He Came to Set the Captives Free

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For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. What is the leading that Paul has in mind in that same quote, "He led captivity captive" (verse 8)?

The Spirit of the LORD God has taken control of me! The LORD has chosen and sent me to tell the oppressed the good news, to heal the brokenhearted, and to announce freedom for prisoners and captives. To open the eyes of the blind, | To bring forth the bound one from prison, | Those sitting in darkness from the house of restraint. When we become the captive slaves of Jesus Christ, we find liberty in that captivity. This is a paradox, but not a contradiction, because Christ’s slaves are "sons ofGod... heirs ofGod and joint heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:14-17). 3 What is the Leading? To open the blind eyes, To bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, And them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house. This leadership ofChrist includes the work Christ has done through the agency of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus ascended into heaven, he was exalted to God's right hand. Peter says, "Having been exalted to the right hand ofGod, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this which you both see and hear" (Acts 2:33).To open the eyes of the blind, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who sit in darkness from the prison.

It would not be politically correct to speak against the poor today. Yet the actions of some people signal their contempt for them. If they only worked as hard as we do, they say, they would not be poor. We often are not eager to bring the poor to our services. They don’t dress as well as we do. Even in a dress casual environment, their casual clothes are not of the designer type. Unspoken, yet this is a powerful silent testimony to a wrong attitude. To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. During His ministry on earth, Christ encountered Satan many times. This aspect of His deliverance was instituted right away. He delivered people spiritually from all forms of Satan’s oppression. The simplest explanation of "he led captivity captive" (Ephesians 4:8) is to think of captivity as slavery. Paul thinks of the new birth as an enslavement to Christ when he releases us from enslavement to sin (Romans 6:6,16-18). When Christ died, was buried, arose from the dead, and ascended to the right hand ofGod, he set a host of captives free from sin and took them captive to himself. He continues to do so even today and until he comes again, "that he might fill all things" (Ephesians 4:10). Captivity in Redemption He is the one who will do it. Be steadfast in the Lord. Modern medicine does not offer complete healing, but Jesus perfects your healing. Keep your faith alive in Jesus for all things are possible with God.Christ opened the eyes of the spiritually blind. Many came to faith in Him and followed Him. In addition He healed people who were physically blind. Thus, both literally and spiritually, this proclamation was fulfilled during the days of Christ on earth. The first step in the process of setting the captives free is seen in these Scriptures. What is that first step? The Spirit sent Christ to proclaim release to the captives. The Spirit would enable Christ to proclaim the message of deliverance and freedom. The Spirit is a bridge between the present and the future. Through the Spirit, the power of the Kingdom of God breaks in upon the earth. It was Christ who exercised this leadership from his throne in heaven, and he continues to do so through providence and the inspired writings of those whom he gifted. Christ the Firstfruits

The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Jesus is concerned about blind people. The primary reference no doubt was to people who were physically blind. However, we cannot overlook the spiritually blind. When you sit and listen to the commentators of the world, the talk shows, you know that millions are spiritually blind. They have not idea of spiritual truth. The eyes of their souls cannot see. They live in darkness. Sometimes the deliverance comes by a change of attitude in our own hearts. Jesus challenges us deeply with these words in Mt. 5:10-12:

Verse 19 will provide our conclusion. Jesus was anointed to “proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness. In His first recorded sermon, Jesus gives some detail to the nature of His mission. He tells us why He came to earth. This sermon was delivered in the synagogue of Nazareth. Jesus stood to read in the synagogue, and read from Isaiah 61:1-2. It was from the Septuagint version, which was commonly read in the synagogues. Luke 4:16-21 records the scene for us. That thou mightest open the eyes of the blind, and bring forth the prisoner out of prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who dwell in darkness from the prison.The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and an opening of the eyes to the blind; to open the eyes of the blind, to bring the bound and them that sit in darkness out of bonds and the prison-house.