25 Days of Advent: Forged for our Hope – Day 11

Have you ever felt like heaven was silent? That the utterances that fall from your lips have somehow been lost in translation between the air and the unseen realms of the bright blue sky.

The truth is that sometimes heaven is silent. Perhaps for reasons beyond our comprehension; perhaps for reasons so simple its a near shame we seem to miss them. And perhaps it is because God had been speaking but we had not been listening. But though heaven may have moments of silence, heaven is always listening.

The Israelites were well experienced with this turmoil. Let us remember that 400 years of silence between the final words of the prophet Malachi in the Old Testament and the opening of the book of Matthew. Heaven was silent, but God did not leave nor forsake His people. He desired His people to listen not with their ears but their hearts. He desired His people to look at those who had gone before them so they may see their hope that was coming.

Has heaven’s silence ever brought you to your knees begging God for your miracle? Have we stopped looking at our own path and looked at the path that has been paved by those who have gone before us?

Malachi, 4:5-6, “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”

Malachi is prophesying a promise that the coming Messiah will turn the hearts of both the fathers and the children from their wickedness and back to Him. Throughout the Old Testament, God’s prophets had been paving the way for the One who would bring a reformation and transformation to the people. But God’s people were not listening. And then, enough. A child was born who would stand in the vast gap between heaven and earth justifying souls before the throne of a most righteous God.

Christ was the promise fulfilled to the people God so greatly loved. The Lord had said all He needed to say. During that 400 year reign of silence, their hope was forged in order to remember what The Lord had already spoken and accept the truth when it came:

Matthew 11:13-14, For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

We are forged for our hope when we can find rest in the silence and seek the wisdom and knowledge of those who have gone before us. There is no situation nor circumstance under heavens skies that someone else has not endured. And if we seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance, we will find those who have gone before us with great faith and humility.

Christ’s sovereign Presence will go with us as we walk the path being forged for His purpose. It would do us well to remember what the Lord has already spoken and accept the truth when it comes. After all, one of the most beloved carols we sing to celebrate the Christmas season is one that paints a picture of a silent night.

Father, sometimes when I feel you are silent, I know the truth that you are still listening. May I seek the wisdom from those who have already paved the way, and help me to remember all that you have promised so that my hope will be forged for greater things to come. In Jesus name, amen.

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