Restoration is Near: Longing and Waiting
Introduction
Have any of you ever taken part in a restoration project? Maybe you restored a piece of antique furniture, an old car, or an antique tractor. Or maybe you restored the hardwood floors or the natural woodwork in an old house. Maybe it was something outdoors–restoring a garden or a stream or a forest. Maybe you were part of restoring homes and neighbourhoods after a flood or fire or tornado. Sometimes restoration work takes the specialized skills of an expert, like restoring old paintings, manuscripts or books, and it demands attention to detail so that the finished product is true to its original form and purpose. Restoration can be painstaking and slow. Often it is a labour of love.
Restoration projects call for “before” and “after” pictures. Pictures that show the transformation–the stark reality of how worn out, broken down and damaged the original was, and then the dramatic “wow!” of what is possible with some elbow grease and an endless supply of patience. “Before” pictures speak to the vision and anticipation for what is possible. “After” pictures bear witness to the creativity and determination needed to see the project through to completion. Together they celebrate the joy and excitement of giving something old and worn down a new lease on life.
“Before” Pictures (Isaiah 34)
Our Isaiah 35 scripture today is definitely an “after” picture–actually three “after” pictures of transformation–three images of restoration and hope. The writings of Isaiah are full of “before” and “after” pictures. The “before” pictures are warnings: If you continue to trust in the power of the sword, if you continue to make cynical, opportunistic alliances with other nations, if you continue to oppress and exploit the poor among you, if you continue to rebel against and ignore the teachings and covenant you made with Yahweh, the natural consequences of your arrogant and corrupt ways will be suffering.
One such “before” picture is found in Isaiah 34–just ahead of the passage we read today. It is awful. It is a picture of terrible suffering and utter destruction. It is one of those passages of scripture that we don’t like to read because it is so disturbing. It expresses the worst of what the Israelites would experience at the hands of their neighboring empires–the horrors of brutal war and occupation; loss and destruction so terrible and so complete that it feels like God must have actually turned on them. In exaggerated and grossly overstated language Isaiah 34 describes utter devastation–stars fall from the sky, and fire and smoke leave a burnt holocaust of a landscape. This empty wasteland will be abandoned to wild animal predators, and the palaces and homes will be empty–overrun by thorns, thistles and nettles. It will become the Land of Nothing. With this kind of over-the-top language Isaiah 34 and other passages like it warn of suffering and ultimately of the Exile–one of the lowest points in Israel’s history–when they get carted off into exile, they lose access to their homeland, their city and their temple. For years, they live from a place of confusion, fear and despair, many feeling utterly abandoned, even punished by God. All hope seems lost. That is the “before” picture.
“After” Pictures in Isaiah
The “after” pictures in Isaiah on the other hand, are profoundly hopeful–some of the most beautiful, comforting, quotable lines of poetry in scripture.They speak of the tender mercies of God like a mother for her newborn child; they speak of forgiveness and healing; they describe turning weapons of war into farm tools and former enemies into friends; they see justice for the oppressed, and new shoots sprouting from an otherwise dead-looking stump; they see the birth of babies as signs of hope, and they promise renewed strength for the weary. Our Isaiah 35 passage that we read today is one of those “after” pictures. Here we have three of those compelling images in Isaiah.
Image 1: The desert will become green. An abundance of flowers will burst into full colour. Springs will gush up, streams will flow, pools of water will form on the parched ground.
Image 2: There will be healing. The people who struggled with physical challenges, who were injured or maimed in war, who were marginalized as a result, will have full use of their bodies restored. They will be able to leap like a deer. And those who had no voice will sing for joy!
Image 3: There will be a brand new, safe highway right through what was once a deserted and dangerous desert landscape. And a singing, rejoicing crowd follows this highway back home. The route is so safe, so clear, so easy to follow that not even a fool could get lost!
Exploring the Text
I want to look at each of these “after” pictures in a bit more detail.
Image 1: The desert will bloom.
The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom…for waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert… (Isaiah 35: 1, 6b).The Atacama Desert in Chile is one of the driest places on earth. It can go years without any significant precipitation or plant life. Seeds from desert perennials simply lie dormant. But every 5 to 7 years or so, when enough rain falls, that water softens and washes away the protective coating from those dormant seeds.They begin to sprout, and suddenly the dry, barren landscape is alive with flowers. The desert blooms. It is actually called a “super bloom”. And there can be over 200 different types of flowers! Show slide #1
The biblical writers knew about this kind of desert super bloom too.The landscape of the Judean desert–especially in the region around the Dead Sea–is also dry and barren (show slide 2). It appears lifeless. But just like in the Atacama Desert of Chile, every few years, after enough rainfall, the Judian desert can bloom. (Show slide 3 & 4). Pools of water can form on the dry ground (show slide 5). It sounds like most recently that happened in 2020 in the region around the Dead Sea. It is a dramatic change. A complete transformation. The “after” pictures are stunning, and almost unbelievable show slides 6 & 7. This is the image that Isaiah tries to paint with words here in chapter 35 (end slides). The desert will become like the most fertile lands in the region, the writer promises.
Image 2: Healing will take place
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be opened; then the lame shall leap like a deer and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy (Isaiah 35: 5-6a).
I want to be careful here. In our day, we are reminded that to be blind or deaf or lame does not need to be seen as a negative disability. Many people who live with these conditions challenge us to see them as fully human with all sorts of gifts and unique abilities. They do not assume there is something wrong with them that needs to be fixed.
As is often the case, biblical images of physical challenges and healing also have a deeper, spiritual meaning. In part the kind of healing Isaiah is talking about here is more like waking up, becoming enlightened or clueing in. It means coming to a fuller realization about who God is and how God works.This part of the passage echoes another part of Isaiah where the writer laments how the people are “forever hearing but not understanding, forever seeing but never perceiving.” They have hardened their hearts, plugged their ears and closed their eyes, making it impossible for them to experience/turn to God for healing (Isaiah 6:9-10). Jesus liked to quote this Isaiah passage (see Matthew 13:13-15).
We can’t see or hear a new message of hope if we are certain of our old way of thinking–so rigid and stubborn that we are closed off to any new ideas. We can’t see or hear a new message of hope if we have hardened our hearts with arrogance, cynicism or indifference.
But here, Isaiah paints a powerful “after” picture of hope for those who feel weak, feeble and fearful. “Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God…come to save you.” Those who haven’t been able to see it before will wake up to the new thing that God is doing. Those who plugged their ears against voices they didn’t want to hear will find they can pick up and appreciate the new sounds of God’s activity.Those who have not been able to speak–those who have been silenced, those without a voice will be first to declare the wonder and joy of what God is doing. Those who have been humbled by their difficult circumstances will find renewed courage and strength. Those who are paralyzed by fear and immobilized by despair will break free from those crippling limitations.
Image 3-Exiles Will Return Home
Isaiah 35 ends with an image of exiles returning home. A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way…it shall be for God’s people…and the redeemed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing…
Home is a powerful image especially during the holiday season. There is no shortage of ads, Hallmark movies and nostalgic music to remind us of the tug and pull toward a sweet, warm, sentimental homecoming and the traditions that go with it. In our Isaiah passage, returning home is the ultimate image of restoration. For exiles, who were banished from home for generations, away from their beloved land, temple and traditions, coming home speaks of comfort and security, and the opportunity to settle, rebuild, and sustain life again. The picture is of a safe, secure route home–no enemies to ambush them, no predators lying in wait to attack them. A way will be made through the desert–a highway, a clear, direct route where not even a fool could get lost! This image should ring a bell for Isaiah’s listeners. It is not the first time God has led them through the wilderness–restoring them to abundant life.
So, Isaiah 34 is the “before” picture. The worst that can happen does happen. The people are left with utter destruction and despair.
Isaiah 35 is the “after” picture. And yet…and yet…imagine it! The deserts will come alive with new hope. With confidence in this message, take strength and have courage. Fear not God is here to save you. God is coming to make you safe, coming to shift the balance and right all wrongs (as various translations put it). Coming to destroy your enemies. (We could spend a whole morning exploring what we experience to be our enemies these days!). Healing and restoration will take place. Dry arid places will turn lush and green. The thirsty ground will drink deep from refreshing streams, burning sand and wastelands will become pools. And we will return safely, through the desert, home to the heart of God.
Application
The Advent season is about anticipation and hope for this kind of “after” picture of restoration. How do you hear this message of hope? In Advent, we sit between the “before” and “after” pictures. In this season we wait. There are still signs of the “before” picture. Like any restoration project, things are in a bit of disarray. We live with the mess and the dust before the full and final restoration happens. But we are starting to catch a glimpse of what is possible. In Advent, the “after” picture is starting to emerge. Broken pieces get mended. Refurbished parts get reattached. Rough edges get sanded smooth.
Advent does not deny the “before” picture. But it doesn’t dwell there. We have just come through the final Sunday of the church calendar year–Eternity Sunday when we take time to name our losses and our grief, we name places of suffering and destruction in our world and light candles in sadness and remembrance. But we don’t dwell there in our pain. We move forward into Advent, into new beginnings.This week we light candles again–candles of hope and anticipation. Candles to “strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees. Candles to give courage “to those with fearful hearts” (Isaiah 35:3-4a).
This does not in any way deny suffering or struggle. Isaiah 34 reminds us of that. Sometimes we do find ourselves at the end of our strength, at the end of our hope, doubtful and filled with anguish and despair. And if that is not our experience, maybe we can ask, whose voice could Isaiah 34 be? Who can identify with this kind of devastation? Who is experiencing suffering on that kind of scale right now? Who would have cause to speak these kinds of words? Someone has called these passages in the bible the “poetry of the oppressed”–voices we do need to hear.
How does Isaiah’s “after” picture speak to us today? From the heart of deep pain and suffering, Isaiah is able to say that nothing, no one, no relationship and no situation is beyond hope or beyond the reach of God’s love. If flowers can bloom in the desert after seeds lay dormant for decades, then there is still hope.
For those of you who are weak, weary and feeble take courage.There are pools and streams of refreshing water. Dormant seeds will sprout again, and the desert will bloom again.
For those who have been broken down by life, rejected or isolated; for those who have fallen apart there is healing and there is hope. There are new ways to see and hear–new ways to walk, new opportunities to speak.
For those who feel empty and lost in the bleak wilderness of despair. Be strong. Do not fear. There is a way through your desert. There is a way home to the heart of God. When the worst thing happens, God hears you and sees you, God loves you and seeks to restore you.
Three Invitations
I will close with three invitations. In this Advent season, what restoration are you longing for, or looking forward to in your own life? What do you hope for? Perhaps you long for restoration in a relationship or a neighbourhood that is struggling. Perhaps you want to renew your relationship with God, or restore your connection with Earth. Perhaps you long for a renewed sense of call and purpose or for some form of healing and new vision going forward. Whatever it is, invite God into that place of longing and waiting. With God’s help, hold onto the vision of what new thing is possible, and live as those who have hope.
In this Advent season, who are the weak among us? Who needs encouragement? Who needs to be strengthened? Who can we come alongside on the journey through their wilderness? Find someone to strengthen, encourage and support on their journey.
Finally, in this Advent season, a way has been made for us through our wilderness. It is a way home. With Mary and Joseph, with the shepherds and the magi, with the curious and the questioning, take that journey toward the manger once again, opening yourself to the wonder and mystery of love incarnate–God come among us. The journey home will bring us to the manger–to Jesus, to the helpless, hungry, holy infant. At the manger, if we are open to it, we are fully restored, fully at home in the loving heart of God.