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Our past is not our future

On one occasion, Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do people say I am”. Perhaps not surprisingly, he got several answers. More surprisingly, one was that “one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life” (Luke 9: 19).

Clearly this group of people were more inclined to believe in the resurrection of a Merlin-like figure from long ago than the appearance of a new prophet in and for their own time.

That might seem odd, but Israel in Jesus’ time was at something of a nadir. The nation had been a vassal state of five different empires across seven centuries. One century of independence under the Hasmonean dynasty had brought renewed hope, but this was crushed with the Roman conquest of 63 BC. Since then, Israel had been subject to Roman laws and Roman taxation and garrisoned by Roman legions. There was little sign of God intervening on their behalf. Clearly some of the Jews became used to this status quo and had little expectation of anything different. Their focus was not on future hope but on past glories – which seemed long ago and far away.

Probably most of us have been through times in our life when God seems distant, and we are tempted to lose hope of ever finding him again. We are inclined to set our expectations based entirely on our recent experience. This can feel completely reasonable. But it’s a complete mistake.

Abraham is said to have lived for 175 years. Yet God only spoke or appeared to him on five or six occasions. For the rest of the time he simply lived out his life in faith and trust. For this God commended him, and it was accounted to him as righteousness (Genesis 15: 6).

The promise of Jesus’ coming is that God is always ready to meet with us. But he will do it in his own way and his own time. It’s great if we’re experiencing daily times of refreshing from him. But life is not always like that. When it’s not, it’s important that we don’t lose hope and we don’t stop looking for him. “Where does my help come from?”, asked the Psalmist. “My help comes from the Lord.”

Though decades passed, each time God appeared, Abraham was ready.

Am I? Are you?

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