New Things
Isaiah 49:1-7; 1 Corinthians 1:1-9[1]
There’s something special about new things. In these weeks after
Christmas many of us are enjoying new things. We may be sporting new coats or
jackets. That’s a fun thing when the weather turns cold. Some of us may be
wearing new outfits. It’s nice to have a new outfit to wear. Others of us may
be playing with new “toys,” whether our toys are video games, or electronics,
or sporting gear, or crafting supplies, or even perhaps new books! There is
something undeniably special about new things. The feel, the smell, just the
notion of something new can be uplifting. But, of course, as with all things,
that “new” feel will fade eventually. The new things we’re enjoying today will
become “old” things tomorrow.
Newness can take on different forms than just the “things” we use. We
may have plans to do something we’ve never done before this year, to make that
trip that’s always been on our “bucket list.” We may be embarking on a new
venture in our lives. New directions can be frightening and exciting at the
same time. We get used to familiar routines, and getting out of our “comfort
zones” can be a challenge. But once we take the step, we may find entirely new
ways to thrive that we may never have even been able to imagine before we took
that new step. I think one of the truly rewarding aspects of the Christian life
is that, if we stay open to the future, God is always doing something new.
Our Scripture lessons for today addressed two communities among whom
God was doing something new. In our lesson from Isaiah, the prophet was
addressing people who desperately needed something new in their lives. They had
been ripped away from their home by the conquering Babylonians. Everything
familiar had been taken from them. They were stuck in a place that was strange
and seemed very far away from God. Their greatest challenge was maintaining
their faith in that difficult situation.
One of the Psalmists sums up their dilemma well: “How can we sing the
Lord’s song in a foreign land?” (Ps. 137:4). In their minds, the past was where
their lives lay, and the past was gone for good.
In a situation where they all felt like refugees, the Lord spoke
through the prophet to change their focus.
The people of Israel had been worrying about the seemingly impossible
task of restoring what they had in the past. But through the Servant, the Lord
God commissioned them to something new, something much bigger than they had
imagined. He said that simply rebuilding the fallen house of Israel was “too
small a thing.” Instead, God was sending them to be “a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth” (Isa. 49:6). They had been
worried about how to rebuild their former lives, and the Lord was calling them
to build a living sanctuary for him among the all the “foreigners” of the
world! I’m quite sure they had more than a few doubts about this “new thing”
the Lord promised through the prophet that he would do among them. Perhaps
that’s one reason why Isaiah reminded them constantly that the Lord ruled over
all things, and that he would accomplish this seemingly impossible task through
them.
I think the people St. Paul addressed in Corinth had some similar
doubts. The Apostle had started the church in Corinth, but after he moved on
they became confused about how they were supposed to live their lives together
in Christian community. They were divided, and the factions were pulling the
congregation in very different directions. Ironically, the situation at Corinth
came about from the fact that the mission of shining a light to the nations was
well underway, and it was causing some big problems! One of their challenges
was how Christians with many differences could live together in one community
of faith. I would imagine they saw that task as next to impossible.
But the Apostle began his instructions to them with the assurance that
they already had everything they needed. He reminded them that all they did was
built on “the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor.
1:4). He told them that they had already
been fully equipped by the Spirit to carry out their work: “in every way you
have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind ... so that
you are not lacking in any spiritual gift” (1 Cor. 1:5, 7). And just in
case they had any lingering doubts, Paul encouraged them that God who is always
faithful would strengthen them to the end (1 Cor. 1:8).
We are living through a time of sweeping changes: changes in culture,
in family structures, in our economy, and also in the church. Many of us may
feel like the people of Israel: we may feel like refugees living in a strange
land! All that may have been familiar to us was in the past, and we may find
ourselves grieving that the past is gone. Others of us may see ourselves more
like the people at Corinth. We may be eager for the future to come, so eager
that we’re not willing to practice patience and understanding toward sisters
and brothers, fathers and mothers who may seem to be “dragging their feet.” We
may be thinking that it’s impossible to forge a true community from people who
have so many differences in the way they look at life.
I think in both cases, the challenge of our Scriptures for today is to
re-direct our focus toward the “new things” God is doing among us. Instead of
wringing our hands about the way church “used to be,” I would say that we must
always be open to the possibility that our God is calling us on to something
new, something bigger than we can imagine. That means having the courage to let
go of the past and letting God lead us into the future he has planned for us.
At the same time, instead of getting stuck in frustration that things aren’t
changing fast enough, I think it’s important to remember that the Spirit has
fully equipped us with everything we need to carry out our mission. As we do
so, Scripture reminds us that our faithful God will complete the “new things”
he is doing among us.
[1]
©2020 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by
Rev. Dr. Alan Brehm on 1/19/2020 at Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.
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