December 13, 2020
by Henry Covert
Sunday, December 13
Isaiah 65:17-18
17 “For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever
in that which I create;
for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy,
and her people to be a gladness.
It is Christmas Eve. The lights are dimmed. Hearts are stirred by the carol, O Holy Night.
The thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees,
Oh, hear the angel voices
O night divine,
O night when Christ was born
O night divine,
O night, O night divine.
It is a beautiful, deeply emotional moment.
Yes, Christ was born. But here we are two thousand years later, and it is still a “weary world”. COVID, racial strife, political division, economic disruption, refugees. Each of these is serious. Together, they make life exhausting. Yes, Jesus came. But the world is still weary. Where is the “thrill of hope” today?
Consider these words from Isaiah 65:17:
For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
Even in more “normal times,” we know that things are not right, not the way they should be. So, the birth of Jesus did not fix a broken world, not completely. But it did fix the most pressing problem of life, namely death. Jesus’s birth, saving death on a cross, and resurrection means eternal life is available to those who believe in him.
And now, according to Isaiah, a day is coming when all that is broken, old, and weary will be made new, fresh, and alive. Indeed, so thorough will be the remaking of the creation that there will be no memory of the way things were before.
Theologians call this the Christian “hope.” A better term would be Christian certainty. At the end of time, when Jesus returns, “the former things” such as pain, suffering, sorrow, and death will be replaced by eternal joy.
Pretty thrilling, don’t you think?
Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen.
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