Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it….” vs. 5
Isaiah 42:1-9
The prophets of Israel understood that the Creator God who had brought all things into existence had given the breath of life to all people. This breath, which could also be called “spirit,” is what animates humans and is God’s special connection with every person on the planet. And out of all those people, Isaiah believed, Israel had a special calling. He describes that calling in this way: “I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations….” They hadn’t been delivered from slavery into the freedom of the Promised Land so that they could dominate and exploit like every other nation. They had a mission and a purpose, and while Israel never managed to pull it off, it was that mission that came to identify the ministry of Jesus. And now it has been passed on to those who are called by his name–it has become the special calling of the Body of Christ. We who are the inheritors of the gospel of grace are called to bring recovery of sight to the blind and proclaim release to captives. We’ve not been set aside so that we can go to heaven when we die, we are sent to work for justice and peace in all the earth.
Thought for the Day: How’s our mission going?
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