Israel and Judah had been enjoying a time of peace and prosperity they had not known since the time of Solomon. What appeared to be God’s approval and blessing, however, concealed a dark truth about the way things really were, a truth that would soon be revealed by the invading Assyrian empire.
You see, the people of God were lost in darkness, having forsaken God and debased themselves with unworthy lovers in the form of other gods. A people once defined by an exclusive love relationship with the one true God had become a people marked by idolatry, unfaithfulness, and oppression. This road of apostasy had led them to their own destruction.
Who would save them from their oppressors? Who would rescue them, not just from exile to foreign lands but from the wickedness of their adulterous hearts? The word of God as spoken through the prophet Isaiah revealed the answer: It would be none other than God himself who would be their salvation.
Isaiah’s prophetic word is applicable to the situations of people in every time and place. His message of a Light to illuminate the way for those who walk in darkness always results in joy for any who look to the mighty hand of the One able to save. Like exiles sensing the looming shadow of death; like captives awaiting deliverance; like runaways and rebels longing for reconciliation, we yearn for that Light to appear. With him comes the salvation we most desperately need, but could never expect—the salvation that comes When God Arrives.
Series Playlist
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Light Arrives
Dec 1, 2019 • 27:26
The prophet Isaiah, living in a time of darkness, could look ahead and know with certainty that God’s light again would shine. Now on this side of history, all who find themselves today in darkness can see the light of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Speaker: Sean Scribner…
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Joy Arrives
Dec 8, 2019 • 36:01
In the midst of darkness—whether self-inflicted or imposed—the people of God reach for a song. Not in naive denial, as if our pain and troubles weren’t real, but as an act of defiance. We choose to rejoice in the face of hardship and suffering because no matter how hard life…
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Might Arrives
Dec 15, 2019 • 31:03
At Advent, we await the arrival of an unlikely warrior to carry out an unconventional strategy. No darkness is too dark for his light to shine. No yoke or burden is too heavy for him to lift. No oppressor’s rod is too mighty for him to shatter. He has done…
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A Son Arrives
Dec 22, 2019 • 46:32
God has come to us in the Son–his personal presence to comfort us and give us strength to make it through. In the rush of the season, don’t miss him. Advent is an invitation to perceive. Christmas calls us to look again. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: When God Arrives Scripture: Isaiah…
The gospel is the good news of what Jesus Christ has done to save us and restore us into right relationship with God. For many Christians, however, the assumption is that the gospel is for the unbeliever, a set of “ABC” basics that enable people to enter into the kingdom of God.
Hot Topics is a collection of messages that deal with some of the top issues of the day. No matter the question, the Bible has answers.
You see them everywhere you go. Christian catchphrases printed on plastic and slapped on someone’s bumper—as enigmatic as they are ubiquitous. They are the taglines of well-intending people of faith seeking to communicate something profound to a world listening at 140 characters at a time.
“And you will be my witnesses.” (Acts 1:8)
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