The Fields are Ripe for Harvest - John 4:27-38

          

Jesus and his disciples are travelling from Judea, north to Galilee. While in the area of Judea, Jesus encounters Nicodemus, and he’s baptized by his cousin John in the Jordan River who points to Jesus as the one sent by God. Seeds to Jesus’ identity are being planted and Jesus is getting noticed. The Pharisees hear about all the people being baptized by John and by Jesus’ disciples; they believe Jesus is doing the baptizing. When Jesus learns that the Pharisees are getting interested in him, he leaves Judea and heads north to Galilee, taking the road through Samaria rather than the way by the sea or the trade roads to the east of the Jordan, both longer routes, but then there’s no need to encounter any of the hated Samaritans. Most Jews preferred the longer routes, but Jesus chooses to take the direct road that passes right through the heart of Samaria.

Even when you take the direct route through Samaria, it takes a while to get where you’re going because walking was the normal way of travelling. It was about 137 kilometers from Jerusalem to the area of Nazareth, not something you walked in one day. This means that Jesus and his disciples knew they would need to stop overnight somewhere, as well as purchase food and find water. John records that they reach the town of Sychar, an old town connected with the patriarch Jacob and his sons. They stop at a well outside of town and Jesus rests while the disciples go into town to buy food, and while they’re in town, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman who shows up to draw water for her family. Jesus engages her in conversation.

Jesus recognizes that the Samaritans are ripe for believing in him as the promised Messiah. After a deep conversation about living water, where to worship God, ending with Jesus revealing to her that he’s the one they’re waiting for, the disciples return. The woman, in her eagerness to share the good news with her townspeople, leaves her water jar behind as she rushes back into town. The excitement and eagerness to share who Jesus is with others, is always so exciting to see in new followers of Jesus. It’s a reminder of the power of the gospel news and the hope it offers! The scholar David Brown notes, “The living water was already beginning to spring up within her; she found that man doth not live by bread nor by water only, and that there was a water of wondrous virtue that raised people above meat and drink, and the vessels that held them, and all human things. In short, she was transported, forgot everything but One, and her heart running over with the tale she had to tell, she hastens home and pours it out”

The disciples now encourage Jesus to eat, but Jesus responds with a puzzling answer, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Imagine the disciples’ response, they had gone into town to buy food, so where did Jesus get other food? Now Jesus had turned water into wine earlier, could he have done something similar here? Could someone else have brought him food? Jesus overhears them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” Jesus says something similar in his response to Satan’s temptations in Matthew 4:4, “Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Jesus is pointing them to the main reason he’s come, why God has sent him; Jesus has come to draw people to himself as the Messiah, to take our sin on himself so that we can have new life, be nourished with his living water.

Jesus is helping the disciples to see how what’s happened with the Samaritan woman, how his time spent helping her see him for who he really is, how he’s offered her living water, filled her heart and soul with his wisdom, offering her his love and acceptance, gaining her soul for the kingdom of heaven, and inspiring her to go and gain more souls for the kingdom, is all part of laying the foundation for a great movement of faith in Samaria and the world.

Jesus goes on and tells them, “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” This is a message just as important for us today, as it is for Jesus’ disciples, to open our eyes and see just how many people are primed by the Holy Spirit to hear the good news of who Jesus is, who are thirsting deeply for something that our world and culture simply can’t offer: belonging, meaning in life beyond our physical lives, an identity that is unshakeable and rooted in the eternity and glory of belonging to Jesus. 

Jesus recognizes that the Samaritans are ripe for believing in him as their Messiah. The Samaritan woman is his first missionary, going to her own people. Who are our people who have not yet accepted Jesus as their Messiah, as their saviour? This is a good starting place; we know them and they know us. If we’re truly living our faith, we can be a powerful witness to them. There’s something about seeing someone living in a way that matches the descriptions of Jesus’ focus and dedication to his calling, to making the peoples’ lives better, offering hope, that makes us want to read the Bible again to see what we’ve missed. We can offer what Jesus offers them in the empty places that they’re seeking and searching to fill by showing them Jesus.

Jesus shows us a basic method to engage people. He begins by having conversations with people, showing them that he sees them and values them; showing he wants to know them by showing an interest in them. In a world that’s increasing self-focused, showing interest in you as a person is powerful. Jesus approaches the Samaritan woman seeking help, a favour that only she in the moment can help him with. Jesus pays attention to what she has to offer, he sees her water-jar, but he also listens closely to the things she says, asking more questions each time she speaks. Jesus then shows how it’s the often-simple things in our daily lives that point to spiritual and soul needs and desires. Simple water becomes an image for spiritual and heart thirst for God and spiritual nourishment. Jesus then points her to God, to worship and an invitation to worship God, and become a disciple of Jesus.

In Christianity, disciple describes a person devoted to following Jesus. In the ancient world, a disciple was a follower of a rabbi. In the ancient biblical world, the disciple would dedicate themselves to imitating the life and teaching of the rabbi or teacher until they looked and sounded just like their rabbi. It’s like an apprenticeship where the disciple is slowly transformed into a living copy of the master. James Vander Laan writes, “According to scripture, the essence of being a disciple of the rabbi is forgiveness, humility, service, and servanthood — and this applies especially to those who would be leaders. But notice, also, that Paul tells us to do this “so that [others] may be saved.” His evangelism strategy is seeking the good of others.”

Here are some things to think about as you look out with the eyes and heart of Jesus at the fields of people ready for harvest. Think about people who make you feel loved. What about them makes you feel this way? I can almost guarantee that they ask good questions and listen well. David Augsburger, a pastor and theologian writes, “Being heard is so close to being loved that most people cannot tell the difference.” A person who asks questions and listens, makes people feel known and loved. Unfortunately, this is an increasingly rare gift. As Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People wrote, “Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” Most people don’t actually listen, instead they’re waiting for you to stop talking so they can talk. 

Here are 4 guidelines to help you “reap the fields ripe for harvest”

1. Be Curious: The beginning of asking good questions is being genuinely curious about the person to whom you’re speaking.

2. Follow Up: Once the other person finishes talking, try to repeat what they said in your own words something like, “So, you’re saying….?” Making a habit of asking this follow-up question will help you learn to listen well.

3. Ask Leading Questions: Think about the kinds of questions that you normally ask someone. Do they regularly inspire discussions that lead to praise and gratitude? Or do your questions inspire gossip or complaining?

4. Communicate Love: challenge yourself to ask more questions than you answer. This goes a long way in making the other person feel valued—and it’s one of the most powerful ways to communicate the character and love of God.

God has called you at this time for this moment of harvest time. May the Lord bless your harvesting!

Christmas Day - Isaiah 61, Psalm 98, Luke 2:1-20 - The Promised Seed

Today is Christmas Day, the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, the one who brings salvation to all who believe in him. This is a time to celebrate as the people had been waiting for thousands of years for the Messiah to come. The birth of a child is always a reason to rejoice and praise God, because every life is precious as each child is born in the image of God.

Isaiah is one of the prophets who especially point ahead to the Messiah, to the time when God begins the next chapter in his plan of redemption and restoration of all creation. Isaiah uses the return of Israel back to their homes after the exile in Babylon as a picture of what kind of Messiah God is sending and what he’s coming to do, “He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.” We see God’s heart here for the captives and oppressed, for those who mourn, and we see a Messiah will come and bring freedom, comfort, and joy.

But we often overlook that the Messiah is also bringing “the day of vengeance of our God.” We hear this echoed in Psalm 98, “for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.” Jesus is not just any child, this is not just a charming story, there’s a lot more to Jesus’ birth than shepherds in a field and magi travelling to see a young child. Angels don’t come announcing a regular child’s birth, people don’t travel for a couple of years to visit just any child. Jesus is the promised Messiah, the one who has come to crush the serpent’s head, to defeat Satan, to bring judgment against evil, and punish the wicked, and to restore the poor, the orphan, the widow, those oppressed and broken so they might flourish in the kingdom of heaven that’s already here, though not yet fully established. The angel’s announcement is, “I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.” 

Our World Belongs to God summarizes why Jesus came: Article 5. “God holds this world with fierce love. Keeping his promise, he sends Jesus into the world, pours out the Holy Spirit, and announces the good news: sinners who repent and believe in Jesus live anew as members of the family of God— the first-fruits of a new creation.” Then in Article 23 the confession reminds us, “Remembering the promise to reconcile the world to himself, God joined our humanity in Jesus Christ—the eternal Word made flesh. He is the long-awaited Messiah, one with us and one with God, fully human and fully divine, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.” Jesus is both human and God, he’s someone to approach with awe and reverence, but also the one who knows our hearts and demands our full allegiance so we don’t have to face his judgment.

Isaiah writes in verses 10- 11, “I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.” In these verses we come back to our Advent focus on the images we’ve reflected on of stumps, thorns, gardens and vineyards, of planting and growing. An important question to ask ourselves today is “Am I part of the garden, planted in good soil so that I can grow?” There’s this image of growth, of our spiritual growth, here in Isaiah. Jesus and the Spirit offer us new life, to bring growth in our hearts and souls, so that praise and righteousness spring up and flow out of our churches and personal lives, so that the people and nations will notice what the Lord is doing in our lives, how the presence of Jesus transforms us and brings new life.

Peter reminds us of who we are in 1 Peter 2:9, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” We’re chosen by God, saved through Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit in order to praise and worship and glorify the Father and the Son. We glorify God because he “has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness” as we read in Psalm 98:3. This same Psalm also warns, “he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity.”

The coming of the Messiah is a time of joy and praise to God, but also a time that points to Jesus’ return. It isn’t just a feel-good time, but also a warning to the world that God is serious about justice and righteousness. Isaiah reminds us that we need to be more aware of, and committed to walking the way of Jesus, showing our love through obedience to Jesus’ way. This is not something we need to fear as we’ve been reflecting on this these over Advent. God hears his people’s cries, he sees our struggles and the wrong in the world, and he responds in sending Jesus, who sends his Spirit to be in us, reminding us to keep looking forward to Jesus’ return, as we sing with the angels, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.”

We’re challenged as we celebrate Jesus’ birth today to reflect on how we’re growing in Christ. How are we growing in our faith and in our witness to the world? Jesus gets to the heart of faith, to the goal of Christian living with one two-word command, “Follow me.” Sanctification, becoming more Christ-like, and justification, being made right through Jesus’ finished work on the cross, are intertwined spiritual realities. When you place your complete trust in Jesus, his Spirit begins to renew you from the inside out until the fruit of that Spirit becomes the core of our character, leading us to become more like Jesus. We’re then equipped to become the change we seek in the world, as the Spirit transforms our hearts, forms our habits, and becomes our character. When this Spirit-led change takes priority in our lives, obedience to Jesus out of love for him becomes a natural part of who we are, and we get closer to becoming the righteous society that is God’s new creation in God’s redemption of the world. As we go into the world, go with the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, shaped by his Spirit.

 

Christmas Eve - Matthew 2:1-11 - Finding Our Place in the Christmas Story

This evening, we’re are celebrating the birth of Jesus. Jesus came and was born in a specific place: Bethlehem, at a specific time, about 2025 years ago, and it was predicted thousands of years in the past, with many finding themselves part of the Christmas story. The coming of Jesus was first pointed to in the Garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve find themselves part of the Christmas story through their decision to disobey God and eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This decision brought separation between God and them, also impacting us, and they were kicked out of the garden. But before God throws them out, he promises that from Eve will come a son who will crush the serpent’s head, the first pointing ahead to the birth of Jesus.

Over the years, as humanity kept drifting away from God, God kept sending prophets to call the people back into a relationship with him, giving the people hope through reminding them of his promise of a Messiah. The prophets were chosen by God to call the people back to him, but also to give them glimpses of what the Messiah was going to do and what he will be like. The prophets’ place in the Christmas story was to keep up hope in God’s people, giving them descriptions of the coming Messiah so the people will be able to recognize when the Messiah appears. The prophets point ahead to God’s promises fulfilled, and to his plan of salvation and renewal.

Then the time arrives, God’s 400-year silence ends, the angel Gabriel appears to an old priest, Zechariah, in the temple, telling him that his old wife was going to have a son who is going to prepare the people for the coming of the Messiah. Zechariah, a priest who should have known better, expresses his doubt, and loses his voice until his and Elizabeth’s son John is born. Zechariah and Elizabeth find their place in the Christmas story as parents of the one who will introduce and baptize Jesus at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. They represent the faithful in Israel who are looking in hope and trust to the coming Messiah.

Gabriel’s place in the Christmas story is just beginning, God’s messenger to the different people called to be part of Jesus’ family know that the Messiah is about to appear. He’s sent to a young woman in Nazareth to let her know that she is wonderfully blessed among all women because she’s been chosen to be the mother of the Messiah, the mother of the Son of God! Mary finds her place in the story by trusting Gabriel’s message from God, recognizing that this child is going to be the fulfilment of all the prophets’ messages, and all God’s promises to send a Messiah for his people.

Gabriel’s place in the Christmas story isn’t over yet, he’s also sent to Joseph, Mary’s fiancé, in order to encourage him to continue with his plans to marry Mary, even though she’s expecting a child that’s not his. Joseph finds his place in the story by trusting in Gabriel’s message and becoming the earthly father of Jesus, raising Jesus up in the way of righteousness, since he himself is a righteous man. Jesus is born into a home filled with faith in God and shaped by righteousness.

The angel choir finds its place in the Christmas story by coming to shepherds in the fields around Bethlehem, sharing heaven’s news with them. They announce the good news of the Messiah’s birth, praising and glorifying God in singing the news and bringing joy and hope through their song to all creation. The redeemer and restorer of creation has come! It’s time for heaven and earth to celebrate God’s faithfulness and grace to all creation. The angels’ place in the story is to praise the Lord of heaven and earth and invite us to join them in their praise.

The shepherds find their place in the Christmas story as they hurry to Bethlehem to see this promised child and offer him their worship. The hope of the world has been born and they experience the need to come and see this hope for themselves. In Mary’s song, in the prophecies of the prophets, in the promises of God, over and over again the poor, the marginalized, the oppressed are mentioned as those the Messiah will come for, to raise them up, to help them experience the blessings of God. The shepherds represent that the Messiah comes for all God’s people, not just the wealthy and educated, but for all people.

And now the Magi appear, they too find their place in the Christmas story by reading God’s announcement of the Messiah’s birth written in the heavens. The Magi’s place in the Christmas story is to represent the nations coming to Jesus, that Jesus comes for all people, that he offers salvation to all those who believe in him, through faith, as their Lord. The Magi take a journey of faith, seeking the one born to be king of the Jews, a king important enough for the heavens to announce his birth, a King of kings.

Jesus has come and fulfilled the prophets and God’s promises, washed us clean from our sin, returned to his Father, who sent us the Holy Spirit, and who is coming back again when the time is right. Until that time, our place in the Christmas story is to share with the world who Christmas is about, Jesus, why the Christmas story happened, and that the ultimate fulfilment of the Christmas story is still to come with the return of Jesus and the restoration and renewal of all creation. Our place is to continue to offer the hope found in Jesus, the promise of new life, of the presence of God always, and the blessings of the Holy Spirit in all areas of our lives. Be part of the story, come and worship and praise Jesus, and go and share him with the world around us.

 

Advent 4 - The Loving Gardener - Isaiah 37:26-32, Psalm 36:5-12, Matthew 1

Our passage this morning from Isaiah 37 is part of King Hezekiah’s story found in 2 Kings 18-20. Hezekiah is a good king, leading the people of Judah back to God, destroying the idols and their worship places in the mountains. But Hezekiah was also king during a really difficult time, a time when the northern kingdom of the 10 tribes of Israel disappears from history as the King Sennacherib of Assyria conquers them and disperses the people throughout his empire. Sennacherib then turns his sights onto Judah, mocking them, demanding tribute, which Hezekiah pays by stripping the gold off the doors and doorposts of the temple. Yet this doesn’t satisfy Sennacherib, bullies are never satisfied and always seek to humiliate their victims more, but then the Lord steps in with messages for both Sennacherib and Hezekiah. You can read this passage in context in 2 Kings 19.

The Lord tells Sennacherib, “Have you not heard? Long ago I ordained it. In days of old I planned it; now I have brought it to pass, that you have turned fortified cities into piles of stone. Their people, drained of power, are dismayed and put to shame. They are like plants in the field, like tender green shoots, like grass sprouting on the roof, scorched before it grows up. “But I know where you are and when you come and go and how you rage against me. Because you rage against me and because your insolence has reached my ears, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will make you return by the way you came.” Sennacherib’s strength has come from the Lord, and he’s looking to deal with Judah like he did with the northern kingdom, to conquer and disperse them throughout his empire so they’ll disappear from history, but the Lord’s also going to deal with his arrogance. This is a warning that God’s in control, not him. God will send him home, led away like a bull with a hook in its nose, or a horse with a bit in its mouth. The bull and horse are powerful creatures, but are still easily led about with small pieces of metal.

The Lord has a message of hope for Hezekiah, “This year you will eat what grows by itself, and the second year what springs from that. But in the third year sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit. Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above. For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.” Here we get a glimpse of God as the loving gardener of his people. This is a word of hope and restoration. There’s only a remnant left from the original people of God, the 10 tribes are gone and now Judah’s under threat; they’re like the grass scorched before it grows. The grass may be scorched, but it’s still rooted in the soil, and God’s watching over and tending to his people, ensuring that they will not be completely destroyed, a remnant will remain to grow once again. This is often called “remnant theology;” where “a portion of people are left after a disaster, especially a disaster identified with divine judgment. Especially in the Prophets, this term describes those who remain faithful to God despite suffering and who ultimately experience restoration.”

Scripture often uses agricultural and farming images to describe the Lord’s relationship with his people. The first garden in the Bible is in Eden, a garden planted by God and then given over to Adam and Eve to care for, and cultivate. In the Garden of Eden, every need of Adam and Eve is met, revealing the nurturing side of God, and his provision and care for his children. This becomes one of the main themes that runs through the whole of Scripture: God provides. Yet this isn’t enough for Adam and Eve and they choose disobedience to God in a desire to be like God, something that’s been passed on to each of us now. This is why we celebrate Christmas and the coming to earth of Jesus, son of God, saviour of humanity and creation. Jesus comes to overturn the power of death by dying and then rising from the dead 3 days later, washing away our sin and disobedience, restoring our relationship with God, our father and creator. God provides for our redemption through Jesus! This is why gardening in the Bible also represents hope and resilience. Even during times of exile, God tells his people to plant and cultivate, telling them through the prophets that nurturing life is an act of faith and trust in God's provision. This theme’s echoed in various places, where gardens symbolize places of peace, meeting, and spiritual growth.

In creation, God places in the order and structure of creation the process for how plants and animals are nourished and grow, how they mature, die, and return to the soil again. God puts into place all the elements needed for creation to flourish, including humanity. For crops and plants to flourish so there are good harvests, the gardener or farmer needs to carefully care for them. Whether it's a few plants on a patio, a back yard vegetable garden, or acres of corn or grain, for plants to thrive someone needs to care for their health: making sure the conditions are right and that there aren’t weeds competing with them for nutrients and water.

This isn’t something that’s done only when the farmer or gardener feels like it; it requires dedication and regular hard work, in some cases for years, before the fruit is seen. For fruit trees and vines to continue to produce every year, they need ongoing care, proper pruning, attention to the weather patterns, and care for the soil. Treated right, these trees and vines can thrive for generations, as you see in vineyards in Israel and Europe. To commit to something long term like this takes love for farming and gardening, for creation. Farmers and gardeners pour themselves into their work, their energy, sweat, tears, hopes, and prayers go into the plants and crops they plant and take care of, knowing that ultimately, they need to trust the Lord for the right balance of rain and sun at the proper times for their harvest to flourish.

Gardening and farming are hard work since the fall into sin. Nature itself was impacted by Adam and Eve’s disobedience. God tells Adam, “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” God’s promise of a Messiah, Jesus, meant that God committed himself to his plan of redemption and a relationship with humanity, nurturing them in order to bring Jesus into our world to become both fully human and fully God in order to overturn the curse of sin. God became a gardener of our souls.

God carefully watches over and tends our souls to make sure the harvest is plentiful, and scripture shows that God has been doing this for generations: “Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above.” Matthew 1 shows us that God’s carefully cared for remnant continued from generation to generation and that God cultivated each generation, making sure that one day Christ, the first fruit, would be born. Even though there were times when all a person could see was a stump, God kept nurturing the roots of the stump, preparing for the birth of a new shoot, of new life. The promise of the remnant bearing fruit is first fulfilled in Jesus’ birth, and even further fulfilled in the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the people at Pentecost, birthing new life in many hearts that day, and is still today growing new life in people.

In Isaiah 5:1-7, God is pictured as the owner of a vineyard, expecting it to yield good fruit, which represents his call for his people to live righteously, participating in the weeding and pruning of our lives for spiritual growth. When the vineyard produces wild grapes, it symbolizes Israel's unfaithfulness, highlighting the importance of bearing fruit in accordance with God's character.

In the New Testament, this image of God as a gardener is developed more deeply in John 15, where Jesus tells his disciples, "I am the true vine, and My Father is the gardener." Here, God is described as the vinedresser who prunes the branches so they’ll keep being fruitful. Jesus is emphasizing the need of remaining connected to him for our spiritual growth. This is how we grow to be more like Jesus, what we call sanctification. God’s actively involved in the process of our sanctification and nurturing us to produce spiritual fruit through the Holy Spirit.

The image of God as the gardener in the Bible reveals deep truths about who he is, the importance of spiritual growth, and the relationship between God and us. It reminds us God is actively cultivating life and guiding creation to its complete redemption when Jesus returns to claim his us and renew us so we’ll flourish as his vineyard. Join the Holy Spirit in its work of gardening our souls and lives.

Advent 3 - From the Wilderness of Despair to the Flourishing of Joy - Isaiah 41:17–20; Psalm 126; Luke 1:46–55

Isaiah 41 is found in the final section of Isaiah and focuses on the return of Israel back to their homes after the 70-year Babylonian exile. They’re not home yet, but their exile’s coming to an end in the near future and Isaiah writes to give them hope and strength. This passage is about encouragement to a people who have mostly been born in exile with the stories from their parents and grandparents of how wonderful home is, but for most of them, these are only stories. Isaiah’s writing to encourage them to not give up on their faith in God.

Isaiah’s addressing their despair. Despair feels like misery, a desolation of the soul, hopelessness, dejection, a lack of meaning or purpose in life. These can become long-term feelings that settle into the soul, becoming a state of being, choosing to see life through the lens of despair. Despair is a reality for many people today. There are those who have grown up in hard families, abusive even, seldom experiencing love or kindness. Having been foster parents for many years, Joyce and I had a number of children who felt this way come into our home. There are those who live in perpetual poverty who see no hope or relief in sight, those who live on the streets, some for many years who have lost hope of ever having a place to call home, there are those who are refugees who want to return home, but sense that they never will, and feel unwanted here. Despair leads to distance from others and from God, making it difficult to experience the presence and peace of God; to experience joy. Despair is found in every age.

When you’re struggling and feel no one sees you, the images here in Isaiah become real: barren heights, deserts, and parched ground reflect what’s in your heart and soul. You pray for relief, for something to change, or for someone to show up who sees you, who offers hope. Israel’s praying God will show up, and here through Isaiah God does, offering these words of hope, “I will make rivers flow on the barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn deserts into pools of water, and parched ground into springs. I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set junipers in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together, so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.” These passages this morning point to God’s presence and blessings, to bring us to joy and deeper trust in God.

The change that happens in a desert place is amazing if you’ve never seen it before. A place that is dry and parched, showing little signs of life can be transformed into a place filled with life and new growth as soon as rain comes. When we look at these images, it’s easy to see why Jesus offers us living water and calls us to allow streams of living water to flow from us into our world, John 7:37–39, “Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” With the coming of new life from the living water through the Holy Spirit, we find ourselves able to move from despair to joy, leading us to confess with Mary, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…for the Mighty One has done great things for me.”

Jesus connects living water to the presence of the Holy Spirit.  This was not a new insight, Isaiah connects water and the Spirit in 44:3, “For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.” Throughout Scripture, nourishing rain and rivers also serve as a picture of spiritual nourishment given to satisfy our thirsty souls. In Isaiah, the gift of water leads to the incredible spread of numerous types of trees—trees you wouldn’t expect to see, a true flourishing out of lifelessness or despair. In Isaiah, this water that gives life is not for just anyone, it’s especially meant for the poor and needy, those who are weeping, the lowly, and the hungry. This may seem unfair, but this is so that “people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.” As the people find new life, find hope again, find joy, it’s not found in what they can do for themselves, it’s found in the work of a God of mercy who cares for the humble, the hungry and who will lift them up over the proud and rich.

Joy is a mark of God’s people. Joy is closely related to gladness and happiness, although joy’s more a state of being than an emotion; a result of choice. Joy is part of the fruit of the spirit. Having joy is part of the experience of being a Christian. We have the Gospel, good news for all people, news of forgiveness and grace, news that our sin is covered by Jesus; this should lead to joy. We have the presence of the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, a gift of God’s presence. Trevor Hudson, a pastor from South Africa writes about seeing the joy in Dallas Willard’s faith. Someone told him he had a gloomy faith; he writes about seeking out the source of joy and went and reread the Gospels in order to find the joyous God that Willard talked about. Hudson was struck by how happy Jesus was. “He lived with a strong vibrant sense of the goodness of his father, the creator of the world. He seemed to have had the capacity of living fully in the present, giving his attention to the task in front of him, celebrating the presence of God here and now. He enjoyed parties, sharing meal, hugging children. He loved those around him fiercely and passionately. To cap it off, after explaining to his disciples how he would be the vine and they the branches, constantly drawing life from him, he said, “These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you and your joy may be full.” (John 15:11)

Black gospel music and spirituals focus on salvation, hope, and resilience; bringing comfort and inspiration to those who listen to their music. This music comes out of the African American slave community that sought the hope and joy of the Gospel rather than allowing despair to shape their souls and faith. Even in the midst of often great suffering, the slaves kept their eyes on Jesus and on a God who saves; who leads his people out of slavery into freedom, even if it’s not in our lifetime. This is why in Advent we not only look back to Jesus’ birth, but also ahead to his return when we’ll all be free from the chains that hold us in despair, whether it’s physical, spiritual, mental, or emotional illness, addiction, broken relationships, poverty, or repetitive sinful behaviours that we just can’t break free from, or any other chain that holds us down.

What does joy look like in your life? Can others see Jesus’ joy in you? Do you find joy in being part of this body of Christ, do you live out Jesus’ joy in worship, in serving, in sharing your faith, with the people in your life? Or do you find yourself bitter or critical and focused on sin and judgment, rather than Jesus’ love for you? Are you able to receive forgiveness and grace and offer forgiveness and grace to others? Do you choose joy? Are you strongly connected to Jesus as the source of your life and being?

Our joy comes from knowing that Jesus will return, seeing life through this reality; there’ll be no more suffering. Isaiah prophesizes of the restored people of God, entering into Zion with a crown of everlasting joy: Isaiah 35:10, “and those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” And Isaiah 55:12, “You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” The indescribable joy of believers is possible because as we wait for Jesus’ return, we know that we’ve received the salvation of our souls.

Moving from despair to a joy that blooms with new life is rooted in trusting that God’s working for our good and deeply cares about us; choosing to believe in his promises to fill us with his living water in the Spirit. Joy comes from being in community with God and the body of Christ; from a life of continual prayer and communication with God, and from a love and study of Scripture, God’s gift where he reveals himself to us. This Advent, rejoice in the Spirit’s work, grateful for all the good we see around us, rejoicing in expectation of the day when the world will be made right again, and those who experience need will flourish, joining in the happiness of the psalmist and Mary confessing, “the Lord has done great things.”

 

 

From Repentance to Growth - Isaiah 27:1-6; Psalm 85; Matthew 3:1-12

Israel’s in exile in Babylon because of their faithlessness to God, failing to follow his way, preferring their own ways and the ways of the nations instead. These ways, as we reflected on last week, failed God’s call to live justly and walk in righteous ways with each other. Here in Isaiah 27, we see the Lord punishing Leviathan, the gliding serpent and monster of the sea, an echo back to how Satan took on the form of a serpent to tempt Eve and Adam into sin and disobedience. Isaiah associates the serpent with the sea, a place of chaos for Israel who are more connected with the wilderness. The sea’s a picture for the Israelites of the chaos sin brings; the power of its storms is like the storms sin brings into our lives. Sin brings brokenness and destruction. So how do we find our ways to fruitful vineyards, to the Lord’s unfailing love in Psalm 85 where the psalmist is searching for the Lord’s peace and salvation?

Matthew introduces us to John the Baptist, who comes to prepare the people for Jesus’ coming and ministry. John’s message is simple and blunt; he calls the people to repent by confessing their sins and turning back to God. He has his harshest words and strongest calls to repent for the Sadducees and Pharisees who are showing up to check out this wild prophet who’s baptizing people in the Jordan River, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

John’s hard on them because the Pharisees emphasize faithfulness to Torah, the study of scripture, and full obedience to the law. They’re influential leaders in Israel and created additional laws and requirements on the people, which leads Jesus to later charge them with placing heavy burdens on the people that God did not. But they also use these laws to benefit themselves, leading Jesus to call them hypocrites because they don’t recognize or acknowledge their own sin, only the sins of everyone else.

What is repentance? How do we live out repentance in our relationship with Jesus? In the Hebrew there are 2 words that are used for repentance: nāḥam, which means ‘to be sorry, change one’s mind’ and šûḇ which means ‘to turn back, return’. In the Old Testament, especially in the prophets, the call from God is for his people to return to their covenantal dependance on God; to turn back to the way of living with God and each other in the way God gave them at Mount Sinai, and in the spirit of the other covenants God made with them. The picture of repentance is of changing your direction away from your goals and destination and turning back and walking with God as your goal and destination.

Pilgrim’s Progress is an example of what our journey through life is like. It’s a story by John Bunyan about a man called Christian who journeys from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. It’s a story that represents the Christian life, where each person, place, and event represents spiritual concepts and challenges. Bunyan shows the burden of sin that Christian must carry and how the path to God involves faith, perseverance, and overcoming obstacles like temptations and despair. Repentance looks like getting back on the path to God by confessing when we fail, and then putting our eyes on Jesus and trusting the way he taught us to live, shaped by faith and trust in him and the Father.  

John, when he calls the people to repentance, uses the Greek word metanoias, which combines the send of both Hebrew words and means ‘to change one’s mind’ and to ‘feel remorse or regret.’ Repentance is not just feeling sorry about what you did or thought, it’s about changing the direction of your heart from you wants and desires, your ways of thinking, what you believe, and embracing Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, filling your mind and heart with his teaching, looking at how he lived out God’s will, and embracing the spirit of God’s will; filling your ears with Jesus’ teachings, and your hearts with the Holy Spirit’s voice, and turning away from the voices that blast at us from our culture, trusting Jesus and who he’s calling us to be as his disciples. It can be hard to tune out the social media noise and chaos in our culture that uses conflict, anger, hatred, and division to shape how we live in and understand our world. It’s amazing how easily these voices grab us, how quickly we believe in them and turn away from Jesus’ way. Christians are not immune to the spirit of hatred spewing out at us.

John calls for the Pharisees and Sadducees and followers of God and Jesus to produce fruit that grows out of repentance. John baptized people as a step of repentance into a new life and identity, washing away their old life for a new life of obedience. What does that look like for us as we’re called to repentance and turn back to Jesus? When we look at our lives and choices, we find ourselves choosing against Jesus regularly, choosing to listen to other voices instead of the Holy Spirit’s.

Isaiah uses the imagery of briers and thorns for sin. In our verses today, Isaiah’s pointing ahead to Jesus’ return when the dragon or serpent will be destroyed, and Jesus is going to either find a fruitful vineyard or thorns and briars that will be thrown on a burn pile. Jerusalem was surrounded by vineyards which represented blessings while briers and thorns often come up in Jesus' parables as signs of Satan's and evil men's work. Fire is often used as a description of judgment, and later in the New Testament as an image of hell. John the Baptist warns, “Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” Repentance leads to peace, flourishing, and new life. Repentance leads to growth and fruitfulness; it turns away God’s wrath and anger as we eagerly wait for Jesus’ return.

Repentance begins with confession, with being honest with yourself and God that you’re a sinner. Our tendency is to minimize our sins, think about Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and tax-collector praying. The Pharisee praises himself to God while the tax-collector humbly confesses he’s a sinner in need to God’s grace and forgiveness. We need to see that we all need a saviour as we journey to the manger, and as we wait for Jesus’ return. As we journey through the danger of serpents and thorns, we also hear John the Baptist’ warning that judgment’s coming. This is why confession needs to be paired with some hard work in our lives and hearts. Isaiah talks about fruitful vineyards, but those vineyards need constant weeding and feeding in order to grow healthy fruit. We’re called to do weeding in our own hearts, lives, and minds, called to repentance, confessing our sins, walking in obedience to the way of Jesus. The Holy Spirit helps us identify the weeds and thorns in our lives and hearts, will help us in the weeding; help us flourish and grow into fruitful followers of Jesus as we wait for his return.

If you wrestle with addiction or other struggles, you know that the strength of addiction or mental or emotional challenges can make you feel hopeless because no matter how much you want to change. It’s hard and you find yourself falling again and again. Know that God is a God of mercy and grace who brings people into our lives to walk with us, encourage us, find healing and hope, and to pick us up again. We talk about sanctification in the church, the life long journey to become more like Jesus, but it’s a life long journey filled with ups and downs and we’ll never reach full Christ-likeness in our life time, only when we reach heaven will we be fully renewed!

Paul shows us what the fruit of the Spirit, what a fruitful soul vineyard looks like in Galatians 5:22–25, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” A fruitful soul vineyard, filled with these virtues that reflect who God is, takes regular cultivating, weeding, and feeding. We feed this fruit through attention to the Spirit, to regular study of the scripture, time in prayer, and gathering together to encourage and build each other up in these virtues. We don’t do this in our own strength, we need to remember that the Lord is our keeper, that he provides what’s needed to grow and provide a harvest of righteousness and faithfulness, helping to prepare the way for his return.

How are you tending to your vineyard? Are you rooted in the promises of God, in Jesus and the power of the Spirit, and the community of believers?  

First Sunday of Advent - A Shoot from a Stump—A Sign of Hope - Isaiah 11:1–9, Psalm 72:1–7, 12–19, Luke 1:26–38

The church often turns to the prophet Isaiah in Advent. Isaiah comes just before the conquest of Judah by Babylon, a time of unrest, injustice where the rich are getting richer and more powerful, the poor, widows, and oppressed are ignored, and compassion is hard to find. Isaiah warns of God’s judgment against his own rebellious people, but also against the nations that defy God.

Psalm 72 is a prayer that reflects the desire of the people for a king whose reign will be shaped by justice and righteousness; the virtues of a faithful king, faithful to God and to his people. The Hebrew word ṣeḏeq, which is translated righteousness, probably comes from Arabic meaning ‘straightness.’ The basis of righteousness in the Old Testament is relationship, both between God and man, and between man and man. Righteous is about promoting the well-being and peace of the community. For the prophets, righteousness includes the idea of helping the poor and needy. In terms of the relationship between God and men, righteousness points toward a correct relationship to the will of God shaped by Israel’s covenant with God.

 Righteous action flows out of God’s election of Israel and according to his covenants. God is a righteous judge who acts for his people and whose righteousness his people depend on for deliverance and protection. Psalm 72 is praying for a righteous king, praying that God will send the promised Messiah king to bring freedom. In the time of Isaiah and the psalmist, God sees and hears the people that the rich and powerful fail to see, except as a means to grow their own power and wealth. For those looking for a righteous king, for a Messiah, there seems to be little hope to hang onto. But the prophets keep pointing the people back to God, reminding them that the weak and needy are precious to him; he hears their prayers for a king that will have God’s heart for them. The hope for God’s people is that a king will come from the line of David, son of Jesse. Isaiah’s looking ahead to a time when it will look like David’s family tree has been cut down with only a stump left.

Today it’s easy to be pessimistic about life and wonder, as Israel often did in the time of Isaiah, is there any reason to hold onto hope. Jesus still hasn’t returned and it’s hard for so many today. The gap between the wealthy and poor continues to grow larger, so many corporations have lost any sense of social responsibility and are focused on making the greatest profit they can for their share-holders, even if it’s on the back of the less fortunate. This week a new report came in that 25% of Canadians are suffering from food insecurity, meaning there’s a growing number of people going hungry, needing to access food banks to feed their families. More families are literally living from pay-cheque to pay-cheque, frightened of even one unexpected bill or sickness, while the very wealthy don’t seem to see or care. There are wars, rumours of war, the number of refugees in the world grows daily, and more and more countries want no part of welcoming them in. Persecution and oppression occur around the world and our brothers and sisters in the faith often suffer greatly for following Jesus. As the French writer Jean-Baptiste Karr said, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”

With defeat at the hands of the Babylonian empire coming close, Isaiah offers a burst of hope, “The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.” This shoot will do the two things everyone wants from their leaders: with righteousness he will lead with compassion and care for the least among us, and punish the wicked.

Isaiah’s a prophet of hope, pointing the people to the promises of God that he’ll send a Messiah; the Lord’s servant who will rescue them from both political and spiritual oppression. Isaiah points ahead to a shoot coming up from a stump; revealing that the seemingly dead stump’s roots are still filled with life, and a Branch will grow up and bear fruit again. This Messiah’s often referred to as the Lord’s servant, but unexpectedly, a suffering servant who will bring justice and rule in righteousness while experiencing injustice himself.

Isaiah points to a renewed creation where all of creation is at peace within itself. There’ll be no more survival of the fittest, but instead peace and flourishing for all creatures. Predators and prey will sleep side by side in safety, a beautiful picture of what justice and righteousness looks like in the kingdom of God; relationships of shalom with all the meaning of this Hebrew word where there will be peace within creation, flourishing among all people and with all creatures, where there’ll be building up rather than destruction, and the earth will know the Lord within a covenantal relationship of faithfulness. This image occurs repeatedly in Scripture: Ezekiel 34:25–27 ^“‘I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of savage beasts so that they may live in the wilderness and sleep in the forests in safety. I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing.  I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. The trees will yield their fruit and the ground will yield its crops; the people will be secure in their land. They will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them.”

The Bible closes with a picture of the renewed creation and the second advent when Jesus returns, Revelation 22:1–5 “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.”

Yet God’s people experience 400 years of silence after the return from exile. But hope wasn’t dead, just as it’s not dead today. An angel comes to a young virgin in Nazareth, a small town in a small country under foreign rule and tells the young girl Mary, “Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you.” Judah’s under Roman rule, things are hard, oppressors have come and gone. They were free for a time under the Maccabees, but that’s long gone. Messiahs have come and gone, usually making things even harder for the people. Herod’s built a beautiful temple, but he’s cruel and unjust, only in it for himself. Now an angel comes with amazing news for Mary, “You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. he will be great and will be called the Son of the Most-High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.” Her son will be born through the power of the Holy Spirit and Jesus, the holy one, will be called the “Son of God.”

With the coming of the shoot from the stump of Jesse, this Branch has begun to gather people around him from all nations. Paul writes in Ephesians 1:10, God’s plan is “to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.” In our world filled with failed flawed leaders, Jesus is returning to bring in a renewed kingdom of justice and righteousness under God, the king-child born of Mary, raised, and crucified in a small oppressed country, raised from the dead for our sin, and returning to deliver the needy, defend the oppressed, and hold the wicked to account for their actions for failing to care for the people. Jesus comes to transform hearts, to create a new people shaped in his image, and to call us to follow him as our Lord.

We’re the body of Christ, part of the already/not-yet kingdom of heaven, a sign of hope to the world. Until Jesus returns, we’re called to be shaped by his values of justice and righteousness, to answer as Mary does, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Righteousness and justice are personal, lived out in relationship with our neighbours. Where can we, as a church, as individuals, or families can be involved in acting justly, seeing and walking alongside the poor, the orphans, the widows, and foreigners among us, offering the hope of Christ, sharing the new life found in Jesus? Go, sharing the hope of Jesus with words and actions this week.