Global GospelSample

The Year of the Lord’s Favor

BY S.J. (GLOBAL PERSONNEL, MIDDLE EAST)

On a beautiful sunny morning in October 2024, I sat atop Mount Precipice with a group of Christians, overlooking the city of Nazareth. It was a surreal moment. Gazing down at the modern city—much larger than the small village it was in the first century—I imagined Jesus sitting somewhere nearby, looking out over the same hills.

Yet there was an eerie stillness in the air. We were just a year past the heart-wrenching events of October 7, 2023, and the world was beginning to speak openly of the devastating war in Gaza as a genocide. Visiting a land I had always longed to see, I found myself overwhelmed by the juxtaposition: a place so sacred yet so marred by present suffering. Even as we sat there, we could feel the shockwaves of distant missile interceptions near the Lebanon border—part of the Israel–Hezbollah conflict—reminding us that suffering was near.

That day, we studied Luke 4 under the guidance of a historical geography Bible teacher. We focused on Jesus’s reading from the scroll of Isaiah, noting that his quotation drew primarily from Isaiah 61 but also echoed Isaiah 58. We reflected on the messianic promise of Isaiah 61—proclaiming good news to the poor and liberty to the captives—and the justice-oriented call of Isaiah 58, which challenges false religion and demands mercy and freedom for the oppressed. Our teacher explained that some scholars believe these two passages may have been read together in the synagogue, possibly as part of a special liturgical or catechetical scroll.

Jesus’s declaration of “the year of the Lord’s favor” called our attention to the biblical Jubilee year (Leviticus 25)—a time of radical economic and social reset when debts were forgiven and slaves set free. As our discussion deepened, we began to see this moment not just as a reading but as a spiritual declaration of the inbreaking kingdom of God—a kingdom defined by restoration, justice, and good news for the marginalized.

Holding my Bible in my hands, I felt the weight of both the Scripture and the suffering around me. I was moved by the compassion of God in sending his beloved Son for those who could not free themselves. In Israel and Palestine, it is not uncommon to hear those living under long-term oppression ask, “Who will save us?” I can’t help but imagine the same cry rising from the hearts of many in first-century Galilee living under Roman imperial rule. The gracious, loving God heard them and acted.

While I absolutely believe that God will one day make all things right, I also believe that part of following Jesus means sharing in God's mission here and now. Just as the Father sent his Son to bring freedom, we too are sent to witness in both word and deed. We do not sit back in passive hope but move forward in active faith—becoming light in someone’s darkest day and participating in the liberating, healing work of God’s kingdom.

Reflection Question

Who among the suffering near you might God be nudging you to serve as a faithful witness to?

Prayer

God, thank you for sending your Son, Jesus, to save us when we could not save ourselves. Shape us and mold us into his likeness. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear those around us whom you are calling us to minister to in this season. Amen.