Isa 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsts, come you to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
What a glorious promise that begins with a “Ho.” In old England it would have been heard in the market place as “here ye, here ye.” In the Americas it would have begun “Take notice!!!” Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters! The qualification? Thirst. There are those who simply know that there is more to this world. There have always been those who find no particular pleasure in the things of this world. They are the few, although God would have that all men thirst. And so, for those who do thirst He says “come, come to the waters,” and find true abundance. God then wonders aloud and asks some questions of those who do not thirst. “Why do you spend money for what is not bread?” And why do you spend your wages on that which does not satisfy? In an age of the “American dream,” we can surely relate. Does the larger house satisfy your soul? Does the latest car fulfill you? Does your many holidays bring you peace? You spend all of your resources on these things, are you satisfied?
And for the many who have no particular sense of their need, who seem to be quite unperturbed by any issues of the soul, then for them there is no remedy. And so for the few, those who are like the deer who panteth after the waterbrooks and therefore their souls longeth after God, they will find what they are looking for. They will find the waters of life, they will partake of the heavenly wine and their souls will be enlarged by bread from heaven. For those of you who eat and drink and have tasted of the good things of God, you shall delight yourself in abundance. Your peace will be overflowing in a world gone mad. You will have an abundance of joy even when you are surrounding by the mournful wails of a society in decline. Your soul shall live even although you are surrounded by souls that are dying. And even as they die you will continue to hold out these promises of God to them. Say to them brothers and sisters what the Lord said in Ezekiel 18:31-32…… Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die……..For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord God. “Therefore turn and live!”
Seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. That scripture is a lovers call not a burdensome command. It calls us and woos us. It beckons us to come like the lover in the night in the song of Solomon. It caresses our hearts and our spirits. Shall we respond? Shall we walk with Him in the cool of the day? Shall we give ourselves to Him? Shall our hearts meet with His heart and shall we feel it burn within us? There are many distractions in this world, so many. Yet we must rise above them all. And we can rise, for we have been given wings that can spread out and catch the updrafts of His presence. He bids us come and it is His very presence that carries upwards, that carries us to the throne room itself. It is there, before the beauty of His Holiness, that we are changed forevermore. There before His glorious majesty that we are transformed. There before His resplendent glory that we are sanctified. It is there where all things are possible. Right there where very soon millions upon millions of saints from every tribe and every tongue and every nation shall cry with all that is within them, Holy, Holy, Holy, is our Lord God Almighty who sits upon the throne, who was, and is and forever shall be. Like a endless wheat field as far as the eye can see, moving as one like the waves of a vast ocean as the wind of the Spirit moves them in unison.
The woman with the alabaster flask in Luke’s account is possibly a prostitute. Her alabaster, being very expensive, undoubtedly was paid for by her “work.” It may even have been her life savings, her security, her future, all inside this jar which she would have clutched tightly to herself. Yet, in her encounter with Jesus, she breaks this jar open and pours out everything she has. Now, all her security, her past works, are laid at the feet of Jesus. In laying herself bare before Jesus, she finds forgiveness and enters into true intimacy and actual love, something she”s have been searching her whole life for. Those who are forgiven much, love much. Those who love this much are willing to sacrifice everything they have.
Isa 54:7 For a mere moment have I forsaken you; but with great mercies will I gather you.
There are times and seasons when it seems that we are forsaken. In our personal lives and our corporate lives of gathering, we seem forsaken and lost. In the midst of trials that seem like they will never come to an end. In the midst of a wicked world that only seems to grow more wicked every day, the sense of being alone may creep in. Lest we think we are above these thoughts consider the cry’s of Jesus from the cross. The remnant people of the Lord, scattered everywhere, often struggle mightily with these thoughts, you might be struggling with them even as you read this. God has His people and His eye is upon them. If His eye is upon the sparrow, how much more so is it on you dear saint? In the state where we are scattered and separated from Babylon, we must remember this “with great mercies I will gather you.”
We are the Bride of Christ and our Maker is our husband. We are the redeemed of the Lord and He has called us. In the midst of darkness and wrath He has hid His face for a moment. Did not He turn His face away from the Lord Jesus? Yet we know this, we are the recipients of everlasting kindness and His mercy is new every morning. The mountains may depart and the hills be removed but His kindness shall not depart from us, even if for a moment it is hidden. He recognizes our afflictions saints. He sees our troubles. O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest and not comforted (Isa 54:11) The Disciples were so tossed with tempest as they crossed over this treacherous body of water. Yet, they see a figure walking towards them on the water. In the midst of their calamity here comes Jesus. He bids Peter to arise and come join Him in the very heart of the storm. With eyes on Jesus, Peter walks upon the water and above the storm.
The remnant saints of the Lord Jesus, the Body of Christ, the Church may seem to be on the ropes as the gross darkness rises around the world and the gates of hell seemed to be loosed all about us. Troubles without, fears within, yet God. In righteousness you shall be established. God is creating a work that shall astonish the principalities and powers. This temple, this Body, this Church may not look like much and may seem to be on the ropes, but it is far from that, we are being molded in the eye of the storm. We shall arise on the wings of our Bridegroom. Our gates shall be of crystal and our walls of precious stones. And the pinnacles of our towers shall be made of rubies. The pearl of great price is the foundation of His Holy Temple, we are that temple of the Lord, built without human hands and no weapon formed against us shall prosper. Every tongue which rises against us in judgement shall find itself judged by the saints in that day. This is the heritage of the servants of God and their righteousness is Christ Himself.
Isa 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
This is a rhetorical question by the prophet. It is an astonishment that when the Savior comes He shall be rejected. He shall be treated worse than any man. In fact, He shall be so marred as to be almost unrecognizable as a man. He was a tender plant that sprung up, but He sprung up as a root out of the dry ground. He was despised and rejected by His own. His walk would tread the path of sorrows and He would become very familiar with grief. Indeed, He would bear our griefs and carry all our sorrows. Can you imagine the weight of all the sorrows of the world? They would lay stripes upon Him, our stripes. They would wound Him, our wounds. He would be humiliated, our humiliation. They would put nails in His hands and feet and a crown of thorns upon His head, they all belonged to us. And in a cry that echoed throughout all of eternity He would cry out “My God, My God, why has thous forsaken me.” That is our cry, that should have been our absolute despair, yet, He bore it all for us.
The greater astonishment is that after two thousand years He is still rejected today. He was led like a Lamb to the slaughter and this world today would slaughter Him still. And yet even now He loves the world. He calls out to them. To those who would slap Him and mock Him and pull out His hair and spit in His face, He still says “come unto Me.” What love is this? If there is no greater love in the world that a man would lay down his life for his friend, and there is not, then what does laying down your life for an enemy mean? Are you not astonished? Should not the mouths of Kings be stopped as they stagger at this revelation? God the Father sacrificed His only Son so that we might live. Has it even entered into the hearts of man what awaits those who have rejected this sacrifice? If the Son of God Himself cried out from the cross in despair, what shall mere man do in that day as he stands before the magnificence of God? Who will believe this report while there is yet light?
Isa 52:3 For thus saith the LORD, you have sold yourselves for nothing; and ye shall be redeemed without money.
So many of the saints today have given themselves over to the world. They were not taken or bought, but freely they have given themselves to the things of this world. Remember saints, we were bought with a price, if you give something away, your giving away what was not yours in the first place. The price was already paid for you, you were purchased by something far more valuable than gold or silver, you were bought by the precious Blood of the Lamb. The coming captivity of the saints will be the refining fire that brings them back to where they belong. As the things of this world are slowly stripped away from a whole generation who call themselves after His name, then the treasure that lies within them shall come forth. The dross shall surely be burned up, but when the smoke of the refining fire clears then only gold shall remain.
Shake yourself from the dust and arise!…..Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck O captive daughter of Zion. ( Isa 52:2) Depart! Depart! Go out from there, touch no unclean thing. Go out from the midst of her. Be clean, you who bear the vessels of the Lord ( Isa 52:11) The Lord is calling His people out of Babylon and He will purify any traces of Babylon from your heart. As we take our rightful place as a Royal Priesthood, and remember that we are a chosen people and God’s special possession, then we shall indeed declare the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light. He is calling out to us brothers and sisters. We are to shake of the dust and arise! We are being called to throw of all the influences of “Babylon.” And as we do, and as the dust is falling to the ground and our footsteps take us ever further from Babylon, then we shall break forth into great joy and sing together, for the Lord has comforted His people.
The Lord will make bare His holy arm as we Arise! In the eyes of all the nations it shall be seen, when the Lord restores His people without cost. The watchmen shall lift up their voices, with their voices they shall sing together as they leave Babylon behind and head down the narrow path towards Zion. For the saints shall walk in the unity that Jesus prophesied in John 17. They shall see the glory of their God and they shall see eye to eye as they walk in lockstep in the midst of the refining fire. We shall not go out with haste but with great deliberation, for we shall be a people who have counted the cost and tuned our back on Babylon forever. And we shall be a people who will overcome the enemy by the Blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. And this last part shall be our greatest defining attribute, we shall love not our lives unto death. Though death may rage all around us, the life of Christ in us overcomes deaths power. It has no hold over us.
Isa 51:1 Listen to me, you who follow after righteousness, you who seek the Lord.
Three times in this chapter God says “Listen to me.” And when the Lord repeats Himself three times we should indeed listen. First of all, who is He talking to? In the first verse we see that it is “you who follow after righteousness, you who seek the Lord.” In verse 4 He says “Listen to me My people.” And finally in the 7th verse He says “Listen to me you who know righteousness , you people in whose heart is My law.” God is clearly talking to His people. A people who follow after His righteousness, a people whom God refers to as His own and those who “know,” Him and whose heart there is inscribed upon it, the law. He is talking to you and I. He wants to tell us two main things in this chapter. Firstly, He speaks of comfort, and secondly He wants us to stand up and put on strength.
His comfort comes in a series of promises and directions. He tells us to look to the rock from which we have been cut from. Consider where you came from and how you were delivered. And who delivered you and by what means. All of it glorious. You were delivered by the hand of God, the nail pierced hand. You were delivered from the gates of hell, from the miry clay, from the pigsty. You were delivered from death itself and born again into the newness of life. God says that He would make the waste places, the wilderness, the place of drought and death, like the garden of Eden. Where nothing grew, now stands a magnificent garden where rivers of living water flow. Joy and gladness will be found there and the sound of thanksgiving will be heard by the voice of melody. You are His garden. From this place we are a light unto the nations. His righteousness shall be near to them and His salvation will go forth before them.
Yet He also says to His people “AWAKE, AWAKE and put on strength, AWAKE, AWAKE and stand up!” Stand up brothers and sister. Rise up and put on your armor for the battle lies before us. He is the Lord your maker who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth. Shall you be afraid of mere men, who, if you cut them they bleed, or who, when they take their last breath they die? God says ” I have put My words in your mouth, I have covered you with the shadow of My Hand, that I may plant the heavens and lay the foundations of the earth and say to Zion, you are My people.” A call to arms brothers and sisters for the last days war. Arise from your slumbers and put on the full armor of God and come forward in the power of His indignation, for you are covered by the shadow of His hand. Do not worry what you shall say for God says “I have put My words in your mouth.” He has also put a sword in your hand and shield in the other. He has put upon your head the helmet of salvation and upon your chest He has put the breastplate of righteousness. You stand in the shoes of peace and your loins are girded with Truth. You stand whole and complete, ready for battle, in the salvation of your God.
The term “quiet quitting,” is a relatively new term and for the most part, would be unknown to most baby-boomers. It is a phenomenon among today’s generation and its spreading quickly. In essence, quiet quitting means not going above and beyond at work. Showing up, ticking the necessary boxes, doing just enough to cover yourself and guarantee your salary. Notions of loyalty and ambition to climb the corporate ladder are forgone in favor of pursuing that which personally fulfills you. Now some may say that this describes lazy workers that have been among us in every generation, those who do just enough to get by. That may be true of some of the quiet quitters, yet our younger generations have grown up in ease and they expect that their personal ambitions and desires should be fulfilled.
Is this what decadence looks like? We are far removed from the pre-war generation who lived through a decade of dire poverty and want. Who then passed on their attitudes to the baby-boomers and they in turn lived them out to a lesser degree but who wanted much more for their children and grandchildren. The faint echos of a bygone age are now drowned out by the aspirations of the decadent who are on the march, not helped by the fact that they are just about to inherit the greatest fortune every gathered by any generation in the history of the world. Perhaps if we knew just a little more about the Fall of Rome we would be able to see our own rapid decline in the luxurious desires of a generation that knows little if anything about struggle?
What puts steel in the backbone of any generation is a certain amount of suffering, the experience of doing without. The desire to rise up above unfavorable circumstances builds in men and women something of what we saw in “the greatest generation.” They came out of the farms, many of which had been ruined by the dust bowl, and they came out of the mean cities where one had to really compete just to put a roof over the head and food on the table. These circumstance gave us the strength to overcome the axis powers of evil and save civilization. There were no safe spaces on the battle-field. No special toilets for those who were confused about their gender. They did not have the luxury of quiet quitting. Everything was put on the line and many paid the ultimate price.
In the church today, Christendom is full of quiet quitters. Those who do just enough to get by. Who show up to a service and tick the box. Who have desires and aspirations quite apart from serving God. Who would claim that they are just not being fulfilled by their life. Who would be horrified at the prospect of suffering for the cause of Christ. Who would perhaps curse God because of great loss. Where are the warriors for Christ? Where is the Church militant? Is there any cause worth dying for in a generation that only sees God as a means to an end? Where is the generation of the cross? Where are the people who willingly step forward to go above and beyond their own selfish desires and whose highest ambition is to serve God on this battlefield of life? If your fulfillment in this life is more important to you than the job that the Lord has assigned you, and you are a quiet quitter, then is it any wonder that we live our lives in shades of grey? Chasing rainbows rather than seeking God is a sure sign that you are an entrenched quiet quitter in the spiritual walk of life.
Isa 50:4 The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary.
In Daniel 7:25 it says “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” We are living in a time when the laws are being changed. The natural laws handed down to us by God Himself are being changed by folks who speak great swelling words. Their rebellion is almost complete. The foundations are being destroyed, what shall the righteous do? The battle lines are being drawn by the prince of the power of the air, of this I have no doubt. The saints are wearied and are being worn out by an deluge of wickedness, and still the flood comes. Daniel says that we shall be given into his hand “until a time and times and the dividing of times.” Rev 13:7 says “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”
And so, a word to the weary and the worn out saints. Yes a mighty flood of evil has engulfed the world, but our Lord says in His Word that when the enemy comes in like a flood, He shall raise up a standard. He has prepared a highway of Holiness that leads through fire and flood. He has given us a tongue. A word of knowledge, a word of wisdom, a heavenly word that only the Spirit can discern. A word of encouragement. God Himself has given a learned tongue, touched by the Blood of the Lamb and coals of refining fire. Those who oppose you will increase as you continue to stand unmoved by the cultural winds that are beginning to blow with hurricane force. But you will not fall because trial and tribulation and temptations have been your lot for many years now, and your roots have went down deep into the waters of life. You have seen how God has been faithful to you through every situation and because of that your own faith has increased; to God be the glory.
Truth has consumed you and transformed you and you are a lover of it and no power that exists will wrestle it away from you. And of course the Word of God is your delight. It is the foundation upon which you stand. It allows you to stand, unmovable. It is a lamp unto your feet in the ever-increasing darkness of this world and it lights up the narrow path ahead. Stand fast brothers and sisters, the gates of hell shall not prevail against those who stand. He shall awaken you morning by morning. He is the stillness of your soul and He touches every part of your longing heart. He is in every tear that falls and in the billowing waves He hears you call. He shall be your quiet peace as the sun rises in the morning and your calm assurance in the night. He will be your laughter in the rain and your endurance through the pain. In the silence and in the noise you shall hear His still small voice and in this my brothers and sisters you shall rejoice. He rises up like the sun above the mountains, and He will refresh you from His inexhaustible fountains.
So much of the mega church and movements like Hillsong are almost exclusively based on emotions. This is where the danger lies when your music ministry is the heart and soul of your church or movement. Young people especially are swept up in a tide of feelings, their foundations of why they worship, based on how they feel.
Worshiping God begins and ends at the cross. We worship a God who died for us, who shed His blood for us. The love we discovered at the cross is all consuming. It is life and death. It transcends feelings, it is so much deeper than that. It hurtles past the outer limits of our soul and penetrates into the depths of our spirits.
Our love for our Lord is based on the firm foundation that He first loved us and that He died for us! When that is the basis of your salvation then you shall not be easily shaken. God Himself will be your life and wild horses shall not drag you out of His hand. He is your reason for living, He is the very air that you breath, He is your very sanity, In short, you know you exist solely because of Him.
There are no grandchildren in the Kingdom of God only sons and daughters. Beware everyone of you that was raised in a Christian household and raised up in a church. Shine a spotlight on your faith and examine yourself to see whether indeed you “know,” Jesus. See whether indeed you are a son or a daughter of the Kingdom. Do you love the God of all creation above all things? Does He rule and reign in your heart or does He merely exist in your head? Eternity rises or falls based on these questions.
If you are merely a grandchild you cannot stand, you will fall. You may have walked an aisle when you were four or five and have been told all of your life that you are a Christian, but the cross will tell the story. Unless the cross has penetrated and transformed your spirit, you dwell in the dim recesses of your soul. A place where shades of gray dominate. To dwell there is to have become accustomed to the darkness and perceive it to be light. The eyes are very clever and soon master the grey dimness. Yet, if you were to walk out of the dimness, out of the shades of grey and into His marvelous light you would fall back and scream as the light tears through your eyes and explodes into your heart and mind and soul and spirit.
The cross tears away a mans soul. It penetrates every part of him, nothing is left un-examined, nothing is ever the same. Now this new creature takes up his cross, in the shadow of Calvary, “knowing,’ not in the head, but in the deepest recesses of his heart, that His lord suffered more than he ever could and it is an enormous privilege to follow in His footsteps. This is salvation.
Isa 49:11 And I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways shall be elevated
The Lord says that He shall feed His sheep along the roads. And even in “desolate heights,” they shall find pastures where no pastures should exist. The King of kings who owns the cattle on a thousand hills and the hills beneath their feet is well able to do as He says. He will feed your hungry soul. He will water your parched spirit as you navigate your way home. Do you hear His promises saints? He is speaking to you. No matter how tough your journey has been or is, even as you read this, He will make the treacherous mountain passes to be like a highway, a highway of Holiness. As you lift Him up, as you exalt the Lord in an ever darkening world the light of Heaven shall shine down upon you, even the darkness will be light to you, glory to God. You are inscribed on the palms of His hand. He knows you by name.
Th remnant saints of God are being gathered together for the final journey home, for the end of the ages are upon us. And despite being surrounded by a hostile world our Lord Himself goes before us. He heals our wounds, He tenderly touches our weary hearts. He feeds the deepest parts of us and sustains us for the journey. He restores the brokenhearted and gives strength to the weary. He gives us hope when there seems to be no hope. He gives us joy when there is nothing at all to be joyful about. Sing O heavens! Be joyful, O earth and break out in singing O mountains for the Lord has comforted His people and will have mercy upon His afflicted. ( Isa 49:13) We may have troubles on every side, but by the power of God we are not distressed. We may be perplexed but we are not in despair.The world may persecute us and despise us but they cannot destroy the Spirit of God that burns fiercely in the depths of who we truly are.
Isa 45:3 And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places,
This scripture speaks of Cyrus, who would conquer Babylon. Cyrus, it is said, was an outcast, left abandoned by his mother as a child and saved by a herdsman’s wife. From an outcast he would rise by the power of God and one day take Babylon. Consider Babylon. There are estimates that its walls were anywhere between one hundred and fifty to two hundred and twenty five feet tall and between forty five and seventy five feet thick. Six chariots abreast could race along the tops of its walls. Its radius was estimated to be somewhere in the region of forty five mile which is the equivalent of modern day London. Imagine the whole of London ringed by such walls? And the Lord had raised up an outcast that would one day take this city and free the Jewish people. God would open before him gates that would not be shut. He would make the crooked places straight and break in pieces gates of bronze and bars of iron. He would give him the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places.
God is in the business of raising up outcasts and those who have been abandoned. To those who find Him He makes straight their paths. He gives us the power to overcome every obstacle. There are no doors that He cannot open. There are no mountains too high that He cannot help us climb. No waters to deep that we cannot navigate by the power of His strength. He gives us the treasures of darkness. The riches that are to be found in the depths of our calamities and in the presence of our enemies. He takes the ashes of our broken lives and the hidden places of our hearts and makes beauty from them. We who were poor and outcast and abandoned He has made rich and whole by His presence. He has transformed us and He uses us to share the glory of God to the captives that they may be set free. To the crushed and broken hearted that they may be made whole. Rain down you heavens from above and let the sky pour down righteousness. Let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation. And let righteousness spring up together for I the Lord have created it. (Isa 45:8)
Today we are being driven by the form and not the substance. Jesus is the substance. Jesus is the primary object. Jesus is the preeminent one. Without Him high and lifted up, front and center, without His presence in our midst we only have a form. A religious structure built by human hands to house our own desires. We have abandoned the real Jesus and constructed another Jesus. This other Jesus serves us. He serves our needs and desires, he entertains us through his creators. This other Jesus has never carried a cross nor does he require his followers to carry one either.
This cultural Jesus is a mere reflection of his adherents. He never judges, he never corrects. He has no particular requirements. He is a genie in a bottle even although they vigorously rub and he never appears. He does not walk with them, they walk alone. He does not talk to them, they merely engage their own imaginations. He lies to them through the prism of their souls. They hear him say peace and prosperity. He is a reflection of the better part of their natures and they do not realize that the better part of their natures is like filthy rags to the true and living God.
If these people ever actually encountered the true and the living Christ He would devastate them and upturn their lives. Everything they know or thought they knew would come crashing down. A God who judges? Hear the screams. A God who calls them to enter into His sufferings? Hear the wails. A God who requires their whole lives, their whole hearts, their whole allegiances? They writhe in agony. The flesh that refuses to die is enmity to God. He bids that flesh to voluntarily pick up its cross, the means of its own death. It shall surrender or it will rage against the author of the cross.
The narrow path never deviates as it winds its way home. It is fraught with danger. It slowly strips away all of the baggage that we took with us for our journey. It tears away at the flesh and passes through refining fires and floods. It often winds it way through hot and arid deserts. The narrow path has many exits and every exist is a path of least resistance. As soon as one steps onto it one can hear the haunting intoxicating sound of the siren call as it draws that one away from the narrow path.
For those who stay the course and stay on the narrow path, every so often, always suddenly, the Lord comes to us. He reminds us that we are His, He encourages us. He bids us look down and see that the path itself is the Word of God and that the path lights up and directs us in the way that we should go. We are instructed to turn neither to the left nor to the right. The Lord embraces us in His love and His kindness.
He heals our wounds, He tenderly touches our weary hearts. He feeds the deepest parts of us and sustains us for the journey. He restores the brokenhearted and gives strength to the weary. He gives us hope when there seems to be no hope. He gives us joy when there is nothing at all to be joyful about. He gives us a garment of praise and takes away a heavy spirit. He bids us to lift up our eyes and see the celestial city, from where our help comes from. Stay the course brothers and sisters. Stand fast in the time of our vexation. Our Lord is coming soon and our journey will be at an end.
Isa 44:3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:
The Lord our God has made so many promises to His people. He said He would never leave us not forsake us. He said He would endue us with power from on high. He said He would satisfy those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. He promised that the meek would inherit the earth and that the pure in heart would see God. He promised the Kingdom of heaven to those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. He promised that the peacemakers shall be called the sons of God. He promised the over-comers, those who endure to the end, that they would eat from the tree of life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. To the same over-comers He promised that they shall not be hurt by the second death. To those who are faithful unto death He promised the crown of life. Hidden manna, a new name, the power over nations and the morning star. Finally, He promises to the faithful, that they shall sit down with Him on His throne and rule and reign with Him.
These, you will notice, are not unconditional promises. We have our part to play. Yet for the joy and the glory set before us, we shall gladly lay down our lives for the name and for the sake of Jesus. He will pour water on the thirsty and floods of water on the dry ground. And for those of His who ask He shall pour out His spirit upon them, He shall fill them and fill them and fill them again with power from on High. They shall stand where others fall. They shall love where others hate. They will be peace-makers in a land of division and strife. They will be pure of heart in a world that is horribly corrupt. His blessings shall pour forth on the offspring of His own and they shall spring up among the grass like willows by the watercourses. They shall fly like summer larks in the golden hues of a setting sun. They will soar like eagles among the mountaintops. The sons and the daughters of God shall be a manifestation of His presence in the land and the world has yet some hope while they walk this earth.
(Isa 43:18-19) Do not remember the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
The past flows away like a mighty river that rushes onto the sea. Yet the river keeps on flowing. No matter where we go the river keeps on flowing. Even in the wilderness the river flows. Even in the desert the river flows. In the midst of all of your trials and difficult circumstances, still the river flows. It flows in one direction, it flows out from and back to the Father’s hearts. Follow the river brothers and sisters. We can think back about all the mighty things the Lord has done for us. We can remember our salvation, our deliverance from this world with great joy. We can think about how He changed us, how He molded us, how He led us and guided us and how marvelous are these memories. Yet God Almighty is the God of now and what is to come.
He did not just promise to deliver you from your past, He promised to deliver you home. We cannot camp out or put down roots in the past, we are a traveling people. We are pilgrims and sojourners traveling through this world. The mercies of our past only points us to a God who delivers everyday. The cloud that goes before us is still there and it is leading us home. It keeps us from the noonday sun and leads us. The fire by night burns bright still, and still it burns, and will continue to burn with ever greater intensity the closer we get to home. Look up you saints who have been on the road awhile and see the greater glory of your God. You now know just how faithful He is even when you were not. You know that all of His promises have been yes and amen. And as we journey home our spirits begin to catch glimpses of a place that no eye has seen. An eternal home so otherworldly that our hearts have not even contemplated such a place. Our spirits quicken as we approach, the outer-man may be perishing, but the spirit swells in anticipation of the ultimate new thing. Glory to God, draw us home.
These hand of mine Father, so many times, in any number of situations, I’ve wanted to throw them up in the air in despair, or wash my hands of something completely, or use them to literally beat someone. Yet you Lord, have called me to raise my hands up, not in despair or anger but in surrender. For most of my life I never knew what that looked like, this “letting go.” Father, help my lack of surrender, show me always what that looks like in every situation that I may always walk in Your peace. Surrender, to the world, is defeat. Surrender to you Lord is victory. My hearts desire Lord is to always walk in the shadow of Your victory.
Isa 43:2 When thou pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shalt not be burned; nor shall the flame scorch you.
What a remarkable Scripture. In the previous chapter we learned of the stubbornness of Israel and their obstinate disobedience. And yet here, this chapter opens up with “Fear not for I have redeemed you, I have called you by your name, you are mine.” Glory to God, He is a redeemer. He has redeemed us brothers and sisters, while we were yet in our sin. If His love for us was so great while we were yet in our sin, how much greater His love now that we are sons and daughters? He will be with us through ever difficult trials. He will be with us when troubles surround us. Though we pass through the fire, the flames shall not scorch us and when we cross mighty rivers we shall not be overwhelmed and swept away. How many times have you felt overwhelmed and it seems certain you shall be swept away? And then we find that the anchor of our soul holds us fast and leads us through the waters.
He says to those who are called by His name “fear not,” for He has created us for His own glory’s sake. He formed us and He made us and called us by His name and says of us “you are My witnesses,” of whom I have chosen.” You are His redeemed people brothers and sisters, do not lose sight of that. Walking according to the Spirit is believing everything God says about you. Walking in that truth and letting that truth take a hold of you, letting that truth consume you, letting that truth take you in its current is walking on the highway of holiness. The “atmosphere ” around you shall reflect the Spirit of God inside of you. A witness to the Lord’s reality. God says to us ” Therefore you are My witnesses ……Indeed, before the day was, I am He; and there is no one who can deliver out of my hand, I work and who shall reverse it?” Amen! Do not let the fires of your trials overwhelm your mind, instead consider the God that you serve. Do not let the waters of your circumstances sweep you away, stand, rather, in the power of His might and in the palm of His hand and in the beauty of His holiness.
Isa 42:10 Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof.
Who shall we sing unto? Shall we not sing unto the Lord of Hosts? To the one who created and stretches out all of the heavens. He spreads forth the earth and and gives breath to the people on it. He calls us to righteousness and gives us His Spirit. He has called us as a Covenant people. He has created us to be a light unto the world. We are to speak to those who are blind and watch the scales fall from their eyes. We are to call out to the lame and the broken that they may be whole again. To the dead we cry out “come forth,” and the dead of this world are reborn. He has given us His glory and He gives it to no other. The glory of Christ rests upon His people, we dwell in it. The former things have come to pass and behold all things are new. We sing a new song unto the God of Glory.
God’s people have been called to shout His glory from the rooftops. From the mountaintops. From the valleys and the coast-lands. Praise Him in the morning for His goodness. Praise Him in the noonday for His marvelous grace. Praise Him in the midst of the setting sun for His magnificent love. Praise Him in the night-watches for His great faithfulness. Praise Him when the sun rises again for His mercy never ends. There is so much strength in the praises of His people. He inhabits them just as He inhabits us. When the praises of God rises up like a phoenix form the ashes of our circumstances then beauty comes forth like the noonday sun. The beauty of His holiness is magnified in the praises of His people. Obedient people. In order to serve the Lord most High and be a demonstration of His magnificence on the earth, we must be an obedient people.
This obedience is our demonstration to a sick and dying world that there is a pathway to this God that we praise. As each man and woman of the world do that which is right in their own eyes, it merely promotes gross darkness. Our obedience to the Lord is the antidote to the darkness of the world. If the blind are to see through the darkness, that darkness must be illuminated by God’s obedient servants. The new song that we sing is the song of the humble servant who has fallen in love with His Master. This love is the fountainhead of all obedience. Bond-servants who shall sing unto the ends of the earth of the One that they love. Of the One who died for them. Of the One they gladly gave up their own lives for. Sing it today brothers and sisters, Sing it loud. The world we live in boasts loudly in the pride they have for their lifestyles, let us, who actually have something to boast about boast about it louder. Shout it from the rooftops, shout glory to God, glory to God in the highest. Let the world hear our new song, the song of our very lives which marches to every beat of our brand new hearts.
A Call To The Remnant 