“They”
Isaiah 61:4
They will rebuild the ancient ruins; they will restore the former devastations, they will renew the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.
“They” seem to be a powerful force anointed to rebuild, restore, and renew the devastations and ruins left by enemy attack and generations of destruction. Oh, that “They” might do a work in our country today! To better understand the power of “They,” we might do well to take a closer look and understand who “They” are.
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the LORD to glorify Him.
From these preceding verses, we find that “They” are the poor, the brokenhearted, captives and prisoners, and all those who mourn – hardly a group we would consider powerful enough to transform completely ruined cities into beautiful, fully functioning, and productive lives that glorify God. Yet, each group mentioned here has received something from Jesus Christ that has made them whole again. The poor received good news while the brokenhearted received healing. The captives received liberty and the prisoners freedom. All who mourned were comforted. As Christians, you and I fall into one, if not all, of these categories. We are “They.”
As a member of “They,” we may not fully recognize the power or anointing we have, but God’s word clearly says here that we will rebuild, restore, and renew that which has been devastated for many generations by the enemy. If you have been poor and now have plenty, you have the power to restore an impoverished spirit. If you have been brokenhearted and have been healed, you have the power to bring healing to someone else who has just been devastated by hurt. If you have been held captive or imprisoned by any form of addiction or self-destructive habit and have overcome, you are anointed to help deliver someone else who is struggling with the same thing. If you have mourned the loss of someone you dearly loved and have found comfort, you have the ability to comfort someone who is grieving such a loss now.
Perhaps, you are still struggling as a member of “They.” If so, Jesus has an answer for you, and He will use the very thing that hurt you to help restore someone else. The word, “salvation,” actually means, “to be made whole.” Jesus died to bring us salvation – to make us whole, productive, and to glorify Him. God changes one life so it can change another. He always has purpose in our pain, and we will walk in that purpose if we allow Him to make it stronger than the pain. Whatever the devil has used to hurt or damage you will become a mighty tool in God’s hand once you are made whole in Christ.
I attended a conference a few years ago that addressed the issue of poverty in our country. Many things can send a person or family into poverty, but what keeps someone in poverty is a destructive mindset which believes the lie that things will never get any better. Those with a destructive mindset never overcome poverty but simply learn to cope within it and teach their children to do the same. To overcome, two things are required: hope and faith – hope that things will get better and faith that they will.
Your testimony of victory can build a bridge to hope and faith in a life that has been destroyed or even devastated by generations. If God worked a miracle in your life, He can work the same miracle in someone else’s life. We must remember that God responds to faith, and we can be a beacon which points the way to hope and faith in a life that has never witnessed victory. We are “They,” and we are both called and anointed to rebuild, restore, and renew.
Have a blessed day!