A Righteous People (Isaiah 60:21)

 


Saturday, 27 December, 2025


Psalm 140

Isaiah 60:12-22

Titus 2


Observance: John, apostle and evangelist


A Righteous People (Isaiah 60:21)


Your people shall all be righteous;
    they shall possess the land forever,
the branch of my planting, the work of my hands,
    that I might be glorified.


Welcome to Christmastide! No more do we have to bow our heads in poses suitably penitential for the season of Advent, but rather can lift up our spirits in rejoicing over the Son of God who has been given to us.


Something important to remember when we come out of these penitential seasons of Advent and Lent is to keep our courage. We have spent several weeks reflecting on the state of our soul and the righteousness of God. God has then blessed our prayers by working something in us that we can look at and thank him for. But just because the calendar has moved doesn’t mean we have magically become perfect people.


If we find ourselves having come out of this penitential season not quite as holy as we might have hoped, consider the promise of God in today’s sentence. He has promised that he will make us righteous, and he has connected that promise to his reasoning: that he might be glorified. God will be glorified – therefore he will make us righteous. It won’t happen straight away, but it will happen. The inner perfection we yearn for will be given to us, because Christ died for our sins and washed us in his blood. Keep courage – God is working his purpose out.


What did you hope for this Advent? How does reality match those expectations? What are the next steps God has planned for you?


God our righteousness, perfecting humanity in your Son, Jesus Christ, and bringing about that perfection through the work of your Holy Spirit: give us courage and patience to continue this journey you are leading us on.

 

Dear friends,

 

This will be the last update for a little while. When I originally began sending out these daily reflections, we were in the throes of COVID restrictions. Many of us were staying connected to the Church through online daily prayer services. However, none of them seemed to offer a reflection on the readings - and so The Narrow Path was born. Now we are in a new season, as I am also, as Priest-In-Charge of the Parish of Bramble Bay, which offers its own set of new opportunities for ministry. Thank you for your continued support, of your prayers, your engagement, and your kind words of encouragement throughout the years. It seems that I now have the opportunity to serve our Lord in a different way. I beg your patience as I work through what that will look like. 

 

Please pray for me.

 

All my love,

Father Ted. 

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