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Isaiah 52.7 (NIV)
How beautiful on the mountains
are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good
tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
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| Jesus warned that since the world hated him we can expect the same if we’re faithful.* |
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There used to be a commercial on our local television
stations in which the owner of a chain of tire stores would proclaim, “Tires
ain’t pretty!” The same could be said of feet. Feet are much more functional
than they are beautiful.
When someone has the unenviable task of delivering bad
news, he might say, “Don’t shoot the messenger.” That expression, along with
this verse, illustrates the tangled relationship between the message and the
messenger. Within its context, we see Isaiah’s words from the view-point of
someone who is waiting for some good news, but read it again from the
view-point of the messenger. How rewarding it is to be the first to pass on a
bit of good news.
As Christians, we are to be bearers of the Good News –
the Gospel. We know that the world doesn’t always find our feet to be so beautiful
or our message so welcome. While the news that Isaiah awaited was greeted with
joy, even the deliverer of Good News is not always well-received. In I John 3.13,
we are reminded, “Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.”
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| This world always has and always will hate truth and truth-tellers. But I would at least have the world hate us for the right reasons. When the world hates us because we are hateful, no one wins – least of all our Lord.* |
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