January 22, 2025

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.” (Isaiah 47.10-11)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

Jesus is recorded saying “What does it profit a person to gain the whole world but forfeit their soul?” (Mark 8.36) From the gospel of Mark what we are hearing are the words which Peter preached from Jerusalem where he was sanctified to Rome where he was crucified. It was his desire when facing death to not be crucified as his Lord and Savior was. His request was granted. We know he was crucified upside down. Jesus bled out from His many wounds and essentially drowned in the pulse which collected in His lungs. Peter did not have such wounds. Instead, his blood filled his torso and rushed to his head. What excruciating pain he must have felt as his brain drowned being filled to bursting. As we remember Peter in his triumphs and failures, we could easily say he turned the world upside down. It was because of his faith, as Jesus said, that the foundation of the Church as emblematic of the Kingdom of God on earth was laid with confidence. This should be an inspiration to us all that in spite of our shortcomings and failures, God has a purpose for us in Jesus Christ. We, as mighty ones of God are called to be kingdom builders and world changers. He stood as the antithesis of “the man who gained the world but forfeited his soul.” Peter just wouldn’t stop believing even when he felt the shadow of shame for his betrayal of Jesus loom large. His shame caused him to hide as Jesus was crucified. Yet, he would be the first of the disciples to rush at the break of dawn on the first day of the week at the women’s report of Jesus not being in the tomb. His love for Jesus motivated him to “come and see” just as the shepherds thirty-three years were motivated by the angel’s declaration of “unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord” to come and see. It, too, was a moment that would turn the world upside down.

The prophesies given to Isaiah were indeed world changers. They were portents of events about to happen within the context of a century as well as the foreshadowing of “the end of the Age.” With great and grave certainty, Isaiah proclaimed to two nations the will of God. To Israel, God’s chosen people to establish the truth of righteousness among the peoples of the world, the word came for their redemption, reconciliation and restoration. Only by the grace and mercy of God could this happen as there was nothing they could do to effect such a change. To Babylon, God’s chosen people to execute His judgment upon Israel because of their unfaithfulness, there would be justice because they sought more for themselves than to be the servant of God. They had committed themselves to being “anti-God.” They were so blind that they could not even see “the writing on the wall” as in the days of Daniel which appeared to King Belshazzar. God was in the business of turning worlds upside down to get life right-side up. We can see in the imagery used how the situation was topsy-turvy. For Israel, the image was the unfaithful wife and bride of God. For Babylon, the image was an evil queen who called herself a god who had no equal. I believe it is especially important to see the “marriage” image being so distorted in the worldly realm. God suffers no disillusion. By that I mean, husband and wife do not stand side by side. It is the “woman” who rules and does so with a sense of godlessness and goodness. There is no harmony and the only unity which exists is that of control by any means and resources available. For Israel, it is “political and spiritual” adultery. For Babylon, it is “sorcery and vanity.” The end result cannot be ignored. Both will be brought down and punished for their arrogance and failure to obey God’s command.

Mighty ones of God, ae we listening? We are living in a world that is turned upside down. It is a world defiled by the loss of identity as to who we are and whose we are. The search for divinity to meet the needs of our humanity has become exponentially catastrophic. It has led to transposing the hierarchy of relationships and polluting the duties and responsibilities within those relationships. In the midst of a recent reading on the ministry of “apologetics,” defending the Word of God in answer to the questions of the world about it, a question came to mind that we might consider adding to our testimony. The question is this “Are you convinced that you want to live without God?” To illicit a dialogue of what the world would truly look like without God as creator, sustainer and savior is vitally important to turning the world right-side up from its accepted and acceptable upside-down mentality. To get people talking about why they have no need for God will allow their misunderstandings about God, faith and particular religions to be heard. If they are heard verbally instead of being considered “in their head,” then the opportunity for healing may open up. We are called to speak the truth of God and about God. We know that only this truth can set people free from the chaos and confusion which is being normalized. No amount of lies, window-dressing, make up and make over will suffice. As my dad said on occasion, “You can put a dress and lipstick on a pig but in the end, it will still be ham and bacon for breakfast.” Is that the end we are looking for, mighty ones of God? If not, then we need to get back into God’s word and begin to replicate it and the Kingdom it points to instead of adopting and accommodating the world with the hope that it will go well for us and them forever. The world will come to an end. The Kingdom of God will go on forever.

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more real than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness which we know is folly but righteous works which declare Your glory and further witness the truth that can set all who believe free from death. So may we live by the name of Jesus our Christ. AMEN.