Advent

December 5, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Isaiah 7:10-16

Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying, Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test. Then Isaiah said: ‘Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey by the time he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted.

Moses tells us–Jesus tells us–that we must not put God to the test. To test God means much more than trying to get Him to do a miracle; to test God is to insist that He prove that He is trustworthy. To test God is to look at today’s difficulties and say, “A loving God would never let me suffer in this way*.

Isaiah above is saying the Lord told Ahaz to ask a sign of the Lord your God. I am a fan of Gideon, who could not believe God was sending him to lead a battle in which he had no experience.  So, he asked for a sign and got one, then repeated the request just to be sure, and he got that one too. There is a difference between questioning whether God is trustworthy and questioning one’s own ability to carry out what God is calling us to accomplish. Any time we sense a call to do something beyond what we think is our ability, we will no doubt struggle with doubt about ourselves. My hope, faith, and love are that we can go to God with anything when we are sincere. God will hear our fear and grant us the assurance that he gave in Matthew 19:26:

But Jesus looked at them and said, ‘For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible.’

Prayer: Lord, as we struggle to build your Beloved Community and we sometimes wonder if what seems impossible is possible, send the Spirit to shore up our strength and courage to answer your call, to remind us that we are never alone. Amen.

*See at https://gutenberg.edu/2001/02/testing-god/#:~:text=Moses%20tells%20us%E2%80%93Jesus%20tells,me%20suffer%20in%20this%20way.

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.