January 1: The God of Our Salvation Will Destroy Death Forever
♫ Music:
Day 30 - Monday, January 1
Title: THE GOD OF OUR SALVATION WILL DESTROY DEATH FOREVER
Scripture #1: Isaiah 12:2-6 (NKJV)
Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; ‘For Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.’ ” Therefore, with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And in that day you will say: “Praise the Lord, call upon His name; declare His deeds among the peoples, make mention that His name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for He has done excellent things; this is known in all the earth. Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”
Scripture #2: Isaiah 25:6-10a (NKJV)
And in this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees. And He will destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; the rebuke of His people He will take away from all the earth; for the Lord has spoken. And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” For on this mountain the hand of the Lord will rest.
Scripture #3: Isaiah 33:17 (NKJV)
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; they will see the land that is very far off.
Poetry & Poet:
“Beyond the Door”
by Phillip Aijian
Who kindles a fire but it draw you,
oh pilgrim moth, across another night?
Through it you plunge immune to promises
of warmth and its comfort, or greater sight.
And though all your shadows might turn to ash
you dash forward with speed unabated
through stinging smoke unto the very gold.
By more than this gold illuminated,
you fly as if believing that this flame
could be the door whose flicker discloses
that light has always been a sacred place
which holds your final metamorphosis.
You’ll lose all loss and change—these shall be left
in the husk of darkness—that last cocoon—
and then shall cease your weary back and forth,
the fruitless courting of the fickle moon.
While filled with wind and flecked with gold, your
wings
are somehow still too poor a majesty
to keep you here. Yet I’ve been so taken
with feet and all their dusty dignity.
I burn with shame while you burn with glory.
Be my vanguard, you blazing seraphim!
For I also know of the golden door
beyond whose threshold now I hear a hymn
whose strains stir in my soul my true desire.
I shall have a face. I shall have a name.
One blessed day I’ll dwell in that dear light
and with angels shall endlessly proclaim
Holy! Holy! Holy! Lord God of Hosts!
I see you burn and yearn for my homeland,
oh moth; I long for that better country
and the golden city that God has planned.
Yet while I am still here I’ll go with you,
taking the path that saints have trod before.
They looked with faith up through the door and heard
the voice that cried: All things I shall restore!
THE GOD OF OUR SALVATION WILL DESTROY DEATH FOREVER
If we look at just the bottom of Koelle’s etching, we see death as it waits for all human beings: the tightly-wrapped shroud, the perished flesh and hapless bones. Death. It is indeed the covering cast over all of us, the shadow that hangs over each of us, the shroud that will enfold every one of us, as Isaiah puts it. There is no escaping, for us or our loved ones, whether our years are long or cut-off, whether we have available every medical intervention or not. What’s more, Isaiah’s wording includes “all nations.” We know from worldwide violence, civil wars, ethnic clashes, and political stand-offs that death enshrouds not only individuals but also groups, tribes, and countries.
But today’s passages from Isaiah remind us that death is not the end. The dread thing that destroys our hopes and our bodies will itself be destroyed by the Lord of Hosts. Not only that, but the whole earth will be restored and re-created. Instead of being “very far off,” we will get to live in it and the Holy One will be “in our midst.”
Have you ever watched a travelogue or seen a photo or video on social media? One glimpse of the amazing Iguazu Falls in Argentina/Brazil, Moraine Lake in Banff, or Ha Long Bay in Vietnam and you’re checking out tours or flights, perusing your calendar, and making sure your passport is up to date. Isaiah’s scenes of the new creation––a beautiful King, a tender parent wiping away tears, and a fabulous host spreading out a feast––make us both long for and prepare for that place and time. As the repeated words in Aijian’s poem and the glorious gilding in Engelhardt’s relief wall show us, it’s going to be golden.
But believers get even more than words of assurance and glimpses of what is to come. We get a Guide, who has gone there and returned and who now accompanies us through his Spirit. Do we have trouble believing that the sting of death isn’t fatal? Jesus has died and come back to new life to prove it to us. Today’s art shows the resurrected Christ. Not a ghost, but his own physical body, with wounded hands as we see in Koelle’s work. A physical body, but since it is no longer swathed in the shroud of death, it is glorious beyond our imagining as Engelhardt’s work shows us. And the Bible assures us that we too will be raised like him (Rom 6:3-11, II Cor 4:14, I Cor 15:20-23).
In the meantime, we wait. With desire and yearning, as today’s poem expresses. With trust and confidence, as Isaiah conveys. With praise for the Lord’s worth and beauty, as today’s hymn voices.
Prayer
Lord, we get bad news, we receive terrifying phone calls, and we read grim headlines—death is an inexorable part of our human experience; it is a covering that smothers us and blinds us. Help us to see you with eyes of faith: beautiful King, God of salvation, strength, and song. We look to you to swallow up death forever, wipe away tears, and restore your creation.
Amen
Dr. Kitty Barnhouse Purgason
Professor Emerita
Department of Applied Linguistics and TESOL
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Art #1:
The Resurrection of Christ
Maja Lisa Engelhardt
2018
Gilded wall relief
Calvary Chapel
Biola University
La Mirada, California
Biola University’s Calvary Chapel underwent a major artistic renovation during the summer of 2018––adding a new dimension of sacred space, reverence, and beauty to the interior space. World-renowned Danish liturgical artists Peter Brandes and Maja Lisa Engelhardt transformed the chapel with contemporary art in the form of thirty-two exquisite stained-glass windows, a stunning gilded wall relief, a gold cross, innovative lighting, and other redesigned architectural elements all created around the central theme of the resurrection. The interior is divided into four spaces, like the edges of a cross. Each features stained-glass windows that were carefully created by Brandes to depict key passages of Scripture. Engelhardt produced two sculptures, a cross over the entrance to the chapel and a stunning golden relief wall which symbolically represents Jesus’ resurrection. Collectively, the renovations and new artwork testify powerfully to the redemptive work of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection—and inspire a vision of the glory to come. The changes to the chapel have not only enriched the experience of worship, but boldly stand as a visual testimony to Biola’s continued commitment as an institution of Christian faith and its core values of truth, transformation, and testimony.
To explore the redesign of Biola University’s Calvary Chapel, click the following link:
https://www.biola.edu/calvary-chapel
About the Artist #1:
Maja Lisa Engelhardt (b. 1956) is one of the most sought-after Christian artists today. She graduated from the Funen Art Academy in Denmark and has lived much of her life in Denmark and France. Her faith is expressed as a discreet notion that the divine is omnipresent and manifests itself in and with nature. Engelhardt often uses light and landscape elements such as a field road, thornbush, or bird wing as symbols of God's appearance. In her church art, Engelhardt has worked on what artist Paul Klee calls "making visible what has been secretly revealed." Her works in various Danish churches are infused with an aspiration to make the divine presence felt—not only in the actual embellishments, but also in the entire body of the church. Both she and her artist husband, Peter Brandes, are involved in liturgical design. Over the past twenty-five years they have been largely responsible for a renaissance in Danish church interiors. They have redesigned over twenty churches by creating stained glass, painted altarpieces, floor coverings, mosaics, vestments, and metal work.
https://www.ehgallery.com/maja-lisa-engelhardt
About the Artwork #2:
Newness of Life
Chris Koelle
Digital Illustration
The sash reads:
“We were buried with him by baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”
About the Artist #2:
Chris Koelle is an American illustrator, printmaker, and designer. Koelle has created artwork and illustrations for dozens of books, graphic novels, and award-winning documentaries, including the Oscar-nominated Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience, as well as numerous album-cover designs. Illustrated books include John Piper’s JOB, The History of Redemption and Bike Snob. His latest illustrated tour de force, The Book of Revelation graphic novel, was recently published by Zondervan. He lives in Greenville, South Carolina, with his wife Annie and their two children.
www.chriskoelle.com
https://society6.com/christopherkoelle
About the Music:
“The King in All His Beauty” (Live from Sing! 2022) from the album
Sing! Christ Our Hope in Life and Death - Live at the Getty Music Worship Conference
Lyrics:
O lift your eyes to heaven, see
The Holy One eternal,
Behold the Lord of majesty
Exalted in His temple.
As symphonies of angels praise,
Now strain to sound His glory,
Come worship, fall before His grace
The King in all His beauty.
How worthy, how worthy, how worthy,
The King in all His beauty.
Now see the King who wears a crown,
One made of shame and splinters,
The sacrifice for ruined man
The substitute for sinners.
As earth is stained with royal blood,
And quakes with love and fury,
He breathes His last and bows His head,
The King in all His beauty.
How worthy, how worthy, how worthy,
The King in all His beauty.
Now see the Savior lifted up,
The Lamb who reigns in splendor,
The hope of every tribe and tongue,
His kingdom is forever!
Bring praise and honor to His courts,
Bring wisdom, power, blessing,
For endless ages we’ll adore,
The King in all His beauty.
How worthy, how worthy, how worthy,
The King in all His beauty. (3x)
About the Composers:
Matt Boswell and Matt Papa
Matt Boswell is a widely respected hymn writer and leading figure in church music. Currently the founding pastor of the Trails Church in Prosper, Texas, he came to a saving faith in Christ at age seven while his father, a pastor, was planting a church. Matt has been involved in church planting and pastoral ministry since 1998, and is also an author and hymn writer. Matt is a graduate of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.A., Christian ministry), and is also a Ph.D. candidate at Southern Seminary with an emphasis in Christian worship and biblical spirituality. He has released multiple albums and has authored or coauthored widely acclaimed songs, including “Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor” and “Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery.” Boswell is well-regarded not only for his hymn writing, but also his training of worship leaders for church ministry. He is the author of Doxology and Theology: How the Gospel Forms the Worship Leader. Boswell also is the founder of Doxology and Theology, a ministry focused on equipping and encouraging worship leaders in the practice of gospel-centered worship.
https://www.sbts.edu/academics/faculty/matthew-boswell/
As a veteran songwriter and Christian musician, Matt Papa has carved an even more unique space for himself as one of the world’s top modern-day hymn writers. With songs like “His Mercy Is More,” “Christ Our Hope In Life And Death,” and “Come Behold The Wondrous Mystery," Matt tours regularly across the US as a songwriter with Getty Music and frequently is a guest on their tours. A two-time Dove Award–nominated artist, Matt is on a mission to write songs that are singable, beautiful, and timeless. He currently serves as an artist-in-residence at Marco Presbyterian Church in Marco Island, Florida, and, most important of all, is a husband, and a father to five beautiful children.
https://www.mattpapa.com/
About the Performers:
Keith & Kristyn Getty, Matt Boswell, and Matt Papa
Keith and Kristyn Getty occupy a unique place in the world of contemporary Christian music today as preeminent modern hymn writers. In reinventing the traditional hymn form, they have created a distinguished catalog of songs teaching Christian doctrine and crossing genres by connecting the world of traditional and classical composition with contemporary and globally accessible melodies. These modern hymns are rooted in the traditions of Celtic and English hymnody handed down to the North Ireland–born couple and their longtime writing partner, Stuart Townend. Their best-known hymn, “In Christ Alone” (penned by Keith and Stuart and recorded by Keith and Kristyn), echoes this heritage and has been voted one of the best-loved hymns of all time in the UK. Kristyn Getty has made alterations to “O Savior of Our Fallen Race,” originally a sixth-century Latin carol, with the aim of turning the song into a missional prayer that emphasizes the return of Christ.
https://www.gettymusic.com/
About the Poetry and Poet:
Phillip Aijian holds a Ph.D. in Renaissance drama and theology from UC Irvine, as well as an M.A. in poetry from the University of Missouri. He teaches literature and religious studies and has published in journals like ZYZZYVA, Heron Tree, Poor Yorick, and Zocalo Public Square. He currently lives in California with his wife and children.
https://www.phillipaijian.com/
https://californiospress.com/2020/02/02/write-to-me-an-interview-with-poet-phillip-aijian/
About the Devotion Author:
Dr. Kitty Barnhouse Purgason
Professor Emerita
Department of Applied Linguistics and TESOL
Biola University
Kitty Barnhouse Purgason is professor emerita of TESOL at Biola University. She has a Ph.D. in applied linguistics from UCLA. She has lived, studied, served, or taught in India, Russia, Korea, China, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Mauritania, Indonesia, Kuwait, Oman, Vietnam, Spain, and Tajikistan. She is a three-time Fulbright fellow and a US State Department English language specialist. She is the author of Professional Guidelines for Christian English Teachers (William Carey Library).