But the Spirit works counter-culturally
Isaiah 11:1-2 [Matthew 3:16] Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot—yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
Isaiah 42:1-4 [Matthew 12:18, Luke 3:21-22, Philippians 2:7] Look at my servant, whom I strengthen. He is my chosen one, who pleases me. I have put my Spirit upon him. He will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. He will bring justice to all who have been wronged. He will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth.
Isaiah 61:1-2 [Luke 4:14, 17-21] The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.
Throughout history, Jesus’s name has gotten a bad rap as people have used it to amass power, wealth, and privilege for themselves, often in immoral or even illegal ways more akin to the Enemy of our souls who steals, kills, and destroys than to the true Shepherd who lays down his life for his flock (John 10:9-11).
Power, wealth, and privilege acquired through abuse and oppression of others: this is not the Jesus of the Bible.
This is not the Jesus who, as Philippians 2 so movingly tells us, chose to lay down his divine rights and privileges to become a slave, a doulos in Greek, a person in submission or bondage to another; in Hebrew, an ebed (Isaiah 42:1), a person of lower social status who is subject to another.
In fact, Jesus taught that among his followers the worldly definition of power must not hold sway. Jesus used the power of the Spirit to heal, to comfort, to care for, to free from bondage, to encourage, to teach, to bring justice. He lived with no place even to lay his head (Matthew 8:20). He dined not with the rich and famous in fancy places, but with the socially marginalized “disreputable sinners” (Matthew 9:10). His “brand” was humility, simplicity, and love.
This Jesus, filled by God’s Spirit without measure or limit (John 3:34, Colossians 1:19, 2:9) shows us what God the Father is like. Isaiah’s perspective, inspired by the same Spirit, of what God’s Chosen One, Jesus, would accomplish is as stunning as his attributes detailed in 11:1-2.
We must be careful. Anyone who claims to represent God yet does not aspire to serve as Jesus did has other goals in mind than God’s goals. Our first allegiance as Jesus-followers must be to him and his ways. The power of the Spirit foretold by Isaiah that filled Jesus led him not to comfort and wealth but to suffering and death as the powerholders of his day objected to his counter-cultural teaching and actions.
Are we ready to invite the Holy Spirit to empower us to live like Jesus did, building up rather than tearing down (2 Corinthians 10:8), bringing good news not to the rich, but to the poor and brokenhearted?
Jesus called his disciples together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant (diakonos), and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave (doulos). For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom (lutron: payment to liberate a captive) for many.”
Come, all who are weary, wounded, weeping, Porter’s Gate
Debra Kornfield 