Missionary Glenn Lorenz

Jesus Heals Every Kind of Oppression
A Pastor’s Reflection on Partnering with God’s Mission, Here and in Africa

On Pentecost Sunday, as we gathered for worship, I was reminded again that we are part of something far larger than one local church in one small town.

We’re caught up in the singular mission of God.

Not many missions.

One mission.

And it stretches from Quincy to Tacoma to Liberia and beyond.

This weekend we had the joy of hosting Glenn and Wendy Lorenz, Free Methodist missionaries serving in Africa (and globally). Our church has partnered with them for years now—financially, yes, but also relationally. They’re not just a name on a list; they’re friends. They know us, and we know them.

What struck me as they shared wasn’t just the stories from Africa; it was how clearly they tied everything they do to what Jesus did, and how he did it.

And I’ve been thinking about that ever since.

What Did Jesus Actually Do?
In Acts 10:38, Luke summarizes Jesus’ ministry in one powerful sentence:

“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power,
and he went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil,
for God was with him.”

That one verse has been echoing in my mind.

Jesus went around:

doing good
healing all who were oppressed by the devil
in the power of the Holy Spirit
because God was with him.
But if we’re honest, that phrase “healing all who were oppressed by the devil” raises a question: how can Luke say “all”?

Jesus never visited every nation. He didn’t walk the streets of Quincy or Seattle or Nairobi. How can the Bible say he healed all who were oppressed by the devil?

What Glenn pointed out (and what I think Luke is getting at) is this: Jesus healed all kinds of oppression.

Every form the enemy takes to crush and distort human life—Jesus confronted it and brought healing:

physical oppression
spiritual oppression
emotional and psychological oppression
social and systemic oppression
When Luke says “all,” he’s not saying Jesus physically laid hands on every person in every age. He’s saying the range of what Jesus addressed was complete. There is no category of brokenness the enemy inflicts that Jesus does not have authority over.

That matters for how we understand our mission as a church.

Salvation Is Bigger Than We Think
We often use “salvation” only in terms of forgiveness of sins and going to heaven. Of course that’s central—but Scripture paints a much fuller picture.

In Luke’s Gospel, the same Greek word for “save” also gets translated “heal” or “make well.”

Jesus tells the bleeding woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
With Zacchaeus, he says, “Today salvation has come to this house.”
In both cases, something more than a private, internal decision is happening:

The bleeding woman experiences physical healing and emotional peace.
Zacchaeus experiences social restoration—Jesus calls him “a son of Abraham,” pulling him back into the family he’d been functionally kicked out of.
Salvation in the New Testament is multi-dimensional:

Spiritually – reconciliation with God
Socially – reconciliation with God’s people
Emotionally – peace, identity, belonging
Physically – healing, provision, justice
That doesn’t mean we worship physical comfort; it means Jesus cares about all of who we are, and he calls his church to do the same.

Following Jesus’ Mission Statement
In Luke 4, Jesus stands up in the synagogue and reads Isaiah:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to