Jesus the Promise of Comfort – Isa 61:1-3

Russ Ramsey

Consider the drama of a passage in Luke where we find Jesus speaking again on the theme of comfort from mourning. He was in the church he grew up in—in Nazareth where he was raised. And in the synagogue, He stood up—grown into a teacher—to read from the Bible. He asked for Isaiah, unrolled it to the place where we find today’s passage… And he read it.

It was the posture of a teacher to read from Scripture standing but to teach on it sitting. So after he put the scroll away and took his seat, the people were waiting to hear him expound on it. The passage tells us that the people were anxiously waiting to hear what He would say! And with all eyes fixed upon Him, He shocked the entire room—and later the entire world with what He said. “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

The word we use for the Holy Spirit is the word Paraclete—which means comforter (Jn 14:16). The word is also used to describe Scripture (Rom 15:4). So we know that both the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures were given to comfort us. What is their function? Both serve to point us to Christ Himself—to testify of Jesus and the redemption that only comes through Him!

Jesus is pitting two kingdoms against each other, and presenting Himself as the solution to the brokenness and limitations of this world. He promises comfort to those who mourn, and then says that the passage from Isaiah is referring to Him! He is the comforter! He is the ultimate source turning ashes to beauty, despair to praise, mourning to gladness, bondage to freedom!!! He says to us today, “This Scripture is fulfilled in Me!!!