A
bruised reed and a smoldering wick
Scripture:
Aware of this,
Jesus withdrew from that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all
who were ill. He warned them
not to tell others about him. This was to
fulfill what was spoken through the prophet
Isaiah: “Here is my
servant whom I have chosen, the one I
love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the
nations. He will not
quarrel or cry out; no one will
hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed
he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he has
brought justice through to victory. In his name the nations will put their
hope.” Matthew 12:15-21
Observation:
After the strong encounter with the
Pharisees, the Lord withdraws from their evil plotting but a large crowd
follows Him. He heals all who were ill. Today, He continues to heal those who
come to him with their needs. An important aspect of Jesus’ ministry was that
He warned the crowds not to tell others about Him. Here Matthew quotes this as
fulfillment of a famous passage from Isaiah, regarding a prophecy of the coming
Messiah.
In that prophecy, we note important
qualities of the coming Messiah. Firstly, He is specially chosen, loved by God
the Father, in whom God has great delight. If we love dearly the Lord whom our
great Father in Heaven loves, how well we too would be favored. Jesus Himself
said “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and
we will come to them and make our home with them” (John 14:23). What a
wonderful promise indeed!
Secondly, God’s Spirit is on Jesus, and He
will proclaim justice to the nations. The word for justice actually means
righteousness. When Jesus proclaims righteousness, He proclaims the need for us
to desire to be righteous, and that the way to be righteous is by believing on
His name. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they
will be filled. Our Lord Jesus also proclaims righteousness by His actions. By
healing the sick, by casting out demons, by doing such good works, He is
showing the world the fruit of righteousness. Sin brings disease and death but
Righteousness brings healing and life.
Thirdly, Isaiah writes how the Messiah will
not quarrel or cry out or shout in the streets. There are great oratory
speakers who can incite crowds and create pandemonium by passionate words and
raising their voice at appropriate times. This was not the Lord’s way. He did
not come as a rebel to overthrow the Roman government. He came to preach peace
and called on others to return to God and seek righteousness, which would be
found through Him.
Fourthly, Isaiah prophesies how the Messiah
will not break bruised reeds nor snuff out smoldering wicks. What are the reeds
and the wicks? Both are references to men. Men, with their short lives on the
earth, are compared to reed or grass in the Bible. A bruised reed gives us the
imagery of perhaps a person who has been afflicted in some way. Bruised reeds
because of their weakened state are usually broken off as they are unlikely to
be of use. The act of refraining from breaking off the broken reeds shows the
grace of the Messiah, who draws us and gives us hope even if we are weak like
bruised reeds, on the verge of being broken. Smoldering wicks are wicks where
the fire has died down, and almost gone, but there is a little flame left.
While there is still hope, the Lord’s grace still reaches out to us, even if we
are almost completely quenched. He is able to fan that fire in us back again.
How wonderfully these two images show us the grace and mercy of the Lord!
Finally, the prophecy ends by declaring how
the Lord will bring justice through to victory and in His name will nations put
their hope. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven
Application:
We need to love Jesus. If we do not know how
or don’t feel like we do, just pray to our Lord Jesus, “Lord help me love You.
Help me obey You”. Also, let us seek righteousness. Long for righteousness. The
Lord promises that we will be filled! Seek not to be confrontational or
rebellious, but declare truth in peace. Praise the Lord for His great mercy and
grace in dealing with those who are weak and fallen, in giving us every
opportunity to turn back to Him, even when we have little fire left. Praise the
Lord and declare our hope in Him as we are, in our own race, in our own nation!
Prayer:
Loving You, Lord, there is no greater thing.
Help me love You more and more, I pray, Lord Jesus. Let my heart O Lord, seek
Your righteousness. Fill me Lord, with Your righteousness and incline my heart
to seek to live right! Let me not be confrontational or rebellious, yet enable
me Lord to declare Your truths in peace. Praise thee Lord Jesus for You do not
break the bruised reed nor snuff out the smoldering wick. You give us every
chance and opportunity to return to You. Though we may be bruised by sin,
though our fire may have become small, restore us O Lord, and lift us up again,
that we may come back to You in fullness, and have Your precious fire again!
May Your name be praised forever. In Jesus name, Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment