Victory over Oppression

Victory over Oppression
Passion for Liberty
Terry R. Baughman

“He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
    the sea, and everything in them--
    he remains faithful forever.
He upholds the cause of the oppressed
    and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
    the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
    the Lord loves the righteous” (Psalm 146:6–8 NIV).

The Psalmist builds a case on the fact that our God is the Creator of heaven and earth, and yet He is concerned about our every need. On the basis of His incredible strength and power, He is completely able to bring about the deliverance for our restoration. We have a relationship with the one who has all authority over creation and everything in it! 

He remains faithful forever! The history of His faithfulness is seen from Creation to the present. There is no alteration of His commitment. He remains faithful … but, the focus shifts to the future with the final word, …forever! His steadfast dependability endures into the future without ceasing. We can count on God's mercy, His truth, and His righteousness to endure forever, as this fact is often repeated in the text. (41 times in the Psalms.) Jeremiah wrote, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22–23 NKJ). 

God is the defender of the defenseless. He sees the plight of those who are oppressed and is compassionate toward their injustice. He takes pity on those who are suffering and plans answers to their prayers and a defense for their cause. He is concerned about those who are hungry and makes provision for them. God is on our side!

From the prophets to the Gospels the attributes of the Lord are proclaimed. He sets free the prisoners, restoring sight to the blind, and liberating those who have been oppressed and pushed down. When John the Baptist sent his followers to Jesus to inquire whether or not He was the Messiah, Jesus responded with a testimony of His actions, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them” (Luke 7:22 NKJ). John knew the passage from Isaiah, “In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness. The humble also shall increase their joy in the Lord, And the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 29:18–19 NKJ). 
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Christ came to lift the burdens of the oppressed and liberate the captives. Sometimes our greatest oppression is the bondage of our own negative opinion of our value in God’s sight. Jesus proved that you have intrinsic value, worthy of His sacrifice on Calvary. He came to free us and restore us to righteousness. Rejoice in that truth and in His liberty!


Theme passage:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18 NKJ).