The Faithfulness of God

Readings for today: Isaiah 40-42, Psalm 46

One of my favorite memories is of the first time we took our son Josiah to the beach. We were living in Mobile, AL and we took a short day trip to Dauphin Island. Josiah had just turned two and we were excited to introduce him to the Gulf of Mexico. We parked. Grabbed all our stuff. Chloe ran on ahead. Kristi and I were walking with Josiah. When we got to the beach, he started to run towards the water. I was pumped for him, thinking this was shaping up to be a great day. After getting about halfway, his little legs suddenly dug in. He stopped so fast he almost left skid marks in the sand! He stretched out his little arms and started shouting at the waves. “You stop! You stop!” They didn’t obey. He got more frustrated, kept yelling, started crying, and finally sat down. His little two year old brain just couldn’t make sense of the movement of the waves and he was scared. Watching all this go by, I quickly dumped all our stuff and went to Josiah’s side. He looked up at me, his dad, with big eyes full of tears. Pointed to the waves and said, “Don’t stop, daddy. Don’t stop.” I picked him up in my arms to calm him down. Then I set him back down on the beach, grabbed his hand, and we walked to the water together. 

Today’s reading is awesome. The picture of God taking us by the hand and leading us, guiding us, showing us the way is tender and special. Isaiah speaks of a God who comforts. A God who forgives. A God who gathers His people in His arms like a shepherd gathers little lambs. Let the power of these words wash over you as you reflect and pray today...

• “Comfort, oh comfort my people,” says your God. “Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem, but also make it very clear That she has served her sentence, that her sin is taken care of—forgiven! She’s been punished enough and more than enough, and now it’s over and done with.” (Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

• “Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock, gathering the lambs in his arms, Hugging them as he carries them, leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.” (Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭‭11‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

• “Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening? God doesn’t come and go. God lasts. He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath. And he knows everything, inside and out. He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts.” (‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭28-29 MSG‬‬)

• “There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you. I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.” (Isaiah‬ ‭41‬:‭10‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

• “Because I, your God, have a firm grip on you and I’m not letting go. I’m telling you, ‘Don’t panic. I’m right here to help you.’ “Do you feel like a lowly worm, Jacob? Don’t be afraid. Feel like a fragile insect, Israel? I’ll help you. I, God, want to reassure you.” (Isaiah‬ ‭41‬:‭13-14 MSG‬‬)

• “God’s Message, the God who created the cosmos, stretched out the skies, laid out the earth and all that grows from it, Who breathes life into earth’s people, makes them alive with his own life: “I am God. I have called you to live right and well. I have taken responsibility for you, kept you safe.” (Isaiah‬ ‭42‬:‭5‬-‭6 ‭MSG‬‬)

There is a lot in life that makes us afraid. Crisis. Uncertainty. Unexpected experiences. Illness. Disease. Job loss. Aging. Growing up. These things are like waves crashing on the shores of our lives. We cannot stop them anymore than Josiah could stop the wave action in the gulf. What we can do is let God take us by the hand. Lead us to the water’s edge. And help us find safety, security, and peace in His presence. When we do, we discover the very things we fear become opportunities for significant spiritual growth. Our greatest trials become the source of our greatest victories. Our greatest struggles become our greatest strengths. Playing in the surf of life is where the action is and with God at our side, we have nothing to fear. Whatever you may be facing today, know God is with you! He is at your side! If you reach out, He will take you by the hand!  

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 43-45, Psalm 80

The Hope of the Resurrection

Readings for today: Isaiah 38-39, 2 Kings 20:1-21, 2 Chronicles 32:24-33

One of the things that’s difficult to keep in mind when we read the Bible is that we are looking at things through the lens of resurrection. We know the end of the story. We know the Person to whom all prophecies point. We know the fulfillment of the salvation story. We know Jesus Christ, the Living Word of God, took on flesh and dwelt among us. We know He suffered, died, and was buried for our sins. We know He was raised bodily and physically on the third day to new life to defeat the powers of sin and death and the devil once and for all and to open the way to the heavenly dimension of life. We know all these things. Hezekiah did not. Isaiah did not. All the Old Testament saints did not. For them, death represented the end. They had no hope of heaven. They had no well-developed theology of the afterlife. That comes much later in their history.

I think about the people I know who do not believe. They too have no hope of heaven. They too have no expectation of an eternal life with God in glory. They have no hope of reunion with those they love or seeing Christ face to face. I found myself thinking about them this morning as I read. Grieving for them. Praying for them. Hezekiah’s words about his own death reflect their utter lack of hope in the face of death...“In the very prime of life I have to leave. Whatever time I have left is spent in death’s waiting room. No more glimpses of God in the land of the living, No more meetings with my neighbors, no more rubbing shoulders with friends. This body I inhabit is taken down and packed away like a camper’s tent. Like a weaver, I’ve rolled up the carpet of my life as God cuts me free of the loom And at day’s end sweeps up the scraps and pieces. I cry for help until morning. Like a lion, God pummels and pounds me, relentlessly finishing me off. I squawk like a doomed hen, moan like a dove. My eyes ache from looking up for help: “Master, I’m in trouble! Get me out of this!” But what’s the use? God himself gave me the word. He’s done it to me. I can’t sleep— I’m that upset, that troubled. O Master, these are the conditions in which people live, and yes, in these very conditions my spirit is still alive— fully recovered with a fresh infusion of life! It seems it was good for me to go through all those troubles. Throughout them all you held tight to my lifeline. You never let me tumble over the edge into nothing. But my sins you let go of, threw them over your shoulder—good riddance! The dead don’t thank you, and choirs don’t sing praises from the morgue. Those buried six feet under don’t witness to your faithful ways. It’s the living—live men, live women—who thank you, just as I’m doing right now. Parents give their children full reports on your faithful ways.” (Isaiah‬ ‭38‬:‭9‬-‭19‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

The dead don’t thank you. Choirs don’t sing from morgues. The buried don’t bear witness. One can almost hear King Solomon from Ecclesiastes saying, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” Such is life without Christ. Yes, you may enjoy the days you’ve been given on this earth. You may find great success and some measure of joy. You may find love with your family and enjoy great friendships. You may make your mark on society and history but to what end? It is Job who describes human life as “sparks that fly upwards from a campfire.” We are given such brief moments in this world. Thankfully, God has created us for so much more! He has given us the opportunity to spend eternity with Him in a new heavens and new earth! He has given us a foretaste of that glorious dimension to life in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Strangely enough, Hezekiah foreshadows this when he says in Isaiah 38:20, “God saves and will save me. As fiddles and mandolins strike up the tunes, we’ll sing! Oh we’ll sing, sing, for the rest of our lives in the Sanctuary of God.” Hezekiah was talking about the fifteen additional years he’d been given but the Spirit of God speaking through Hezekiah was promising something even deeper. Something more enduring. A life of praise that will last forever in the presence of God.

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 40-42, Psalm 46

Empty Threats

Readings for today: Isaiah 36-37, 2 Kings 18:9-37, 2 Kings 19, 2 Chronicles 32:1-23, Psalm 76

Last summer, I was blessed to visit the ancient city of Amman. At the center of the city is the citadel whose history traces back to the Bronze Age (3300-1200BC). Over the years, archaeologists have uncovered a ton of information about the city, including the fact that it has been conquered several times. The Persians, Greeks, Nabateans, Romans, Byzantines, Umayyads, Abbasids, Fatimids, Ayyubids, Mamelukes, and Ottomans all had their day. Every time a new empire would sweep in, they would often raze the city to the ground and rebuild on top of it. They would establish their dominance by repurposing important, often sacred structures like churches, as storage rooms or stables or trash dumps. It’s fascinating to walk through the ancient streets and think about all the different tribes and nations that called this place their home.

It also gives you a sense of the threat Hezekiah was facing when the Assyrian army invaded. They had just wiped out Israel to the north. Now they were moving south with designs to end up in Egypt. Assyria seemed unstoppable. They had crushed nation after nation. Forcibly uprooting the populace and sending them into exile. Their war machine was brutal. They left nothing but complete destruction in their wake. They believed they were following a sacred call. Destroying god after god to demonstrate the supremacy of their own god, Nisroch. Not only that but Judah was weak. She could barely seat an army of a couple of thousand. She had no chance against an army that was almost 100 times her size. Resistance seemed futile. Their fate sealed. All hope lost. But Hezekiah turned to the Lord. He called on God to hear the mockery of the Assyrians. He called on God for deliverance and salvation. He called on God to make His name known by destroying the most powerful nation on earth at the time. And God hears Hezekiah’s prayers. God responds to Hezekiah’s cries. He sends His avenging angel to strike down the Assyrians. He sent Sennacherib back home in disgrace where he is assassinated by his own children.

The Lord makes all human threats empty. No empire - no matter how mighty and strong - can defeat Him. No weapon that is fashioned against Him shall stand. No king or emperor can aspire to ascend His throne. God will brook no rivals. God will allow no pretenders. God will not be mocked. Not by any human being, great or small. Listen to how God Himself describes it in Isaiah 37:23-29, “Who do you think you’ve been mocking and reviling all these years? Who do you think you’ve been jeering and treating with such utter contempt all these years? The Holy of Israel! You’ve used your servants to mock the Master. You’ve bragged, “With my fleet of chariots I’ve gone to the highest mountain ranges, penetrated the far reaches of Lebanon, Chopped down its giant cedars, its finest cypresses. I conquered its highest peak, explored its deepest forest. I dug wells and drank my fill. I emptied the famous rivers of Egypt with one kick of my foot.” “‘Haven’t you gotten the news that I’ve been behind this all along? This is a longstanding plan of mine and I’m just now making it happen, using you to devastate strong cities, turning them into piles of rubble and leaving their citizens helpless, bewildered, and confused, drooping like unwatered plants, stunted like withered seedlings. “‘I know all about your pretentious poses, your self-important comings and goings, and, yes, the tantrums you throw against me. Because of all your wild raging against me, your unbridled arrogance that I keep hearing of, I’ll put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth. I’ll show you who’s boss. I’ll turn you around and take you back to where you came from.”

Friends, greater is He that lives in you than is in the world. With God at your side, you can stand against a legion. You can leap over a wall. The next time you feel anxious or afraid. The next time you feel isolated and alone. The next time you start to doubt the provision and protection and power and promise of God, read Psalms 18. Claim David’s words as your own. Let them fill you with peace and a deep sense of security. God is on your side!

Readings for tomorrow: None

Escape Routes

Readings for today: Isaiah 31-35

Last summer I spent some time in Jordan. While I was there, we went to a Greek Orthodox Church with a famous mosaic on the floor. It’s a map of the trade routes of the ancient Middle East. Part of the map was destroyed by earthquakes that have hit this region. Other parts were carried off by pilgrims over the centuries. Most of the map remains and it essentially shows the King’s Highway from the Sea of Galilee through the Dead Sea down into the Red Sea. It highlights significant cities along the way like Hebron, Jericho, Bethlehem, and especially Jerusalem which is where almost all caravans in the ancient world were headed. It also highlights the many Byzantine churches that had been built in the region, giving travelers a road map that would help them find places for food and rest and especially water along the way. It’s truly an amazing sight and one of the many reasons Christians should take the time to visit Jordan.

I thought of the map when I read today’s text. I’ve always wondered why Israel would ever be tempted to flee to Egypt. Why go back to the nation that enslaved them? Why go back and seek help from a regime that had brutally oppressed them for hundreds of years? Why place your life at risk by undertaking a hard journey through the desert wilderness? Well, when one looks at the map, it becomes relatively clear. Caravans often made their way up from Egypt to Syria along the King’s Highway. This was a well-traveled road filled with all kinds of people from all kinds of different tribes and nations. When the other nations were defeated or faced a grave threat, they fled north or south depending on where the threat was coming from. In short, Israel was simply following in the same footsteps as the nations around them. Flying to Egypt to escape the Assyrian invasion would have made perfect sense to an ancient person living in the Middle East at the time.

But God wanted something different. God wanted His people to trust in Him. God wanted His people to look to the Holy One of Israel for their salvation rather than the pharaohs of Egypt. God wanted His people to consult Him before making any decisions rather than trust in the common wisdom of the day. The Egyptians are just men. They are not gods. Their horses are flesh not spirit. Their military might is nothing compared to the might of God. The only one who can save Israel from the wrath of the Assyrian army is the Lord of hosts.

“Assyrians will fall dead, killed by a sword-thrust but not by a soldier, laid low by a sword not swung by a mortal. Assyrians will run from that sword, run for their lives, and their prize young men made slaves. Terrorized, that rock-solid people will fall to pieces, their leaders scatter hysterically.” God’s Decree on Assyria. His fire blazes in Zion, his furnace burns hot in Jerusalem.” (Isaiah‬ ‭31‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

What was true for God’s people back then remains true for God’s people today. Only God can deliver us from the struggles and trials we face. Only God can protect us from the evil one who prowls about looking to devour and destroy. Only God can deliver us from sin and death and it is to Him we must turn. We must learn to seek God again. Not just on our own but when we are together. Worship. Bible studies. Small groups. Leadership meetings. All present opportunities to seek the Lord as a community of believers. And the promise of God is sure. If we seek God with all our hearts, He will make Himself known to us. We will experience Him in a powerful way. And He will give us the strength to stand firm when the storms of life come.

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 36-37, 2 Kings 18:9-37, 2 Kings 19, 2 Chronicles 32:1-23, Psalm 76

The True Vine

Readings for today: Isaiah 27-30

“I am the vine and you are the branches.” That’s the first thought that came to mind when I read our passage for today. Take a step back and one can easily see how Jesus draws on the imagery of the Old Testament when He teaches His disciples. He’s not just making it up. He’s taking them back to their history. Back to the sacred words of the prophets. Infusing new and fresh meaning in ancient words of revelation.

In the midst of all the fire and judgment, Isaiah looks forward to a day when God will plant a fine vineyard. He will tend it Himself, refusing to trust the work to another. He will watch over it, refusing to trust her safety to another. He will protect it and provide for it. He will cultivate it and nurture it. Even when weeds spring up, God will simply pull them up and burn them so the vine stays healthy and strong. This vine will cling to God. She will find her life in God. She will hold onto God all her days. Listen to how the Message version describes it,

“At that same time, a fine vineyard will appear. There’s something to sing about! I, God, tend it. I keep it well-watered. I keep careful watch over it so that no one can damage it. I’m not angry. I care. Even if it gives me thistles and thornbushes, I’ll just pull them out and burn them up. Let that vine cling to me for safety, let it find a good and whole life with me, let it hold on for a good and whole life.” The days are coming when Jacob shall put down roots, Israel blossom and grow fresh branches, and fill the world with its fruit.” (Isaiah‬ ‭27‬:‭2‬-‭6‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

Why does Isaiah use the image of a vineyard? And why will Jesus lift this image up when He could have chosen so many others? I think it has to do with the last sentence, verse six from the above passage. Vineyards are planted for one purpose…to produce fruit. They are cultivated to produce the finest of grapes which, in turn, produces the finest of wines. The goal of the vineyard is not to keep the fruit to itself. The goal of the owner of the vineyard is not to keep all the grapes to himself. No, the goal is to fill the world with what the vineyard produces. Fill the earth with beautiful grapes and fine wines so that all might taste and see how good is the vineyard of God. Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.” In other words, if you cling to Me, if you find your whole life in Me, if you hold onto Me alone for a good and whole life; you will bear much fruit. You will fill your home, your neighborhood, your place of work, your school, your city, your nation, and even the world with your fruit. Cling to the True Vine, friends. Cling to Jesus.

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 31-35

Honor/Shame

Readings for today: Isaiah 23-26

I’ve been reading a lot about honor/shame cultures over the last few years. I’m trying to learn as much as I can since I spend a great deal of time in Africa each year. It’s not only helped me understand the cross-cultural ministry context better, it’s also helping me understand God better. Consider this passage I ran across in a book titled, Ministering in Honor-Shame Cultures, by Jayson Georges. “The world equates humility with shame and pride with honor. But God inverts this social matrix. Pride ultimately produces shame, and humility is the counterintuitive path to genuine honor.” It resonates, does it not? All of us have probably experienced this on a personal level at some point in our lives. 

What’s true for us as individuals is also true for our families, communities, tribes, even nations. What was the great sin of Tyre and Sidon? Two of the great commercial trading centers in the ancient near east? Pride. Tyre saw itself as “the bestower of crowns, whose merchants were princes, whose traders were the honored of the earth...” (Isaiah‬ ‭23:8‬) Sidon enjoyed tremendous wealth and privilege. “And on many waters your revenue was the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the Nile; you were the merchant of the nations.”(Isaiah‬ ‭23:3‬) In their pursuit of worldly honor and riches and power, they forgot the Lord. They dishonored God. And they paid the price. “Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor! Be ashamed, O Sidon, for the sea has spoken...” (Isaiah‬ ‭23:1, 4‬) 

But it’s not just Tyre and Sidon who make this mistake. The whole earth has forgotten God. The whole earth pursues wealth and power and honor and glory apart from God. The whole earth seeks to exalt itself rather than humble themselves before their creator. Therefore, the Lord will bring His righteous judgment. No one shall escape. “Danger ahead! God’s about to ravish the earth and leave it in ruins, Rip everything out by the roots and send everyone scurrying: priests and laypeople alike, owners and workers alike, celebrities and nobodies alike, buyers and sellers alike, bankers and beggars alike, the haves and have-nots alike. The landscape will be a moonscape, totally wasted. And why? Because God says so. He’s issued the orders.” (Isaiah‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭MSG‬‬) And why does the Lord speak such a harsh word? Why does the Lord render such a harsh judgment? Because the Lord is jealous for the glory of His Name. He is jealous for His own honor. He will not rest until the whole earth sings His praises. “But there are some who will break into glad song. Out of the west they’ll shout of God’s majesty. Yes, from the east God’s glory will ascend. Every island of the sea will broadcast God’s fame, the fame of the God of Israel. From the four winds and the seven seas we hear the singing: “All praise to the Righteous One!” (Isaiah‬ ‭24‬:‭14‬‬ ‭MSG‬‬‬)

Human beings were made for one glorious purpose...to bring honor to their Creator. To enjoy God and to worship Him alone forever. To praise God for all eternity. This is the great work we were designed for. This is the great work we were made for. And it is to our abiding shame that we neglect this great task and forget our God. It is to our great shame that we “exchange the truth of God for a lie and worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Romans‬ ‭1:25‬) We pursue worldly honor and worldly wealth and worldly power to our own destruction. Because we have turned away from God and gone our own way, He has “given us up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. We become filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. We are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.” (Romans‬ ‭1:28-31‬) And God simply will not allow such evil to stand. So He brings judgment. He lays low the proud. He shames the arrogant. He dishonors the honored among all the earth. “The Lord of hosts has purposed it, to defile the pompous pride of all glory, to dishonor all the honored of the earth.” (Isaiah‬ ‭23:9‬)

This is why we must consider carefully the priorities of our lives. Why do we do the things we do? What drives us? What gives us purpose and fulfillment? Are we truly seeking to honor God in all we say and do? Or are we trying to steal a bit of that honor for ourselves? Are we truly seeking to glorify God in our homes, neighborhoods, schools, and places of work? Or these just means we are using to justify our own ends? Prayerfully consider these things, friends! Be honest with yourself! Get real! And then humble yourself before God lest you fall under His judgment.  

Readings for tomorrow: 2 Kings 18:1-8, 2 Chronicles 29-31, Psalm 48

The Great Day

Readings for today: Isaiah 18-22

“On that Day…” Over and over we read this refrain in Isaiah. It refers to the Day when God will bring an end to all idolatry and injustice. He will break the power of tyrants and oppressors. He will lift up the poor and powerless and seat them at His table alongside the rich and powerful. He will level the playing field. He will assemble all the nations before Him. He will rule over the earth with mercy and grace and compassion. The world will heal. The nations will bow before Him in wonder and awe. There will be no more crying, no more suffering, no more pain. Evil and sin will be vanquished along with death. It’s a beautiful Day and one we all long for down deep inside.

Until that Great Day, we have been given a Great Commission. We’ve been called as God’s people to proclaim this Great News to the nations. And this is not just a New Testament command! Consider these words from today’s reading in Isaiah, “On that Day, more than one city in Egypt will learn to speak the language of faith and promise to follow God-of-the-Angel-Armies. One of these cities will be honored with the title “City of the Sun.” On that Day, there will be a place of worship to God in the center of Egypt and a monument to God at its border. It will show how the God-of-the-Angel-Armies has helped the Egyptians. When they cry out in prayer to God because of oppressors, he’ll send them help, a savior who will keep them safe and take care of them. God will openly show himself to the Egyptians and they’ll get to know him on that Day. They’ll worship him seriously with sacrifices and burnt offerings. They’ll make vows and keep them. God will wound Egypt, first hit and then heal. Egypt will come back to God, and God will listen to their prayers and heal them, heal them from head to toe. On that Day, there will be a highway all the way from Egypt to Assyria: Assyrians will have free range in Egypt and Egyptians in Assyria. No longer rivals, they’ll worship together, Egyptians and Assyrians! On that Day, Israel will take its place alongside Egypt and Assyria, sharing the blessing from the center. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who blessed Israel, will generously bless them all: “Blessed be Egypt, my people!. . . Blessed be Assyria, work of my hands!. . . Blessed be Israel, my heritage!” (Isaiah‬ ‭19‬:‭18‬-‭25‬ ‭MSG‬‬) Can you imagine it? Israel’s greatest enemies gathering with her to worship and bring praise to God! It’s an incredible vision. Assyria and Egypt learning the language of faith. Crying out to God in prayer. Erecting monuments to God in their lands. Taking vows to God and keeping them. Building a highway from Assyria to Egypt so all people can gather together for worship. All the nations of the earth experiencing God’s blessing. This is God’s heart on display and it remains His heart to this day.

God is on a mission, friends. He is on a mission to gather the nations of the earth before His throne in worship. Every tribe. Every tongue. Every ethnicity. Every generation. All will appear before Him. All will bow the knee to Him. All will proclaim Him as Lord and give Him praise. John Piper once said, “Mission exists because worship does not.” Until the Great Day of God comes, God’s mission remains. To proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth. To proclaim the good news to every nation on earth. And God entrusts this mission to His church. To the people called by His name, set apart for His purposes, and empowered by His Spirit. It is not God’s church that has a mission but God’s mission that has a church. (Newbigin) Like Israel before her, the church is called to be a vessel for the good news. A light to the nations and salt to the earth. May we never rest until every person in every village in every nation on the face of the earth hears about Jesus.

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 23-26

A Kingdom of Love

Readings for today: Isaiah 13-17

“Tell us what to do! Help us out! Protect us, hide us! Give the refugees of Moab sanctuary with you. Be a safe place for those on the run from the killing fields. When this is all over, Judah answers, the tyrant toppled, the killing at an end, all signs of these cruelties long gone; a new government of love will be established in the venerable David tradition. A ruler you can depend upon will head this government, a ruler passionate for justice, a ruler quick to set things right.” (Isaiah‬ ‭16:3-5‬)

Human beings are fearful creatures. We struggle with anxiety. We do not like feeling insecure. As such, we find ourselves coping in different ways. The great Viennese schools of psychotherapy - all founded by Jewish psychotherapists - suggested human beings deal with fear in one of three ways. Sigmund Freud argued for the “pleasure principle.” Human beings are oriented towards pleasure whether it be sex or drugs or some other activity that helps us escape our fears. The problem is we all know pleasure is fleeting at best and there tends to be a crash when we come down from our “high.” Alfred Adler argued for power. Human beings are oriented towards power in an effort to control their environment so they don’t have to be afraid. After all, if you can eliminate “threats” then perhaps you can eliminate fear. The problem is we all know such a pursuit is futile. History is littered with strong men and dictators and the power-hungry who eventually find themselves overcome by the same forces they unleashed. Viktor Frankl argued for meaning. Human beings are ultimately oriented towards meaning and if one can lay hold of some vision greater than themselves, one can endure just about anything. Forged in the fires of death camps like Auschwitz where all pleasure and power were stripped away, Frankl realized he needed something more. Something deeper to hold onto if he were going to survive without giving into despair or going insane. And while I appreciate Frankl’s approach the most, I think there is yet another approach to consider. The way of yet another Jewish “psychotherapist” - Jesus Himself. It is the way of love.

The words from Isaiah today are powerful. They present a vision that is foreign to us. Alien to the human experience. In our experience, thrones and dominions and kingdoms are founded on power. Authority. Control. It doesn’t matter whether one is talking about monarchies, dictatorships, socialist republics, or democracies. All human governmental institutions are established in power. They are maintained through power. They often come to an end because some other power rises up against them. This is the way of the world and it has been like this since the beginning. Furthermore, those in power tend to become corrupt. They begin using their power to pursue their own selfish ends. They chase pleasure. How else can one explain the rampant financial and sexual and criminal abuses that we so often see from our political leaders? Certainly not all of them succumb to such temptations but it must be hard to resist when so many are trying to curry favor. And, of course, the ones who do find the strength to resist are often successful only because they cling to a higher purpose. A greater meaning to their lives that gives them the strength to overcome.

Isaiah identifies that “higher purpose” for his people. It is love. When a throne is established in God’s love, justice and mercy naturally flow. When a kingdom is founded on God’s love, it becomes a light to the world. A beacon of peace and righteousness and goodness that shines for all to see. This was the whole point of the nation of Israel. To show the world a different way. To be a light to the nations around them. To be a country built on the foundation of righteousness and justice where steadfast love and faithfulness undergirded how they lived. In such a nation, outcasts would find refuge. Enemies would become friends. Widows and orphans would find care. The poor would be lifted up. Oppression would cease. Destruction would end. Peace would reign. This is a picture of the Kingdom of God and it is what we pray for when we pray the Lord’s Prayer together.

Jesus affirms this Kingdom. He came to establish this Kingdom on earth through His life, death, and resurrection. Jesus is love. He is the love of God incarnate. He is the love of God made flesh and blood. And as He lays down His life for us, He defines love for us. It’s not a feeling. It’s not an attraction. It’s not selfish or arrogant or boastful or impatient or unkind. It is self-sacrificing. Self-denying. It always puts the needs of others before itself. It always focuses on the welfare of others before it’s own. It is costly. It is a high-risk endeavor. It never loses hope. Never gives into despair. It always endures. It always perseveres. It never fails because Jesus never fails.

Ultimately, a passage like the one we read today points us forward to Jesus. He is the One who gives counsel. Who grants justice. Who shelters the outcast and the fugitive. He is the One who puts an end to all oppression and destruction and brings peace. He establishes His throne from the cross, the place where perfect love and justice meet. He sits on His throne with faithfulness and is always swift to do righteousness and justice. As followers of Christ, we acknowledge Jesus is our King. We acknowledge Jesus as Lord. We acknowledge His authority over our lives. As such, we who are called by His name must align ourselves with His Kingdom. We must seek to incarnate His values in our lives. We must reject the ways of this world. The will to power. The will to pleasure. Even the will to meaning and instead find - in Christ - the will to love.

Readings for tomorrow: None

The Narrow Way

Readings for today: Isaiah 5-8

Recently, I’ve been reading a book by a rabbi named Abraham Joshua Heschel. Rabbi Heschel was one of the foremost rabbi’s of the 20th century. Internationally known as a scholar, author, activist, and theologian. He was the professor of ethics and mysticism at the Jewish Theological Seminary in America and combined both disciplines to create a way of thinking about God and life and humanity that is deeply compelling. In one of the chapters of his famous book, God in Search of Man, he charts out the narrow way of what it means to know and follow God in this world.

What is the secret to righteous living according to Heschel? “A truth so universal: God is One. A thought to consoling: He is with us in distress. A responsibility so overwhelming: His name can be desecrated. A map of time: from creation to redemption. Guideposts along the way: the Sabbath Day. An offering: contrition of the heart. A utopia: would that all people were prophets. The insight: humanity lives by faithfulness: his home in time and his substance in deeds. A standard so bold: ye shall be holy. A commandment so daring: love thy neighbor as thyself. A fact so sublime: human and divine pathos can be in accord. And a gift so undeserved: grace and the ability to repent.”

Contrast this way with what both the secular and religious worlds have to offer. The secular lives by the creed offered in Isaiah 5:20, “Doom to you who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness in place of light and light in place of darkness, who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” Progress looks like regress. Advancement looks like retreat. Transcendence has been traded for degradation. We’ve exchanged our heavenly aspirations for earthly desires and have crashed harder than cryptocurrency. The same is true for the religious. It’s simply the flip side of the coin. Rather than embrace the incomprehensible mysteries of God, we prefer the straight jacket of our theological systems of belief. Rather than embrace the wideness of the love of God, we narrow the field to those who think like us, believe like us, look like us, act like us. Rather than embrace the radical grace of God, we exhaust ourselves trying to earn our salvation through our own effort and wisdom and strength.

God’s ways are not our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. His wisdom seems like foolishness to us. A virgin shall conceive a son? You shall call His name Immanuel? God will come to dwell with us? All of us are like Ahaz if we’re totally honest. We refuse to believe the words of the prophet because they simply do not fit human logic and defies human categories of understanding. And yet, isn’t that the point? God is not like us. God exists on a higher plane. He is infinite and we are finite. He is omniscient and we are limited by what we can know from human experience. He is not bound by the laws of the universe He created nor is He trapped by paradox. This is why prophets like Isaiah fall on their faces before God when they see Him face to face. They simply cannot process all that He is and reveals Himself to be. Thankfully, God is merciful and gracious to us. Rather than striking us down for our sin, He wipes away our guilt and shame with the touch of a coal from His altar. And then He sends us out to proclaim His gospel to the world.

Readings for tomorrow: Isaiah 9-12

A Political Faith

Readings for today: Isaiah 1-4

“The vision that Isaiah son of Amoz saw regarding Judah and Jerusalem during the times of the kings of Judah: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.” (Isaiah‬ ‭1:1‬)

The book of Isaiah begins with a political statement. Everything he says from this point forward (66 chapters!) must be viewed through a distinctly political lens. Uzziah. Jotham. Ahaz. Hezekiah. We know their stories. We’ve just read through their histories in the Kings and Chronicles. We know Uzziah reigned for over fifty years and for the most part remained faithful to God. However, at the end of his life he grew proud and brazenly entered the Temple to offer sacrifices. We know his son, Jotham, reigned for sixteen years and also remained faithful to the Lord but failed to address the nation’s ongoing idolatry on the high places. We know Ahaz reigned for sixteen years and was an evil, faithless king. The entire kingdom suffered under his rule. We know Hezekiah returned to the ways of the Lord, experienced the miracle of healing, but also grew prideful and set his descendents up for disaster when he shows off his riches to the envoys of Babylon. 

Isaiah presumably witnesses all of this. He sees it all go past. He lives it. His prophetic career begins at some point during the glory days under King Uzziah and ends at some point during the reign of King Hezekiah. Through it all, he watches his nation shift its allegiance from Yahweh to other gods. He watches his nation descend into cultural chaos as they abandon true worship and true righteousness. He watches the leaders of his nation attempt to reform and revitalize the country. He sees the ups and downs of their efforts. The successes and failures. He sees it all and then offers this Word from the Lord. It is honest. Real. Raw. No holds barred. He confronts. He speaks the truth. He calls out his own people. “Shame! Misguided God-dropouts, staggering under their guilt-baggage, Villainous gang, band of vandals— My people have walked out on me, their God, turned their backs on The Holy of Israel, walked off and never looked back.” (Isaiah‬ ‭1:4‬ MSG) “Listen to my Message, you Sodom-schooled leaders. Receive God’s revelation, you Gomorrah-schooled people.” (‭Isaiah‬ ‭1:10‬ MSG) “Jerusalem’s on its last legs. Judah is soon down for the count. Everything people say and do is at cross-purposes with God, a slap in my face.” (Isaiah‬ ‭3:8‬ MSG) 

At the same time, he offers hope. He calls them to repentance. He begs them to return to the Lord to find grace and healing and mercy.  “Go home and wash up. Clean up your act. Sweep your lives clean of your evildoings so I don’t have to look at them any longer. Say no to wrong. Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out. Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenseless. “Come. Sit down. Let’s argue this out.” This is God’s Message: “If your sins are blood-red, they’ll be snow-white. If they’re red like crimson, they’ll be like wool.” (Isaiah‬ ‭1:16-18‬ MSG) He directs their attention to the glorious day of the Lord when all flesh shall witness the appearance of our God. “There’s a day coming when the mountain of God’s House Will be The Mountain— solid, towering over all mountains. All nations will river toward it, people from all over set out for it. They’ll say, “Come, let’s climb God’s Mountain, go to the House of the God of Jacob. He’ll show us the way he works so we can live the way we’re made.” Zion’s the source of the revelation. God’s Message comes from Jerusalem.” (Isaiah‬ ‭2:2-3‬ MSG) He calls them back to faithfulness. Back to loyalty. Back to a right relationship with God. “And that’s when God’s Branch will sprout green and lush. The produce of the country will give Israel’s survivors something to be proud of again. Oh, they’ll hold their heads high! Everyone left behind in Zion, all the discards and rejects in Jerusalem, will be reclassified as “holy”—alive and therefore precious. God will give Zion’s women a good bath. He’ll scrub the bloodstained city of its violence and brutality, purge the place with a firestorm of judgment. Then God will bring back the ancient pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night and mark Mount Zion and everyone in it with his glorious presence, his immense, protective presence, shade from the burning sun and shelter from the driving rain.” (Isaiah‬ ‭4‬:‭2‬-‭6‬ ‭MSG‬‬)

One can easily recognize the parallels to our own time. How many of us lament the state of our nation? How many of us lament the moral drift of our culture? How many of us lament the pain and suffering and sin and degredation we see all around us? And yet, are we not as guilty as the people Isaiah was speaking to? And are we willing to hear his words as the Word of the Lord to us? Are we willing to repent and return and re-commit ourselves to God’s ways?

Readings for tomorrow: None