Isaiah 52

Scars

Posted on by Betsy

 Many of you know that my daughter is a cancer survivor. She was diagnosed when she was a junior in college and like many cancer patients, she had a series of surgeries as part of her treatment. Each one left a scar, and surely there are emotional and spiritual scars that went along with the physical ones. We were vacationing together a few years after it was over, and we noticed a young man on the beach with large scars on his neck running up the back of his head. As we speculated about the cause, she leaned over to me and said, “You know, Mom, scars are like tattoos. They just tell better stories.”

Scars that brought healing indeed do tell of hope and redemption. The stories they tell of survival, triumph, and victory become a badge of honor to the wearer.

In our passage in Isaiah today, we read about the future Messiah’s scars. His will be so deep that he will appear disfigured and even somewhat inhuman. Yet while his appearance will be unlike any other human, it will astonish and silence everyone. His scars will tell a much, much better story.

Isaiah 52:13-15

Look, my servant will succeed.
    He will be exalted and lifted very high.
14 Just as many were appalled by you,
    he too appeared disfigured, inhuman,
    his appearance unlike that of mortals.
15 But he will astonish many nations.
    Kings will be silenced because of him,
    because they will see what they haven’t seen before;
    what they haven’t heard before, they will ponder.

As I read that today, it made me wince. I was taken back in time to the severe beating that Jesus endured on our behalf before they forcibly nailed his broken bones to a rough wooden cross. I saw a picture of our lovely savior so damaged that his disciples might have had to look twice to pick him out from among the three who hung there that day. I grieve my sins that put him there.

But Isaiah didn’t just put him there and leave him in this passage. Indeed, he began with the bold promise that this suffering servant would not only succeed but would be exalted and lifted very high. When Jesus ascended back to his Father, the story was complete and the good news was delivered once and for all. This is why our crosses in United Methodist churches are empty. Our broken, battered Lord is no longer there, but was made whole and beautiful again in his resurrection.

What scars do you bear that can help you tell your story of hope and redemption to others? Did Jesus come into your life to lift you up and make you whole again? We have an opportunity to be wounded healers if we are willing to share our stories with others so that they might find him, too.

Our sins may have put Christ on the cross, but they didn’t keep him there. Because of the resurrection, we all are invited to participate in the greatest story ever told. Do you believe that? Do you believe in the resurrection?

If you do, go and tell. By his wounds we all will be healed.

Exalted by Michelle Robertson

New Things Spring

Posted on by Betsy

Spring has finally sprung on the Outer Banks. March came in like a lion and went out like a lion. We were still being treated to overnight freeze watches just a few weeks ago. But the presence of daffodils, osprey, and Canadian Geese traveling in pairs is a sure sign that a new season has begun and the cold grey skies are behind us at last.

The grey skies of Lent end this week as well. Today marks the first day of Holy Week as we accelerate toward Easter Sunday. I hope this Lent has brought about new things in your life, especially a practice of daily scripture study and meditation. Lenten disciplines are designed to bring about new things: new habits, new understandings, new growth, and a new relationship with God. It is my prayer that we would observe Lent all year long, always seeking to know God more fully as we continue in our devotions together.

Today we look at the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, who wrote beautiful words of hope during a time when Israel needed a deliverer. When we read his words through the lens of the Gospel, it is easy to find Jesus here:

Isaiah 42 (New International Version)

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
    my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
    and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout or cry out,
    or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he will not break,
    and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
4     he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
    In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

This certainly fits our Lord to a t. He carries God’s spirit and brings justice to the earth. When he comes again, he will reign in that justice. He was bruised for our transgressions and remained silent at his trial before Pilate. They attempted to snuff out his fire but he smoldered for three days until he flamed again. He was chosen by God to bring salvation to the world.

5 This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out,
    who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it,
    who gives breath to its people,
    and life to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
    I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
    to be a covenant for the people
    and a light for the Gentiles,
7 to open eyes that are blind,
    to free captives from prison
    and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

God sent his only son to offer a covenant to all people, including the Gentiles. Indeed, Jesus came to save EVERYONE . He came to give sight to the blind and to release us all from our chains. When he arose from the dead on Easter morning, the final chain of death was snapped. We are invited to participate in his resurrection by simply believing in his name.

8 “I am the Lord; that is my name!
    I will not yield my glory to another
    or my praise to idols.
9 See, the former things have taken place,
    and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
    I announce them to you.”

A lot of our journey toward the cross this year has focused on leaving the past in the past and striving toward the new thing God is creating. Is God calling you to let go of something in your past? Do you need to be released? Can you see the bright future he has created for you once you do?

God is declaring a NEW thing for you today. The former things have passed away! It is time to move ahead.

New Day Sunshine by Michelle Robertson

How Beautiful

Posted on by Betsy

Last week I had the extraordinary opportunity to film a children’s sermon in a sheep pasture, surrounded by live sheep. This is a first for ya girl. It was a beautiful and startling experience. The plan was for me to sit on a chair in the middle of the open field and read a little story that I had written about Jesus’ birth as told from the perspective of the animals at the manger.

Cue the sheep!

So the kind sheep handler positioned the flock just off camera and was ready to spread out their feed around my chair. The idea was that when the camera rolled, they would be surrounding me as I read, peacefully eating at my feet. It almost went like that. Almost.

The sheep were apparently excited by my reading, which of course included a perspective from one of their own…a sheep named Shirley…who, it turned out, speaks with a British accent for some reason. Or maybe it was the snack being strewn about. In any case, when the camera rolled and the feed was distributed, they charged hard…so hard that my camera girl almost got sideswiped. And then as soon as the snack was gone, so were the sheep. I was alone in the pasture. Two of them eventually returned to give me the side-eye, but that was it.

When I returned home, my dog went nuts. Apparently the sheep residue that I brought in on my shoes was quite the treat for her overactive nose. How beautiful are the feet that announce the good news of the sheep pasture!

In our passage today, the prophet Isaiah raises up the beauty of the messengers who bring good news. The Messiah is coming! Lift up your voices and sing:

Isaiah 52 (New Revised Standard Version)

How beautiful upon the mountains
    are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
    who announces salvation,
    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”

8 Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
    together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
    the return of the Lord to Zion.
9 Break forth together into singing,
    you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
    he has redeemed Jerusalem.

Jesus came to redeem his people….ALL his people. With the birth of the Messiah, the entire world saw the salvation of God in one holy birth. The message of peace that Jesus brought is a message of hope for the world, and that message is as beautiful today as it was the very first time when cows, donkeys, and fleeting sheep heard it in a little town called Bethlehem.

10 The Lord has bared his holy arm
    before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
    the salvation of our God.

And the glory of the Lord was revealed! So go and share the good news….your God reigns.

My Girl Shirl Photo by Island Farm