Isaiah,
Chapter 63, verse 17:
17 Why do you make
us wander, LORD, from your ways, and harden our hearts so that we do not fear
you? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage.
This chapter in Isaiah is called the Divine Warrior because Isaiah in this chapter refers to Christ as a warrior. Isaiah laments that we in our weak human
nature have turned our hearts away from God and that we have no fear of divine
justice. Have we become so enamored with
the world and our own lives that when we look into the heavens at night we only
see impressive specks of glittering rocks we call stars and not the love of the
creator which made them?
There is an expression, “Attitude is everything!”
and so what should our attitude be during advent and why is Isaiah lamenting
that Israel did not fear God? The answer
lies in our attitude toward life. Holy
fear is born out of love and is a response to the God our creator; it is a fear
more closely related to awe. It is the
loving fear of a child that does not want to disappoint a parent and goes to
great lengths to please them. During
this season of Advent we should develop this sense of Holy fear, doing what is right and
good to please the Father. Remembering
that, “Whether you eat or drink, whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31).
During this season of Advent let us daily
ask of our Lord to remove our hearts of stone and give us a hearts of love thus
making the winter brighter and our burdens lighter and thus bringing cheer to the
hearts of all we encounter. May we
through love be brought to Holy fear enabling us to be careful in the practice
of our faith and bring us to a spirit of penitence.
May we with the palmist say, “Lord, make us turn to you; let us see
your face and we shall be saved. (Psalm
80)
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