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AM I MORE LIKE ISAIAH, JOHN OR A PHARISEE?

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“A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse
and the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
but he shall judge the poor with justice.
With the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.”  Isaiah 11:1-4

“When John the Baptist saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees
coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! . . .
Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.
Do not presume to say to yourselves,
‘We have Abraham as our father.’
Every tree that does not bear good fruit
will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
I am baptizing you with water, for repentance,
but the one who is coming after me . . .
will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand.
He will clear his threshing floor
and gather his wheat into his barn,
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’” Matthew 3:7-8, 10-12

With which of the persons in these two Bible stories am I most like?

  • Am I more like Isaiah who had a vision or dream about God and thereafter found himself being drawn into the awesomeness of God?
    •  I could be like Isaiah, if, when I am drawn into the awesomeness of a person, be it a newborn, small child or my beloved, I remember the One who implanted this human (and God-like) capability in me, and then turn to Him in awe and gratitude.
  • Am I more like John the Baptist who must have had an Isaiah-like vision of God? He then called everyone to repent and look for Jesus who would “baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
    • How do I do that? I first stand like Isaiah and John before God in awe and gratitude.
  • Am I more like a poor person – one who never experienced being enraptured by the presence of God, one who is trapped in the mundaneness of my life, who seeks escape in fleeting experiences of happiness rather than in the joy of being in God’s awesome presence?
    • How do I stop this? I first stand like Isaiah and John before God in awe and gratitude.
  • Am I more like a Pharisee who never experienced being enraptured by the presence of God? Do I, like they, “presume to say, ‘I have Abraham as my father.’” I have Jesus as my Redeemer?
    • How do I stop this? I first stand like Isaiah and John before God in awe and gratitude.

Sister Loretta

 

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