On what are you basing this confidence of yours?

 

Saturday, November 18, 2023


Psalms 41; 44:1-9

2 Kings 18:17-37

Matthew 24:15-31


On what are you basing this confidence of yours?


The mighty armies of Assyria march relentlessly across the country. No gods of any nation can stand against them. False idols made of steel and wood are no match for an angry man wielding weapons of steel and wood.


Look at the idols who have fallen before the Assyrians: where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah? Those who trusted in them have become like them: deaf, dumb, lifeless.


The hubris of man looks at all these fallen idols, the dead political systems, the antiquated cultural practices, the outdated scientific conclusions, and asks “How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem?”


This hubris, this arrogance, looks at the peoples of the world, looks down at the sword grasped in the hand, and looks up again. “Force is violence. The supreme authority from which all other authorities are derived.” This is the voice of the Enemy, the ancient deceiver, the traitor of heaven who would drag the entire universe down with him.


But we have something greater. We have an empty tomb. All the power of the Enemy was summoned against the Lord during His incarnation. When Jesus was nailed to the cross, the Enemy thought he had won. But there is a power greater than force, and that is the love of God. The death that Jesus died was not at the hands of the Enemy, but of Himself. Jesus gave Himself on the cross; He was not forced there. Willingly giving Himself as a sacrificial offering for our sins, His death meant life for us. We know that this is true because on the third day, the tomb was empty.


The Christian has all the confidence of heaven and earth. We have the confidence of the cross and empty tomb. We have the confidence of the Lord, the lion and the lamb. The king of Assyria may misinterpret Biblical prophecy till his face goes blue, but it will never change the fact that it is by God’s hand that we win the victory. In God we place our confidence and make our boast all day long, and we will praise His name forever.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Monday, September 12, 2022

  Monday, September 12, 2022 Psalm 33 Habakkuk 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:1-14 In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. The lectionary has taken us from the beloved disciple to one of the most beloved of Paul's epistles: Ephesians. Paul must have loved this church very much: we get a sense of his fondness for them and their shared sense of purpose and worship just from the introduction. In what is likely just an introduction to a letter in the style of the ancient Roman world, Paul has managed to squeeze in the entire, wondrous story of God's work of redemption. Paul has framed it the way it ought to be framed: in a pastoral, encouraging tone. He has three main points here (remember, Paul proceeds logically to build up an argument, unlike John who circles around his main point). First: God intended to save us before the world was formed. Think back to the first l
Read more

“Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.”

  Monday, September 11, 2023 Psalms 28; 29 1 Kings 7:51-8:21 Acts 26:19-32 Observance: Deiniol, bishop (d. 384) “ Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.” The great many blessings of being under the protection of the blood of the Lamb fill our hearts with joy and peace. To have the Almighty Creator of the universe, the One who sits above the flood, filling the temple of our being with the cloud of His presence is what it truly means to be human. Every day is filled with adventure; every night turns to the rest of the victor. Certainly there are chains: sometimes they are physical chains, the suffering of being a Christian among people who do not love the Lord. Sometimes they are spiritual; the attacks of the powers of the air who try to distract us from the One we love. But they always fall away. Our Rock of Ages always frees us; always brings us out of the pit of despair. A won
Read more

Monday, September 19

  Monday, September 19 Psalm 45 Nahum 1:15-2:9 Ephesians 4:17-28 ...be renewed in the spirit of your minds... It is far too easy to read some of these Pauline lists of virtues and vices and feel like we have gone back to the dark days before the Reformation. The idea that if we behave ourselves then we can call ourselves “good people” is pagan, not Christian. Paul feels very strongly about how Christians behave, he “affirms and insists” upon it. But it is because of what has already happened that we should mind our step, not because of where we are going. Christ's resurrection is many things, but one aspect relevant for Paul's teaching this morning is that it demonstrates to us the radical new reality in which we now live. We too have passed (spiritually) from death to life; therefore, we experience a “renewal of our minds”. Instead of treading water until we die, we live lives. Everything now makes sense: God has spoken, so we have logic. God made us in His im
Read more