Isaiah 43:1-7, Luke 3:15-17,21-22

Isaiah 43:1-7

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

“Are You Listening To God?”

January 10, 2010

Baptism of the Lord

Communion

What joyful — wonderful – promised filled — and appropriate – passages we have before us today!

These are joyful passages that proclaim God’s love and promise to God’s people.

Isaiah proclaims God’s love and promise of a brighter future for a people in captivity far away from their homeland who probably saw very little reason to rejoice and hope for the future –  and Luke declares God’s love for Jesus – God’s Son – the hope and joy of the world – as He is being baptized and beginning His ministry.

Joyful – wonderful – promise filled passages indeed!

And appropriate.

What do these passages have in common?

In both passages God is speaking God’s word to God’s people – and God’s word is a word of love and hope and promise. .

In our OT passage Isaiah is writing to the Israelites who were in captivity in Babylon – and maybe wondering if God still cared for them.

Can you imagine what it must have been like for them?

Over 60 years in captivity in a land that was not the land God had promised to their ancestors.  Many of them had never seen Jerusalem – and the stories of the beautiful land and the beautiful temple – and maybe even the stories of God and His love and care and freeing past captives – may have seemed like fairy tales to them.

Where was God now?

Why wasn’t God freeing them?

They may have felt that God had abandoned them – and their future was nothing more than serving their Babylonian masters.

And then – Isaiah brings a word from God.

God speaks – and God’s word to them is:

rejoice – have courage – God is going to save you – God will bring you back to Jerusalem and the land He promised your ancestors.

Fear not  – God says

Why?

Because God is going to do something new!

God is going to gather your people – and bring you back to Jerusalem

God will gather your people —

“from the east and west – north and south”

God will do something!

You have reason to rejoice – and your  future will be glorious – if you will listen to God!

Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann writes that this passage is one of the greatest examples in the Old Testament of God’s gracious choice of God’s people – what we call the Doctrine of Election — writing that —

“A tiny, miserable and insignificant band of uprooted men and women are assured that they – precisely they! – are the people to whom God has turned in love; they, just as they are, are dear and precious in his sight”

Regardless of how things may have looked to them in the present – regardless of their present condition – Isaiah brings God’s word to them — and that word was that He loved them – had a great future planned for them – and that He wanted them to look to His future – listen to His plan for them — and trust Him.

God wanted them to listen to His plan for their future – and follow it.

Isaiah proclaims that God has a plan for His people – and He wants them to listen to His plan – and follow it!

Amazing when you think of it – is it not?

To these captives – these “tiny, miserable, and uprooted men and women” — God spoke words of hope and words of encouragement – and told them to not worry so much about their present situation – but to listen to His plan for their future – and to follow Him!

To these captives — these “tiny, miserable, and uprooted men and women” — God spoke – and called them to listen.

And – you know what?

God’s word came true.

God’s vision for the future for these people became reality!

God was speaking to them – and they needed to listen!

So – let’s fast-forward some 500 years or so.

In our passage from Luke the people have returned to Jerusalem and the rest of the land of promise – just as God said they would —  and now John the Baptist is preaching and baptizing and telling the people that salvation is near – and Jesus – God’s Son – the one who will bring salvation — comes to him and is baptized.

And what happens?

We see the rare occurrence of the Trinity – God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – all acting at the same time.

God the Son is baptized and begins His ministry.

God the Sprit comes in the form of a dove to confirm and bless what God the Son is doing

And God the Father speaks.

Jesus begins His ministry – and the Father speaks words of love and encouragement

“you are my Son, whom I love.  With you I am well pleased.”

Can you imagine how that experience must have been for Jesus?

It must have confirmed for Him that He was God’s Son – loved by God –and called to do God’s work and saving will in the world.

Jesus heard God’s voice – and went into the future God had planned for Him.

Another wonderful – joyful – and promised filled passage.

Yea – these are 2 joyful — wonderful – promised filled — and appropriate – passages we have before us today!

They are joyful passages that proclaim God’s love and promise.

In Isaiah we see God’s love and promise and choice of a captive people in a faraway country who saw very little reason to rejoice and hope – and in Luke we see God’s love for Jesus – God’s Son – the hope and joy of the world – as He is being baptized and beginning His ministry.

Joyful – wonderful – promise filled passages indeed!

Passages filled with promise and hope for the future God has planned for His people!

And appropriate passages also.

Why do I say they are appropriate?

Well – I say this because I believe that they are appropriate for us – here at Hopewell Presbyterian Church on January 10, 2010.

I believe that — just as God spoke to the captives in Babylon of His plans for their future – a future of love and hope and redemption – a future filled with His plans for great and wonderful things – I believe that God speaks to us of a future filled with His plans for great and wonderful things for us.

I believe that — just as God spoke to Jesus and the crowd around Him at His baptism that Jesus was His Son – and that He was well pleased with Him – God speaks to us – calls us His people – tells us He is well pleased with us – if we will listen to Him and follow Him.

Just as Jesus listened to God – and went into the future God had planned for Him – we need to listen to God – and go into the future God has planned for us.

I believe that God has a “future plan” for us here at Hopewell – just as He had a “future plan” for the exiles in Babylon – a plan for a future that is filled with His promise and filled with great things. Regardless of how things may looked to us here and now — God has a word for us  – and that word is that He loves us– has a great future planned for us – and wants us to look to His future and His plan  –trust Him – and follow Him.

I believe that God is speaking to us of His plan for us – His plan for our future — and that we need to listen to Him.

But – I know that listening to God is not an easy thing to do.  Listening to God and following God is not easy at all.

We might look at how things are for the Church and in our lives and wonder if God really has a plan for us.

I’m sure some of the exiles in Babylon might have laughed at Isaiah and the word of God he brought to the people.

“What do you mean God is going to bring us back to Jerusalem and give us a future that is filled with great things? Are you crazy?”

That’s how some of them may have reacted to Isaiah’s word from God.

But God was speaking – and calling on His people to listen.

I’m sure that some of the crowd at Jesus’ baptism found it hard to believe that God was truly speaking.

“This is just a peasant from Nazareth! What do you mean He’s God’s Son?”

But God was speaking – and calling on His people to listen.

God is speaking to us here and now – and calling on us to listen.

Are you listening?

Are you listening to God?

Are you willing to listen to God’s plan for us – and follow God’s plan for us?

God has spoken to us – and continues to speak to us.

Are we listening?

Are we listening to God?

This past fall we gathered in prayer groups and prayed for God to give us His vision for Hopewell. We prayed for God to speak to us. This afternoon we are going to gather and share some of the ideas that were shared in our prayer groups.

Friends – I believe that God has spoken to us. I believe that when we come together as we have done and pray for God’s will for us and the Church – God speaks to us.

I also believe we need to listen.

I pray that you will come and join me this afternoon as we share what we feel has been God’s word to us. Even if you have not been involved in a prayer group, I pray you will come and share.

I believe that in the sharing we will hear God’s word to us.

I believe that in the sharing God will speak – and we will need to listen.

I don’t fool myself and I won’t try to fool you into thinking that we’ll leave this afternoon with a clear cut plan for how to do what we feel God is calling us to do – but I do believe that we might leave with a sense of what direction God is calling us to go in – maybe some general ideas – and some things to work on and do.

I believe that God will speak.

I believe we need to listen.

After this afternoon it will take commitment from each of us to put the plans we feel God is laying before us into motion – but if we will listen to God’s plans for us and do them – we will move into the future God has planned for us.

As we have partaken of the Sacrament this morning we have been strengthened to go into the glorious future God plans for us.

As we gather this afternoon we will continue to discover what that future is.

Let’s listen to God.

Are you listening to God?

Let’s look at the glorious future plans God has for us – just as He had a glorious future planned for the exiles in Babylon and just as He had a glorious plans for us all in Jesus.

Let’s listen to God – and do the work it will take to move into the glorious future He has planned for us. Amen