Saturday, September 30, 2017

September 30

Isaiah 60:1-62:5; Philippians 1:27-2:18; Psalm 72:1-20; Proverbs 24:11-12

I was thinking of the names of God today.  How Hagar calls him "the God who sees;" Isaiah's list of "wonderful, counselor" etc.; the Lord Almighty.  These names (and others) reveal aspects of who God is and how he deals with his people.  Our reading in Isaiah points to another characteristic.

Isaiah 60 and 61 show us the God who redeems, who restores, who reinstates.  These two whole chapters are devoted to showing how God "restores the years the locusts have eaten" (Joel 2:25).  No longer are the children of Israel orphaned and pitiful; they will be returned, among royal households (Is. 60:4, 16).  No longer will the nation be oppressed and in servitude; the people will be placed as rulers (vs. 10, 14).  No more will there be the broken-hearted, the captive, the prisoner (61:1); instead there will be healing and freedom and wholeness.  I love those "not X, but Y" statements in 61:3!  Damaged places will be rebuilt; dry fields will be watered and worked; shame will be removed to make way for excessive blessing (vs. 4, 5, 7).

This is the same God who redeems, restores, and reinstates in our lives, too.  We are no longer orphaned; we are adopted and loved as sons who inherit.  We are no longer captive to sin or death; we are free and soul-whole and we know what our future is.  The broken places in our lives - marriages, relationships, finances, health - can be rebuilt.  The dry places in our lives - depression, discouragement, lack of passion - can be watered and made fruitful.  The shame of our sin and our pasts can be removed, making way for God's blessing.

What a beautiful and needed reminder today, of who our God is and who we can be because of his extravagant love for us.  He takes what is and what has been, and he transforms those former realities into the great what-can-be and what-shall-be.

Hallelujah!


- Sarah Marsh


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