An important message from the prophet Isaiah
(From Isaiah, chapter 2, verses 1-5)
About 2700 years ago the prophet Isaiah came so close to God and God came so close to him that Isaiah knew that God wanted to tell God's people to live together in peace. And so, Isaiah began to speak in public to the people living around him in the Holy Land. Many people listened carefully to Isaiah and remembered what they'd heard him say. They told their children, and their children told their children, and so on, and so on, and so on.
When Jesus was a young boy, his parents and the people in his faith community told him about God's message of peace spoken through Isaiah. As Jesus grew up, he felt a strong connection between himself and Isaiah. When he began his ministry as a grown up, one of the first things he did was preach about Isaiah.
Each Sunday during the season of Advent, as we look forward to celebrating Jesus' birthday at Christmas, we hear a little bit of God's message spoken through the prophet Isaiah. And we pray that God's message of peace will continue to show in the way we live our lives today.
From the prophet Isaiah:
"Some day, people everywhere on earth will know where God lives and how to get there. They will say to each other, 'Come on! Let's go visit God so that God can teach us how to live together in peace.'
"When everyone is gathered together with God, God will help them settle their differences and will show them how to get along with each other. They won't need their weapons, so they'll turn them into shovels and rakes and hoes and use them on their farms. They will stop making war against each other, and they will stop teaching their children how to fight.
"Why wait for that day? Let's walk in the light of our God now!"
Questions to think about:
Where do you believe God lives?
How are you a peacemaker?