"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised," (Luke 4:18)

When a man preaches the gospel it should be a declaration of the finished work of Jesus Christ. Preaching is not a a cause of regeneration but a discovery of life already given by the sovereignty of God!

Having said that, the gospel is still extremely important to the child of God. It is how we come to discover and understand what God has done for us. It sets us free to love God out of pure thankfulness and not fear of condemnation!

The gospel is for the poor in spirit (or meek as it reads in Isaiah). The good news tells a person who is sick of their own sin that Jesus died for them and took away the penalty of their sins.

The gospel is for the brokenhearted. A brokenhearted person is one who seems to have no hope. The gospel news reminds us that it is not by our righteousness but by the shed blood of Christ that we will be reunited with God someday.

The gospel is for those held captive. The good news sets us free from false doctrines that bind us to a hopeless system of works or will. It also declares to us that sin no longer has a death grip on us. We have been given power to walk away.

The gospel is for the blind. There is physical blindness, which Jesus healed. And there is spiritual blindness, or darkness, that speaks of our ignorance of the true nature of God. The gospel tells us plainly that God is sovereign and all powerful and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God come powerfully in the flesh!

The gospel is to set bruised men at liberty. Even though we have been saved from our sins, they still have an effect on us emotionally and physically. The gospel liberates us to ignore the temporary pain brought into our lives by our sin and the sinful condition of the world. The gospel declares that we have been set free from the lasting consequences of sin and that some day we will be free of its power altogether!