One of the reasons Jesus came to earth was to offer us a new lease of life, which includes a change of identity. During His earthly ministry, He changed the identity and status of many people from negative to positive; He also changed the course of many lives from aimlessness to purposeful living.
One of the reasons Jesus came to earth was to introduce the kingdom of God to humankind. After the fall in the Garden of Eden, humans lost several privileges, among them the struggle-free existence and royalty that God had originally intended us to maintain.
Among other purposes, Jesus also came to proclaim the acceptable year of God to the expectant. He came as an embodiment of answers to the questions, prayers and petitions of many across different ages as well as from diverse races and walks of life. He came to fulfil the hope and meet the expectations of the faithful.
The oppressed are another group for whom Jesus came to earth. He announced in the passage above that He came to set them at liberty so that they too can enjoy the benefits of living and aspire to self-actualisation like every other person. Just as Jesus came for these people, likewise are a number of individuals living today called to the oppressed; to rescue and set them at liberty.
One of the missions of Jesus was to minister to the blind so that they could see. Now, the blind are not necessarily those who have impaired eyesight alone; a popular saying holds that even those who have no vision for their lives are not better off than the physically blind.
Jesus also came to take away the sins of the world. There is no greater hindrance factor than sin; sin inhibits access, stalls progress, blocks paths, deflates enthusiasm, truncates hope, prevents breakthrough, provokes ill will, limits capacity, aborts dreams, suppresses potentials, renders efforts fruitless, restrains the hand of God, puts up a wall of resistance, and does many more harm to the sinner.
