Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out… to meet Ahaz… say to him: Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid…If you don’t stand firm in your Faith, you will not stand at all…The Virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and will call Him Immanuel…” Isaiah 7:3-17
Meditation:
Isaiah is one of the most influential and important prophets in the Bible. He lived about 700 years before Christ was born, during a tumultuous time for the kingdom of Judah. He is one of the few people that were able to foresee the future through a connection with God, predicting many of the most important outcomes that would occur centuries later. In these verses, Isaiah is talking with the newly appointed king of Judah, Ahaz, who is stuck between a rock and hard place with several armies coming to invade his kingdom. Likely in his 20s, Ahaz did not know what to do and sought council with the wiser Isaiah. In these verses, Isaiah has attempted to help Ahaz, offering him spiritual guidance, which Ahaz refuses. Ahaz was trying to think of a way to save himself at all costs, willing to make alliances with enemies in order to save his own skin. Isaiah wants to send Ahaz and the kingdom of Judah a message, and he makes his proclamation here to reassure the people of Judah of the covenant that their ancestors made with God. In hindsight, it may seem that Ahaz is a fool, but what would you have done differently? Ahaz did not know what would happen and he did not have a strong faith to rely on. Isaiah had built a strong foundation based on faith that he could depend on in difficult times. Like Isaiah, we need to strengthen our relationship with God so that when we see the armies of our enemies, of sin and temptation, we are strengthened by faith, with the knowledge that our God will not abandon us. Prayer: Heavenly Father, we ask that you strengthen our faith today and all days. We know that we have not always been strong, we have doubted, and we have sinned in your eyes, O Lord, and we thank you for being so merciful and patient. You have given us a chance, even a second chance, and we shall not waste it or be unfaithful to you. We want to thank you for giving us these chances, through your only begotten son Jesus, in His name we pray. Amen!
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