The Lasting Effects of Redeeming Love

Have you ever noticed how something so beautiful can negatively affect us? For example, rain is a fantastic event in nature. The water falls as it condenses from water vapor into liquid form, falling upon the ground or water on earth. It is a beautiful occurrence when you think about it. Then if you live in areas where all you get is dark gray clouds and the constant sound of drops outside your door or window, the results in your lives can become entirely too bad for us. A great example that I hear often is the Northwest of the United States, where it rains and rains, and rains so more every year. Depression, Suicide rates, and other negative responses are present because something beautiful negatively affects us.

Everything God made He designed to be a hint of His glory that would resonate praises back to Him. From the rainfall to the sunshine and even the songs of whales deep underneath the vast waters of the oceans in our world. Everything has as its original purpose to worship God by design. Then sin comes into the picture and throws all things into disarray. Rain is no longer a soothing sound but a path to depression and hopelessness.

Another example is food, which is no longer a source of nourishment but can become an addictive source of comfort that leaves us prisoners of our bodies. The list can go on and on, but the root of the problem is the same. Sin has covered all the good God created with a tint of brokenness and pain because humanity is now separated from God by sin and its effects on creation. So how does Christmas remedy such a conundrum?

1 The wilderness and the desert will be glad,

And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom;

Like the crocus

2 It will blossom profusely

And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy.

The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,

The majesty of Carmel and Sharon.

They will see the glory of the Lord,

The majesty of our God.

3 Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble.

4 Say to those with anxious heart,

“Take courage, fear not.

Behold, your God will come with vengeance;

The recompense of God will come,

But He will save you.”

5 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened

And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.

6 Then the lame will leap like a deer,

And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy.

For waters will break forth in the wilderness

And streams in the Arabah.

7 The scorched land will become a pool

And the thirsty ground springs of water;

In the haunt of jackals, its resting place,

Grass becomes reeds and rushes.

8 A highway will be there, a roadway,

And it will be called the Highway of Holiness.

The unclean will not travel on it,

But it will be for him who walks that way,

And fools will not wander on it.

9 No lion will be there,

Nor will any vicious beast go up on it;

These will not be found there.

But the redeemed will walk there,

10 And the ransomed of the Lord will return

And come with joyful shouting to Zion,

With everlasting joy upon their heads.

They will find gladness and joy,

And sorrow and sighing will flee away.[1]

Dear ones, the issue is not that we have no hope but that we must surrender to the real need of our hearts. We are hurt and broken; nothing we can hope to achieve or provide for ourselves will suffice our wandering hearts and selfish desires. The solution to our disconnect from the world is to accept the perfect love from a perfect being. That being is not your spouse, fiancée, kids, pastor, favorite teacher, or best friend. The perfect love that we speak of is that of the Lord God, the Triune God, The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. We can know Him in the person of Jesus Christ, by the reviving power of the Holy Spirit and by the inspiration of His Holy Word. So, as you prepare your heart for Christmas Day, I encourage you to spend time on the text provided in this article. Let the truths of His presence pour over your heart as you see the light of God’s Word refreshing you at the deepest part of who you are.

[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update (Is 35:1–10). (1995). The Lockman Foundation.