Daily Devotional For Tuesday, May 7, 2024

Well, Terrific Tuesday has rolled around. You may be off to work or to school or something else today. The Lord promised His people through the prophet Isaiah this: Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication (righteousness) from Me, declares the Lord” (ESV). This passage reminds all of us of God’s sovereignty. God is in control no matter what is happening around us. No matter who creates any kind of weapon against the people God, will not ultimately succeed in accomplishing what they want in the end. God will have the final say.

Even if we lose our life, death does not have the final say nor the final win. To me the greatest tragedy in life is not death, but a wasted life. If we are not using our lives to bring glory to God but we only live for ourselves, that is a wasted life and the greatest tragedy in life. 

This passage promises God’s people a heritage that only God can give us. If the language of Isaiah 54:17 seems over-the-top, keep in mind that the prophet sees both an immediate fulfillment and an ultimate fulfillment for the church. This ultimate fulfillment is the culmination of the Gospel in Revelation 20:10-15— 21:7:

“Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (The Final Judgment)  (11) And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from His presence, but they found no place to hide. (12) I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. (13) The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. (14) Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. (15) And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire . . .

(21:1) Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. (2) And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. (3) I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them. (4) He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” (5) And the One sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then He said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” (6) And He also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. (7) All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be My children” (NLT).

The context of Isaiah 54:17 is this: the remnant rebuilt the temple and the city under the leadership of Zerubbabel, the governor, Joshua the high priest, Ezra the scribe, Nehemiah the wall-builder, and the Prophets Haggai and Zechariah. But the restored Jerusalem was nothing like what Isaiah describes here! For that beautiful city, we must wait till the return of the Lord and the establishing of His kingdom (See Revelation 21:1-2 above). Then every citizen of Jerusalem will know the Lord (Isa. 54:13), and the city will be free from terror and war (v. 14).

This verse speaks of a future day when God will bring to an end any accusations against His people. We know that the devil loves to accuse us and try to convince our heavenly Father that we are not worth His attention, grace, forgiveness, mercy and love at all. We see this in Revelation 12:10, “Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens, `It has come at last— salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth— the one who accuses them before our God day and night’” (NLT). Notice how frequently the devil and his demons do this — both day and night. Isaiah 54:17 prophesies there is coming a day when all accusations by the devil and anyone will cease according to Revelation 12:10 above. Praise the Lord for that. 

This means that today we cannot be caught in the act of “playing the church.” We must be the church. It is not enough on Sundays to “clean ourselves up for a few hours a week, load into our church facilities, sing our songs, say our prayers and take sermon notes.” We have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in us — the most powerful and dynamic force in the universe. This means today — Tuesday — we must live lives that show this and prove this. 

Many times in the Christian life, God appears to be invisible. We cannot see Him. We cannot see what He is doing. The fog rolls in; the storm clouds gather; and they shield Him completely from our view.

That is precisely where the creatures in C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe are at the beginning of the story. The White Witch (the devil)  has seized control of Narnia and has magically imposed winter. She has terrorized the Narnian inhabitants by turning many into stone and by putting a stop to Christmas. To make matters worse, Aslan (Jesus Christ) is nowhere to be found. He is silent. He is hidden from view. And yet, in the midst of all this, the Narnians find hope in the reminder that they share with one another: Aslan is on the move. This reminder helps them hold fast even through the most difficult circumstances when Aslan is silent and seemingly far off.

When we find ourselves in the midst of difficult circumstances, when God is silent and hidden from our view, and when we cannot see what He is doing, we need this same reminder that God really is on the move. He is at work. Even if we cannot see Him the invisible hand of God is moving and working behind the scenes, bringing His perfect purposes to pass in our lives.

When we look at our world today, it seems God has abandoned it. He has not. This is the very same world He created out of nothing. This is very same world He called the Jews to be His chosen people for the Messiah. This is the very same world Jesus Christ came, lived a perfect life, was crucified, died, buried and rose from the grave. 

This is the Apostle Paul’s point in 2 Corinthians 5:19-21:

“For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And He gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. (20) So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making His appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, `Come back to God!’ ( 21) For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (NLT). 

So, the church has a job to do today for the Lord. The question is will we join today in what He is doing or live our lives selfishly for ourselves. Below are some questions to consider:

Questions To Consider

1. Do you believe God is on the move even when He seems absent or silent? Why or why not?
2. Do you agree the greatest tragedy in life is not death but a wasted life? Why or why not?
3. The devil and his demons love to accuse us before God when we sin. What does that tell you and why?
4. After reading Revelation 20:10-15— 21:7 above, how does this impact your life today and why?
5. Isaiah 54:17 has two parts: what was happening in Isaiah’s day as well as what is prophesied will happen sometime in the future? What impact does this have on your life and what will you choose to do because of it?

Scripture To Meditate On: 1 Corinthians 5:20, “So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making His appeal through us” (NLT). 

Prayer To Pray: “Dear Jesus, there are times I feel you are silent and even absent. I know there are times I am silent and absent to You. You have promises You will always be with me no matter what happens. I affirm that I need to trust You more and learn to walk by faith more, especially when You seem silent and absent. Lord, please help me do that. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”I love you Southside! — Pastor Kelly