Jesus came to both men and women that they might receive salvation. The Father God selected a person of each sex to announce the coming of the Messiah. Like the nation of Israel that had long awaited the arrival of Jesus, these two people had waited a very long time. Inspired by the Lord, Isaiah in 742 B.C. revealed unique signs about the way the Messiah would come to His people and to the world. Anna had Isaiah’s words and a personal divine revelation that her Lord was to appear. The spirit of prophecy had left Israel more than 300 years before then, but immediately before Jesus’ birth, it was revived. There are only three verses about this remarkable woman, but the verses are Spirit-filled.
"And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser(Asher): she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;.
"And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
"And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of Him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem." (Luke 2:36-38)
Anna (whose name meant “gracious”) was a prophetess, a woman divinely inspired to speak God’s revelations. God, Who does not leave Himself without a witness, poured His Spirit on her. She was of the tribe of Asher, one of the northern tribes of Israel carried away as captives, but some of the tribe of Asher were not captured. Eventually much of the remnant of Asher had reunited with Judah and worshiped in Jerusalem.
She became a widow seven years after she married and had been serving the Lord at the temple for 84 years. If she had married at the age of 12, she would have been at least 103! Some scholars interpret the passage to mean she was 84. It was the practice at the temple to worship God continuously with fasting and prayer. (Psalm 134) She often took the night shift...amazing for 84 or 103 plus!
It was a glorious moment! While Simeon was proclaiming the Baby to be his Savior, Anna appeared from the background and thanked God for letting her see the Messiah. The old prophetess knew that the little baby was the One she had long awaited. She announced His arrival to the people who regularly flocked to the temple to pray for the deliverance of Jerusalem. Anna, Simeon, and a faithful core of believers were ready for the coming of the Lord!
What a beautiful woman Anna was! In her seasoned maturity, she had not grown weary of worshiping her beloved Lord. Her reverence brought her pleasure. Years and years passed while she observed the light of God’s glory moving closer in splendid brilliance. Then one day her great faith was rewarded by the vision of the Messiah, the joy of her desires. She responded by praising, rejoicing, and witnessing.
Anna realized that God loved her!
Quoted from Do You Know How God Loves You? The price of this book has been reduced on Amazon.com from $26.99 to $14.97.
Showing posts with label the Messiah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the Messiah. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
June 16, Send Me!
“Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’Then said I, ‘Here am I; send me.’ ” (Isaiah 6:8)
The seraphim have the responsibility of hovering over the throne of God. We know that God does not need them, and He does not need any of us. He does not need the universe. No matter what He creates or if He allowed all His creation to disappear, He would still be God. And yet the seraphim have the vocation of guarding God’s holiness.
We have our jobs too. After the seraph placed a coal on Isaiah’s tongue, God asked a rhetorical question. Any question He asks is rhetorical. Since He already knows the answer, He asks to help us get our hearts right. He is running a volunteer army, not a draft board.He knows our answer to every question before we ask; yet in His perfect wisdom, He does not make us feel coerced. After Isaiah was cleansed of unrighteousness, God asked,“Whom shall I send?” Then He went on to ask, “Who will go for us?” (I believe that the word “us” referred to the triune nature of God.)
For the first time in his life, Isaiah was learning what he was supposed to do . . . what his mission in life . . . his purpose . . . his reason to be was. “Here am I: send me!” Can’t you just imagine that he shouted those words with reverent enthusiasm? It was not a tentative response. He was a transformed man. His unclean tongue became a spirit-filled, heavensent flame.
At Christmastime we love to listen to Handel’s Messiah. Most of the words in that magnificent cantata are quoted directly from Isaiah’s book, which foretold the events of the coming of the Messiah to the earth. Also he prophesied much about the end times. Few men have been more inspired by the Holy Spirit than Isaiah was.
The mission God gave him on the day of the vision was a strange one. He was to go and tell people about the Lord, but God let him know that most of them would not believe. (6:9) His job was to tell, whereas the Holy Spirit’s role is to convict. God told Isaiah to go to the children of Israel. He told us to go into all the world and to preach the gospel to all
nations.
--And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway,even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
Like the seraphim and like Isaiah, we need to have an attitude toward God that says “Only Thou art holy” and “Here am I.” After we have given our hearts to Him, He will commission us to do what He has planned for us in His own way and His own time. Meanwhile, we must pray with bold fervor, “Send me!”
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The seraphim have the responsibility of hovering over the throne of God. We know that God does not need them, and He does not need any of us. He does not need the universe. No matter what He creates or if He allowed all His creation to disappear, He would still be God. And yet the seraphim have the vocation of guarding God’s holiness.
We have our jobs too. After the seraph placed a coal on Isaiah’s tongue, God asked a rhetorical question. Any question He asks is rhetorical. Since He already knows the answer, He asks to help us get our hearts right. He is running a volunteer army, not a draft board.He knows our answer to every question before we ask; yet in His perfect wisdom, He does not make us feel coerced. After Isaiah was cleansed of unrighteousness, God asked,“Whom shall I send?” Then He went on to ask, “Who will go for us?” (I believe that the word “us” referred to the triune nature of God.)
For the first time in his life, Isaiah was learning what he was supposed to do . . . what his mission in life . . . his purpose . . . his reason to be was. “Here am I: send me!” Can’t you just imagine that he shouted those words with reverent enthusiasm? It was not a tentative response. He was a transformed man. His unclean tongue became a spirit-filled, heavensent flame.
At Christmastime we love to listen to Handel’s Messiah. Most of the words in that magnificent cantata are quoted directly from Isaiah’s book, which foretold the events of the coming of the Messiah to the earth. Also he prophesied much about the end times. Few men have been more inspired by the Holy Spirit than Isaiah was.
The mission God gave him on the day of the vision was a strange one. He was to go and tell people about the Lord, but God let him know that most of them would not believe. (6:9) His job was to tell, whereas the Holy Spirit’s role is to convict. God told Isaiah to go to the children of Israel. He told us to go into all the world and to preach the gospel to all
nations.
--And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway,even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
Like the seraphim and like Isaiah, we need to have an attitude toward God that says “Only Thou art holy” and “Here am I.” After we have given our hearts to Him, He will commission us to do what He has planned for us in His own way and His own time. Meanwhile, we must pray with bold fervor, “Send me!”
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