The Mission of Jesus

The familiar Scripture describing Jesus’ purpose on earth is found in Luke 4:18-19: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” 

Wherever Jesus went, his heart was touched by the needs of the people. Whenever he saw someone in need of healing, he would stop and heal them. In fact, he would go out of his way, if necessary, to find those in need. When people got hungry, Jesus fed them. He had great compassion for the hurting, the crippled, the blind, those who were like sheep without a shepherd.

Jesus was not an itinerant healer, although he healed wherever he went. He was not an itinerant social advocate, although he showed compassion. Primarily Jesus was a preacher! “Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God” (Mark1:14). He came to set the captives free, to preach the good news of his saving power, to communicate the gospel.

If each of us could capture the same vision Jesus had, his primary mission on the face of the earth would also become our primary mission. We would be so full of the love of Christ that nothing could keep us from proclaiming it. People around us would not be able to escape the name of Jesus being mentioned to them. And believe me, words are necessary! Actions are good but there is no true proclamation of the gospel without words.

Don’t be ashamed to speak about Jesus. Let the Holy Spirit empower you in such a way that the words just flow through you naturally. Jesus wants us to use the gospel to communicate truth and life to others.