Psalm 121; Isaiah 65: 17-25
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
November 17, 2019
I lift up my eyes to the hills—
from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
He who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time on and for evermore. - Psalm 121
For I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
the former things shall not be remembered
or come to mind.
But be glad and rejoice for ever
in what I am creating;
for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy,
and its people as a delight.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
and delight in my people;
no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it,
or the cry of distress.
No more shall there be in it
an infant that lives but a few days,
or an old person who does not live out a lifetime;
for one who dies at a hundred years will be considered a youth,
and one who falls short of a hundred will be considered accursed.
They shall build houses and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
They shall not build and another inhabit;
they shall not plant and another eat;
for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
They shall not labour in vain,
or bear children for calamity;
for they shall be offspring blessed by the Lord—
and their descendants as well.
Before they call I will answer,
while they are yet speaking I will hear.
The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
the lion shall eat straw like the ox;
but the serpent—its food shall be dust!
They shall not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain,
says the Lord. - Isaiah 65: 17-25
Church, where does our hope come from?
Our hope comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth (Psalm 121:2). We all need this reminder when the difficulties of life rise up, creating obstacles in our ability to see a way forward.
The prophet Isaiah was bringing a word of hope to God’s people. After being held in Babylonian captivity for seventy years, the people of God had been released to come back home to Judah (Southern Israel){Jeremiah 29:10). But coming home was not all they had hoped for. You see, God had promised this new exodus would be more glorious than their exodus from Egypt. God would be doing a new thing and the people would be able to see it (Isaiah 43:10).
However, Isaiah reveals what the people saw from their human point of view – they saw grief, death, and economic injustice. They felt their labor was in vain. As the people were rebuilding Jerusalem, which the Hebrew translates as “Foundation of Peace,” there was no peace or joy - only difficulty, strife, and uncertainty. As a way of coping, God’s people were falling back into old Babylonian habits of pagan worship. Isaiah speaks strongly about this as the 65th chapter begins. God’s heart was broken and God’s judgment against the people was justified.
In a time of despair and uncertainty, Isaiah was God’s mouthpiece. God promised to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind. God promised to transform Jerusalem, the city of God, as a joy, and its people a delight. The people’s mourning will turn into rejoicing; economic injustices will be reversed among the people. And God’s kingdom of peace and harmony will become the people’s new reality. The prophet’s words were showing the people a way forward. Isaiah was reaffirming God’s faithfulness to create new life and bring about God’s glory.
One day when the glory comes, it will be ours. For many Christians, that “one day” is believed to be when we meet our Maker face to face. Our ultimate hope is that one day we will truly be at home with God to behold the eternal promise of peace and harmony. The Lord will wipe away every tear from our eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away, as Revelation 21: 3-4 proclaims.
God’s eternal promises are realized through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But God’s promises are not just what we put our future hope in. God’s eternal promises have holy implications for our lives today.
In our world today there is so much that is happening that breaks God’s heart. It is overwhelming to read the local, national, and global news where murder, racial hatred, and injustices of all kinds are alive and well. Our prayer lists continue to get longer with every new diagnosis of cancer among family and friends. There are many days that I wish I could keep our children in a bubble from harm’s way.
On days like these when you and I might lose all hope in humanity it is imperative to remember God never has and never will give up on us. The Lord is our keeper (Psalm 121:5). Gods’ Word connects us to the eternal promises that God is with us and God still controls all of human history. God promises to continue doing a new thing among us that brings new life from death, pain, and injustice. Therefore, as God’s people we must prayerfully ask “What is God up to?”
If the Maker of heaven and earth is at work to create a kingdom of peace and harmony among us, then our God will not just wave a divine hand to do it all alone. You and I were created to live in relationship with God and one another. God humbled himself to become one of us in the person of Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus Christ’s work on the cross, God Almighty invites you and I to co-create God’s kingdom of peace and harmony on earth today as it is in heaven.
God desires to open our spiritual eyes to see what is breaking God’s heart in our community, nation, and world. God uniquely calls each of us to come alongside another to bring godly encouragement, hope, and new life.
One of my colleagues in ministry is Rev. Emily Sutton. She pastors the good congregation of Bethel United Methodist Church in Rock Hill. Bethel is a small congregation of about 30-40 who gather weekly in worship. They are also known for serving as a Men’s Shelter every evening at 6pm.
In 2009 Bethel partnered with Salvation Army, the United Way of York County, and the city of Rock Hill. The church began serving as a permanent warming center during the winter months for homeless men in Rock Hill.
Last year, one of the men who found shelter at Bethel asked why the church couldn’t become a year round shelter. It wasn’t long after this man asked such a poignant question that he became seriously ill and died. The only family this man knew were the guests and volunteers of Bethel Men’s Shelter. The church held a memorial service for him and vowed never again would someone come through the shelter doors without God’s family to call home.
Since April of 2019, Bethel Men’s Shelter committed to opening its doors 365 nights a year to be a safe place for homeless men to find shelter and home. The congregation knew they could not enter this endeavor alone. Therefore, Bethel invites individuals, youth groups, and churches to prepare and serve dinner in Christian fellowship with the men they host. God has certainly been up to something at Bethel United Methodist Church. God is making a way forward for hospitality and open hearts to bring about rejoicing and new life to all who enter through the Shelter’s doors.
During the season of Advent, our church will have the opportunity to collect needed clothing and hygiene items for our Bethel brothers. And we will see who feels led to helping us prepare and serve a meal there in the new year.
I think about our youth today and I know they long to have a sense of belonging and acceptance. Far too many youth experience loneliness and disconnection. Another demographic within the body of Christ is equally vulnerable to feeling lonely and disconnected – our homebound members.
This week I encourage each of us to make time to sit in God’s Word. Engage in the holy listening for our shared human story and God’s promises of hope. As we place God’s Word side by side with the news of the day, let us not lose hope in humanity. History has shown what each of us is capable of and God has not given up on us yet! God will never give up on us no matter how far we stray from God’s will and God’s ways. Thanks be to God.
Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful (Hebrews 10:23).
Prayerfully ask what God is up to. And then wait for God’s Spirit to direct your heart and hands to co-create a foundation of peace and harmony with our amazing God.
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.
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