Thoughts for the Day

I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask,
to be found by those who did not seek me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am’,
to a nation that did not call on my name.
I held out my hands all day long
to a rebellious people,
who walk in a way that is not good,
following their own devices;
a people who provoke me
to my face continually,
sacrificing in gardens
and offering incense on bricks;
who sit inside tombs,
and spend the night in secret places;
who eat swine’s flesh,
with broth of abominable things in their vessels;
who say, ‘Keep to yourself,
do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.’
These are a smoke in my nostrils,
a fire that burns all day long.
See, it is written before me:
I will not keep silent, but I will repay...
because they offered incense on the mountains
and reviled me on the hills,
I will measure into their laps
full payment for their actions.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I love the Hebrew Scriptures (our Old Testament) for a number of reasons, but particularly for the imagery that is used. Here in Isaiah Chapter 65, the writer imagines God with His arms outstretched patiently waiting for His people to come to Him. But they prefer to forsake His ways, to marry pagan wives, to worship other gods, to consult the dead, to sacrifice in groves and gardens rather than on God's altar, and generally to violate His laws.

Written hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus this image has been appropriate throughout history. God was silent for over four hundred and no prophet spoke. But when Zechariah received the news that he would have a son called John who would 'make ready a people for the Lord', God waited for His people to turn to Him, His arms outstretched in welcome. When the promised baby was born in Bethlehem, God waited for His people to turn to Him, His arms outstretched in welcome. When John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentance years later, God waited for His people to turn to Him, His arms outstretched in welcome. And when Jesus began to preach in Galilee, God waited for His people to turn to Him, His arms outstretched in welcome.

After two thousand years God is still waiting, His arms outstretched, for us to turn to Him - to welcome those who have left the Church during the pandemic; those who find the things of the world more interesting; those who feel spiritual concerns can be left to later in life; and those who think they can exist without the need for Him. God's arms simply wait for us to include Him in all that we do!

Heavenly Father,
You call all people to Yourself,
Your arms outstretched in welcome,
and You silently wait for us to turn to You.
May we hear that call within our hearts,
and respond to You in joy.
May we also seek to take Your love
to those around us,
and not leave it to others to do this.
Amen.