Tag: spiritual restoration

The Lord Will Grant Me Justice (Isaiah 49:1-7)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
From the final of scene of “The Count of Monte Cristo,” 2002 film from Touchstone Pictures

Listen to me, coastlands;
    pay attention, peoples far away.
The Lord called me before my birth,
    called my name when I was in my mother’s womb.
He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
    and hid me in the shadow of God’s own hand.
He made me a sharpened arrow,
        and concealed me in God’s quiver,
    saying to me, “You are my servant,
        Israel, in whom I show my glory.”
But I said, “I have wearied myself in vain.
    I have used up my strength for nothing.”
Nevertheless, the Lord will grant me justice;
    my reward is with my God.
And now the Lord has decided—
    the one who formed me from the womb as his servant—
    to restore Jacob to God,
    so that Israel might return to him.
    Moreover, I’m honored in the Lord’s eyes;
    my God has become my strength.
He said: It is not enough, since you are my servant,
    to raise up the tribes of Jacob
    and to bring back the survivors of Israel.
    Hence, I will also appoint you as light to the nations
    so that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.

The Lord, redeemer of Israel and its holy one,
    says to one despised,
    rejected by nations,
    to the slave of rulers:
    Kings will see and stand up;
    commanders will bow down
    on account of the Lord, who is faithful,
    the holy one of Israel,
    who has chosen you. (Common English Bible)

The Servant in today’s Old Testament lesson is referred to as Israel. Israel’s role is identified as being the covenant people of God. And Israel’s purpose is to be a light to the nations. It was the Lord’s intention that through this covenant community God’s glory would be revealed.

But in much of Israel’s history, this purpose and mission from God did not shake-out very well among the people. The prophets were sent to Israel’s leadership in order to point out the incongruence between Israel’s call from God from their actual lived experience.

Among the prophets, like Isaiah, was modeled for the people what they should have been doing all along: Persevering in faithful suffering for the sake of the surrounding nations. Yet, instead of embracing this difficult commission, Israel largely appropriated worship practices and dubious morality from the nations.

Whereas light was supposed to shine in the darkness, the light was hidden and the darkness overwhelmed it.

However, light cannot stay hidden for long. Servant Israel nonetheless discovered what it meant to suffer for righteousness sake. The Servant confessed having fallen short of God’s glory while also speaking confidently about God’s abiding faithfulness.

There is here a recognition by the Servant that Israel’s purpose and mission has not yet been fulfilled. A big task still awaits to bring forth justice to the nations.

Oftentimes, whenever we think of justice, we may tend toward believing that it refers to divine judgment, as if the task is to make sure the bad guys get it in the  end. But that’s a Western movie understanding in which the Sheriff puts some lead in the bandits bellies.

“Justice” in Holy Scripture refers to the good guys – that they receive what they need to live and flourish on this earth. Whenever food, clothing, housing, or basic human rights are withheld or ignored by those in power, that’s injustice. And God is most concerned that everyone receives proper justice, that is, having everything they need for life and godliness in this present evil age.

So, what God cares about, the Servant is to care about. Since God cares about justice, so the Servant is to work toward ensuring there is justice for all.

God has provided. It is the Servant’s task to use that provision and live into the vocation given by God. In other words, the Servant has been equipped to do the work. There’s no excuse for injustice.

Wrapped-up in this call for justice is making sure that the faithful in Israel bring back the unfaithful, so that everyone together might fully engage in God’s purposes for humanity and reach the nations with deliverance from all that stands in the way of justice.

God is continually on a mission of bringing back wayward people. It is the role of God’s people to honor and glorify God by fulfilling their divine call to the nations. The Lord desires restoration, and wants to work with people in a divine/human cooperative which establishes just practices for the common good of everyone on planet earth.

Real strength comes from the Lord. There’s empowerment for God’s people to return to their sense of vocation, to be a light to the nations, and to realize deliverance from injustice so that people may thrive and enjoy creation and the Creator forever.

No matter what the circumstances one faces in this life, everyone has the capacity to trust in God in the middle of their suffering and/or discouragement. It’s in this context that the light of God is best shown among the nations.

Others rarely take note of believers’ faith when things are going well. It’s easy to show faith when life is good. But when life is precipitous, when situations are dire, and the believer nonetheless has a genuine and confident trust that God’s justice will prevail, then the world takes notice of that kind of faith.

Right now many people are facing hardship and feeling powerless due to governmental interventions that they don’t want and didn’t ask for. It’s easy to become discouraged and to be fearful of what will happen.

I definitely feel it. I have a 36-year-old daughter who is a white Christian mother of three living in Minneapolis. Sound familiar? It’s people like my sweet girl who are getting oppressed, abused, even killed. It’s unjust and unrighteous.

God is looking for justice in the public square. God does not forget the downtrodden, the immigrant, the weak, and the powerless. And God holds those in power to account – whether they are using their resources for justice or injustice.

What I need to hear, and maybe you do too, is that ultimately God is still on the throne – and not any earthly ruler or president or national leader of any kind. God still cares about the needs of everyone. The Lord has a heart and a passion for justice for all, and not just some.

The Lord will grant me and you justice.

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

God (Psalm 147:12-20)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem!
    Praise your God, O Zion!
For he strengthens the bars of your gates;
    he blesses your children within you.
He grants peace within your borders;
    he fills you with the finest of wheat.
He sends out his command to the earth;
    his word runs swiftly.
He gives snow like wool;
    he scatters frost like ashes.
He hurls down hail like crumbs—
    who can stand before his cold?
He sends out his word and melts them;
    he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
He declares his word to Jacob,
    his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
    they do not know his ordinances.
Praise the Lord! (New Revised Standard Version)

The psalmist portrays a God who is clearly in control of all things. This is the Lord God almighty, who is the Creator, and is sovereign over the entire world.

God has no need for bluster, or to leverage knowledge in order to get things done. With only a word, the weather changes completely, and people are invited to participate in the divine will for this earth.

There is no creature, and no human on this earth, who has such power and authority, sovereignty and control, over everything and everyone as God.

Because of God’s great power, the Lord is able to extend gracious and providential care for those who put their hope in God’s steadfast love. Such grace and love of divine blessing is the means for Israel’s praise of Yahweh in the psalm.

The grandest blessing of them all is the gift of the “word.” God’s word of command is what sets in motion all of the natural processes of this earth. It is the divine word that gives and sustains life on this planet.

The same divine word which has been gifted in order for the waters to abundantly flow and the wind to continually blow, is the word given to Israel in the laws and commands for the people.

This gift of word is a wonderful privilege, given to the nation of Israel in the Old Testament. It is what makes them a peculiar people, recipients of the divine will. It is a word of guidance for the covenant people of God.

And that divine word is the primary reason for the human word to respond in praise by extoling the awesome might and mercy of God.

Please understand that today’s psalm is profoundly theological. In other words, it is all about God. We humans and the creation are mentioned and talked about within the psalm, yet all of it is in the context of God’s activity in the world, of God’s actions in history.

The things which God does among us and in this world is a theological reflection, in and of itself. Let me say it another way: God does what God is.

God didn’t simply do some wondrous act in the past. The Lord didn’t merely console and heal someone at some time. Rather, God is constantly binding up the brokenhearted; continually casting down the wicked; and consistently demonstrating steadfast love through right, good, and just actions, all the time.

There is a never a time when God is not God, being holy, loving, and good; and therefore, God’s eternal actions are a non-stop working of justice and righteousness in this old fallen world.

Evil, of course, is continually at work, as well. But we are not talking about opposing powers which are equal to each other. Justice and love will eventually swallow up wickedness and evil.

This is the hope that undergirds the psalmist, and it is the reason that the faithful keep persevering and offering their praise, adoration, and thanksgiving to the God who never slumbers nor sleeps, but is always watching over the righteous.

God’s wisdom and power is matchless. It is impossible for any one of us, or even all of us collectively, to count and number all the stars in the universe. But God can. And God even has them all named, because they all belong to God.

Neither you nor I could ever number the raindrops that fall on our roof in just a few minutes. Yet, God can. And the Lord can count the grains of sand on a beach and the hairs on every head (or in some cases, every hair on a guy’s back).

We humans number in the billions on this earth. Yet, God knows us all by name. And God’s perfection is near and intimate, not distant and remote.

I don’t know about you, my friend, but my encounters with God are nothing like a virtual Zoom meeting. My interactions with the God of the universe are close, intimate, and caring, just as a mother with her newborn baby.

Therefore, matters of renewal, restoration, and even resurrection are not problems for the God of the psalmist. Widows are comforted and rejoice. The poor are lifted up, and not ruined by their poverty.

The confused, the disordered and disoriented, the discouraged and discombobulated, are all held in the hands of the God who knows their confusion and will take care of them.

I might not understand; and, in fact, the older I become, I’ve discovered that the less I actually know. But I believe. I trust God. I do this, daily, because the Lord has demonstrated to me over and over again that God is trustworthy and has the ability to bend everything in this world for redemptive purposes.

That is the sort of God I serve – that the psalmist serves. And this faith, hope, and love is what I want for you, as well, my friend.

Life is too short and precious to squander it, and to flounder in disbelief. So, just listen; and take as much time as you need to hear the word, and experience the presence of life that is around you, and right in front of your face.

Dearest and most gracious Lord:

I thank you for the gift of life, the rising sun, and the promise of the seasons.

I give you thanks for my family and friends and the gifts they share; for my home and all its comforts within; for the abundance you give me and my willingness to share it with others.

I offer my gratitude to you for granting me wisdom, and the ability to listen; for acceptance of the challenges that I face every day; for strength and courage to act for justice and peace.

Most of all, I thank you for the knowledge that, without you, I have nothing; and with you, I possess all things, and have everything I need. Amen.

Living In the Tension of Life (Isaiah 54:1-13)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

Shout for joy, O barren one who has borne no children;
    burst into song and shout,
    you who have not been in labor!
For the children of the desolate woman will be more
    than the children of the one who is married, says the Lord.
Enlarge the site of your tent,
    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords
    and strengthen your stakes.
For you will spread out to the right and to the left,
    and your descendants will possess nations
    and will settle desolate towns.

Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
    do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace,
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
    and the disgrace of your widowhood you will remember no more.
For your Maker is your husband;
    the Lord of hosts is his name;
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer;
    the God of the whole earth he is called.
For the Lord has called you
    like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
like the wife of a man’s youth when she is cast off,
    says your God.
For a brief moment I abandoned you,
    but with great compassion I will gather you.
In overflowing wrath for a moment
    I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,
    says the Lord, your Redeemer.

This is like the days of Noah to me:
    Just as I swore that the waters of Noah
    would never again go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
    and will not rebuke you.
For the mountains may depart
    and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,
    says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,
    I am about to set your stones in antimony
    and lay your foundations with sapphires.
I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
    your gates of jewels,
    and all your wall of precious stones.
All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
    and great shall be the prosperity of your children. (New Revised Standard Version)

Judgment and Grace

Throughout all of the Old Testament prophets, there is a consistent theme within each of them of both judgment and grace.

People continually wax and wane in their faithfulness to God. However, the Lord does not change in being faithful to divine promises and keeping the divine covenant toward Israel.

Judgment comes in order to set things right, and provides justice for oppressed and underprivileged people. The judgment, however, only lasts for a while; whereas grace is continually operative.

Today’s text is one of grace. In the movement and rhythm of God’s judgment and grace, these verses return to the call for celebration and joy in response to divine mercy.

The metaphor of the barren woman refers to the years the city of Jerusalem sat in ruins because of divine judgment. Yet, it will not remain this way. The prophet assures the people that Jerusalem will grow once again. The city will spread out and increase, like a mother with many children.

There is no need for fear, because the Lord is not only the Creator and Maker; God is also Jerusalem’s redeemer and husband. The metaphor is meant to convey the attention and intimacy that God shows to people through divine grace.

Reconciliation and Restoration

Even though the city was like a wife forsaken by her husband, reconciliation is initiated by God through compassion and steadfast love. The Lord will honor the covenant, and not completely toss the people away, never to be seen again.

The Lord scatters; and the Lord gathers. The Lord gives; and the Lord takes away. The Lord extends judgment; and the Lord shows mercy. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

The word “abandon” is not even in God’s lexicon. The Lord is unfamiliar with the concept. There may be natural disasters, terrible diseases, and dilapidated places, but none of these can ever separate us from God’s steadfast immovable love.

Restoration is happening. No matter how bad things get – and things can get awfully bad – nothing can stop the divine band wagon of restoration from coming into town and changing everything.

Renewal and restoration may not happen today, or tomorrow; yet, it is happening, sooner or later. Nothing and no one can stand against the right, good, and just purposes of the almighty and everlasting God.

Redemption and Hope

In Christianity, this hope is focused in the birth of the Christ child. Redemption and new life is a reality in Jesus Christ our Lord. This is the reason for the Christian’s joy and celebration in this season.

On one end of our rubber-band like tension in this present life are the disappointments, brokenness, suffering, and pain we experience. At the other end, is the promise of future glory that is yet to come.

All believers, and every church, lives in this tension between the already and the not yet. We live in an in-between time, an awkward liminal space, that makes hope a sheer necessity in order to make it through the Christian life.

“There is a birth from before the ages, and a birth from a virgin at the fulness of time. There is a hidden coming, like that of rain on fleece, and a coming before all eyes, still in the future.”

St. Cyril of Jerusalem (313-386, C.E.)

The biblical writers, along with the early church fathers and mothers, understood the sacred tension of life:

Without any doubt, the mystery of godliness is great:

He was revealed in flesh,
    vindicated in spirit,
        seen by angels,
proclaimed among gentiles,
    believed in throughout the world,
        taken up in glory. (1 Timothy 3:16, NRSV)

The one who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen. (Revelation 22:20-21, NRSV)

Almighty God, give all of us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility, so that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who live and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Delivery and Deliverance (Isaiah 66:7-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

Before she was in labor
    she gave birth;
before her pain came upon her
    she delivered a son.
Who has heard of such a thing?
    Who has seen such things?
Shall a land be born in one day?
    Shall a nation be delivered in one moment?
Yet as soon as Zion was in labor
    she delivered her children.
Shall I open the womb and not deliver?
    says the Lord;
shall I, the one who delivers, shut the womb?
    says your God.

Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her,
    all you who love her;
rejoice with her in joy,
    all you who mourn over her—
that you may nurse and be satisfied
    from her consoling breast,
that you may drink deeply with delight
    from her glorious bosom. (New Revised Standard Version)

Conception. Happiness. Wondering. Uncomfortable. Preparation. Pain. More pain. Delivery. Exhaustion. Joy. Celebration. New life. Bringing children into this world is a process. And its hard work.

Feeding. Pooping. Sleeping. Exhaustion. More feeding. Lots more pooping. Thank God, more sleeping. Still exhausted. So, when does the mother ever get to eat, go to the bathroom by herself, and sleep? Maybe tomorrow, or maybe in another life….

Despite all of this, there are still words which keep mothers (and fathers) going: Satisfaction. Delight. Awe. Praise. Love. Hope. Faith. Yes, faith. Lots of faith. So much faith that it’s as if the parent puts all their weight on it, and leans into it, perhaps more out of sheer necessity than anything else.

The Christian season of Advent has been growing over the past weeks. It is now large and very ready for Christmas Day and the celebration of the Christmas season (the 12 days from December 25 to the Day of Epiphany on January 6).

But we aren’t quite there yet. There is still the anticipation of birth. The Christ child is coming.

It’s quite something to imagine that God would be so humble as to become humiliated. What a wonder it is, that there is such a thing as an incarnation, that Jesus entered this world as both a human baby and a divine king.

God came to this world for us, on our behalf, to redeem, renew, and restore lost humanity. That’s a lot of love. If you think about it, the mother’s incredible love had to come from somewhere.

Love is what sustains the world. So, love must be nurtured. The feelings of it are not always there within us.

Yet, if we will continually seek to maintain the godliness which is love inside of us, we can find ourselves being little incarnations of Jesus walking about this earth providing succor, without any withholding or hatred.

To love is to love. Without conditions. To love a friend but hate an enemy is to cancel out the love. It must be all love, or it isn’t love, at all.

The person, group, organization, institution, community, or church in a miserable and wretched state is in need of restoration. That is, they are in a great need of receiving love and giving love.

If they have responsibilities toward others, and have been neglectful, they must come to the breast of God. And those who did not receive their due justice and fair recompense must also come.

Advent is more than a season in the year to recognize. And Christ’s incarnation is much more than a doctrine to believe. Advent and incarnation are powerful realities which we must live into.

The good news of this season is that God intervenes effectively to do good for those who are faithful. It’s a newness as sudden and as wonderful as the birth of a baby. The Lord does away with barrenness and hopelessness, and brings new life.

It is this good news that brings out joy. Where once there was mourning and sadness, there is now satisfaction, comfort, and consolation. God is the One who brings it about.

Therefore, it is helpful to remember and recall the words of Jesus to his disciples:

Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. When a woman is in labor, she has pain because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. (John 16:20-22, NRSV)

The joy and celebration of this first advent will lead to a second advent, the return of Christ. The peace and satisfaction we may enjoy now is only here in part. The fullness of peace will be ushered in at the end of time.

This is the sort of tension that we must continually maintain, holding together in both hands our sorrow and joy, disappointment and hope, hardship and love, at the same time, all the time, until that day when there is not only a delivery, but a deliverance from all evil.

Lord God, we adore you because you have come to us in the past.
You have spoken to us in the Law of Israel.
You have challenged us in the words of the prophets.
You have shown us in Jesus what you are really like.

Lord God, we adore you because you still come to us now.
You come to us through other people and their love and concern for us.
You come to us through people who need our help.
You come to us as we worship you with others.

Lord God, we adore you because you will come to us at the end.
You will be with us at the hour of death.
You will still reign supreme when all human institutions fail.
You will still be God when our history has run its course.

We welcome you, the God who comes.
Come to us now in the power of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.