Professor Scott Continues

The message of the Arte Vaqueros reminds me of the message of what Jesus said in the temple at the beginning of his ministry.

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. Luke 4:18-19

Jesus ministry was to the poor, the prisoners, those who were blind, and oppressed. Who are the poor of the Cinco Lakes community? We are surrounded by $250,000.00 houses (upper middle in Texas) AND teenagers are driving new cars to school. We could ask the same question about the prisoners and blind, and those who are oppressed. First, before we metaphoricalize this, we need to ask ourselves a question about our prayer life. Instead of hoping people will come who are like us, have we prayed for God to send us the people like Jesus ministered to? Have we prayed for God to open our eyes?

I also do think it is okay to think about each group as a metaphor for other groups. The poor -- those who have a poverty of the Spirit. Their life is empty, bankrupt, and without any hope. Prisoners -- there are so many who are trapped by their own egos. They are in the dungeon of despair. They may be captive of their greed or debt. The blind -- those who can not see life and love and light. They can not see the darkness of evil or the light of the world.

Of course, Jesus began his ministry by being embraced by the Spirit of the Lord. All ministry begins with the Spirit. Ministry in the New Testament was "on purpose," however, it was led by the Holy Spirit. Instead of the "purpose driven church," the New Testament church is a "Spirit led church."

The shackles that we need to take off is viewing the Kingdom of God as a franchise -- something we can own and control. Our vision should be same as the vision of Jesus. Maybe the answer is, we really do not know Jesus.

The End