Wolves and Lambs Together

Think about this for a moment:

Isaiah 65:25 - The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox; but the serpent—its food shall be dust! They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.

Talk about turning the world upside down. That's what Isaiah is prophesying. Hard to believe, isn't it?

But then God can do anything God wants. god is God and if the order of the universe is suddenly reversed because God wants it to, well, who am I to argue? But it does raise all the issues about prophecy and end-times theology and those Left Behind shenanigans. Why do we continue to believe it? Why is it still something we want to talk about?

This morning I preached for my friend Larry at the local nursing home while he was off for the day. I used the assigned lessons which included some of Jesus' teachings from Luke. What kind of message is that for a nursing home? What relevance might that have even for our everyday lives. Lions eating straw; wolves and lambs feeding together?

It is that very upside-downness that is relevant to all of us. It is a reminder that the ways of the world are often brutal, sad, fearful. Kind of like being old and in a long-term care facility confined to a bed or wheel-chair. Kind of like being caught in addictions? Kind of like facing cancer or other ailments at any age. Life as we know it is not like the picture in Isaiah. But we who call ourselves believers can approach those times knowing that they are not God's way. Not when all is said and done.

Deep down is the awareness that there is a God in heaven who created us and that God's ways are truly life-giving and life-affirming. We can know that life-affirming presence in this world through the spiritual ways of our lives. We can discover deep within us the strength and understanding of ways that would otherwise defeat us and send us into despair.

That's when and where the wolves of fear and loss that want to devour us are able to be robbed of their power and they will be there in peace with the lambs of calm and hope.

Thanks be to God!