What does it mean to lean on the one who struck you? It is to depend on the strength and power of
the conqueror. The nation was once
within Egypt and fearful of that nation while also dependent on its prosperity
and power. They will also be within the
Assyrian empire for a time but they are not to do as their brothers in the
northern kingdom have done and assimilate themselves into the nations. They are to remain hopeful and dependent upon
Him alone to deliver and restore them. The
promise is that soon He will bring judgment against the Assyrians, their power
will be exposed as nothing at all. Nonetheless,
the promise is that only a remnant will return, many will fail to maintain
faithfulness. The prophecy is based in
two significant events in Jewish history, the deliverance from Egyptian bondage
and the deliverance from the Midianite oppression in the time of Gideon. In both cases, no leader could be given
credit for anything other than believing in His promises.
Luke certainly pinpoints the timing of John’s ministry doesn’t
he? “In the fifteenth year of the reign
of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being
tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea
and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood
of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the
wilderness.” John was in the wilderness
when the word came to him and said to “Go.”
He pronounces that the Lord is coming in judgment and that judgment
begins with those who are His people. We
bear greater responsibility by virtue of our unique status as His chosen. In a court of law the person with greater
knowledge is held to a higher standard and the same is true of the Lord. Because the Jews had the Law they were held
to its standard. Paul will be clear in
Romans 1 that no one can be exonerated as ignorant, we have all sinned against
the revelation given to us. Judgment,
however, begins at the house of the Lord.
There are always scoffers, always have been, always will
be. What differentiates the scoffers of
whom Jude speaks and of whom Peter wrote in our last several readings is that
these will be in the church and in some cases leaders and teachers in the church. Those who are inside the church are
especially dangerous to us and we need to be incredibly intolerant of them in
our midst. Truth matters, it is in truth
you are saved. When Jesus claimed to be
the Way, the Truth and the Life and no one comes to the Father but by Him there
are two claims at work simultaneously. The
first is that there are not other paths that lead to eternal life and the
second is that you can’t do it yourself.
Self-reliance is a non-starter. We
need in all things to be radically dependent, never self-reliant or proud. Prayer must undergird everything we do, from
reading to listening to teaching to everything else in life lest we be
deceived. Perseverance requires prayer,
worship and study and reliance on the Holy Spirit.
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