Isaiah 7:10-14 (NIV)
Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz, “Ask the LORD your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the LORD to the test.”
Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
God was offering Ahaz the one thing that so many of us long for, the freedom of mind to confidently trust in the Lord. Yet Ahaz, who had already invested in another solution, disguised his distrust and his estrangement from God in words of artificial reverence. The disbelief of Ahaz, although it deeply grieved the Lord, did not have any effect on God’s plan – the Messiah would still be conceived of the Holy Spirit and born into our fractured circumstances. “The lamb was the secret of the universe. In the end, there was no other way to go. For the Lord did not become Lord when he was conceived in Mary’s womb. He was Lord before the foundations of the world. He is Lord even now. He will be Lord when this world is no more.” (Discipleship on the Edge (2004) Johnson pp 238 – 239)
And the peasant girl, the humble but chosen virgin, what a magnificent role model she is; for unlike Ahaz, this teenager embraced her opportunity to trust God.
Today the invitation is ours; God is inviting us to confidently trust Him. He is inviting us to cultivate times of prayer, worship and attentiveness to his presence, so that intimacy with God will replace our estrangement from God.
Psalm 28:7 The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
Wendy Perttula
Director of Curriculum and Learning