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
Lop-eared bunnies are beautiful, gentle, and quite irresistible with their big, blinking eyes and long, droopy ears. About four years ago, my family was drawn into their “magnetic field,” and we found ourselves purchasing three of them, one for each of our children. We built a large hutch, bought nutritious “bunny pellets,” and were attentive, bringing treats of fresh vegetables to eat. They were set up royally.
As spring warmed to summer, we were careful to see that they had enough water to drink, but the heat obviously bothered them, and I was concerned about their comfort. However, they made it through the worst of the heat, and autumn seemed like a relief for them.
We continued into cooler and cooler weather, and it was not as likely to find us outside regularly. The busyness of school, homework, and church activities kept us occupied, but whenever I walked past the bunnies in their hutch, I wondered if they could be comfortable in their small world. Adding hay from time to time for bedding helped them make a nest for sleep.
Soon enough we had truly cold weather, and on my trek past them I often reflected on the natural habitat of bunnies. I felt so sorry for their captive state. Certainly this was no life for a warm-blooded bunny. There had to be a better way for them to live. They needed more liberty. We ended up granting emancipation to the sweet creatures by giving them to a family with small children who wanted to let them roam loose in their house.
Christ’s mission in coming to earth as a Baby was to set us free. Centuries before the birth of Christ, Isaiah wrote of His mission to “proclaim liberty to the captives.” God saw man trapped in the bondage of sin and longed for his freedom. He loved us so much that He even sacrificed His Son that we might have liberty through Him.
As Christians, we have a beautiful freedom. Our sins are forgiven. We read in John 8:31-32, “If ye continue in my word . . . ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Good will is intended to all. The Bible promises us that God is taking care of our temporal needs, so we have freedom from anxiety about our daily bread. Each of us can live as God intends. There is no need to conceal either behavior or conversation, since nothing is dishonorable. What liberty He gives! Truly, we are loved.