Scripture: Isaiah 61.1-2
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor…
Guided prayers and meditations are a common part of Christian spiritual practice. Return to this prayer through the day or over the weekend, as it will be a different experience based on your mood and surroundings. — John
Reflection: Kingdom Manifestation :: A Guided Prayer
By John Tillman
Today we read the passage that was the subject of Christ’s first sermon in Nazareth, and a passage in Matthew that reads like the fruit that proves the truth of Christ’s claim that Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled.
Pray the first verse, understanding that Christ sent us the Holy Spirit, telling his disciples that we would do greater things than he did…
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners
The Holy Spirit can guide you to manifest the kingdom in your world as Jesus did.
The paralyzed are given control of their limbs…
Ask the Spirit to help you move something someone can’t move on their own.
The sinful are forgiven…The unclean are accepted…
Ask the Spirit to help you to show kindness and acceptance to those who are accustomed to being shunned.
The outcasts are welcomed…
Look for opportunities to tangibly help and aid those who are rejected, oppressed, accused, and dehumanized.
The unobservant are invited…
Ask for wisdom to speak kindly to those with no regard for faith. May the Holy Spirit make you winsome and help you listen to understand instead of to argue.
The sick, the blind, and mute are made whole. The dead are raised to life.
Address your prayer to the sickness of sin in your own heart. There is a kind of sin-sickness that we nurse and maintain. Pray that it be healed.
Ask for your eyes to be opened as your blindness is revealed.
Ask to be raised to new life.
Christ’s compassion for the great needs of the community led him to pray.
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Ask God to make you the answer to this prayer. You are called to make manifest the kingdom of God.
Pray God will use you in healing the infectious, in redeeming the lost causes, and in hospitality to the thieves crucified beside you. May your risk reap a great harvest for the kingdom.
Prayer: A Reading
In his honor Levi held a great reception in his house, and with them at table was a large gathering of tax collectors and others. The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples and said, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus said to them in reply, “It is not those who are well who need the doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the upright, but sinners to repentance.” — Luke 5.29-32
– Prayer from The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime by Phyllis Tickle.
Full prayer available online and in print.
Today’s Readings
Isaiah 61 (Listen – 2:23)
Matthew 9 (Listen – 4:09)
This Weekend’s Readings
Isaiah 62 (Listen – 2:09) Matthew 10 (Listen – 5:07)
Isaiah 63 (Listen – 3:25) Matthew 11 (Listen – 4:06)
Additional Reading
Read More about Christmas is Upside Down :: Epiphany
Christ’s first expository sermon revealed his identity, proclaimed his destiny, and was also the occasion of the first attempt to violently take his life as an adult.
Read More about Radical Outreach to Outcasts :: Epiphany
The backlash that Jesus experienced in response to his Nazareth sermon was sudden and violent. One second they are talking about how well Jesus spoke, and the next they are shoving him toward a precipice, attempting to take his life.
