Thursday, October 12, 2017, 9:44 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your
words to my heart. I read Isaiah 49
(quoting vv. 5-10 ESV).
His Servant (vv.
5-6)
And now the Lord says,
he who
formed me from the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him;
and that
Israel might be gathered to him—
for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord,
and my God
has become my strength—
he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up
the tribes of Jacob
and to bring
back the preserved of Israel;
I will make you as a light for the nations,
that my
salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
The speaker is Isaiah, and
yet this is a prophecy concerning Jesus Christ, so, in essence, this is Jesus
Christ speaking. And yet, to a certain extent, this also applied to Isaiah and
it applies to us, too, as the Lord’s followers, for we are his servants, who
were chosen in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy
and blameless before him (Eph. 1:3-4).
Jesus Christ called us to be
his servants and witnesses. Part of our calling is that we may proclaim the
excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light (1
Pet. 2:9). Included in that calling is that we should encourage our brothers
and sisters in Christ, who have wandered from their pure devotion to Christ, to
come back to the Lord in submission and obedience to him. It is also to
proclaim the truth of the gospel to those who profess Jesus Christ as Savior,
but who have never been crucified with Christ in death to sin, and thus have
not truly been born again of the Spirit. And, it is to share with the world
around us that Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.
He died to deliver us out of sin, in other words.
The Chosen (v.
7)
Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer
of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,
the servant
of rulers:
“Kings shall see and arise;
princes, and
they shall prostrate themselves;
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One
of Israel, who has chosen you.”
Our Lord Jesus, although he
was God in the flesh when he walked this earth - i.e. he was fully God, yet
fully man - and even though he did no wrong, but he taught truth, and he lived it,
too, and he loved people and helped them, still he was hated, rejected,
despised, persecuted, abandoned, mocked, spat upon, beaten and then hung on a
cross to die. He came to save his own people, the Jews, but most of them turned
away from him and would not believe in him as their promised Messiah. And, many
of them called for him to be crucified, too.
Yet, it was God’s will that
our Lord should suffer and die for our sins, and then be resurrected from the
dead. For, when Jesus died, our sins died with him, and were buried with him.
Then he rose from the dead victorious over sin, hell, Satan and death. Through
Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can be delivered out of slavery to sin, be
set free from the ultimate punishment of sin, and be set free to now walk in
Christ’s righteousness and holiness. For, when we believe in Jesus Christ, we
are crucified with him in death to sin, and we are resurrected with him to
newness of life, to be lived to him.
It is also the Lord’s will
that we should suffer in this life, and that we should be hated, persecuted,
abandoned, betrayed and even killed for our faith in Jesus Christ. Why?
Because, through suffering we are being conformed to the likeness of Christ, we
are being made holy, and we are maturing in our walks of faith. We are being
humbled, we are learning to rely on God and not on ourselves, and we are
learning grace, compassion, forgiveness, patience, endurance and perseverance.
God is developing his character within us, as he carries us through these
trials, in order that we will be his faithful ministers in sharing the love,
grace and mercy of Christ with others.
Come Out (vv.
8-10)
Thus says the Lord:
“In a time of favor I have answered you;
in a day of
salvation I have helped you;
I will keep you and give you
as a
covenant to the people,
to establish the land,
to apportion
the desolate heritages,
saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’
to those who
are in darkness, ‘Appear.’
They shall feed along the ways;
on all bare
heights shall be their pasture;
they shall not hunger or thirst,
neither
scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,
for he who has pity on them will lead them,
and by
springs of water will guide them.
When we, the body of Christ,
serve the Lord faithfully in being his servants and witnesses, in taking the
gospel of our salvation to the ends of the earth, we don’t have to do this in
our own strength or by our own resources. When the Lord calls, he also equips
and empowers. As believers in Jesus Christ, we are indwelt by God’s Spirit who
comforts, encourages, strengthens, helps, empowers, counsels, teaches, and
guides us in the way we should go. He will give us all we need to be able to
share his gospel with many people.
So, what is this gospel that
we are to take to the ends of the earth? It is not only that Jesus Christ died,
and was resurrected, and that he did this to conquer sin in our lives, but that
he did this that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. So many people
are teaching the gospel as though it is just a get-out-of-jail-free card and
the promise of eternity in heaven with God when we die. But, Jesus didn’t die
just to take our penalty for sin, but he died that we might be delivered out of
addiction (slavery) to sin and so we might live in victory, and for him the
rest of our days, for his glory.
So, our message to the people
should not be merely that they should believe in Jesus Christ and accept what
he did for us on the cross, but it should be that they should come out of
darkness (sin) into the light of Christ’s holiness and righteousness. And,
their lives should now be a light that shines forth to show to the world what
it means to be truly “born again.” The Lord will now be their shepherd and
helper, and he will guide them and lead them in the way that they should go. They
just have to humble themselves before God, turn from their sin, and turn to
follow Jesus Christ with their lives.
For Our Nation
/ An Original Work
September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is
falling.
Jesus Christ is gently
calling
You to follow Him in all
ways.
Trust Him with your life
today.
Make Him your Lord and your
Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow
Jesus.
He will forgive you of your
sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new
within.
Men betraying: Our trust
fraying.
On our knees to God we’re
praying,
Seeking God to give us
answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all
things.
Nothing from His mind
escaping.
He has all things under His
command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently
calling
You to follow Him in all
ways.
Men deceiving: we’re
believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our
future.
For our wounds He offers
suture.
He is all we need for this
life.
Trust Him with your life
today.
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