Today is the tenth day of our Advent preparations. As we look
deeply into the Scriptures, we will begin to see the lights of Bethlehem just
over the hill. The star has appeared, and the choir of angels is beginning to
warm up. We will arrive soon, but there are still much work to do and
lessons to learn.
Today’s
readings remind us just how HUGE the Incarnation is – for God’s people
as a whole, and for us as individuals. God had every reason to write
humanity off! Frankly, each of us has given the Father good reason to give up
on us. But, instead, He sends us His Son to, “seek and to save those who are lost” (Luke
19:10)! The Incarnation of Jesus is the centerpiece of Salvation History – for
humanity, and for each of us!
Surely, God
must grow weary of the unfaithfulness of His children. From the very beginning,
God has blessed us with everything we could need or want to live in communion
with Him. And how do we respond? Let’s
take Adam and Eve. God blessed our
primal parents with every kind of blessing (Genesis 1:28-30). He gave them
dominion over the entire created order, and a covenant whereby they might be
fruitful and multiply. Adam and Eve’s response was to turn their back on the “giver of every good and perfect gift” (James
1:17) at their very first opportunity to do so. Their sinful rebellion has
reverberated through every subsequent generation (Romans 5:12)!
How about
the Children of Israel, God’s chosen people? They were also richly blessed! In
Genesis 22:17-18, God says to Abraham, “I will surely bless you …and through your offspring all
nations on earth will be blessed.” This covenant with Abraham
extended to the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people. They were blessed to have a relationship with
God, and He gave them the “Promised Land” as their dwelling. Over and over
again, the response of the Children of Israel was to rebel against God – to
turn to their own way – and to worship the Gods of other nations. This resulted
in God’s judgment falling on His people. They watched Jerusalem burn, witnessed
many perish at the hands of foreign armies, and the remnant spent years in
exile.
What about
us? We are also blessed greatly! Romans 1:3 states, “Praise be to the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every
spiritual blessing in Christ.” In Christ, we have every blessing
that Adam, Eve, and the Israelites have…and more. But, also like Adam and Eve,
and the Nation of Israel, we too have rebelled against God. Why does God put up
with us? It really is no more complicated than this: “God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son…”
Isaiah 40 marks a turning point in the book of Isaiah. Chapters 1
through 39 deal with God’s righteous judgment falling on His unfaithful people.
God had used King Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem and
carry God’s people into captivity where they served as slaves. This is
reminiscent of Israel’s time in Egypt as slaves of Pharaoh. And much like Moses
was sent to reclaim God’s people, Chapter 40 reveals that God’s judgment is
complete and a day of reclamation and reconciliation has come. Imagine, knowing
that your homeland had been destroyed, that many of your loved ones were
displaced or dead, and that your favor with God had been damaged. Now, the
clouds were beginning to lift and the sun was starting to break through. The
time for sorrow and sadness had passed. God was about to change everything!
What relief and joy would flood your soul!!
Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak
tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been
completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s
hand double for all her sins. 3 A voice of one calling: “In the
wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a
highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be raised up, every
mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged
places a plain. 5 And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and
all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” 6 A
voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” “All people are like
grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. 7 The
grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows
on them. Surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers and
the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” 9 You
who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring
good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do
not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” 10 See,
the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm. See, his
reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. 11 He
tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries
them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.
Chapter
40:1-2 begins with wondrous words of encouragement and consolation. God speaks “comfort” to His people. These words are
to be delivered tenderly to them. Israel and Judah have suffered enough. A new
day is dawning. What has changed? God has declared that the long days of
servitude and judgment have passed. And, that the people have received double
judgment for their sin. God is now satisfied that His people have paid the
price for their unfaithfulness. Why would God punish His chosen ones? Proverbs
3:11-12 states, “My son, do not despise
the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord
disciplines those he loves.” Hebrews 12:10 says, “God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his
holiness.” God’s judgment, based on love and His desire to purify His
people, is now complete.
Verses 3-5
reveal that there is still work left to be done. A voice is heard crying in the
wilderness. This “voice” may
represent other prophets, like Isaiah, but is most fully realized in John the
Baptist (Matthew 3:3). The voice cries out that preparations must be made for
the coming of the Lord. All obstacles must be removed. Where is this voice
crying? He is in the wilderness, or
the desert. We noted yesterday that the desert is a place of anguish,
alienation, death and decay. Humans were
not meant to stay there! A very important highway will be built in the
wilderness. This road has two purposes. We have previously described this
highway as the, “way of holiness. (Isaiah
35:8).” For us to access this path that leads out of desolation, it required
repentance. John preached this message of repentance in Luke 3:3-9 as the “voice crying in the wilderness.” In
speaking to the Pharisees, he said, “Produce
fruit in keeping with repentance.” But, this highway has a second purpose.
It will also be used by the Lord to come to us. Could it be that we need a
guide on the journey out of the wasteland and back to the Promised Land? Thomas
said to Jesus, “Lord, we don’t know where
you are going, so how can we know the way” (John 14:5)? Jesus said, “I am the Way.” Jesus came to show us
the “Way” that leads to life. This highway is a two way street!
When the
Lord comes, the path will be made straight and narrow (Matthew 7:14). The mountains
will be brought low. The valleys will be filled in. The crooked places will be
made straight. And the rugged places made plain. Let’s face it, this road work
is impossible for us, but all things are possible for God. In effect, by
preparing our hearts for Him, He is making a Way for us – and He will take care
of the infrastructure work.
Finally in
verse 5 we see that a glorious occurrence transpires when these preparations
are made, when God’s people repent and turn from sin. The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all people will see His
salvation! Could it be that our sinfulness detracts from God’s glory being
revealed to the world? How sad that the church loses much of its prophetic
influence because we have not repented and walked the “way of holiness.” What if we did truly repent and turn away from
sin and back to the Lord? Would the glory of the Lord be revealed and all
people see His salvation? To conclude, yes, would be consistent with the
teaching of this passage.
All of this
is cause for shouting, and that is exactly what verse 9 tells us to do. Shout
it from the mountaintops! Our “Sovereign
Lord” has come to rule with a “mighty
arm”. This is the language of kings who have prevailed in conflict. As one
who has triumphed in battle, this King has gathered up the spoils of the
victor, and what he has gathered to Himself? It is…US!
Unlike other
kings who might parade us around to display their winnings, this victorious
King holds us close as a loving Shepherd. He takes care of us as a Shepherd would
tend His flock, and He is especially tender with those caring for their young –
the most vulnerable ones. Can you think of any Kings who were also Shepherds?
David comes to mind. But the ultimate answer is Jesus – the King of kings who
is also the Good Shepherd.
What an
amazing announcement Isaiah 40 is. God was reconciling with His estranged
people. After years of separation, He called the people to repentance, and
preparation, and announced that He was coming as King and Shepherd. Now he
holds His precious ones close to his heart. As the old hymn says, “There is a place of quiet rest, near to the
heart of God.” Like John, the beloved disciple, reclined on Jesus breast
(John 13:13), so too, we are given this invitation. “Come unto me, all of you who are weary and heavy laden, I will give
you rest. (Matt. 11:28)”
Psalm 96:1-3, 10-13
Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the
earth. 2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his
salvation day after day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples. Say among the nations, “The Lord
reigns.” The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the
peoples with equity. 11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth
be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. 12 Let the
fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest
sing for joy. 13 Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for
he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalm 96 reflects the tone and timbre of Isaiah 40:9. The psalmist
calls for the singing of a new song to the Lord. Like Isaiah 40:1, a new era is
beginning, and it requires a new song! He calls for the ensemble of all
creation to proclaim the glory of the Lord and to proclaim His greatness to the
nations. The heavens, sea, plain and trees (an interesting choir), are to
rejoice and resound with the good news. For the Lord is coming! And He will rule
with equity, justice and faithfulness. God’s faithfulness stands in such stark
contrast to our unfaithfulness. Indeed, because of God’s gracious gift has made
such a transforming difference in our lives, we should announce His salvation
to everyone, everyday!
Matthew 18:12-14
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one
of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to
look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it,
truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine
that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in
heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Matthew 18:12-14 contains a very straightforward question posed by Jesus to His disciples.
As we have studied Isaiah 40, the picture is of redemption for God’s people. In
Matthew 18, Jesus shows us the personal nature of His salvation. Jesus, like a
good Rabbi, asks for the opinion of His students. If a shepherd has 100 sheep
and one of them goes astray, should he leave the 99 in the hills and go after
the one who is lost? He continues the lesson by saying that the shepherd will
rejoice more over finding the one, than the 99 who are safely in the fold.
Jesus concludes by saying that God’s will is that not even one of “these little
ones” be lost. The Lord’s divine embrace of His little lambs is more
than just hyperbole. Isaiah 40:11 tells that he, “gathers
the lambs in His arms.”
Adam and Eve went astray. Israel and Judah went their own
way. What about us? Have we gone astray? Have we been lost? Isaiah 53:6 says, “We all, like
sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way…” Jesus
came looking for each one of us. Indeed, He has, “come to seek and save those who were
lost.” Jesus said, "If I be
lifted up, I will draw all men unto me"
(John 12:32). Jesus sought us by becoming flesh and dwelling among
us - the Incarnation. He came to seek and save us by taking up the cross.
He stretched out His arms on the old rugged tree, losing His own life, so
that we might be found. And now, He holds us in His hands and no one can
take us out of His hands (John 10:28)! What comfort that should give us. As the
old hymn says, “Many things about
tomorrow I don't seem to understand but I know who holds tomorrow and I know
who holds my hand.” Now that’s a blessing worth singing about!
On this tenth day of Advent, may you truly know the comfort
of the Lord as He draws you unto Himself.
No comments:
Post a Comment