Offering Yourself
Our first lesson today comes from third Isaiah. Remember that Isaiah was written by, at least, three different prophets. First Isaiah (chapters one to 39) was Isaiah’s prophecies given before the Babylonian captivity. Second Isaiah (chapters 40 to 55) written during the Babylonian captivity. Third Isaiah (chapters 56-66) was written after the people returned home to Jerusalem. Although it was with great joy that the people returned, things did not go well. Other people inhabited the land, Jerusalem was in shambles, and the rebuilding of the temple had stalled. The cause of this was that the economy was in shatters and could not support all that the Israelites wanted to do. You know all about that. We are experiencing the same issues with our economy. After shutting down much of the economy because of Covid-19 the recovery was quicker than expected causing shortages and supply chain problems which has brought about higher than normal inflation. (The whole picture is much more complicated than this. With the war in Ukraine complicating it even more.) But you get the idea of what the Israelites were experiencing.
The Israelites seemed to have responded to this crisis in two different ways. Some turned to God in prayer and devotion. Others rejected God and turned to idols and other gods, “sacrificing in gardens and burning incense on bricks.” But then, this is how it always has been. When things become difficult people usually respond in either of these two ways. Some rely upon God to give them strength and hope, others reject God outright. You know people in both categories; you have responded in both ways at different times. Do not get me wrong here. I am not saying that, if you truly believe life will be easy. There are plenty of people that will tell you that. All you have to do is turn on the television to hear that. The Bible is filled with stories of people who have answered God’s call and suffered. Paul is a good example of that. He left his comfortable life to answer God’s call: long travels on foot, accusations, floggings, imprisonment, even shipwrecks. Then there is Jesus, the model for our lives as the children of God.
While we may not have been healed from debilitating mental illness, as the man from the Gerasenes was, we have been set free from all that has held us in bondage. And, while we, like the healed man, would love to bask in Jesus’ glory, we are called to live as proclamation. We are called to proclaim Jesus to a world in great chaos who has rejected God for other idols. You do not have to have any special certification for you are already equipped with what you need – Jesus’ salvation and God’s love. So wherever you find yourself, in joy or sadness, in abundance or want, in sickness or health, you are able to show others how God has guided you through all that the world may bring.
You have been made whole and filled with God’s love so that you may share all that God has given you to a chaotic and lost world. Answer God’s call, proclaim Jesus. And be the help the world desires.