The Lord Will Come

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. For you will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor’s rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. The boots of the warrior and the uniforms, bloodstained by war, will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire.”
Isaiah 9:2-5 NLT

Isaiah’s prophecy brought light into a dark nation, hope to a people who were hopeless in their outlook, and victory when only defeat and slavery could be anticipated. In a time when only sadness and depression were possible emotions, something would happen to bring joy and hope, celebration rather than mourning. As the Assyrians overran Israel and Judah, did the Jews remember what Isaiah had said, or did they succumb to their fate, going to their graves or into exile, thinking that God didn’t care for them, if they even thought of Him at all? A long period of darkness was about to envelop the sons of Jacob, their tribes and nation, but God had a plan that would turn around their distress, and “Galilee of the Gentiles … will be filled with glory. 

How long would it be before the “great light” would be seen? Isaiah neither knew nor said, but God knew. And we, with the benefit of hindsight, can see that it was seven hundred years or more before Jesus came. For the Jews, before that eventful day, there were four hundred years with no prophetic voice, a silence as God brought into being His plan for the salvation of mankind. In those four hundred years, between the Old and New Testaments, God did not speak, and no books or prophetic words were recorded. The Old Testament closed with two verses from Malachi, “Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6). This was written about 430 BC, and what followed was a time of instability as one nation, after another, overpowered the Jews and occupied their land. But the Jewish people never forgot the prophecy that Elijah was coming to prepare the way of the Lord. 

John the Baptist emerged from the shadows “to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony” (John 1:7). John was asked by the Jewish leaders, ““Well then, who are you?” they asked. “Are you Elijah?” “No,” he replied. “Are you the Prophet we are expecting?” “No”” (John 1:21). A contradictory response, I’m sure we agree, because John fulfilled Malachi’s prophecy, but the Jews were expecting a literal Elijah, risen from the dead, whereas John “.. will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly” (John 1:17). About John, Jesus said, “The prophets wrote about Elijah. They said he would come again, to prepare for the Messiah. They were writing about John, and you should believe their message” (Matthew 11:14). 

But Jesus came as the “great light”, bringing a new world, a New Covenant, and one that has brought rejoicing to the people. No longer would God’s people be burdened and enslaved. No more “yokes of slavery”. No more “heavy burdens”. The “nation of Israel” was enlarged with the salvation of the Gentiles, and today it is estimated that a third of the global population is Christian. But in Isaiah’s prophecy, there is fulfilment of more to come, because Jesus will come a second time “to strike down the nations” who have risen up against Him (Revelation 19). 

We pilgrims, Gentiles saved by grace, have read to the end of the book, and we know what is coming. One day, there will be a new Heaven and Earth, and God will come to live with His people. Are we ready?

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your loving kindness, patience and grace. Jesus came to this world and transformed humanity forever, bringing light into a dark place. Thank You. Amen.

Spiritual Food

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work.”
John 4:34 NLT

Just a couple of verses before our Scripture today, we read, “But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about”“. The disciples were puzzled, not knowing how Jesus had gained access to bread, meat or some other item of food, because He was in a desolate place, sitting by a well, and talking to a Samaritan woman. So Jesus had to explain what He meant to His disciples, highlighting two sources of spiritual nourishment – doing God’s will and doing His work. As we considered yesterday, there are two kinds of food. One is for feeding our physical bodies so that they remain healthy and nourished. The other is for doing the same for our spirits. Jesus came to this planet as a human being so He needed both kinds of food, just as we do. And just as there are different kinds of physical foods, there are different kinds of spiritual food. Food in all its forms provides a variety of nutrients, and just restricting ourselves to a diet of, for example, burgers and chips, will soon result in malnutrition and the fruit of it will be obesity. In the same way, our spiritual diets consist of many sources of nutrients, all supplied to us from our Heavenly Father. So we pray and read the Bible of course, but there are some practical requirements as well, as Jesus told His disciples. 

Doing God’s will is well documented in the Bible. For example, we read in Psalm 40:8 that it is a source of joy. “I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.” Every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we pray “may Your will be done”. God’s will is also that we do good; “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (1 Peter 2:15). And there are many other verses that refer to God’s will. The sweet spot in our relationship with God is when we are doing His will. The knowledge of that will sustain us and support us when the going gets tough, when the obstacles before us seem insurmountable, and when everybody tells us we are out of God’s will for our lives, even when we know, through faith, otherwise.

Jesus also said His nourishment came from doing God’s work. We read in Colossians 3:23, “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people“.  A common misconception is that doing God’s work is doing good to, or for, other people. So people assume that volunteering in a soup kitchen providing meals for the homeless is doing God’s work. It may well be, but as Paul wrote to the Colossians, whatever we do can be considered doing God’s work, with the caveat that we must be doing it as though God is our employer. Another common misconception is that our salvation can be assured by doing good works. Paul quashed that thought in Ephesians 2:9-10, “Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”. The previous verse, Ephesians 2:8, reads, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God“. Our salvation depends on the grace of God alone, and not on what we do, even if our activity is what would be considered “God’s work”. So we are saved for good works, and not by good works.

So, fellow pilgrims, the next time we enjoy a physical meal, perhaps we should also consider a spiritual meal. There is nothing like a balanced diet to keep us fit and healthy.

Dear Father God. You fed Your people with manna in the wilderness, but today You feed us through Your Son, Jesus, and the power of Your Spirit. We are so grateful. Amen.