Lent

March 30, 2021

Scripture Reading:
Isaiah 42:1-9

Thus says God, the Lord,
   who created the heavens and stretched them out,
   who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
   and Spirit to those who walk in it:
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
   I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
   a light to the nations,
   to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
   from the prison those who sit in darkness.
I am the Lord, that is my name;
   my glory I give to no other,
   nor my praise to idols.
See, the former things have come to pass,
   and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth,
   I tell you of them. –Isaiah 42:5-9

I got stuck on the first phrase of this scripture when I read it. Writing without using pronouns for God is hard, but I believe it is essential and thus struggle through repetitious use of the word God with a capital “G” and the Lord, which often appears as Lord. I wondered what the difference was. Lord is defined as the proper name of the God of Israel*. The Hebrew word is Yhvh. God with the Capital “G” signifies the God of Israel. So, I suppose they are interchangeable. This little grammar lesson notwithstanding, I tend to think of Jesus with his title, Christ (Messiah), as being the Lord. I have no idea where I picked that up, but I rather like it even more now. God-with-us, coming to us in human form, fully human while fully divine, the Lord, puts us on a first-name basis with One who knows us thoroughly, much more than an intimate friend and loves us just as we are while guiding us toward reaching our full potential.

Isaiah says that this God, the Lord, the creator of all that is, gives us not only life and, when we chose to accept it, the Spirit. The Lord calls us to righteousness which includes being a light to the nations, opening the eyes of the blind, and restoring prisoners. We do not need to worship idols as we can address the Lord on a first-name basis.

Prayer:  Thank you, Lord, for coming to us in human form, making it easier for us to commune with you. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.