16 December 2020

Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
By myself I have sworn,
from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness
a word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear.’

Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,
are righteousness and strength;
all who were incensed against him
shall come to him and be ashamed.
In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
shall triumph and glory. Isaiah 45:6-8, 18, 21-25, NRSV

In this prophecy, God, through Isaiah makes it very clear that there is only one God to whom all should pay honour. This prophecy was made at a time when belief in multiple gods was common. Worship was made to gods of dark and light, of the different seasons, of the harvest, of fertility and of many other aspects of people’s lives. Even kings and rulers held such beliefs. At the time of this prophecy the people of Judah were exiled in Babylon. God wants them to know and remember that the gods of the Babylonians will not sustain them and that their salvation lies in remaining true to the one God.

• • Why do you think some people were swayed towards belief in many gods? 
  • What does it mean to say that there is one true God?

As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, make some time to thank God for this gift of himself to the world.