Third Sunday of Advent: Joy
Isaiah 12:2-6 - Be sure to joyfully encourage others to seek the Lord!
“Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.” With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.””
Isaiah 12:2-6 NIV
I hope you’re enjoying all of the verses from Isaiah in the past few weeks! The prophet is linked with Christmas, not only because he foresaw the coming of the Messiah, but also because George Frideric Handel’s 1741 sacred oratorio “Messiah” is often performed during the weeks leading up to our celebration of the birth of Jesus and uses scripture from Isaiah, other prophets, and the New Testament as libretto.
Isaiah chapter 12 is a rather short chapter, and today we’re looking at all except the first verse. The prophet begins by acknowledging that “Surely God is my salvation”. This is a key point that Christians need to remember: we are not our own salvation, and all of the good intentions, thoughts and works that we may have do not save us. God is our salvation. Isaiah repeats this point again (“He has become my salvation”).
Sadly, a lot of people go through their lives never feeling the need for salvation. In my desert years, I mistakenly thought my life was fine and dandy, and I would only ask God for help when I felt I needed it. It was only when I found myself in dire need of His rescue that I realized I was a sinner who desperately required salvation!
Next, we’re told that we can draw water from the wells of salvation. This is a description of action; we don’t just sit around and receive this water of life, we are to reach out and collect it from God. He provides all — the water, the well, the bucket, and the rope — but we must act to receive salvation, and our reaction to salvation should be one of joy! John Trapp said “Joy is the just man’s portion, and Christ is the never-failing fountain whence by a lively faith he may infallibly fetch it.”1
Isaiah isn’t the only place where we find the water of salvation. In John 4:14, Jesus told the Samaritan woman “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The rest of the verses for today are all celebration, exalting God and singing praises to Him! The believer has benefited from the wells of salvation and is overflowing with the living water. That overflow should encourage others to worship, praise, and trust in the Lord. It’s almost as if the believer has found the task of praising God to be too large for him or herself, and now needs to call in reinforcements to help! Quoting from Trapp again, “The saints are unsatisfiable in praising God for the great work of their redemption, and do therefore call in help, all that may be.”
“Calling in help” can also include enlisting others through evangelism, so be sure to joyfully encourage others to seek the Lord!
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Thank You, Lord, for my salvation. May I praise You with all of my soul, for You are a great, mighty, and merciful God. As Your representative in today’s word, give me increased courage to speak the name of Jesus to all who need to hear it. I pray that my life reflects Your grace and goodness, AMEN.
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica US, Inc.®. Used by permission.
Trapp, John "A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments" Volume 3 (Proverbs to Daniel) (Eureka, California: Tanski Publications, 1997)