Waiting for the Bridegroom

If you were asked, “Which Bible passage was Jesus’ favorite?” you most likely had said Isaiah 61. This is the text from which he read when given the scroll in the synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4”18). While they are not a direct quote the Beatitudes of Jesus echo these verses of Isaiah (Luke 6:20-26, Matthew 5:1-12). This text also may have been a favorite among many Jews in Jesus’ day. It was written after the exile while the Jews were struggling to rebuild their lives, Jerusalem, and the temple after returning from 70 years of exile. Things were not going well. Work on the temple was stalled and the economy was in shambles. Then Trito-Isaiah proclaims that all will work out. In fact, they will become the place to be. Nations will come to them and foreigners will work for them. They will shine with the glory of their God.

I would suppose that Trito-Isaiah’s message was not greeted by all as a comfort in troubled times. Some probably scoffed at him. They may have questioned how that could be. All someone had to do is look around and see that prophecy was impossible. There are always those naysayers who criticize those who see opportunity in struggle and hope in disasters. Yet the prophecy came true. The Israelites rebuilt their lives and the temple in the promised land. That was until Alexander the Great, followed by the Romans. Like everyone else they succumbed to these foreign powers. They had to struggle through hard times when practicing their faith was tolerated and sometimes outlawed experiencing death and persecution for practicing their faith. In those times this text from Isaiah took on special and great meaning. God did deliver them from hard times and struggle after the Babylonian captivity, God will do it again.

That is where Jesus saw himself. He was the one to fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy for good. There certainly were naysayers who claimed that was impossible. One man could not bring about a new kingdom of Israel. It would take a large army. Yet they were looking for human solutions when Jesus was offering God’s. We too struggle. While we are not persecuted for our faith we find challenges to it every day. We also struggle to make sense of a world turned upside- down because of the Covid-19 virus. While governments try to decide how to save lives others complain about their rights. In a world where people think it is alright to send death threats because things did not go the way they wanted, we hear Jesus echoing Isaiah’s words. Words of comfort, but also words of action. We are called, as God’s people not to act out of selfish desires but in order to help others. We give of ourselves so that others may experience the love of God. 

During this Advent –  like no other Advent we can remember – look to your bridegroom for whom you wait. He, by his own example,  showed us how to live in the midst of adversity and struggle. Follow him. He who gave his life for others calls you to give of yourself so that your light will shine brightly before others and they will see Jesus and experience the peace that only God can give as they struggle in a troubling world.