Prepare our hearts, O God,
to hear your Word
and obey your will.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Last week I was studying with Fredrick Dale Bruner in Michigan. One day we were studying Matthew 27 and Jesus on the cross. Bruner said we should always view the work of Jesus through a pair of glasses where one lens is Psalm 22 and the other lens is Isaiah 53. Do you understand the heart and hands of Jesus better as you read today’s passage?
There is so much hope throughout today’s reading. I love how Isaiah 55 handles the mystery of following God. Following God is the best path, but we don’t always understand what is happening. God says, “That’s right – you can’t. My thoughts are not even in the same category as your thoughts. Trust me.”
In 56:7 God says his house “will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” Remember that in Isaiah’s day Israel and Judah were being pounded by “all nations.” This is an earth-shaking promise! Judah may be one nation under God, but God is one God over all the nations.
Often during Lent we think about giving up things. What would Lent look like for a congregation that adopted Isaiah 58 for 40 days?
In Luke 4 Jesus reads from Isaiah 61 in the synagogue, rolled up the scroll, gave it back, and said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” Wow! What a sermon.
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