A Message of Judgment and Hope

Advent is a time for us to prepare to celebrate the birth of our savior Jesus Christ and to eagerly look forward to His return.

“The celebration of advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

This is also the picture that we see presented by Isaiah as he gives a message of hope from God to a nation facing His impending judgment.

To Isaiah the message of judgment and hope does not contradict each other but are rather complimentary.

Especially in Christ we see this truth revealed, that He comes not only to bring judgment upon the world but also to bring hope. And it is to Him, the Messiah, that we so often see Isaiah directing our attention.

Sometimes it is only through God’s judgment that our grip on this world can be loosened, so that we can once again cling to Christ.

We will start with the message of hope given in Isaiah 9, and then look back at the context of judgment through which it is given.

Isaiah 9:1-7

Isaiah 6:1 The year that king Uzziah died. About 740 B.C.

2 Chronicles 26:3-5

Underneath Uzziah’s leadership the nation experienced a time of abundant peace and prosperity, as he fortified their towns, strengthened their army, and increased their agriculture.

2 Chronicles 26:16

In this account we see that the dangers of prosperity can often be greater than those of adversity.

John Cassian remarks,

You see how dangerous the successes of prosperity generally are, so that those who could not be injured by adversity are ruined, unless they are careful, by prosperity; and those who in the conflict of battle have escaped the danger of death fall before their own trophies and triumphs.

I would like to propose that it is by the grace of God that He has shaken the very foundation on which we have built our hope and security and He is showing us a better way, the only way, to true and lasting hope, through the person and work of Jesus Christ!

But it wasn’t just the king who had fallen into the trap of pride but the nation as a whole as we see Isaiah address.

Isaiah 2:5-22

What or who are you trusting in?

There are only two ways out of pride, we can either humble ourselves before God or He will humble us Himself.

Now is the time for us to redirect ourselves back to Christ. It is only in Him that we will find true and lasting hope.