Wait for the Lord
This is the time of the year when there is more darkness than daylight. I am sure that you have noticed how that is the case by the evening commute. The morning one is not much better. It can be downright dreary at times and then you add in the clouds and rain like this past Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday and the color of the sky doesn’t get above grey.
Light is a positive thing. It has a way of making us feel better when we get some vitamin D from the sun’s rays and safer when we have a nightlight in the hallway. But we have to wait for longer days with more light.
And yet during this stretch before Christmas there is light. Each week the glow from the candles on the wreath gets brighter as we get closer to the 25th. That reminder brings joy and security. But that holiday is not here yet. It is still Advent.
And that is what Advent is about—waiting.
And not just a wait for great presents wrapped under an evergreen tree—real or fake, but for a Baby resting in an animal manger, true God and true man.
And it is not only a wait for grandparents arriving to stop by for a time to give presents, but a Judge appearing to set free for an eternity to grant paradise, all-knowing and almighty.
Yes, we wait. Wait for the Lord.
That is who the psalmist David draws our attention to—to the Lord, the One who is constant in his compassion and continual in his kindness (Ex 34:6,7). And then David pulls those things together—light and safety.
“The LORD is my light and my salvation” (Ps 27:1). Jesus was present at creation when God called out the command with his word: “Let there be light” (Ge 1:3). And there was. Light is the most basic element that provides and promotes life. The two go together. Where there is light there is life—bright blossoms and brilliant blooms on flowers. Jesus is the “light of the world” (Jn 8:12) who removes our darkness as his glory shines on us—right now on earth and forever in heaven (Is 60:2,20; Re 21:23). And he is life (Jn 11:25; 14:6).
Imagine the sight that first Christmas evening when the angel appeared to the shepherds with the good news of Jesus’ birth. And then the Bethlehem sky lit up with the huge number of heavenly hosts, praising God: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (Lk 2:14). And that is why we get excited during Advent. Jesus is our light. And he is our salvation. He comes to save us from our sins (Mt 1:21). Every time we mention the name “Jesus,” we mean “Savior.” We will again hear the messenger from heaven with a message from heaven: “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Lk 2:11). Wait for the Lord—your light and salvation.
“The LORD is the stronghold of my life” (Ps 27:1). He was a place of refuge for David, a source of protection. Wait for the Lord—the stronghold of your life.
David understood the importance of the Lord being his light and salvation and stronghold. He had his enemies.
From the outside. He was forced to go on the run as a young man when King Saul wanted to take his life and David hid in caves. And also as an older man as his son Absalom wanted to take his throne and David fled from Jerusalem. But the Lord protected him and preserved him.
From the inside. He battled his sinful nature. And often lost. We think of his sad lapse with Bathsheba.
And so he asks: “Whom shall I fear? … Of whom shall I be afraid?” (Ps 27:1). No one. Nobody. That is because the Lord was on his side—his light, his salvation, and his stronghold.
At Christmas we marvel at the miracle that Jesus became flesh (Jn 1:14). He is Emmanuel, “God with us” (Mt 1:23). God is for us. No one can be against us (Ro 8:31). There is no reason to be frightened like a child shudders when he hears a noise at night. There is no cause to shake in terror like when a person shivers from the cold. We can stand firm. “The LORD is my light and my salvation. … The LORD is the stronghold of my life” (Ps 27:1). No enemy can take that happiness, that help, and that shelter away from us—not sin, not death, not the devil.
If that were not entirely true, we would easily lose hope (Ps 27:13). But we are convinced that the Lord is good (Ps 106:1). It is so. He looks after us physically. He cares for us spiritually. Last week Thursday allowed us to review that in our lives. We respond by being grateful for the Lord’s enduring mercy—that he observed us in our lost condition and offered his Son to be our Substitute. Jesus carried our sin as he died on the cross and conquered death as he came out of the grave. We are convinced that it is so. And so Thanksgiving rolls into Advent and into Christmas. We appreciate Jesus who is coming to rescue us from our sin.
So David has us look for the Lord with the same eagerness as a child does as the presents pile up in the living room. “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD” (Ps 27:14). We wait because with the Lord there is forgiveness (Ps 130:4). Patience may not be easy—even more so during December, but waiting is an expression of faith like we know that lighter days are ahead. The Lord will act. He came one time. He will come a second time. Wait for the Lord.
We read from …
Psalm 27:1,13,14
1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? …
13 I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
November 30, 2016
No comments:
Post a Comment