Isaiah
45:1 Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have
grasped to subdue nations before him and strip kings of their robes, to open
doors before him--and the gates shall not be closed: 2 I will go before you and level the mountains,
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, 3 I will give
you the treasures of darkness and riches hidden in secret places, so that you
may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who call you by your name. 4 For the sake
of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I surname
you, though you do not know me. 5 I am the LORD, and there is no other; besides
me there is no god. I arm you, though you do not know me, 6 so that they
may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is no one
besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other. 7 I form light and create darkness, I make weal
and create woe; I the LORD do all these things. 8 Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the
skies rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation may spring
up, and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also; I the LORD have created
it.
The
Persian King Cyrus
the Great
ended the exile of the Jews and helped them rebuild their temple. Isaiah
marvels at how, although Cyrus did not worship God in the Jewish way, this
foreign ruler was known to God: “I
call you by your name, I surname you, though you do not know me...I arm you, though
you do not know me”.
God is not bound by our religious boundaries.
Although we might want to designate some as “friends with God” and others as
“strangers to God”, God’s sovereignty is such that God can choose to know
anyone. Just as God knew the Persian King Cyrus, so God can choose to know the
Muslim, or the Hindu, or the person of no recognisable faith at all. Let us who
follow Jesus get beyond our need to place labels on people, and offer the same
loving acceptance to everyone – irrespective of their culture, religion, sexual
orientation or nationality.
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Chosen by God
The Scripture passage for
the day is drawn from Rueben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer
for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 173.
This reflection is from my own
devotional exercises for the day.
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