The first recorded sermon Jesus spoke originated from Isaiah 61, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor” (verse 1).

In subsequent verses Jesus articulates the other benefits of that anointing: healing for the brokenhearted, freedom for captives, an experiential “jail-break” for prisoners, the year of our being delightfully accepted by God based on His vengeance having been fully satisfied, comfort for all mourners, and the divine exchange: beauty for ashes, joy for the mourning ones, and the garment of praise for all who are depressed.

The recipients become oaks of righteousness as God’s special planting that the great God might receive glory. The prophet Isaiah identified the ultimate goal of this anointing.

The newly anointed ones would be ones who “rebuild the old ruins”, “raise up the former desolations”, “repair the ruined cities”, which were the “desolations of many generations”.

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• But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. (hiswordforwisdom.wordpress.com)