Isaiah 43:1

One of the verses I read this morning was Isaiah 43:1

But now thus says the Lord,
He who created you, O Jacob,
He who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
I was struck as I read it and thought about it by how much is encapsulated in those five lines – it seems like almost an entire theology.

But now thus says the Lord

Do you remember the old commercial, "When EF Hutton speaks,..." and everything would get quiet? God is speaking. He is God, and we need to stop and listen. Those few words should speak to us about the order in life. God is God, and we are not. We need to stop and pay attention. I was listening to a song today (another one by Mercy Me, called In the Blink of an Eye). In it is the line, "How can I further Your kingdom when I’m so wrapped up in mine?" Our focus is sometimes on our own kingdom instead of on God. God is talking; we need to listen.

He who created you, O Jacob,
He who formed you, O Israel.

This passage is from Isaiah and was directed to the Jews – God's chosen people. I am reminded that we are outsiders. We are "gentiles." We began this quest into Christianity with the women who Jesus told, "First let the children eat all they want for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs" (Mark 7:27). We were the outsiders. We have been taken into God's care, accepted as children! We need to remember that when we look upon someone else as an outcast.

He who created you, O Jacob,
He who formed you, O Israel.

Look at those lines again. We aren't children adopted by God. We are his creation. Doesn't it remind you of Psalm 139? "My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes beheld my unformed substance." (15-16a). Imagined by God. Designed by God. Created and formed by God. We are known completely and thoroughly. He created us by speaking us into being.

Do not fear…

He tells us not to fear, and yet we fear anyway! We fear so many things. Is fear the opposite of trust? We even fear letting go of our fear. There are many things which God does not promise to us, but one of the promises he does give us is that we can trust him. He is trustworthy. So, do not fear…

For I have redeemed you,

What does it mean to be redeemed? There are lots of definitions of redeem, and I think many of them apply (from www.m-w.com)

• To buy back, to win or get back
• To free from what distresses or harm
• To free from captivity by payment or ransom
• To extricate from or help to overcome something detrimental
• To release from blame or debt
• To free from the consequences of sin
• To change for the better
• To atone for
• To make worthwhile

We have been redeemed by God, and it means that we are freed from harm, given aid, released, freed from sin, we have been atoned for and changed for the better. We have been made worthwhile!

I have called you by name; you are mine.

Who knows your name? Your REAL name. The name that describes who you are. The name that you call yourself. Every once and a while someone will call me Kimmy. Kimmy is SO MUCH NOT my name. Someone who calls me Kimmy might as well call me Jane. My name is Kim, and God knows it. He knows we well enough to use my name.

I am terrible with names, and I hate it. I would much rather have a memory for names. There is something special about being called by your name. Use my name, and I know you are talking to me. You have me in your mind. You are not talking to just anyone, or whoever happens to be standing in front of you; you are talking to me.

When we are baptized, we receive our names. We are called Christian. We are given the blessing of carrying our redeemer’s name. It is one of the ways that God says, "You are mine."

God knows our names, and he claims us as his own.

Image: The moon came down out of the sky this morning and visited us in Huntington. It was round and huge as I drove to work.