Readings for today: Isaiah 9-12
One of my spiritual disciplines is to stay up with the news. I make sure to read sources from across the political spectrum. I try my best to discern truth which is not always easy because humanity seems literally hardwired for conflict and hatred and even violence. It is so hard to land on an accepted set of facts that everyone can agree on. If facts are inconvenient or don’t support the narrative we want, we tend to dismiss them. If facts support our pre-determined position or ideology then we cling to them with all our might. One could argue that it doesn’t matter. People have a right to believe what they believe. However, in the real world, this attitude doesn’t fly because while I may have a right to my opinion, I don’t have a right to my own facts. Real decisions are made that have real world consequences and people are often hurt. For example, I was recently talking with an immigration official about the conflict that exists between immigration policy in our state and immigration policy at the federal level. That conflict puts state and federal officials at odds with one another and what ends up happening is the immigrant is caught in the crosshairs. They end up with no one advocating on their behalf. That’s just one example among many I could cite. And it’s why our world is so full of conflict and violence.
Thankfully, God has a different vision for the world. A vision of peace. One He casts in the eleventh chapter of the Book of Isaiah. “A wolf will reside with a lamb, and a leopard will lie down with a young goat; an ox and a young lion will graze together, as a small child leads them along. A cow and a bear will graze together, their young will lie down together. A lion, like an ox, will eat straw. A baby will play over the hole of a snake; over the nest of a serpent an infant will put his hand. They will no longer injure or destroy on my entire royal mountain. For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty, just as the waters completely cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9 NET) When the Messiah comes in all His power and glory, the world will finally know peace because He will establish His rule and reign on justice and righteousness. The Lord’s Spirit will rest upon Him and He will be endowed with divine wisdom and authority. Most of all, His delight will be to serve the Lord. He will serve with faithfulness and dedication and loyalty. He will never waver. He will never lose heart. And His work will bring an end to all conflict and violence and war.
How do we know all this to be true? Because of what God did on the cross. There He tore down every dividing wall of hostility that exists between us and He gave us His Spirit to bring unity. The church is therefore called to live in such a way that we give the world a picture of what life will one day look like in the Kingdom of God. Imagine the power of the witness we would have if God’s people would embrace Isaiah’s vision? Imagine a church unified across political, ethnic, tribal, economic, generational, and theological divisions? Imagine a church that chose God’s Truth over the partisan, subjective agendas of our world? It’s actually not all that hard to imagine if we take seriously the call to have the same mind and heart that was in Christ Jesus.
Readings for tomorrow: Micah 1-4