As we approach the close of the year, the chaos has still not declined: from climate, to economy, politics, immigration and of course the ongoing pandemic. The world and sadly so often our own lives seem to jump from one issue to another in an endless stream of ‘problems’.
Like the people in Isaiah’s day, our tendency is to find our own answers in the work we can do, standing by whatever is the latest ‘idol’ in thinking, politics or technology to ‘save’ us… but in the end they never can: as we heard on Sunday, the answer doesn’t lie in anything human beings can do for themselves. Whatever is the latest ‘ism’ it will only paper-over the cracks and never ultimately deal with the problems.
We were helped to see from Isaiah 42 that the real answer lies in a person: the LORD’s ‘Servant’ whom He sent:
Isaiah 42:1 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.
In fact what He promises the servant will do is to bring ‘justice’ to the nations: it’s described three times (vs 1, 3 & 4)! We can be sure that whatever the chaos, the LORD’s servant will put all wrongs right.
Of course, we now know that this is speaking of the Lord Jesus coming. Yet do we think of Christmas like that? He wasn’t just the baby in the manger or the Saviour who died and rose, but the Lord of eternity whose plans will one day prevail.
As the chaos continues, we can love and pray to and trust Him to do what He promised.
Spencer Shaw