Message: Why would God send a gift for us or what is God trying to do for us? In our process of gift giving we ask ourselves questions about the best gift for a person, like, "What are they missing?", "How should it be wrapped?" and "What will be their reaction?". Everything else about gift giving will now hinge on timing and location! The thoughts of gift giving by the Lord exceeds the thoughts of man. In the scripture passage, Isaiah is speaking to the people in captivity, encouraging them to turn from their sin. God deals with us according to our condition, calculating our desire for His gift to be proportional to our readiness to receive it. There's a dilemma. God punishes man and man goes to hell. God doesn't punish us and His justice will not be satisfied. God's wrath is against unrighteousness, not man. Unrighteousness suppresses the truth of our identity, which displays His glory in us. Jesus came in the image of an invisible God to restore the fullness of God's image in us. The word propitiation is used to describe this satisfaction. Jesus satisfied God's payment for sin, otherwise we have all earned separation from God, death. Jesus sacrificed His life and burned God's wrath for our sin at the foot of the cross. It's not over. In love, God continues to wait for us to wade through the circumstances of life, desiring none perish, but rather we discover the life He's planned for us. Remind yourself daily how good God's gift of salvation is!!
Scripture: Isaiah 30:18 "Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him." NKJV
