Three Voices of Comfort

December, 7 2008

Isaiah 40:1-11

back

Rev. Michael A. Trask

Comfort. Now there’s something that is sorely needed! And no, he’s not talking about the kind of comfort you get from a soft bed or a deep overstuffed chair or a nice winter vacation, he’s talking about the kind of comfort that a mother gives a child who wakes from a nightmare. The child trembles and withers in the darkness, but once he feels the warmth of her arms and hears the soothing sound of her voice, all is well again. He’s talking about this kind of comfort not only for children, but for all of his people Israel and for us too. Israel would need it as they struggled with the nightmare of a Babylonian Captivity, where large numbers of their people would be carried away to live in exile from the land of promise; we need it in these topsy turvy; uncertain times in which we live. We need Comfort. And the good news is, our Lord seeks to give it to us. In Isaiah 40:1-11, he tells us how.

Now the thing about this text, is that it is punctuated by three different voices. And these three different voices explain how the comfort of the Lord on High comes to us.

The Gospel lesson makes it clear that the first voice is John the baptist. “A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.” If you think this sounds like road construction, you’d be right. But it’s not highway 19 in St. Michael, but rather, a highway through the rugged terrain of the human heart. You see, that’s what’s been going on: God wants so very much to be part of our lives and dwell in our hearts which would bring us great comfort. But the landscape of our hearts is quite often impassable. There are jagged mountain ranges, dangerous canyons and swift rivers. And it is we who have made our hearts this way. It’s kind of ironic I think: we long to know the comfort of God’s presence, and yet we do and think things that tend to prevent that from happening. The landscapes of our hearts are made treacherous by our own sinful behaviors and attitudes.

But that’s why God sent John the Baptist ahead of him. In his preaching, John was a bulldozer of sorts. He plowed through sinful attitudes and ideas that resided in mens souls. He exposed sin for what it was. Now you wouldn’t think that the common man would like John, because John was so negative about the human condition, but many were drawn to him because in their hearts they knew that what he said was true. They knew God’s law was right and good and so do we. We know that there are things that stand between us and God and we also know they need to be removed.

In the Typical American heart, the biggest and most jagged mountain range that stands between the individual and God is our love of money and all the things that money can buy. Oh man have we been rich and we have led rich lives. But the events of late have kind of taken the sheen off of such living. We thought we found happiness and hope and joy in our money, but we have since learned that money is not worthy of such expectations. That mountain range has been blasted as if by dynamite.

But wait ! What’s that where the mountain used to be? Is that a road? Why yes, With the mountain out of the way, some openings have been made. Your mind is now open to see yourself as something different then merely a consumer of goods and services. Perhaps that’s not really been a good way to define yourself; perhaps you are not so much a consumer of goods and services as you are a child of God! Ya think! That’s what John the Baptist would say to us if he were here today. He would prepare the way for comforting presence of God in our lives by taking us to task over the things that we have done that have crowded him out of our lives. And most of the time, the things that crowd him out of our lives, is the stuff we buy.

Now let’s move on to the second voice. We return to Isaiah “A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands for ever.” Now this might be hard to understand at first, but not when you consider the circumstances. Remember, God’s people in Isaiah’s time were struggling with the looming threats of Assyria and Babylon, both of which had risen in glory and and stature in Isaiah’s day and were a significant threat to them. But what does God say? Their glory is like a meadow with it’s green grass and flowers the grass withers....the flowers fall. BUT the Word of God Stands for ever! God’s word stands forever! “Regardless of how things might look with Assyria and Babylon, don’t worry, sure they’ll have their season, but you have my word, and my word stands forever.”

In our day it’s not the Babylonians or the Assyrians that threaten us, but rather it’s our goofy economy. We go “oh the economy this; the economy that.” But you know what? That too will fade and wither. Not only that, but Our country will fade; Our houses will fade; Our lives on earth will fade. Everything we know and do will fade. But God’s word will not. And those who hear his word will not; those who hear his word will lay up treasures in heaven....that will not spoil or fade.

The first voice told us that mountains we have erected must be leveled. The second voice told us to hear the word of him who would come to us. And now we move to the third and final voice which is very striking in it’s immediacy. “You who bring good tiding to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, say to the towns of Judah “Here is your God!” Whoa! He’s here! Think now: We prepare the way of the Lord by repenting of our personal jaggedness. We listen to his enduring word. And, bang, he’s here! Jesus comes to us through the word! He is here in our midst. HE is here in the hearts of all who believe!

And what does he do now that he is here? He comforts us! He comforts us by taking all our sins away with him to the cross.....so that we can be absolutely certain that the Lord of all hold’s nothing against us and everything for us. “If God is for us who can be against us!” That is good news! This is good Tidings to Zion! That’s the Gospel applied to our lives. Because of Jesus, we live our lives knowing that the one in charge of all things Loves us and will do what’s best for us. Do you hear that? Sounds like comfort doesn’t it?

Isaiah goes on to describe Jesus in this way: “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those who have young.” There is nothing more comforting to sheep who live out in the big scary dangerous world than the abiding presence of their shepherd. He will lead them, he will provide for them, he will hold them and in so doing he will comfort them. And you are one of them. The Comfort is for you. AMEN