Today’s Scripture is: Isaiah 61: 1-3 (The Message) The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me because God anointed me. He sent me to preach good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, Announce freedom to all captives, pardon all prisoners. God sent me to announce the year of his grace— a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies— and to comfort all who mourn, To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion, give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes, Messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit. Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness” planted by God to display his glory.
On Sunday, Pastor talked about the meaning of Matthew 16:9 where Jesus says, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom (reign) of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven.” That verse has always been confusing for me. It’s a huge responsibility to be given the keys of the kingdom and the ability to bind and loose! And what does that exactly mean anyway? How do I even have the wisdom to bind or loose?
This scripture from Isaiah helps me put a tangible experience on the binding and loosing. It’s as if this Isaiah passage should immediately follow the Matthew passage...kind of like this, “..........whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven, so........go preach the good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, announce freedom, pardon, celebrate, comfort those who mourn, care for people’s needs, give a message of joy instead of doom, have a praising heart, put God’s glory on display!” These are all the things God desires for His people and I can be the tangible bearer of these blessings to those around me. And if I am going to bind something...I don’t want to bind up those blessings and keep them from those around me, I want to bind Satan and his power at work in this world. He’s the one who doesn’t want God’s people to receive all He has for them - and God has given me (us) the keys... the anointing.. the power.. the authority to bind satan and loose the goodness and mercy of Jesus.
This all helps me to understand that I have been give Kingdom keys, and with that comes the responsibility of telling people about Jesus, helping them experience real kingdom life, and taking seriously the work of satan in our world. This has already been made possible through Jesus, but He’s asking me to be the bearer, the looser of His work into the lives of others here on earth. I am anointed for this task and you are anointed for this task... and by His work on the cross, through our confession of Him, by His power in us and through us, we help set people free...and the gates of hell will not prevail!
Lord, teach me more about what it means to bind and loose! Help me put action to my understanding Lord. Give me boldness, courage, compassion and love. Give me a soft heart and hard feet. Give me the grace and ability to live out this Isaiah passage. Forgive me when I mess it up Lord and when I make it all about me. Thank you for your anointing and for giving me a part in your kingdom work. I love you, Amen.
How did this Isaiah scripture move you today? What is God saying to you? denise