Article for December 10, 2023
2 Peter 3:13–14 13But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. 14Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.
Repent and know you are forgiven. Words we read but do we heed them? It is important to know that we are all sinners, but equally important to know we should live a life of constant r. We are sinners, so we will sin, but we are God’s children through His creation and marked by His baptism that we receive as a gift. So, we should always know that we have need to repent because of the gift of God’s forgiveness.
We wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. This time we wait to hear the heralding call to the arms of our Lord Jesus who will now take us to our real home. Our real home is that which appears under the new heavens and on the new earth whom our savior has been preparing for us.
In waiting for all of what our God has done for us, wait with no expectations. For the surprise will be astounding, the treasure will be better than any physical item you can think of, and the riches will be felt in God’s love for us. We will be well taken care of for we are God precious creation.
The old will perish and the new will exist in the stead of what was. Sickness, mourning, sadness, and sin will no longer exist. We will be made whole with the sight and strength of the young. We have much more to look forward to in the life to come than we have ever had in this life.
Isaiah 40:1–2 1Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.
If ever there was a statement that was relevant for today. Our sinful nature pours out on us time and time again. The world has learned nothing of the past and nothing of our God. Most of the world sees our sins as Christians that point their finger at others and think that we worship a punishing God. We Christians need to be in God’s word so that we can live a godly life instead of a goodly life. Goodly as in self-righteous.
Are we perfect, and has God’s first chosen been perfect? No to both questions, so the next question is do you want to be forgiven? Should we pray that God’s first chosen be forgiven. The answer to both these questions is a resounding yes! I don’t think that any race, color, or creed is better than another, and my hope is that all become believers of the one true God and are saved. May God help me to help other achieve belief through love of my neighbor and my enemy.
Isaiah 40:3–5 3A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
What better way to prepare a road for our God than to make the playing ground even. We make all things even when we realize we are all equal in the eyes of our Lord Jesus Christ as He died for all sin. As we are all sinners, we are all in need of a savior who is forgiving and offers us His grace and mercy.
God’s Son Jesus Christ is the glory of God because He died for God’s creation to save it from itself. Open our eyes O Lord and help us to see the glory of God who comes with His recompense and shouts to the ends of the earth for those He will save. May it be a sweet, sweet sound in our ears. God has spoken to us of His good news already and it is a sound we should hear over and over. Salvation comes to us through His Son our Lord Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 40:6–8 6A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. 7The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass. 8The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
We grow old in a world full of sin, our beauty fades and our breath cease to blow. Our life is like autumn and winter. We grow cold and move not again in this sinful world. But we will receive a new breath and blossom into a new beauty like the fresh scent of spring.
We will grow new limbs and walk upon new paths. Our summer will be everlasting with a cool breeze of the Holy Spirit. Life will be the beauty God meant it to be. We are God’s children, and God, He is our dear Father in heaven.
Isaiah 40:9 9Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
Hear the “Good News,” Jesus Christ is coming to be our savior and complete all His promises to those who follow Him. Hear the “Good News,” Jesus did not die in vain, but died that we would be forgiven. And now our forgiveness comes with salvation and our salvation is eternal life with our Lord as He truly lights the way to an everlasting relationship with our God, our creator.
Isaiah 40:10–11 10Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.
Amen, Amen, Amen
Written by Pastor Curtis A. May