The picture that comes to my mind regarding this plague of
flesh rotting while people stand is the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark when the
Nazis open the ark and the judgment of God is set forth among them. The faces of the soldiers simply melt away in
that scene. They were the enemies of
God's people and thus the judgment of God was against them. This will be the end of opposition and the Lord
will bless the nations through their worship of Him. Thus will the promise made to Abram so long
ago, "I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will
curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" be
fulfilled forever.
Even as the shouts of "Hosanna to the Son of
David" and "Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord" are
ringing in their ears, Jesus weeps over Jerusalem. He knows how badly they want a messianic
king, to see Jerusalem established as the center of the kingdom of God for all
to see, but they will continue to reject the Lord. They will not have His kingship or His kingdom
so long as they want an earthly king and an earthly kingdom. Where are we still deceived into desiring a
Jesus of our own desires? Are we working
primarily for His kingdom or our own? These
are hard questions and they call us to serious reflection on our lives,
attitudes and priorities. Advent is a
time for cleaning the temples of our lives and making room for others to know
Him but only if we move things out of the way to make room for Him and for
them. Let every heart prepare Him room,
and heaven and nature sing…
Jesus has shown the way to humility and counting others more
important than ourselves. He did nothing
from ambition or pride. He could have
been the greatest earthly king who ever lived, He could have been the greatest
wise man, He could have been the greatest teacher, the most revered figure in
Judaism and the world but HE chose us instead of that glory. The glory He sought was heavenly and eternal
not temporal and He calls us to the same kind of life and reward. This Advent, let us commit our lives anew to
His kingdom, His glory, and to extending His love outwards to others, just as
He commanded us to do, let us commit to obedience.
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