Thoughts for the Day

How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’
Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

We usually look at this reading from Isaiah in Advent just before Christmas, and I used it on 1st December last year, when I looked at John the Baptist as the Messenger of peace (Thoughts 1 December 25). But prophecies (over a period of 2,600 years) can mean many things to different people. They would have had a different meaning when Isaiah spoke them six centuries before the time of Jesus; a different meaning when applied to John the Baptist in the first century; and a different meaning today, though Isaiah seeks to reassure us all that God is in charge of their future, and has a concern for all nations.

Though we are not experiencing the pain of slavery after Babylon destroyed Jerusalem, nor are we members of a subject nation under Roman control, we are like them awaiting the coming of the Messiah (in our case for His second coming), as well as travelling during Lent with Jesus towards his death and resurrection. With this in mind read again the passage above, noticing the joy that "God reigns", and the power of the last verse when "all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God."

In Passiontide Isaiah tells us, that life can come out of death. His words are like a call to the dead - we are to stand up, to wake up from sleep, and to come back to life. For Christians a totally new beginning is possible if we are united with Christ. This Lent the message is for each of us, to wake up, and put our spiritual life in order, so we can join the Easter celebrations with renewed joy and join the festal shout: "Christ is risen: He is risen indeed! Alleluia!"

Lord Jesus Christ,
wake us up from our lethargy this Lent.
May we get rid of old habits,
and look at putting You first and not last
in our order of priorities.
Let Isaiah's words be a clarion call
to those who hear them today,
so that all might be ready
to experience the sadness of Good Friday
and then celebrate the joy of Easter,
while we wait in faith
for Your second coming.
Amen.