not ultimately for us. Being “oaks of righteousness” is for the glory of God alone (Is. 61:3, Ps. 115:1). The grand purpose in Christ’s advent was to fulfill all that was promised, to rescue, to restore and to redeem us for the glory of God. And even as we live as “oaks of righteousness” in His world, our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.[2] May this be your comfort and aim, as you move from this advent season into the new year.
If you are in a season where you feel less like a mighty oak and more like a withering bush, full of sorrows or maybe even struggling with captivity to sin, we at Burke Care would love to come alongside you to help establish you in the Lord as an “oak of righteousness.” Reach out for help today!
[1] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary, vol. 4, (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1991) p. 283.
[2] Westminster Shorter Catechism. Q1. https://opc.org/sc.html