One of my simple pleasures in life is watching tv shows about police officers and firefighters. It amazes me that there are people who willingly choose to run into burning buildings or step into danger to protect others. I think what I like is that there is a resolution to each episode, and the people are safe. This is a small picture of who God engages with us.
The nation of Israel was God’s specially chosen people. He had made a covenant with them stating that if they obeyed, there would be blessing in life. If they disobeyed, there would be hardship and consequences. For hundreds of years, the people disobeyed God, despite His continued grace and forgiveness.
God had even sent many prophets to the people telling them to repent and turn back to God. If they didn’t, they would be sent into exile. One of those prophets was Isaiah. He was sent to the nation of Judah (the southern nation after Israel split into two countries) to tell them to repent from their idolatry and disobedience. Unfortunately, the people did not listen. Instead, they continued in their sinful ways.
So God gave the people over to what they wanted. It resulted in the nation of Israel being conquered by the nation of Assyria and later the nation of Judah being conquered by Babylon. What is unique to the prophets’ message is also the promise of a remnant. Despite the judgment and exile that was to come for the people of Judah, God promised to preserve a small group of people who were faithful to Him. They would be saved and brought back to the land of Israel and Judah after 70 years.
Here in Isaiah 46, we see that God through Isaiah is stating that He is greater and the only true God as compared to the false idols of Babylon. They are nothing in comparison to His holy and mighty power.
God is the one who cares for the people of Israel. He is the one who has rescued them time and time again. He is the Creator God who is sovereign over all. He’s calling the people to turn from these false gods back to the living God. He loves them and wants them to trust Him and His ways.
With all of this background and context, what does this have to do with our worries, fears, and anxieties today?
The God that we read about in Isaiah is the same God we worship today. He is never changing. He is steady and steadfast. We can always depend on Him.
Through Jesus, believers are God’s specially chosen people, like Israel. God sees us as precious, and He is willing to give His son as ransom for our lives. If our lives mean that much to Him, He will certainly be with us and look after us through all of life’s trials.
He has written our days from beginning to end. Nothing is outside of His purview and control. Therefore, we can turn to Him with our fears, worries, and anxieties. He is not caught off guard or frightened by them.
Instead, He wants to hear from us. He gently tells us that He loves us, and He is with us even as we have to face the hardships and scary realities of this broken world.
God is more than able to carry our burdens. Even though we may not always see changes to the world around us, He is at work to make all things new.
Revelation 21 gives us a picture of hope that will one day be the reality for those of us who are in Christ Jesus.
John writes, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had ceased to exist…And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: ‘Look! The residence of God is among human beings. He will live among them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.’ And the one seated on the throne said: ‘Look! I am making all things new!’” (1, 3-5a).
The hope of heaven reminds us that all that we see and experience here and now is not the end of the story. We have a heavenly home awaiting us that is far greater than all we can imagine. It gives us confidence and perseverance to continue on toward the day when we can be with our Savior face to face.
As we await that promised day, we can turn to the God who carries us through the hardest of days. He is the one who is more than willing and able to meet us with peace, comfort, strength, rest, and love.
