The wells of salvation
(NIV) Isaiah 12:1 In that day you will say:
“I will praise you, LORD.
Although you were angry with me,
your anger has turned away
and you have comforted me.
2 Surely God is my salvation;
I will trust and not be afraid.
The LORD, the LORD himself, is my strength and my defense;
he has become my salvation.”
3 With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.
4 In that day you will say:
“Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name;
make known among the nations what he has done,
and proclaim that his name is exalted.
5 Sing to the LORD, for he has done glorious things;
let this be known to all the world.
6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion,
for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”
Have you ever lingered over this scripture? The word “salvation” is mentioned three times, “joy” twice, “praise” twice, and “sing” two times. My favorite line is, “3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” What a wonderful image! Doesn’t the joy of the Lord just bubble up in you when you read that? And if the well is God’s, then we can be sure there is a never-ending supply of salvation.
There is a distinct progression of thought and action as we read Isaiah’s words. Gods anger has given way to comfort and to salvation. We let others know what he has done, and we praise him with song.
Some believe salvation is a one time experience. For me, repenting of my sins and accepting Jesus was just the beginning. I am continually saved by His grace, and that relationship produces “joy unspeakable and full of glory.”
May we draw from the well of God’s salvation daily, not out of fear that we have lost that precious gift, but because the waters are life sustaining and life affirming.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Hoy Spirit. Amen.
The Shepherd’s Story
(KJV) Luke 2:8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace,
good will toward men.
15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
The third Sunday of Advent brings the lighting of the Shepherd’s candle. It is a pink candle representing joy—the joy of the angels as they sang the Gloria, the joy of the shepherds as they witnessed the most remarkable event the earth had ever seen, and the joy of Israel as she saw the comfort promised in Isaiah 40 coming to pass.
When I delivered the sermon on advent a few years ago, I took the liberty to write a short story about the shepherds. I cannot locate that particular piece so I will try to reconstruct it.
“The fields were busy as the shepherds watched their flocks. The sheep had been fed and watered, and now it was time for sleep. But before the shepherds could take their rest, the heavens erupted with a brilliant light, accompanied by an announcement of Christ’s birth. And the light gave way to praise, sweet praise.
Among the shepherds was a young boy. It was his first season in the fields and although tired and sleepy, he knew this was a night he would never forget. Jarred awake by the events of the night, he recognized this night would define his life.
And nothing would ever be the same.
The birth of the Christ Child did not occur in a palace, but in a stable. The announcement was not made to the rich and powerful, but to the poor and lowly. Joy to the world the Lord is come. There was a distinct shift taking place: some would embrace the change, others would reject it.
The young shepherd boy never forgot that night, nor did he ever travel far from those fields. And he never stopped sharing the news delivered by the angels. He was there when Jesus taught the Beatitudes and fed the 5000. He was present when Jesus was crucified, and he was part of the crowd present on the day of Pentecost.
It seemed only a short time, and the boy was an old man with grandchildren of his own. As the grandchild grew old enough to tend to the sheep, he and his grandfather spent many hours together. There is much to do when caring for sheep. They must be led to fields where the grass is plentiful. Otherwise they will stand in the same spot, eating until the field is bare. Because they are so timid, bubbling brooks frighten them, and they will drink from stagnant, muddy water unless the shepherds lead them away.
On this particular night, everything was quiet, so the grandfather began to talk. He related the events of that long ago night. He spoke of following this man called Jesus after his ministry became public, he told of miracles, of His death, burial and resurrection.
The grandson listened intently and when his grandfather finished they sat in silence. Finally, the grandson spoke. “Grandfather, that is the most wonderful story I have ever heard. But is it true? Did it really happen that way?”
“Yes, my child, it is true and it really happened that way.””
So as we light the Advent candle of joy, may we remember all of those throughout the ages who have received and embraced the joy only made possible through a personal relationship with Jesus. May we, like the shepherd in our story, remain faithful to share the gospel of Jesus Christ in word and in deed.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
The Fear of the Lord
(NIV) Prov 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11 For through wisdom your days will be many,
and years will be added to your life.
(NIV) Ps 34:4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
(NIV Deut 31:6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
I watched a sermon by Dr. David Jeremiah on fearing God. He posits that our country is in such bad shape because we no longer fear God. But doesn’t the Bible teach us not to fear because God is with us? Yes, but in that instance we are being told not to fear a situation such as going into battle, because God is with us, even going before us. But when people are in the presence of God, our natural response should be fear.
I believe two things have happened over the course of my lifetime;
- Parents stopped teaching their children to respect those in authority (teachers, police)
- Preachers stopped preaching about the fear of the Lord, and instead emphasized the love of God
So which is it? Should we fear God or should we love Him? The answer is we should do both. We fear God because of His awesome power. He created the universe, He took a small insignificant people called the Hebrews and made them His own. When Moses was confronted by the burning bush, He was afraid. When Isaiah was in the throne room of God, He was afraid. Yet God loved us so much he sacrificed His Son to save us from the penalty of sin.
I thought for years that man’s problem is that we no longer recognize sin, or even know that sin is breaking Gods laws, thus separating us from Him. So I preached about sin and the consequences of sinning against God. But I also preached God’s love, because God really did love the world so much that He gave His Son to redeem us and restore us to a right relationship with Him.
But let’s face it: Fear moderates our behavior. We do not get too close to the edge of a cliff for fear we will fall. We do not get too close to fire for fear we will get burned. And we do not sin against God for fear of punishment or separation. Could it be that fear and love are two sides of the same coin?
May we who are Christ followers never forget the awesome power of our God, and may we bow before Him in awe, lavishing in His presence.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Hope of Advent
(KJV) 8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace,
good will toward men.
15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
Oh, how I love the season of Advent. It is a time of preparation as we do things to remind us of our Savior’s birth AND look forward to our Lord’s return. We bring out our Nativity sets, some simply showing Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus, and others replete with sheep, cattle, camels, angels and shepherds and elaborate crèches. We put up Christmas trees, evergreen which represents the eternal life given by Jesus. We string the tree with lights because Jesus is the light of the world, and we top it with either a star or an angel.
When I was at Asbury UMC I wrote many poems, inspired by the love and genuine care of the people who attended there. I am including one of my Advent poems in this devotional, Advent at Asbury, and pray it is meaningful to all who read it.
Advent at Asbury
It is that time of year again
when celebration is the theme,
and the focus of our joy
is the coming of Christ the King.
We honor His first appearance
as a baby in a stall,
when He lived His life as one of us
so that He could fully redeem us all.
He fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecies
and became the lamb for sinners slain
so at Advent we celebrate not just his birth
but the time when He will come again.
Christmas is a season of hope and love
and we share it with family and friends,
Our Advent season at Asbury
is where our celebration begins.
The greens are hung in the Sanctuary
with the crowning achievement the Chrismon Tree
and we celebrate the meaning of Christ’s life on earth
with symbols precious to you and to me.
And when Christmas Eve finally arrives
we will enter His courts with praise
and we will continue to look forward to His return
when he captures His bride away.
But until that grand and glorious day
we will love Him and serve Him well,
and Asbury through His grace will continue to be
a beacon upon a hill.
May we, wherever we find ourselves this Advent season, be filled with the hope found only in Jesus, and may we share that hope with all we meet.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Blessing from the Lord
(KJV) Ps 24:1 The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof;
the world, and they that dwell therein.
2 For he hath founded it upon the seas,
and established it upon the floods.
3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD?
or who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart;
who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity,
nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD,
and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is the generation of them that seek him,
that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.
There is something about tradition that gives me peace, and my tradition includes reading only the King James translation for all of my young life and much of my early adulthood. In a world that is ever changing, I need the promises of God’s Word that are ever faithful, ever true, and the familiarity of the King James old English adds to my worship experience.
David is not talking about being ceremonially clean, but being clean from the inside out. Aren’t you thankful that the cleansing of our hearts does not rely on the works of man, but is solely dependent upon the grace of Jesus Christ?
The song “At Calvary” has been on my mind for days. “Mercy there was great and Grace was free, pardon there was multiplied for me, there my burdened soul found liberty, at Calvary.”
May we be strengthened by God’s Word and lifted up by His promises. As He has blessed us, may we bless others.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
