Liberation is the state of setting someone free from oppression, slavery or imprisonment. Naming Jesus “the Liberator” is practically synonymous with naming him “Savior,” “Redeemer,” and “Deliverer.” Therefore, Jesus as a Liberator means that Jesus came to the earth to set us free from slavery of sin. Jesus came to set the human race free from all forms of political, economical, social, psychological, physical and spiritual captivity. In the book of Genesis, God created Adam and Eve and they experienced freedom of fellowship without any obstacles (Bible, NKJV). Eventually, the bible records that Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit. This is the beginning of sin in the human kind. Sin separates human beings from God. Sin enslaves and holds captive.

Jesus says in his preaching that the kingdom of God that is yet to come is already here. The liberating work of the crucified and risen Jesus encompasses not only the age to come but also the present human life on earth. Jesus desires that every person leads a life free from pain, misery and imprisonment. Jesus as the liberator is concerned with all the aspects of the human life.

Jesus is concerned about the social life of each person. Mark 10: 2-12 in the bible discourages divorce by either partner. Divorce ruins the social life of the spouses and leaves pain in their hearts. When the Pharisees asked Jesus if it is lawful for a man to divorce his wife, Jesus answered, “Any one who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery” Luke 10:11-12. Jesus wants families to be happy and to experience the kingdom of God at their homes. In Luke 6:27-28, Jesus gives the command to love one’s enemies. The bible says, “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do well to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you” (Bible, NKJV). Love is the foundation of peace, love and unity. If love reigns in today’s world, there will be no cases of murder, theft, corruption and hatred.

Jesus focuses on influencing the political life of the people, nationally and internationally. Luke 18:9-14 and 19:9-10 explains the encounter of Jesus and the tax collectors. During that era, the tax collectors were disliked and no person wanted to associate with them. They were excluded from usual social and political gatherings. Tax collectors were believed to be politically corrupt and exploitative. Jesus showed mercy and love to the tax collectors. As a result, the tax collector’s life got transformed and he left his corrupt way of life to follow Jesus. Jesus liberated the tax collector, who collaborated with Roman and Jewish leaders, from political captivity to political freedom. As a result, the people were liberated from the oppression and exploitation of the tax collectors. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, most people looked at the sick person on the road side in contempt because he was a foreigner (Luke 10:30-37). Jesus commends one person, the Good Samaritan for being concerned about the sick man and helping him. In Mark 3:13-19, Jesus prophetically appoints twelve leaders from every tribe of Israel. The act is a symbol of Jesus’ desire to reform Israel. Politically, Jesus teaches equal distribution of power and upholding political freedom.

Discuss how this image of Jesus is relevant for today’s world.

The image that Jesus presents is very relevant for today’s world. Leonardo (50) states that Jesus is interested in the socio-political dimension of Christ’s reign – that is, the visible church.  He describes a Jesus passionately concerned for justice and liberation from visible oppression. Socially, in the 21^st Century, individuals have chosen to embrace contract marriages that lead to divorces after a certain period of time. Divorce has become the order of the day. Jesus preached against divorce and thus liberating many families from a lot of heart ache. Many children are suffering because of the increased rate of broken families.

Today’s world is greatly individualistic. People are more concerned about their personal growth and are ready to seek success at the expense of others. Murder cases have greatly increased because of the increased rate of enemity. Enemity has become rampant in the family set up, work places, social gatherings and schools. It results in hatred among people, injustice, and unfair competition. Jesus liberates people from the slavery of individualism. Jesus urges us to love our enemies. If every person loves the other, there will be no enemies and every individual will experience the kingdom of God on earth.

In today’s world, politics plays a significant role. Political positions are taken by violence and by use of unjust ways. Jesus Christ, the Liberator has targeted various arenas of oppression which include gender (white feminist), sexual orientation (gay and lesbian theology), race (Black theology), class (Latin American theology), culture (African theology), and religion (Asian theology) (Leonardo, 61). Women are greatly discriminated in the political matters. People embrace same sex marriages whereas gay and lesbianism are normalized in today’s society. Tribalism is rampant in determining the political leaders of a country. As a result, tribal wars occur and hatred among different communities arises. Religious oppression has become real due to the presence of many conflicting religions. Cults that have varied contradicting beliefs have increased. Battles among different religions have grown exponentially. For instance, in the Muslim countries, Christians are being killed and persecuted in large numbers.

How can understanding Jesus in this way help us to make the Kingdom of God present here and now?

Black theology has traced the roots of African Americans’ socio-political and economic oppression back to racism and the ideology of white supremacy (Leonardo, 151). Similarly, Asian feminist theologians have highlighted how ‘capitalism, patriarchy, militarism, and religio-cultural ideologies work together to escalate the degree of women’s oppression (Tisani, 81). When we understand Jesus, we have the power and authority to influence positive change in our society.

Jesus main objective is to redeem mankind from all the suffering they are going through. Jesus has portrayed a perfect example, having lived on earth in the human form. If each person understands the way and mind of Jesus Christ, there will be no gender discrimination in work places and in politics. There will be no conflicts among different religions because of different in beliefs. Incidences of divorce, madder and hatred will reduce. There will be no corruption and injustice. The children suffering from broken families will be non-existence.

Our faith in Jesus as liberator should compel us to take up the cause of those who suffer any form of human misery. Romans 3:23, says that all are poor and fall short of the glory of God and are thus potential beneficiaries of Jesus’ liberation. Whether the poverty is economical, social, political, cultural, psychological or spiritual, it encompasses the whole of mankind. Hence liberation theology is for everyone since it is universal.

The work of Jesus, the Liberator is the work of salvation. Salvation has to begin at a very personal level, at the level of self. It has to start within the unique experience of each individual’s life. It has to be desired, believed in and yearned for. Only the one who experiences bondage, oppression, deprivation, suppression and discrimination can fully appreciate and benefit from the liberating manifold energies of the Incarnate Son (Leonardo, 243). But first one has to be able to recognize one’s needs for liberation and one has to be able to identify the source of oppression. After that, one has to recognize the True Source of liberation and how to access it, how to work it in and how to be open to it. It is thus the duty of the Church, by vocation, to mediate, to facilitate, and to propagate this liberation, or salvation process.

If every individual, at a personal level, embraces liberation, the whole world will be transformed. The daily challenges related to oppression, slavery, and imprisonment will be solved. The love of God will reign even among the people. As a result, the kingdom of God will be experienced on earth. The bible describes the kingdom of God as one that is peaceful, with no pain or suffering, full of joy, filled with abundance, has no poverty, sickness, sorrow or death. The salvation by Jesus Christ guarantees us eternal life, a life that has no end.

References

Leonardo, Boff. 1990. Jesus Christ Liberator: A Critical Christology for Our Time. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1990.

O’Collins, Gerald. 1998. “Jesus Christ the Liberator: in the Context of Human Progress.” Studia Missionalia, 47, 21-35.

The Bible, New King James Version.

Tisani, Nomathamsanqa. 1999. “Christ the Liberator – The Attitudes of the Church to the Oppression of Women.” Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 66, 79-83.

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