Wednesday, September 21, 2016

EmmDev 2016-09-21 [Treasure in Clay Pots (2Cor)] Prophecy fulfilled!!!

Prophecy fulfilled!!!

For he says,
"In the time of my favour I heard you,
and in the day of salvation I helped you."
I tell you, now is the time of God's favour, now is the day of salvation.      (2Corinthians6:2)
Paul is quoting the prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 49:8-9 This is what the LORD says:
"In the time of my favour I will answer you,
and in the day of salvation I will help you;
I will keep you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people,
to restore the land
and to reassign its desolate inheritances,
9 to say to the captives, 'Come out,'
and to those in darkness, 'Be free!'

What Isaiah longed for is now a reality!
Paul, when quoting this promise, now puts it in the past tense.

When Jesus announced the Kingdom come, He was pronouncing the 'time of God's favour'. When He healed the sick, set the demon-possessed free and paid for our sin on the cross, Jesus brought the 'day of salvation' and He was 'reassigning our desolate inheritance!'
He was calling the captives out of captivity.
He was inviting those in darkness to be free.

We are the blessed and fortunate ones.
We don't have to wait in hope of God's favour - we have seen what God's favour looks like. And God's favour is encapsulated in one word, one idea, one action:
That word is JESUS.

He is God's love made visible.
He is the paid-in-full of sin's ransom.
He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

(Do I hear an AMEN?)