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December 10, 2019

God’s Coming Kingdom

Tony Campolo   |   Read Isaiah 35:1-10

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Lectionary Week
December 9–15, 2019
Scripture Overview

Isaiah anticipates a future time of total restoration. The desert will bloom, the blind will see, the lame will walk, and the people will return to Jerusalem with joy. Since ancient times, some have understood this as a description of the age of the Messiah. Luke records the song of Mary. After Elizabeth blesses her and her unborn child, Mary praises God for God’s strength, mercy, and generosity. In the epistle, James encourages his audience to be patient as they await the second coming of the Lord. In the same way, we wait for the birth of the Messiah during Advent. An uncertain John the Baptist sends a message to Jesus to ask if he is the promised Messiah. Jesus responds by affirming that he fulfills the messianic expectations in the prophets.

Questions and Suggestions for Reflection

Read Isaiah 35:1-10. When has scripture strengthened you through personal or societal crises?
Read Luke 1:47-55. Those with power interpret scripture differently than those who are oppressed. How can you make room for perspectives other than your own as you interpret scripture?
Read James 5:7-10. When have you had to endure frustration with patience? How have you been strengthened by these experiences?
Read Matthew 11:2-11. What does it mean to you to be greater than John the Baptist?

Respond by posting a prayer .

Isaiah 35:1-10

1 The desert and the dry land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom like the crocus. 2 They will burst into bloom, and rejoice with joy and singing. They will receive the glory of Lebanon, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the LORD’s glory, the splendor of our God. 3 Strengthen the weak hands, and support the unsteady knees. 4 Say to those who are panicking: “Be strong! Don’t fear! Here’s your God, coming with vengeance; with divine retribution God will come to save you.” 5 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be cleared. 6 Then the lame will leap like the deer, and the tongue of the speechless will sing. Waters will spring up in the desert, and streams in the wilderness. 7 The burning sand will become a pool, and the thirsty ground, fountains of water. The jackals’ habitat, a pasture; grass will become reeds and rushes. 8 A highway will be there. It will be called The Holy Way. The unclean won’t travel on it, but it will be for those walking on that way. Even fools won’t get lost on it; 9 no lion will be there, and no predator will go up on it. None of these will be there; only the redeemed will walk on it. 10 The LORD’s ransomed ones will return and enter Zion with singing, with everlasting joy upon their heads. Happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and groaning will flee away.

Unless otherwise indicated, scripture quotations are from the Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible. Used by permission.

If I believed, as some social scientists do, that people are nothing more than what their past experiences have conditioned them to be, I would have to give up on efforts to get my social work students at Eastern University to commit to trying to change people. If societal influences...

God, make us hopefully aware that whatever pain and troubles mark the present, you will lead us into a glorious future that we work together to create. Amen.


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