Advent in Exile - Christmas Longing With IsaiahSample

Our meditation this week is on JOY, but as we read these verses in Isaiah of the suffering servant, we
ask, “Where is the joy?”

He is despised, disfigured, and acquainted with grief. Yet, this poem begins with the end. God gives us the end of the story at the beginning. This man of sorrows will be exalted and lifted high and the whole world will be amazed. But, first, He must suffer. He is a nobody that people not only pass over, but reject. However, joy comes out of His suffering; the nations will be amazed, and He will be raised, lifted up, and highly exalted.
I cannot help but think of the words of the Apostle Paul in Philippians: “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11).

Our faith is fed; our hope is nourished; and our joy is made complete by this great and most loved passage in Scripture.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for all you have done for me. I praise you and worship you that you suffered
for me and; therefore, have been lifted high. I bow my knee and confess with my mouth that you,
Jesus, are Lord. You continue to amaze me with your impact upon my own life and many others
throughout the world.

"In Light of this Advent Season, what is your heart longing for?"

Jen Hooker