A Higher Position?

Good morning in the 0600 hour! If I exalt myself, will that help you in any way? I didn't think so. Me praising myself is not likely to be of much use to you. Well, unless you consider the source and gain some material for a bit of humor. However, let us look at something that at first might seem a little strange to us.

Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him. (Isaiah 30:18 ESV)

How can the Lord exalt himself to show mercy to me? Seems a little strange to us, but then many of the things God does in His wisdom will seem strange to those raised in a sinful world. My first suggestion for how God has done this is in the person of our Lord Jesus. At the resurrection, God exalted His Son and showed mercy to you and me. At the cross, Jesus was lifted up and we received forgiveness of sin. At the end, Jesus will come in his glory, and we will receive mercy forever. God can do this thing and has done it for us.

You and I cannot exalt ourselves or each other and accomplish mercy toward anyone. All we might accomplish is the exalting of the other person, not a bad thing, but it doesn't produce mercy for everyone. To exalt is to praise someone highly or to raise him to a higher position. Whoops! How can a perfect God exalt himself then? God cannot be raised to a higher position; He is God. But, what if God lowered himself, condescended that is, to become one of us, and not only that, but took on the judgment for sin in his own body? Then God can raise himself in the person of His Son Jesus to a higher position. Aha! the Old Testament prophet speaks of the incarnation and resurrection of Christ! The prophet waited on Messiah, and advised all of the coming grace and blessing of God for those waiting on the incarnation. We too have something to wait for, the return of Jesus to gather his children from the nations and bring us home.

Blessed be the name of the Lord,
Bucky