Advent Reflection: Day 11

Wednesday,  December 8

Isaiah 35:3–7; Luke 7:18–30

Advent represents the time when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ during Christmas and prepare for Christ’s second coming. Our scriptures are Isaiah 35:3-7 and Luke 7:18-30. As we celebrate Advent, let us be reminded of the four themes: hope, peace, love, and joy.

In Isaiah chapter 35:3-7, God proclaims that He will convert the people of God from a wilderness to a garden, and that He would save His people from the oppressive nations. God promises punishment for the wicked and blessings for the righteous. God also heals the lame and the mute; He turns the parched ground into flowing water and He transforms land only suitable for wilderness animals into rich vegetation. God does all of this to show His people that they should trust in Him and not the nations.

How often has God had to remind you that He will deliver you from your troubles? No matter what you face, God’s love and His power will deliver you just as He delivered His people in Isaiah chapter 35. Today we face an ongoing pandemic, world violence, economic challenges, and social and racial unrest. We can either focus on our circumstances or place our hope in the God who made the lame leap like a deer, the mute speak and sing for joy, and the God who turned barren land into land flowing with water and green grass. Where is your hope today? Is it in God or your circumstances?

It is difficult not to get frustrated at times. It happens to all of us. John the Baptist even got frustrated as we see in Luke 7:18-30. He was puzzled because doubt entered his mind about Jesus while he was in prison. So John sent his disciples to ask Jesus the question, “Art thou he that should come? Or look we for another?” (Luke 7:19). John was an evangelist, called of God, looking for the Messiah, and he wanted to know if Jesus was the one. In Luke 7:22 Jesus answered John’s disciples with His deeds, then with His words. He wanted there to be no doubt in John’s mind that He was the Messiah.

“The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.”

Jesus realized that he was not moving at the pace that John wanted. So Jesus is asking John to trust Him. He is asking you and me the same thing. Even when we do not get the answers when we desire, our trust should always be that our Lord and Savior will deliver us. Whatever you are facing, remember the deliverance of God in Isaiah chapter 35 and Jesus’s miracles in Luke chapter 7. Doubts signify that our hope and trust are misplaced. There is nothing too big for our God. Our hope and trust should always rest in Him, no matter the circumstances.

Andrew Tobias
School of Divinity Student