“Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice; for the Lord will do great things….And I will restore the years that the locust hath eaten.” Joel 2:21,25
Dear Ones:
How can one measure a “new beginning” from God’s standpoint? Since we live in a material world, we often associate a new beginning with a change in our circumstances, or in the conditions around us. This may very well be the case. However, is there a greater blessing than that which we see, where we live, with the experience of limitations that confront us?
God has given to us the detailed history of His people Israel, in order to reveal to us just how HE gives a new beginning, and what this means, from His point of view. For the paralytic who was brought to Jesus by friends who had faith, Jesus would first say to the paralytic: “Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” (Mark 2:5) What was the greatest need, and the point of the new beginning for this man whose body was rendered helpless by disease? It was the forgiveness of his sins, concerning which we can assume, he was very much convicted by. Jesus would first give to this man the new beginning of being delivered from the weight and guilt of all his sins before God. The man would immediately have standing and acceptance, peace with God, with the expectation and certainty of eternity with God. This small, and almost imperceptible new beginning would have eternal ramifications and effects. Even when we consider that this event was recorded in Holy Writ, the Scriptures, and that the testimony of this man lives on today, and read by countless multitudes, it is absolutely remarkable and overwhelming. It is true that Jesus went further in giving this man a new beginning, by changing his circumstances, and healing his body.
In the fortieth chapter of the book of Isaiah, we discover where the Lord reveals His will to give an entire nation, specifically Jerusalem, a new beginning. He begins by speaking to His people, declaring in comforting, and yet, stirring words by the cry of His heralds, that, “…her warfare IS ended.” (v.2) What is He saying? There has come a point in the economy of God when justice and mercy meet. The justice of God had brought the nation low because of her sin and rebellion against God. But mercy has come, and a declaration by God has been given, that her warfare, all that concerns her fight with God, and herself, is now ended. The time for the past to be put behind by the forgiveness of sins, has come. A point of new beginning is now opening up before the people. The question the becomes, “Who will believe God for it?” It must be said that God has not rewarded Israel fully for her iniquity, nor has He willingly afflicted her. Habakkuk, in speaking of the Chaldeans, whom God would send against rebellious Israel, said: “O God, thou hast established them for correction.” (1:12) God’s plan is not to destroy that which can be saved, but to so work as to bring the nation to an attitude of adhering to His ways and means, for therein lies the blessing of God. The Lord Jesus, in speaking to the disciples said concerning His words: “…they are spirit, and they are life.” (Jn.6:63) The purpose, intent, desire and will of God, is to give LIFE to that which has no life. Whether it be an individual mentioned in the historical record of the Old Testament, or a person in Jesus’ day, and our present day, the issue is the same. Jesus so very clearly declared: “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (Jn. 10:10) The greatest new beginning is where God comes, speaks to the heart and soul of an individual, regardless of their circumstances, to bring them to the point of faith, where they can receive LIFE, Christ’s life by the Spirit. For the paralytic, and Israel, and every individual today, Jesus Christ comes to deal with our sin, so that we may truly live.
Dear Father, Restore our souls, and wasted years. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad