9 You who bring good tidings to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem,
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
"Here is your God!"
10 See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
and his arm rules for him.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young. Isaiah40:9-11
The message is Good News.
But it is easy to get confused:
- In Isaiah's context they may have thought the return from exile was Good News.
- In our context we may think that the forgiveness of sin and life everlasting is the Good News.
But return from exile and forgiveness of sin are simply the benefits the accompany the _real_ Good News.
The _real_ Good News is God News.
Isaiah puts it like this: `Say to the towns of Judah: "Here is your God!" '
Imagine a throwing a rock into a pond. The Good News about God is the Rock. The ripples radiating outward are forgiveness, deliverance, return from exile and all the other good things God gives.
But the Rock causing the ripples is the character and nature of God.
Isaiah describes Him by reconciling two "opposite" sides of His being and nature. One one side, Sovereign Justice, on the other, Pastoral Shepherding. This God we worship is both...
-Righteous and Rescuing,
-Powerful yet Personal,
-Just yet Justifying,
-Sovereign and Saving.
Judge and Shepherd. Ruling yet Rescuing.
What incredible balance and completeness.
Righteous so that we can trust Him completely.
Gracious and Endlessly Loving to rescue us.
"Here is your God!!!" - It's very Good News
---
--------------------------
Theo Groeneveld theo@emmanuel.org.za
You can see past EmmDevs at http://emmdev.blogspot.com/
