A Whistling God
In my recent study of Isaiah, nothing has stood out to me more than the image of a whistling God.He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, he whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily! (Isaiah 5: 26)
The book of Isaiah seems to flip back and forth between doom and restoration, between warning and comfort. Isaiah reminds the Israelites of the Abrahamic covenant over and over. "Yes," he says, "God will be faithful. He will give you the land He promised. You will be a blessing to all nations." But he never lets them up from the Mosaic covenant. "But you have broken God's laws. You have not kept up your end. There will be a time of exile before the restoration can occur."
And what must the Israelites have made of all that whistling?
I love to boogie board with my niece and nephew. We were out in the waves one day when I watched them both snap their heads towards shore and start wading in. I soon realized that their father was there and was calling them in. Though I hadn't heard it, he had whistled to them. I asked my nephew about it later and he asked, "What kind of a whistle do you have for James?"
I don't really have a whistle for James, but he certainly knows my voice. And, like a Shepherd calling His sheep, I can easily imagine a whistling God. But what truly strikes me about the Isaiah passage is that God isn't whistling only for the sheep of Israel. He whistles for "distant nations," for "those at the ends of the earth." Even though they are enemies of Israel in every story I read from the Old Testament, Egypt and Assyria seem to be as important to God as His chosen people. And they seem to know the Shepherd's whistle just as well.
It's taken me time, but I realize now that God loves everybody. John didn't say, "For God so loved His people," or "For God so loved Christians." He said "For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, so that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life."
He whistles to everyone. Hear it?
posted by Thurman8er @ 8:34 AM
2 Comments:
Good post Bro. God’s whistle is better than anyone “whistling Dixie.”
Just to clarify, Lex only uses the whistle when the voice won't be heard. It took me a while to get used to it...but I appreciate it now. It's really just a family thing that only his kids hear.
You did a good job yesterday. My favorite part was when you made a comment and I heard two Elders "Amen" you out loud and watched one quietly nod his head. Wow!
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