The Promise of a Savior

The book of Isaiah is the Bible in miniature. It has 66 chapters corresponding to the 66 books of the Bible. The first 39 chapters have a tone of judgment, and the last 27 chapters, like the New Testament, emphasize grace and forgiveness. Something extraordinary happens in chapter 40 as the prophet introduces the savior in greater detail. The following twenty-seven chapters anticipate the coming of the savior. Isaiah says the savior is coming!

If anybody needed saving, it was the people of Judah who had been taken away from their homeland. They were far away from their God. They were like the debtor in debtor’s prison with no way to pay their debt. Isaiah said this to them: “...her sin has been paid for” (Isaiah 40:2).

Isaiah 39 predicted nearly 200 years before that Babylon would take the nation of Judah captive. That prophecy was fulfilled in 586 B.C. Thousands were killed when the Babylonians took Jerusalem, and many survivors were taken into exile hundreds of miles from their beloved homeland. The people of Judah were disappointed beyond description with how their lives turned out. They lost their country and struggled with their identity. Today, people continue to be disillusioned with their lives, careers, marriages, and what they have become. Isaiah knows that when human hope is wiped out, the only hope is hope in God.

When we look at our failures and say to the Lord, “I need you,”—He comes just like he came to Judah. He breaks through and brings comfort—the comfort of forgiveness. The kind of comfort we long for deep inside.

Isaiah says it’s the message that matters. A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare the way for the Lord” (Isaiah 40:3). This is a strange voice to us of the 21st century. We are not accustomed to accepting just a voice. We want a face, a name, a personality, but we don’t get any of those from Isaiah. What we get is just a voice that speaks a message.

Isaiah says he is a savior who transforms the landscape. “Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain” (Isa 40:4). Isaiah is not referring to changes in the physical landscape but the spiritual landscape. Isaiah is describing the lifting up of a depressed person. He is painting a picture of how Jesus levels out pompous people. He describes the miraculous change that happens to a man who has made a mountain of heartache with bad choices. The prophet is talking about the woman who has lost all hope and doesn’t want to live—but is lifted up by the savior. This prophesy is about a savior who changes people and transforms their lives. He was promised nearly a thousand years before Bethlehem, and he came. He came for you!

Controlling Anger

 We have one of the richest stories about controlling anger that comes to us from the story of David’s life. David and his 600 men were fugitives on the run from King Saul. During one period, his men protected the livestock of the shepherds of a rich man named Nabal. David sent men during the shearing time, which was like harvest time, to ask for a gift for his men. Nabal was reaping the benefits of having security for his flocks at no cost to himself from David’s men. At the same time, David and his men needed sustenance. David’s requested some kindness and generosity.

Nabal, a fool, was rich in possessions but nothing else. He was not rich in friendship, knowledge, or meaningful deeds. Nabal pretended that he did not know who David was. And asked why he should give his bread, water, and meat to someone he didn’t even know. However, his questions suggest that he knew very well who David was! He referred to him contemptuously as “the son of Jesse” (1 Sam 25:10-11).

David’s reaction was impulsive. He instructed his men to strap on their swords, and he vowed to kill every male in Nabal’s household (1 Sam 25:21-22). David was furious. Nabal had returned “evil” for the “good” David had done him. We are struck, however, by how David reacts to Nabal differently than he responded to Saul when he had the opportunity to kill him. David had learned to wait on God and refused to take his own vengeance. But now, his restraint is gone.

Abigail, Nabal’s wife, was informed of the foolish insults her husband had hurled at David’s messengers, and she immediately took action. She brought gifts and hurried to meet David. She asked David to ignore the fool—Nabal. She did not know his servants had come. She would not have sent them away empty-handed. She prayed that David would leave his enemies to God and let him deal with them. She reminded him of what he had recently done for Saul. Abigail connected the dots for David! She accepted the blame and asked David to forgive the offense so that his conscience would not be stained by the shedding of innocent blood. She asserted that she knew David would one day be king, and David must be a man who trusted God.

Abigail’s speech was as effective as God used her to speak to David. David backed away from his intent to harm and kill. He admitted that Abigail’s intervention had stopped him from committing bloodshed.

Anger is a learned reaction to frustration. It causes us to behave in public and in ways we will later regret. Severe anger is insanity, where we are temporarily insane. David was temporarily insane, but thanks to a rational and sane person, he was able to control his anger. Anger hurts those it aims at but destroys those who house the anger. May God give us more Abigails who have the common sense to speak to us in our moments of insanity.