Prepare to Listen. How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!
Prayerfully Read Isaiah 52:7-10 7How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’ 8Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices, together they sing for joy; for in plain sight they see the return of the LORD to Zion. 9Break forth together into singing, you ruins of Jerusalem; for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. 10The LORD has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God. Prayerfully Wonder The way a messenger walks conveys whether the message is good or bad. A slow downcast walk suggests bad news, while a quick light walk indicates good news. And those who bring good news, says Isaiah, have beautiful feet. Paul agreed and quoted him (Rom 10:15, the source for Handel’s aria). The good news of peace and salvation, is possible because, “Your God reigns.” Not surprisingly, the theme of Jesus’ messianic teaching centers on God’s reign. He began his ministry announcing, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom [i.e., reign] of God has come near” (Mark 1:15). Now, not in some distant future, God has come near to establish God’s victorious rule over all creation, a rule that brings new hope and new possibilities. This is joyous good news and those who proclaim it have beautiful feet. Their joy is contagious, provoking songs of joy throughout the earth. God has comforted his people and powerfully redeemed them “before the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.” The fulness of God’s victorious reign remains a future reality. However, we can live into that future by joyously proclaiming and acting out that our God, not some political ruler, reigns and is in total control. When we do, people will say we have beautiful feet. Prayerfully Reflect What would it mean for you to live in a way that others say you have beautiful feet? Prayerfully Respond Lord, may I be a messenger with beautiful feet proclaiming your good news by how I live, what I do, and in the causes I side with so that others may say I have beautiful feet. Amen. Live obediently. Be good news.
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