By Dr. Kerry Knight, Emerald Beach Church of Christ
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing A NEW THING!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”
(Isaiah 43:18-19)
The turning of the calendar to a new year often fills us with a sense of hope and expectation. We reflect on the past and its accomplishments. We then view the possibilities in the upcoming months. What can I do better? How can I move past the sloppy failures of yesterday?
The Bible reminds us that God is always at work, bringing renewal and transformation. In our text above, God calls on His people to forget the former things and look forward to the NEW THING He has done.
The ancient Israelites needed to trust God to deliver them from 400 years of slavery. He did that in a stupendous way with the crossing of the Red Sea. Behind them was a destroyed Egyptian army and all the painful memories of failure in forsaking the Living God. Now, He was at work creating something new for them. They would inherit a land of their own. They would become a great nation, as was promised through Abraham. Then through his seed would come the Messiah. It wouldn’t be quite what they expected, but God’s ways are not our ways. In the fulfillment of prophecy the Christ child would be born of a virgin, become the Prince of Peace and deliver His people from a new bondage, the bondage of sin.
When Jesus died at Calvary, his blood would expiate sin for all those who accepted Him. Fifty days later at the Jewish holiday of Pentecost, the Lord’s appointed disciples preached to the masses present from all over the world and offered the terms of forgiveness. “Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). The church of our Lord was born that day, and now 2000 years later we continue to thank God for His New Way. Jesus is at the right hand of God, yet he continues to direct us to turn from our sins through repentance and to be immersed in water baptism to wash away our sinful past. The future is brighter still as we embrace His New Way and walk with Him.
