Another Year Is Dawning

“The Spirit of  the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor;  He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion—to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes.” –Isaiah 61:1-3 (NEV).

Oh, that the new year about to dawn, 2014, would be “the year of the Lord’s favor!”  In today’s focal passage from Isaiah 61, the words seem to be as from the Messiah Himself.  And, indeed, Luke records that Christ read from the scroll of Scriptures at the synagogue in Nazareth when He began His public ministry this passage from Isaiah 61.  After Jesus read to them, he said, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21).

May I suggest that we read prayerfully Psalm 85 and make it our New Year’s prayer.  It is a prayer that God will show His mercy to the nation of Israel.  We can and should pray the words of Psalm 85 for America.  Listen to one of the poignant pleas:

“Will you not revive us again,

That your people may rejoice in You?” (Ps. 85:6).

In 1874 Ms. Frances R. Havergal wrote the lyrics to “Another Year Is Dawning.”  Set to music to the tune “Aurelia” by Samuel S. Wesley, the hymn was published in 1874 in Kemble Company’s “Selection of Psalms and Hymns.”  It rapidly became a popular hymn sung in our churches on the Sunday nearest New Year’s Day.  In many ways it reechoes the prayer expressed in Psalm 85 and is very appropriate as a New Year’s hymn-prayer:

“Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be

In working or in waiting, another year with Thee.

Another year of progress, another year of praise,

Another year of proving Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies, of faithfulness and grace,

Another year of gladness in the shining of Thy face;

Another year of leaning upon Thy loving breast;

Another year of trusting, of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of service, of witness for Thy love,

Another year of training for holier work above.

Another year is dawning, dear Father, let it be

On earth, or else in Heaven, another year for Thee.”

Prayer:  Father, we do not know what the New Year may bring forth.  But we know who holds the future.  Hear the earnest prayers of a remnant of Thy people to revive Your people again that we may rejoice in You and Your providence and goodness.  As you promised us in Psalm 85:13:  “Let righteousness go before You, and make Your footsteps into our way.”  In Jesus name.  Amen. –Ethelene Dyer Jones  12.29.2013

The King’s Birthday! Messianic Prophecy Fulfilled

“And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.  And she brought forth her first-born son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” –Luke 2:6-7 (KJV).

Prophecies made centuries before by Isaiah and Micah were fulfilled one night in Bethlehem of Judea as a young virgin, Mary of Nazareth, gave birth to her firstborn son.  This world-shaking event occurred in Bethlehem of Judea.  We are so familiar with the story that we may allow its importance, meaning and impact to escape us.

Let’s consider the birthday of the King.  His birthplace was a stable and his first resting place was a manger—a feeding trough.  Joseph, attentive to the needs of both Mary and the baby, no doubt found some fresh hay for the manger and even for Mary to rest upon.  Fresh hay in the manger:  a fragrant bed upon which Mary lovingly laid her firstborn.  She had wrapped Him in “swaddling clothes”—strips of cloth—that she no doubt had brought on the 70+ mile journey from Nazareth of Galilee to Bethlehem of Judea. 

What do the circumstances of his birthplace point out to us?  They bespeak the poverty, humility and humanity of Jesus.  The poverty:  “no crib for a bed”—we sing the words from the carol “Away in a Manger.”  Of lowly parents and lowly beginnings, His birth identified Him with the lowliest of humanity.  He told his disciples later in His ministry:  “The Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”  On the night of His birth, he was born where a lowly servant might have been born.  In Philippians 2:6-7, Paul wrote about His humility:  “Who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”  And, considering the humanity of the Babe:  He could cry, He felt heat and cold, He was subject in His body to all the feelings, emotions and needs of any human.  But at the same time he was (and is) God.  Later, the writer of Hebrews stated:  “He was tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin.”  Jesus was wholly human, wholly divine, born in a manger, born the King of glory!

Jeremiah the prophet wrote:  “I will raise up…a King who will reign wisely” (Jeremiah 23:5 )  That night long ago in Bethlehem, our King was born, the one who has a right ordained by God to rule in the hearts of those whom He calls to follow Him.  Songwriter William Harold Neidlinger wrote both lyrics and music for “The Birthday of a King.”  His words express the awe and wonder of a birth like none other:

“In the little village of Bethlehem, There lay a child one day,

And the sky was bright with a holy light O’er the place where Jesus lay.

Aleluia!  O how the angels sang!  Aleluia, how it rang!

And the sky was bright with a holy light,

‘Twas the birthday of a King.

As we celebrate the King’s birthday, let us allow the depth of truth of the blessed event draw us ever closer to Him.  May we like the shepherds kneel and adore Him, and rise and go out to serve Him in true allegiance, crowning Him in our lives the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

                                                                            –Ethelene Dyer Jones  12.22.2013

A Divine Sign: A Virgin Shall Bear a Son

“Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign.  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” –Isaiah 7:14 ( ESV).

For days now the “Tempus Adest Floridum” tune (Spring Carol, 14^th century, arranged by Ernest Macmillan in the early twentieth century) has been playing in my mind, and the words of the Christmas carol written by Joseph Simpson Cook (1859-1933) have been voicing themselves in my thoughts: 

“Gentle Mary laid her Child/Lowly in a manger;

There He lay the undefiled,/To the world a stranger:

Such a Babe in such a place,/Can He be the Savior?

Ask the saved of any race/Who have found His favor.”

It is marvelous that in a dark period of Judah’s (the northern kingdom’s)  history (under King Ahaz’s reign, about 733 BC), through the prophet Isaiah a hope for redemption came forth in the words:  “Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and shall call His name Immanuel” (God with us).  To say that God is with a nation, a people or an individual is to indicate that He is guiding and helping them to fulfill their mission.  Seven centuries later, Matthew used Isaiah’s words in his account of the birth of Jesus (see Mt. 1:23).

Consider Mary’s role in this prophecy and its fulfillment.  Probably a young girl of about fourteen, but devout and having heard, no doubt, of the forthtelling of a Messiah for years in her religious upbringing, she nevertheless would have been very surprised to have been designated as the one to bear God’s Son.  We read with great interest Mary’s response to the angel’s announcement to her in Luke 1:26-38.  Mary was highly surprised and said, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” (v. 34).  Scholars believe that many Jewish maidens knew the prophecy and wondered if they might be the chosen vessel for bearing the  Messiah, the one who would come to save the people.  Seen by the Jews as a conquering, reigning earthly ruler, the Messiah was anticipated eagerly and hoped for fervently.  As Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, who was six months pregnant with the Messiah’s forerunner, John the Baptist, the baby moved in Elizabeth’s womb (according to Luke 1:44-45).  This was in recognition of the Messiah’s presence in Mary’s womb.  Mary, in response, gave forth with the words of what scholars call “the Magnificat”—derived from the first statement of Mary, “My soul magnifies the Lord,”(Luke 1:46)  and the reason for the praise:  “for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant” (Luke 1:48). “

Lying at the heart of our faith is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy:  “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son.”  As she said in her own song in Luke 1:50:  “And His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.”  Praise be to God!  -Ethelene Dyer Jones  12.15.2013

Learning about Mary’s Song of Praise

“And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked on the humble estate of His servant.  For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name.  And His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation.  He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty.  He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.’ And Mary remained with her (Elizabeth) about three months and returned to her home.” Luke 1:46-56 (ESV)

I’m sure we all have special memories of Christmases past and how we observed the season.  I was a teenager, that “wonderful sweet sixteen” time.  At Christmas that year, I was chosen to be Mary for our church Christmas pageant.  My teachers were very biblical in their approach to planning what would be held to dramatize Christ’s coming to earth.  For Mary’s portrayal, they planned the reenactment of the angel’s visit to Mary in the annunciation that she would bear the Messiah.  Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth was also a part of the pageant, as well as the trip Joseph and Mary made from Nazareth to Bethlehem.  That Christmas the account of Jesus’ coming to earth and how it affected the people involved made such a striking and realistic impact on me.  As I studied and tried to understand Mary’s beautiful song of praise, and quoted it with as much meaning as possible to our congregation that night,  I was moved deeply by its depth and meaning.

Mary’s song is her heart’s outpouring at being the chosen vessel for bearing the Lord.  She used anthropomorphisms for God to describe His power:  He has shown strength with His arm… scattered the proud…brought down the mighty…filled the hungry…helped Israel.” Mary’s song of praise magnifies the Lord and stands as a joyful hymn, expressing her faith in the Lord and her knowledge of the Old Testament.  Her song reflects words from Hannah who prayed for and bore Samuel, and words from several Psalms also add beauty and meaning.

I am grateful that at my sixteenth Christmas I was chosen by leaders at my church to portray Mary in the church nativity pageant.  Then Mary became a real person to me, not just a person I had read about or a character in a Bible account.  She was the one chosen to bear the Messiah, the Son of God.  And that she did with humility, grace and obedience.  Praise be to God.  I am grateful for Mary’s insights and the important place she held in God’s marvelous plan.  –Ethelene Dyer Jones 12.08.2013

Some Practical Advice for Christians

“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.  And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”  -Hebrews 10:22-25 (ESV).

The Christian lifestyle can’t be drawn up in a certain set of rules, with these rules memorized, followed and checked off as on a “doing well” list of commendations.  This practical advice given for Christians in Hebrews is in the context of a discussion of offering priestly sacrifices for sin.  Jesus, in his once-for-all sacrifice for all the sins of mankind, with the simple steps of belief and acceptance through faith, precludes our having to provide our own sacrifice for our sins.  This was done in the love Jesus manifested for us on the cross of Calvary.  Because of Him, we can enter boldly into the presence of God.  The Holy Spirit bears witness to this truth, saying:  “ ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,’ declared the Lord.  ‘I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds.’ Then He says, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’ “ (Hebrews 10:15-17).

After assuring us that we are indeed in a position of acceptance and forgiveness through Christ’s sacrifice for us, we can then gather these practical ‘things to do’ that will strengthen our Christian life.  We should see how we measure up on this Christian ‘to do’ list:

(1)  Draw near.  In drawing near to God to worship, I come with confession, with heart ‘sprinkled clean,’ and with conscience cleared before God.

(2)  Hold fast.  I do not allow doubts to weaken my faith.  My pastor who taught me so much of the Bible when I was a young Christian, Rev. Claude Boynton, often said, “Know what you believe and why you believe it.”  “He who promised is faithful!”  (Heb. 10:23).  I don’t have to doubt that what Jesus tells me is true.  He is faithful!  He is my anchor.  Therefore, I can ‘hold fast' to Him.

(3)  Stir up each other.  I have a responsibility to fellow Christians and they to me.  A group of us in our church are meeting for special prayer for our church.  We can feel the movement of the Spirit of God among us as we meet to pray earnestly for the fellowship, work and outreach ministries of our church.  This is part of “stirring each other up” to prayer and good works.  We need each other to stimulate our faithfulness and keep us on track with what is important in the Christian life.  If we major on what is important, then minor irritations will diminish and we can see the work to which God has called us.  Therefore, ‘stir each other up’ to love and good works.

(4)  Assemble together.  We have the local church congregation for many reasons, but a very important one is for providing space for Christians to assemble and worship the Lord together.  It is also a place where we can learn and encourage one another.  Gathering together for worship, prayer, instruction and fellowship becomes even more important to Christians as we see “the Day” of His reappearance drawing nigh.

With heart humbled before God, I seek now to evaluate my own Christian walk on these four practical ways to live out my Christian profession.  –Ethelene Dyer Jones  12.01.2013.