Isaiah 61:1-3

Isaiah 61:1-3

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,

because the Lord has anointed me 

to preach 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

and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn,

and provide for those who grieve in Zion-

to bestow on them a crown of beauty

instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness

instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise

instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

a planting of the Lord for 

the display of his splendor.

     In Isaiah 61:1-3 we find a holy job description for the prophet Isaiah, and metaphorically for the children of God, anointed and called by God, to serve others and ultimately display the splendor of the Lord.  The purpose of this writing is to understand the context of the preceding verses in Isaiah leading up to this passage, to summarize the passage, apply insight to disability ministry, and to gain personal insights into life and service.

     In the book of Isaiah, God desires to bring restoration and glory to Zion, a land crippled by self-serving choices. The people of Zion, Babylon, Jerusalem, Assyria, Egypt and Judah to name a few, are in a continual state of pacing back and forth between following God’s ways and following their own.  In Isaiah 5:21 it says,   “Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.”  As they turn away from God, they follow their own desires, until they see themselves as giants, and eventually see God as non-existent.  In response, God chastens and disciplines, continually followed by His compassion and guidance.  

     Throughout the book, there are passages of Scripture in which God is chastening his children for turning away from Him.  “I will put an end to the arrogance of the naughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.”  Isaiah 13:11  As you read through the book, you experience the anger of God as His children worship idols, and yet you see His compassion and embrace as His children come back to Him. 

“The Lord will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit-a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says  your God.  “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. Isaiah 54: 6,7

     In addition, the Scriptures of Isaiah have a crucial theme of justice. "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion.  For the Lord is a God of justice.  Blessed are all who wait for him."  Isaiah 30:18 

God longs for His people to be agents of justice.  “Maintain justice and do what is right.” Isaiah 56:1

…and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. Isaiah 58:10

     In essence, in the background preceding Isaiah 61:1-3, God chastens, God humbles, God meets His people with compassion, and then He gives them a charge.  In Isaiah 61:1-3, God anoints or calls all of His people to preach good news to the poor, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim freedom to the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners.  All of these are social justice issues, but He doesn’t stop there!  He calls us to comfort all who mourn and provide for those who grieve.   Another step further, God asks us to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.  Just as God humbles us from perceiving ourselves as mighty and tall trees, He asks us to raise others up.

     As Paul D. Hanson suggests in Interpretation A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, as children of God we are agents of God’s reign of compassionate righteousness.  We are called to be an instrument of reconciliation and healing.  Paul Hanson brings a huge job title down to a few, but powerful words! Hanson reminds us of the job title and Isaiah 61:1-3 gives us the job description!

     Although these Scriptures were written thousands of years ago, they apply today.  The 21st century represents a period in history where we, once again, are following ourselves instead of God.  We are in the midst of wars.  We are in the midst of a society that, as a whole, chooses to protect itself rather than serve others.  In The Irresistible Revolution written by Shawn Claiborne, he mentions a pertinent quote from Henri Nouwen.  The words of Nouwen and Claiborne return us to an attitude of humility and  beautifully mimic the call to justice.

     In the face of the oppressed I recognize my own face, and in the hands of the oppressor I recognize my own hands.  Their flesh is my flesh, their blood is my blood, their pain is my pain, their smile is my smile. 

     Claiborne further adds, We are made of the same dust.  We cry the same tears.  No one is beyond redemption.  And we are free to imagine a revolution that sets both the oppressed and the oppressors free.

     To be specific, when serving in a disability ministry we should recognize ourselves as oppressors and serve in humility.  In addition, when we serve in humility we do not view ourselves as ministers lowering ourselves to serve the least of these, but we come alongside them to extend good news, comfort, freedom, compassion and joy.  We serve because God grants us the opportunity and because we view those with disabilities as children of God.  

     There are so many needs among those affected by disability.  As people walk through the doors of our church we need to greet them with encouragement and the good news of the Gospel.  While serving in disability ministry over the last twenty years, I have seen the poor in need of good news.  I have seen the brokenhearted as they come to share a current diagnosis, never dreaming that one day that would need the services of a disability ministry.  I have walked with captives and prisoners of their own disappointment that life didn’t turn out the way they planned.  I have seen parents mourning and grieving as they watched their child suffer from illness and the possible  limitations experienced from disability.  We are called and asked to raise our brothers and sisters up and oil them with joy. All of these objectives are to ultimately display God’s splendor!

     Reading the book of Isaiah in preparation for this paper couldn’t have been timed better.  I am leaving my comfortable place of teaching for 22 years to continue my work in disability ministry.  The very word, “anointed,” humbles me enough.  This anointing refers to Isaiah, to the children of God, and ultimately to me.  For God to call me to anything is humbling because I am ill-equipped and in need of God’s hand to guide me.  As the entire book of Isaiah has reminded me, as children of God we must stay humble in order to serve Him.  As God often uses in Scripture, the analogy of us being tall trees towering over others, we must be brought to the ground.  God is the only one worthy of such height.

     In disability ministry it is easy to make appointments, phone calls and schedule trainings and forget to look for the brokenhearted and those who are mourning and grieving.  It is easy to walk the halls of a ministry on a Sunday morning and not notice the mother that is exhausted, feels all alone, and wrestles with a lack of faith.  It is easy to take care of a child and never look into their eyes and see God’s handprint.  It is easy to look into the eyes of an adult with a disability and not see the indispensable abilities God created in them.  I am also reminded through this passage to actively comfort those mourning and provide for those that are grieving.

     This isn’t enough, however!  God has a lavish love for His children.  I need to look for ways to provide a crown of beauty and  an oil of joy.  I need to truly embrace, in my own heart, the beauty of the child that cannot take care of themselves, that cannot communicate, and cries out for attention, as well as the adult that needs to be valued and encouraged to serve in the body of Christ.  It is only when I truly believe this in my own heart that I will communicate this to others.  Even on those “wet hair days” when I am totally exhausted because we didn’t have enough volunteers, or we had several children with melt downs, I need to have an oil of gladness and joy.  It is a healing balm to volunteers, participants, and their families.  I need to have on a garment of praise to God for allowing me to be in a community of such great people.  My praise should show those around me how aware I am that God made each and every person in His image and in His plan.  My praise should show honor and respect for the God who created each one of us and offers us both compassion and grace.

     In summary, just as in the charge to Isaiah and the charge to Zion, we are called to share good news, serve others in humility, with an attitude of justice.  We are called to extend compassion and God’s grace to those around us, especially those in the margins.  It is in fulfilling these charges that God’s splendor is revealed.

     I conclude with a final charge to myself,  

     Our big visions for multiculturalism and reconciliation (as well as de-marginalization) will make their way into the church only when they are first lived out in real relationships, out of our homes and around our dinner tables and in our living rooms.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV Copyright @ 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblical, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.