Rector’s Reflections
Monday 2nd December 2024
Keeping Advent with the Prophet Isaiah
Over the last few days, we have been looking at how the Book of the Prophet Isaiah can be a helpful companion for us as we keep the season of Advent. Isaiah’s message is above all a message of hope: God has promised to give us a future full of rich blessing, a future which will bring us the freedom, healing and peace which we yearn for. When Christians read the promises of future blessing found in Isaiah, they do so in the belief that the promises are fulfilled in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. From the Christian perspective, the Book of Isaiah points to Jesus; indeed, the Book of Isaiah has even been called “the Fifth Gospel”. And in recognition of this, some readings from the Book of Isaiah are usually included in a traditional carol service.
But Isaiah’s message also contains an element of challenge. It is tempting for us simply to focus on the joyful promise of the “good news”, a promise brought to fulfilment in the coming of Jesus. But there are other things we need to think about as well. Yes, there is a joyful side to the Advent season; but there is a serious side to it, as well, and Isaiah would not wish us to forget this.
To begin with, there’s the question of trusting God. Do we really put our trust in God, and in His promise of future blessing? It might be that we are prepared to trust God over things which are neither here nor there, but that is a different story when it comes to something which really matters to us. And if we are honest about our lack of trust in God, are we prepared for the possibility that God might provide us with a “sign” of some sort, which is intended to reassure us that we really can trust Him ? Such “signs” can come in all different shapes and sizes, and they need not be unexpected or miraculous in nature. The key thing is that they are “signs” which we can recognise as pointing to the reality of God’s power and care in our lives. But it can only function as a “sign” if we recognise it as such, or are at least open to the possibility that it might indeed be a “sign” from God.
And what if the “sign” from God is challenging us to change our mind? It can be so hard for us to change our minds, perhaps especially if we are in a leadership position. Political life often places a premium on consistency, and the general public seems to like a man or a woman “who knows where they are going”. We can easily dismiss a change of direction, in ourselves or in others, as a sign of weakness or indecision.
In chapter 7 of the Book of Isaiah, we learn of a King who was faced with a choice: should he keep to his existing decision, or allow for the possibility that God wanted him to take a different direction? His name was King Ahaz (c735 BCE to c715BCE), and the decision related to foreign affairs. Ahaz was faced with an invasion led by two neighbouring kings. He was worried, so he decided he would look for assistance from the Assyrians. The prophet Isaiah argued for a different policy, and challenged King Ahaz to ask for a “sign” from God, which would confirm Isaiah’s view of what God wanted in this situation. King Ahaz refused to ask for such a “sign” – he seems to have had already made up his mind. In reply, Isaiah said that God would send him a “sign” in any event: “Look, the young woman [or “virgin”] is with child and shall bear a son, and shall call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7, verse 14). The Hebrew name “Immanuel” means “God is with us”.
Much has been written down the years on the interpretation of this well-known passage. Although it records a conversation which happened back in the 8th century BCE, there has been a tradition among many Christians that its deeper meaning lay centuries in the future : in the birth of Jesus, the true Immanuel. This tradition goes back at least as far as the Gospel of Matthew: the “angel of the Lord appeared to [Joseph] in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his [people from their sins.” And all this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:” Look the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they name him Emmanuel”, which means,” God is with us”.” (Matthew 1, vv2-23)
Regardless of the subsequent interpretation of this passage, the prophet Isaiah was making a point: Ahaz might have indeed been King, in charge of important political decisions, but even a King needs to be open to the possibility that God might send him a “sign”. And even a King needs to be open to the possibility of a change of mind.
I wonder: is there some area of our own lives where God might be inviting us to change our minds? Or are we like King Ahaz, too stubborn and set in our ways to allow for the possibility of God at work in our lives?