We are now on
the first trail of Isaiah
52:7. It is set in the context of the First coming of Christ,
the Messiah, to announce the Gospel of salvation as can be seen from Isaiah
52:6-8.
In
Isaiah 52:6, we see Jesus Himself
saying, “Therefore in that day I am the One
Who is speaking, ‘Here I am.’”
We see the above fulfilled in John
8:24, John
8:58 and John
18:4-9. What I found majestic
about Jesus of Nazareth in John 18:4-9
was that more than 600 soldiers came to arrest Him but all fell to the ground
when He simply said “I Am”.
It immediately brings to mind what happens in the spiritual realm when we come
against the forces of evil in the Name of Jesus; for at the Name of Jesus, all
knees shall bow as written in Philippians
2:10. Just as the sun is shining whether you see it or not, so the
diabolical forces cowered at the name of Jesus even if you do not care to admit
it. Believers have the power of attorney to exercise the authority vested in
that Name against the operatives of the devil!
From Luke
4:34, Mark
1:24 and Matthew
8:29, we can see how much the evil spirits feared Jesus of
Nazareth. And that was before He was
exalted. So can you imagine how much the evil spirits crumble under that Name
after the exaltation? Writing about it
gets me all pumped up already!
It
is recorded in Acts
19:13-16 that non-believers tried using the Name of Jesus against evil
spirits only to be insulted and overpowered by them. Then in Acts
5:1-11, we see the record of a married couple who tried to cheat the
church and ended up dead. The point to note here is to not take the Name of
Jesus in vain and that God protects His Own.
Salvation
came in the Person of Jesus and the message of salvation was also preached by
Jesus. Essentially, the beloved Son of
God came in the flesh as Jesus of Nazareth to preach salvation that is
available in and through Him.
With
reference to Isaiah
52:7, Luke
4:18-22 comes to mind immediately. When we compare the two passage of
scriptures, they mirror each other.
1. Brings
Good News
It
is written in Isaiah 52:7 that the Promised Messiah will bring good
news. In Luke
4:18, we see that the beloved Son of God came in the flesh as Jesus of
Nazareth to preach the Gospel.
2.
Announces Peace
The
announcement of peace by the Promised Messiah was also foretold in Isaiah
52:7. Similarly, Luke 4:18
puts on record that the beloved Son of God in the flesh as Jesus of Nazareth
came to announce the forgiveness of sins.
Romans
5:1 tells us that we have peace with God because we have been justified
by faith in Christ Jesus.
3.
Brings Good New of Good Things
The
bringing of the good news of good things by the Promised Messiah was also
mentioned in Isaiah 52:7. From Luke
4:18, we see that the beloved Son of God in the flesh as Jesus of Nazareth
came to also announce the good things of the blind regaining sight and freedom
for the oppressed.
4.
Announces Salvation
The
announcement of salvation by the Promised Messiah was also prophesized in Isaiah
52:7. In Luke
4:19, we see that the beloved Son of God in the flesh as Jesus of Nazareth
came to proclaim the day of salvation.
5.
Fulfilment in Jesus of Nazareth
Jesus
Himself said in Luke
4:21 that the verses pointed to Him.
6.
Word of Grace
Isaiah
52:7 opens by describing the beauty of the One through Whom
the Gospel would be brought and in Luke
4:22, we see the record of those who heard Jesus of Nazareth “speaking
well of Him and were in awe wondering about the words of grace which were
coming from His lips”.
I
would venture to say that all the prophets, which ended with John the Baptist
as the footnote to John
1:6 tells us, spoke about the Promised Messiah. Jesus the Man was the FIRST messenger
of the Gospel.
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