All Glory Be To Christ
Sitting on the cusp of a new year, our minds often wander backward and forward. Backward to the year we just had, memorable for many difficult reasons, including hurt, death, disease, family struggles, political tensions, etc. This past year's hurt found almost all of us in some way. Yet the past year was also filled with joys such as births, weddings, commitment to Jesus, new jobs, restored family relationships. And our minds look forward to the coming year anticipating a whole new year filled with possibility, adventure, love, hope and (prayerfully) none of the hurt of 2021. Personally, I remember sitting in a similar place at the end of 2020 looking forward to 2021 with much anticipation. Thinking, praying and hoping it would be much different than the year we just left behind. It was, and it wasn't.
I try to imagine what it was like for the Israelites as they waited for their King. So much would be different. So much would change. The past would be forgotten and their bright future would be upon them. The oppressors would be defeated, and the nation of Israel would be restored. But then the messiah, the king they were waiting for, was born in a manger. He was born in scandal, with no notable ancestors in his lineage. This was not what most Israelites wanted, not the type of king they had been looking forward to. All that is to say he wasn't the King they were expecting, but he was the King they needed.
Jesus is the King that we need. As the calendar flips to a new year, the one thing that gives us confidence and hope is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news that Jesus is King. We get a taste of why this is such good news in Isaiah 56:1-8. Here is a beautiful picture of the expansive nature of the Kingdom of God. Who is invited in? Everyone. The foreigner, the eunuch, the people of God and others, besides those who are gathered in (verse 8). Jesus confirms that he is that one, the one who will bring others together into the house of the Lord, as he declares in Luke 4:18-19:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”
As we ring in the new year let our minds be set on these truths: That Jesus is King and that truly is good news! That no matter what may happen in a new year, all glory be to Christ! I love to listen to this song here, especially this time of year. It never ceases to bring me to tears as the words matched with a familiar tune roll over my mind, through my heart and out my mouth.
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