New Year’s Eve
Isaiah 30:15-17; Romans 8:31-39; Luke 12:35-40
In the name of the Father and of the ☩ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Well, these are the readings assigned for New Year’s Eve. The Gospel and Epistle are fine, but the Old Testament lesson just seems a bit odd. There are so many Old Testament readings that I think would be helpful to hear as we close out one year and welcome the next. I think it’d be nice to hear Deuteronomy 31: “Do not fear… for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you” (Deut. 31:6). Or Jeremiah 29: “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jer. 29:11). Or Isaiah 43: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine” (Is. 43:1). All of that is still true, of course. Those promises still apply to you in Christ, and you should hold them dear as we enter the New Year. But that’s not what the lectionary gives us tonight. Instead, we hear a threat.
First, God says, “In returning,” well, that’s actually the word “repentance.” That’s what it should say. “In repentance and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength” (Is. 30:15).
That sounds like the Exodus—you remember?—when Moses declared, “The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be still” (Ex. 14:14). That’s beautiful. That doesn’t sound like a threat at all. “In repentance and rest you shall be saved.” God likens repentance to rest. He compares trust to quietness. God’s people don’t have to do anything to earn His favor, to receive His care, His protection, His Fatherly love. Receiving salvation and the strength to endure in this life is a passive activity. It is to let God be God, to hear His Word and promise, to be fed upon Him, to rely on His care no matter what tomorrow brings, and to simply say, “Amen,” to it, “Thanks be to God!”
But that is exactly what the Israelites were unwilling to do. You heard it in the text. After God calls them to the rest and quietness of relying upon Him, He says, “But you were unwilling, you said, ‘No! We will flee upon horses… We will ride upon swift steeds’” (Is. 30:15). They don’t want to trust the Lord, they want to trust Egypt. They want to take refuge in Egypt’s horses and chariots, rather than the Lord. If we had read the whole chapter, we’d have heard God calling them “stubborn children” (Is. 30:1), “a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord” (Is 30:9). They know they should trust God. It’s not as if they don’t know, but they would rather hold on to the things of this world; trust the world.
God’s response to them is not mild. He says, “You think you’ll flee on horses. Yeah, you’ll flee, alright. You think you’ll be swift? Your pursuers will be swift.” And then the threat. Those who fail to trust the Lord will be left “like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill” (Is. 30:17). Well, what does that mean? It’s not something we’re familiar with, but the idea here is that you’re exposed. You’re not safe and secure. You’re not protected. Refusing to trust the Lord leaves you vulnerable on a hill where every enemy will see you. Like a flagstaff or a signal lifted high. That’s the picture we’re given. That’s the threat. Happy New Year?
Why should we hear this threat about what happens when we fail to trust the Lord on a day when we tend to recall all the times in the past year when we failed to trust the Lord? Because we can easily think back to the past year and remember our anxieties, our stresses, the days when we were worried sick over something, when we were the ones who gave in to our fears instead of waiting upon the Lord, instead of looking to Christ in quietness and trust, we gave in to the worry. And as we’re remembering all of that, why should we hear this threat of being “left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill”?
Why? I hope you already know. Because that’s the punishment that was leveled upon your Savior. Jesus has suffered that threat. You see? He’s the One who was lifted up on the top of Calvary’s mountain as a flagstaff. Jesus’ cross is the signal on a hill. And that signal and that flagstaff proclaim not just your forgiveness, not just your redemption from past sin, it also is what proclaims your Happy New Year.
Because you don’t know what tomorrow will bring, let alone all of 2026. What are the things that you’ll face? What will happen to make you feel like placing your trust in Egypt? We don’t know yet the trials you’ll have. Maybe your finances will be a mess and cause you to look to your money, trying to trust in that for your daily bread. Maybe you’ll be tempted to seek refuge in distractions, books, and screens, and food, and alcohol, thinking that’s where your peace lies. Maybe you’ll be hanging on to every word you hear from a doctor, and you’ll be tempted to think that he’s the one who holds the key to your health.
Jesus would point you to His cross. There is your hope. That is where your trust lies. Not in the things of this world that are passing away, but in the only foundation that does not change, no matter what tomorrow brings. And since your Lord has already taken the threat of the Law upon Himself, now there is nothing left of that threat for you. Now you can hear the instruction of the Law and want to keep it. You can even hear the threats of the Law with joy, knowing that’s what’s taken away at the cross. Because of the flagstaff and signal of the cross, you know that Christ is for you.
That’s why St. Paul can be so bold in our Epistle, declaring, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). If God didn’t even spare His own Son, how will He not also give you all that you need? What charge can be leveled against you? And “Who shall separate [you] from the love of Christ?” (Rom. 8:35).
Sure, it won’t always feel like that. But that’s the point. That’s why Paul lists all of these things, the situations that seem like we are separated from the love of Christ. He could have just made his point and moved on, but no. He lists all of these reasons in which you feel separated from God’s love: Tribulation, distress, danger, and so on. Yes, it will seem as if you are separated from the love of Christ.
But the flagstaff remains. The signal of the cross on the hill of Calvary remains. And your good work in the New Year will be to trust that cross and the empty grave against what your eyes see and your heart feels. Good works are not just the acts of service, you know. It is a good work for you to hold to the promises of God rather than give in to distress. For what could possibly separate you from the love of Christ? Your salvation is secure. Your future is secure. Your peace and rest are here in the Body and Blood of God’s Son. This is how you look forward to the New Year.
In ☩ Jesus’ name. Amen.
The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.
"If God is for us, who is against us?" 