I Am the Lord

 April 6, 2020

I Am the Lord

“5Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it: 6I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations, 7to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. 8I am the Lord, that is my name;” Isaiah 42: 5-8a

 

 

“I am the Lord, that is my name,” finishes today’s quote.

 

Calling someone “Lord” is an acceptance that one’s self is set below another, someone of authority or power. I know that in today’s world there are a lot of people who simply cannot make themselves “bow down” to a higher power. Such a thing goes against the proclamation of modern democracy, or at least what many people believe is democracy. But in reality, in order for our democracy to survive we must all allow for authority to exist in some persons who hold temporary authority. So the concept of bowing down to an ultimate authority, one that is NOT temporary can create a modern dilemma.

 

But wait, the real truth is that bowing down to an ultimate authority has always been a problem for a certain segment of society- here in the U.S., in Europe, in Asia, everywhere. Letting go of control is where we humans can draw a line. Having a relatively certain understanding of all comings and goings can bring us relief, it can convince us that all is well, and it can impress others who think we are never without an answer. But chaos will always enter into every life, no matter how precisely planned.

 

Take our current situation; the might of our nation with its military, educational, and economic force has been rendered less powerful than we could have yet imagined.

 

“I am the Lord,” “who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it,” “I have called you in righteousness,” “to open eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners.” “I am the Lord, that is my name.”

 

Whether we can accept that there is an ultimate and never-ending authority, or can not… We are currently subject to a power far greater than any of us. Would it be so bad to maybe, even for a moment, to call out with our hearts, in a true understanding of powerlessness to the God of Adam and Moses, of Jacob, to the Sovereign of Daniel and Jesus, and Paul, and all those people who have tread this earth before us, and acknowledge, “You, are Lord”?

 

Let us set aside everything material and imaginary, and bow down to a Most High Power, whom most of us call God, and release any sense of control we think we have, and rest in God’s arms so that God will breathe the breath of life and health into us all? I pray we do. Amen.