Yesterday in my morning devotion I read through Isaiah 61. This is the famous verse that Jesus quotes in the synagogue at Nazareth – his hometown. It says this, 

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Real quick. That word “anointed” is the Hebrew word “Mašaḥ.” It’s the word we use to say “Messiah (Yeshua HaMashiach – Jesus the Messiah).” So when Jesus quotes Isaiah 61 in Luke 4 here and says in verse 21, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing,” Jesus is saying that He is the Messiah, the one who is to come to do these things.  

Okay, on to the main point. In the afternoon, on my afternoon walk, one of my favorite songs from Haste The Day came on: Blue 42. The bridge and end of the song goes, 

“And I will lay to rest my ghosts
And cover my footsteps
I will stand up straight and walk away
Leaving them far behind
Won’t look back
Chains that bound me.” 

As I walked back home I pondered Isaiah 61 and Blue 42 together. I thought about the chains that have held me down. The ghosts of my past that haunt me. The fact that Jesus walked this earth and went to that Cross 2,000 years ago and for some reason I have chosen not to be totally set free. Jesus has set me free but I continue to return to the chains that hold me down. Why? Because they’re familiar. 

What’s interesting is that about a week ago I wrote down some of those chains that are keeping me down. I began praying through them, crossing them off, and doing my best to throw them off of me. Hebrews 12:1-2 comes to mind here: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

What are the chains that are holding you down and binding you?  It could be a sin. It could be someone you need to forgive. It could be a past mistake that you won’t forgive yourself for. Whatever those chains are, take steps this week to identify them. Write them down and be very specific. Then, begin asking the Lord to have those chains removed.

As the song and title of this devotional say, don’t look back. The key to keeping the chains off of you is not looking back. Even though the chains may feel familiar they are only there to keep you down and to prohibit you from being the person you were designed to be. Identify the chains. Write them down. Work with the Holy Spirit to throw them off. And don’t look back to the chains that bound you. Look to your Messiah who frees you and gives you a new life through Him (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Marantha 

-Justin

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