Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11 The Spirit of the LORD God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the afflicted. He sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release for those who are bound, 2to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance for our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3to provide for those who mourn in Zion, to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, a cloak of praise instead of a faint spirit, so that they will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD to display his beauty.
10I will rejoice greatly in the LORD. My soul will celebrate because of my God, for he has clothed me in garments of salvation. With a robe of righteousness he covered me, like a bridegroom who wears a beautiful headdress like a priest, and like a bride who adorns herself with her jewelry.
11For as the earth produces its growth, and as a garden causes what has been sown to sprout up, so God the LORD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up in the presence of all the nations.
Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Amen.
Joe and Sharon had recently retired. They were planning on spending their retirement years traveling, spoiling their grandkids, and spending time together.
That all changed when Joe had a heart attack and died.
It’s been several months since Joe’s death. Sharon doesn’t know what to do. She feels lost. Lonely. Joe’s easy chair is empty. She keeps setting a place for him at the dinner table. There’s no one to fix the leaky faucet or open jars or kill spiders in the house.
They would each wear their Santa’s hats while putting up Christmas decorations together. Joe would think he was Bing Crosby and start crooning Christmas carols to her. But now she has lost interest in the decorations, lights, and songs. She waits until her children and grandchildren come over to help her set up for Christmas.
They never watched much TV. But Joe would cuddle with Sharon to watch her cheesy Hallmark movies. They would hold hands wherever they went. They would smooch and gross out their kids and later their grandkids. But now there is no one to cuddle or hold hands or smooch with.
Sharon’s friends encourage her to keep busy, get involved in her church’s quilting circle, play Pickleball, and even start dating. But she has no interest in Pickleball, quilting, and certainly not dating.
She is hurting. Aching. Grieving. Mourning.
Sharon and Joe are not a real couple. But their story is all too real. It is an amalgamation of stories I’ve heard from you over the years.
In the Old Testament lesson from Isaiah 61, the Lord’s prophet gives comfort to grieving people. Isaiah is comforting the children of Israel who will be returning from their 70 years in Babylonian exile. They will be mourning the loss of family (God’s people), the destruction of Jerusalem (God’s city), and the demolition of the temple (God’s house). Isaiah’s words give physical comfort, spiritual comfort, and also emotional comfort to those who are grieving.
When someone close to us – like a spouse – dies, there is pain. I don’t think pain is the result of sin. I’m pretty confident that if Adam stepped on an acorn with his bare foot in the perfection of
Eden, he would still have felt pain. Maybe not the kind of pain of stepping on a Lego … but close.
The pain we feel in our hearts, heads, and bodies when we are grieving – that is certainly the product of sin. God did not create us to die, but to live. Death is God’s curse upon the children of Adam and Eve because of our first parents’ first sin that destroyed the perfection of Eden.
Dying exists as God’s punishment for human evil and rebellion. It is not nice nor natural. Death is God’s curse upon the sinner, “For dust you are and to dust you will return” (Genesis 3:19). Death is the clearest expression of God’s hatred over sin. St. Paul explains, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Because we all sin, we will all experience the curse of death. We will first feel the emotional pain of death when it robs us of our loved one. Then we will feel the physical pain of death when we die.
Many times, when someone dies, we try to blame God. But it is death who is the enemy. Death takes our loved ones away from us and leaves us a hole. And whether it happens suddenly or slowly, to a parent, spouse, sibling, or child, it really doesn’t matter, does it? The pain is great. The brokenness is absolute. The hurting is unbearable.
What God has joined together; death has torn apart.
Jesus comes to comfort you in your grief over death in this life. He also comes to remove the curse of death, so you have no fear of it for the life to come.
The Messiah says, “The Spirit of the LORD God is upon me” (Isaiah 61:1). This is the Son of God speaking through his prophet 700 years before the Messiah took on flesh in the womb of the Virgin. When Jesus preached in the Nazareth synagogue, he read Isaiah 61 from the scroll of the prophet, and then said, “Today, this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21).
The Messiah continues, “The LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the afflicted” (Isaiah 61:1). Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit at his baptism to carry out this work of comforting all who mourn.
When I asked widows and widowers what helps them in their grief, they all answered that what helps is God’s Word and God’s people. They all admitted they don’t know how someone could handle grief without God. Jesus gives the good news to the afflicted Christian with a Christian spouse that their loved one was baptized in Jesus’ name, believed in Jesus as their Savior, and now is a saint around Jesus’ throne in heaven. That’s good news. … That’s the best news there is!
The Messiah continues with his job description, “He sent me to bind up the brokenhearted” (Isaiah 61:1). When your spouse dies, it can feel like you are shattered glass. Jesus came to unbreak your broken heart. Little by little, Jesus begins putting you back together again. It may take a little while, or it may take a long time … but Jesus binds up your broken heart by gluing you back together again. The glue is the divine and dying love he has for you … and the divine and dying love he has for your spouse.
“He sent me … to proclaim freedom for the captives and release for those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance for our God” (Isaiah 61:1-2).
Jesus preaches freedom. But he did more than preach. On the cross, he put himself in our dark dungeon and released us into the light. Jesus didn’t just talk about freedom; he set us free.
You are fully and eternally free from all punishment for your sins. Jesus signed your pardon papers with his blood. He placed his seal on the papers when he broke the seal on his grave. He
broke you free from the shackles of your sins. He released you from the guilt that imprisoned you. He gave you hope as you face the very real terror of your inevitable death. The darkness of death that haunts the dreams of all people no longer haunts you. You have been set free from that fear because through faith in Jesus you will rise to life just as he did.
Now the Messiah bandages your broken heart with the soothing message of your forgiveness.
He releases captives bound in the hopeless dungeon of your despair.
He breaks the bondage of Satan’s controlling influence over your life.
He brings resurrection comfort when you mourn the death of your Christian loved ones.
He proclaims the Year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance for our God. This is referring to the Year of Jubilee in ancient Israel. Every 50 years in the Year of Jubilee, slaves were to be set free, debts were to be forgiven, and purchased property was to revert to the original owners. The former slaves, debtors, and those who had sold their family farms were excited on the Year of Jubilee. There will be even greater excitement for us who were once spiritual slaves and debtors to the sin that enslaved us and held us down.
You may not feel much like “jubilee” while you are mourning. But when Jesus comes, we can’t help but rejoice and be jubilant.
In contrast to such good news, God threatens a “day of vengeance.” On Judgment Day, there will be those at Jesus’ right hand to whom he will say, “‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). There will also be those on his left to whom Jesus will say, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire, which is prepared for the Devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41).
Then the Messiah sets up a series of contrasts that bring joy to your hurting heart. “He has sent me … to provide for those who mourn in Zion, to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, a cloak of praise instead of a faint spirit, so that they will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD to display his beauty” (Isaiah 61:2-3) On the one side, we will experience mourning, grieving, ashes, and despair. On the other side, we will find comfort, a crown of beauty, the oil of gladness, and a garment of praise.
The Messiah is speaking of his ministry in verses 1-3. In verses 10-11, the speaker becomes one who has received the benefits of the Messiah’s ministry.
“I will rejoice greatly in the LORD. My soul will celebrate because of my God, for he has clothed me in garments of salvation. With a robe of righteousness he covered me, like a bridegroom who wears a beautiful headdress like a priest, and like a bride who adorns herself with her jewelry. For as the earth produces its growth, and as a garden causes what has been sown to sprout up, so God the LORD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up in the presence of all the nations” (Isaiah 61:10-11).
When you are mourning, it may be difficult to get out of bed, get in the shower, and get dressed. On those difficult days, remember your wedding day. Recall how beautiful the bride was in her wedding dress and how handsome the groom was in his tuxedo (especially with the cummerbund and all the ruffles). The Messiah motivates you to move out of your bed as he showers you daily with his baptismal waters. He dresses you in something more beautiful than your tuxedo or wedding dress. He clothes you with the garments of salvation. He places on you the robe of his righteousness.
The Messiah gives us this makeover free of charge. Free to us, but at great price to him. To give you the crown of life, Jesus wore a crown of thorns. To gift you with his righteous robe, he was mocked with a scarlet robe, beaten, and flogged. He was stripped of his garments, stripped of his dignity, and nailed to a cross. All so that you and your Christian family can stand beautiful and glorious before the Lord.
People notice when your mourning is replaced with joy. When your despair is replaced with confidence. When your spouse is dying, and you anticipate that death with resurrection faith in the Lord. They see when the Messiah is comforting those who mourn.
We are all broken because we are broken sinners living in a broken world. You have permission to feel broken. It’s OK to feel like you are trapped in your heart or imprisoned by your emotions. You don’t have to fake happiness.
But know this, the Messiah binds up the broken hearted and comforts those who mourn. You will find real comfort for your real mourning in in the very real Messiah. Amen.
May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24). Amen.