Our Worship
Let us begin with worship for our Lord again today. Our Lord will change circumstances for the better, He will use our tears to water a future harvest. Let’s praise Him today in advance of the victory.
Psalm 126:4-6 Common English Version (CEB)
4 Lord, change our circumstances for the better,
like dry streams in the desert waste!
5 Let those who plant with tears
reap the harvest with joyful shouts.
6 Let those who go out,
crying and carrying their seed,
come home with joyful shouts,
carrying bales of grain!
Our Longings
- When you consider your deepest longing you have identified these last two weeks, if this longing is fulfilled, how will it bring God’s Kingdom?
- What are the things you do that block or deny this longing from being fulfilled?
We’ll keep these two questions in mind as we journey through this third week. Return to them often and listen for God’s voice.
Scripture
Isaiah 61:9, Matthew 11:2-6, Psalm 126:4-6 Common English Bible (CEB)
9 Their offspring will be known among the nations,
and their descendants among the peoples.
All who see them will recognize
that they are a people blessed by the Lord.Question from John the Baptist
2 Now when John heard in prison about the things the Christ was doing, he sent word by his disciples to Jesus, asking, 3 “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
4 Jesus responded, “Go, report to John what you hear and see. 5 Those who were blind are able to see. Those who were crippled are walking. People with skin diseases are cleansed. Those who were deaf now hear. Those who were dead are raised up. The poor have good news proclaimed to them.[a] 6 Happy are those who don’t stumble and fall because of me.”
4 Lord, change our circumstances for the better,
like dry streams in the desert waste!
5 Let those who plant with tears
reap the harvest with joyful shouts.
6 Let those who go out,
crying and carrying their seed,
come home with joyful shouts,
carrying bales of grain!
Our Meditation
How will we recognize Him when He comes?
Through Isaiah, we receive a promise that all who see God’s people will recognize they are blessed by God. They will recognize. They’ll be able to see.
I know this recognition has been one of the cries of my heart as I get in touch with what I’m personally longing for over this Advent season. I want to not only see that God exists, I want to see evidence of His existence.
John the Baptist felt the same way. From prison, he asks Jesus, “Are you this coming King?”
We won’t recognize Him until we know what to look for
A few years ago, I found myself sleepily enduring an 8-hour traffic school class – the kind you sit through to avoid paying a speeding ticket…the kind that ALWAYS occur on the most beautiful day of the year.
Through my foggy sleepiness, I remember the instructor talking about the dangers of being a motorcyclist in city traffic. He said if a car and a motorcycle meet at an intersection, the driver of the car can come to a full, textbook stop, look directly at the motorcyclist with the right of way, and then proceed to run right over him.
It seems, he said, our brains are conditioned to look for cars. The motorcycle doesn’t even register.
John the Baptist was perhaps looking for a conquering hero to free his people from the rule of the oppressive Romans. He wasn’t looking for Jesus
But Jesus tells him – and us – where to look
Jesus won?t be found amassing an army. He won’t be found stockpiling supplies.
Jesus says look at the blind who can see. Look who is walking and has been healed!
And then He says, you’ll be happy if you get what I’m doing here. You’ll be happy if you see who I really am. If you want me to be something I’m not, you’ll miss what’s happening and you’ll step off the narrow path of happiness.
Jesus is coming as a Rescuer and Forgiver.
He’s fulfilling the echoes we find in the ancient text of Psalm 126. He’s coming for those who are weeping, who know their need is for a Savior.
He’s coming for those who know they are blind.
- It seems Jesus connects our happiness to how we see Him. In what ways have you been imagining Jesus in a way that may not reflect who He is?
- Why do you think He connects seeing who He is with your personal happiness?
Intercession
Pray for someone you know today who needs Jesus to come to them as a Savior.
A Closing Prayer
Lord God,
I confess I often see you in terms of my biggest needs. If I’m in financial trouble, I see you more as rich uncle than a comforting presence; and I often want the former more than the latter. If I’m angry at someone, I see you as a judge and jury instead of a reconciler and forgiver; and I confess I often want the former more than the latter. Lord, help me to truly see you. Lord, help me to see you are exactly what I need. Help me to surrender to that, Lord.
Amen.
- This evening, continue again to worship through Psalm 80:3 as a personal prayer. Return to this often over this Advent season.
- As you begin your day tomorrow, re-read these passages of scripture and ask God to help you see Him as He really is.
Scriptures from Our Advent Series
Texts for First Advent Week:?Isaiah 64:1-9; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-37; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18
Texts for Second Advent Week: Isaiah 40:1-11; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13; Mark 1:1-8
Texts for Third Advent Week: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126; Luke 1:46b-55; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8, 19-28
