Deliverance
Today is a pretty important date on the Jewish calendar. From sundown last night to sundown tonight marks the Feast of Purim. It is celebrated each year by Jews around the world in remembrance of the deliverance the Lord brought about from an impending holocaust through the obedience of a young queen named Esther. Ironically, my Scripture reading today in the ESV 90-day reading plan was the book of Esther—a reading plan that was never previously synced with any kind of actual calendar whatsoever. Nonetheless, it seemed that the Lord woke me up this morning to remind of something—to remind me of His sovereignty. To remind me that He is the God of deliverance. He is the God of salvation. He reminded me of the simple fact that salvation is from the Lord, and nothing can thwart His plan.
Salvation/Deliverance has long been argued by scholars throughout the centuries to be the central theme of the sum total of Scripture. I tend to agree. A brief perusal of the Old and New Testaments cannot happen without this theme being brought to the forefront time after time. It’s woven through the fabric of biblical and human history.
The problem? Sin. The Fall. Captivity.
The solution? Redemption. Deliverance. Salvation.
This cycle of Captivity-Deliverance culminated in the death and resurrection of the Son of God who literally carried the name “Salvation.” Yeshua, the saving one, was sent from God as the Word made flesh. He dwelt among us, captive to the limits of humankind, disrobing Himself from the infinities of deity—stooping to become one of us, to bear our sin and redeem us. He proclaimed freedom for the captive, destroying the power of sin and death and laying them to rest in their graves.
As you continue throughout your day today, why not stop and thank God for His gift of salvation—that He came to your rescue—that He redeemed you. That He bought you out of slavery and has robed you with His righteousness.
Also, by way of parallel, there’s another holocaust happening in and around a nation that is dear to my heart, the nation of Uganda. Maybe you are familiar with it. The LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) has been preying on innocent children for more than 20 years in northern Uganda, southern Sudan, and northeast DRC, turning them into child soldiers and forcing them to murder their own parents and mutilate anyone who stands in their path. Their leader, Joseph Kony, has recently been placed at the top of the list of most-wanted war criminals. I would ask you to take thirty minutes and watch this telling documentary about an upcoming campaign to rid the world of this evil man. As you do, pray for the soul of Kony, that he would realize the depravity of his sin. And pray for the children bound in this godless world of evil. Ultimately, God, the great deliverer, is the only answer to this desperate situation. But maybe He wants to use your voice to shed light on what is happening and help to bring Kony to justice.
KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.