DAY 196 or July 15. Jesus came for Jew and Gentile.
Our thoughts today are rooted in Isaiah chapter 9 verse 2. The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light, on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
First the big picture surrounding this verse. At the same time as the Assyrian hordes are
threatening to totally wipe away God's people as they sweep in from the north, Isaiah talks
about a people who were walking in darkness seeing a great light. Of course his listeners
would always have assumed God was coming to save his backsliding people, the Jews. But
Isaiah is talking about those unclean people who the Jews often referred to as dogs. He
meant the Gentiles of Galilee. By the time Jesus came and lived in Galilee it was relatively
secular and cut off from Judah by a nation of mixed race people called the Samaritans.
Gentile Romans, who were the occupying force, dominated the whole land. All the good religious
Jews lived further south in Judah and worshipped in the temple there.
And now today's action step. Long before Saul of Tarsus saw the light on the road to
Damascus Isaiah had prophesied that many people, including Gentiles, would see the light because
Messiah would come and bathe the whole world in his glorious light. I love watching some
of the medical dramas on TV, but always ask my wife to make sure I never go into any of
those hospitals because no one ever gets out alive. When they need to see better in the
operating theatre they always ask for more light, but sometimes this simply confirms
that the case is hopeless and the patient will die. However, when God's light shines
into our lives it is not to condemn us but to reveal all that needs to be cleansed and
renewed with the Holy Spirit's help. Don't ever be afraid to open yourself up to God's
brilliant light because that's the first step to being made whole. His light never
uncovers a hopeless case, it often recovers and heals a case that previously had no hope.