sustaining words

The Lord GOD has given me

the tongue of those who are taught,

that I may know how to sustain with a word

him who is weary.

Isaiah 50:4a

This is a prophetic description of the comforting power of the words of Jesus. Jesus knew the Word of God intimately as the very living Word. And His words are permeating, powerful, and sustaining. He breaks through all the worst that we experience in order to teach us what God is doing in His grace, comforting us in His presence. This is something only Jesus does.

When I read the gospels, it isn’t that the red letter words of Jesus are somehow magical, but rather, that they are ring with a certain compelling authority. They arrest my attention. They cause me to refocus. They have to power to uniquely change my thinking. They are the Word of God, the words of my Savior and are so very dear for that reason.

Jesus knew this. And that is why His invitation for all the weary to come to Him and find rest is so compelling. He offers truth that is easier than the lies all around us. He offers true relationship that is lighter than the burdens of this life that drag us down. This for me is especially seen in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. When I read Jesus’ words there I am always captivated by how simple a series of messages can penetrate so deeply into my soul to change my thinking at the deepest levels in so many ways. Every portion of Jesus’ preaching is sustaining. It is amazing!

“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

John 6:68-69