Today's Scripture Reading (September 13, 2023): Isaiah 50
I remember going to a sales seminar in the 1980s
where the instructor opened up with a cautionary tale, one that I have seen
happen several times in the real world. According to the story, a man and his
sons were shopping for a company car or maybe even a fleet of new vehicles, but
the only time available to visit a dealership was after work. So, late one
afternoon, after an especially tough day, the men gathered at the local
dealership to look for a vehicle. But they were in old clothes, dirty and torn
from the day. Automotive dealerships often work on a system of "ups,"
basically an agreement among the salespeople not dealing with a customer on who
will get the privilege of speaking with the people who randomly show up to look
for a car. Most of these people aren't serious buyers, but there are gems
hidden within this group. The dealership staff looked at the men; none were
willing to use their "up" to deal with them. As a result, none of
them did. The men walked around the dealership, noticing several vehicles that fit
their needs. But every time they approached the sales staff, they were
mysteriously called away to some other duty. As a result, no one helped the men,
who then went to a neighboring dealership and bought three vehicles from
someone willing to talk to them. The story's moral was to never judge a book by
its cover. Wealthy people don't always look like they have money. Often, the
reverse is also true; people heavy in debt can dress like they have lots of
money, but some are so behind in their obligations that no one wants to lend
them cash for another significant purchase.
The prophet continues to talk about the Messiah. But
he appears to have no belief that the people of Israel would receive the
Messiah when he arrived. After all, they had often refused to accept the
presence of God in the form of the prophets. In those moments, God had come,
and no one deemed him worthy of a greeting. When they spoke about important
things, no one gave a response. And the prophet asks the question, why? Was God
incapable of helping them with their problems? Was God too weak to rescue?
Then, the prophet begins to speak of the history of
God's interaction with Israel. Hadn't he dried up the sea so Israel could
cross, leaving Egypt and slavery to exist as independent people in the wilderness?
Didn't God change the river into a desert, allowing Israel to travel from the
wilderness into the Promised Land? Why did Israel think that he was too weak to
act now? Instead, they were willing to handicap themselves and serve gods and
prophets devoid of spiritual power, but who knew how to act as if they knew
something that would change people's lives?
Isaiah didn't understand the Israel of his day. I
doubt that he would understand us either. We still look for the best-dressed
god and find them in various places. And we still pass up the one who can save,
preferring the pretenders who speak loudly of their power but do little to help
us. Maybe one day, we will learn the lesson of salespeople all over and
recognize that our humble king is the one who can change our world.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Isaiah 51
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