ISAIAH
28:1-22 – Jesus Christ is ‘the precious Cornerstone’. He
is ‘the sure Foundation’ (16). Jesus is the Name of our salvation –
‘Salvation is found in no-one else… there is no other name… by which we
must be saved’ (Acts 4:10-12). There is only one ‘Foundation’ for our
faith – ‘Jesus Christ’ (1 Corinthians 3:11). He is the ‘chosen and
precious Cornerstone’ – ‘to you who believe, this Stone is precious’ (1
Peter 2:6-7). Build your life on Christ, ‘the solid Rock’ – ‘My hope is
built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; no merit of
my own I claim, but wholly trust in Jesus’ Name. When weary in this
earthly race, I rest on His unchanging grace… When earthly hopes are
swept away, He will uphold me on that Day. On Christ, the solid Rock, I
stand. All other ground is sinking sand’ (Matthew 7:24-27; Mission Praise, 473).
28:23-29:16 – ‘The wisdom of the wise will perish’ (29:14).
There is another ‘wisdom’, a ‘wisdom’ which shall not perish, a ‘wisdom’
which is ‘wiser than man’s wisdom’. Christ is ‘the Wisdom of God’ (1
Corinthians 1:24-25). With Christ as our Saviour, we ‘shall not perish’.
Through faith in Him, we receive the ‘wisdom’ which brings ‘salvation’
(John 3:16; 2 Timothy 3:15). Jesus Christ is ‘the Way, the Truth and the
Life’ (John 14:6). He is the Way to true wisdom. He is the Truth upon
which true wisdom is based. He is the Life which is based on true
wisdom. He is true Wisdom. We must not seek wisdom apart from
faith in Jesus Christ – ‘the world did not know God through wisdom’.
There is one true wisdom which does ‘not rest in the wisdom of men but
in the power of God’ – faith in ‘Christ crucified’ (1 Corinthians
1:21-23; 2:1-5).
29:17-30:17 – ‘In returning and rest is your salvation, in
quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. You
said, “No!”’ (15-16). God wants to bless us. He wants to be our
‘salvation’. He wants to be our ‘strength’. How does God bless us? How
does He become our ‘salvation’? How does He become our ‘strength’? We
must want His blessing. We must want His ‘salvation’. We must want His
‘strength’. We must return to Him and rest in Him. We must quietly
listen to His Word, putting our trust in Him. There is no ‘salvation’
without ‘returning and rest’. There is no ‘strength’ without ‘quietness
and trust’. God does not force Himself upon us. We can say, ‘No! I will
have none of it’. God wants to bless you. Will you say, ‘Yes, Lord! I
want You to be my “salvation”. I want You to be my “strength”’?
30:18-31:19 – ‘Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help
and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in
horsemen because they are strong, but do not look to the Holy One of
Israel or consult the Lord!’ (1). It is so easy to forget the Lord. We
try to go it alone, and we forget to look to Him for help. Even when we
forget Him, He does not forget us. When we turn our backs on Him, He
calls us to ‘return to Him’ (6). He reminds us that our true help is
found in Him: ‘Our help is in the Name of the Lord, who made heaven and
earth’ (Psalm 124:8). We need not look around here, there and everywhere
for an answer to the question, ‘Where does my help come from?’. There
is only one true answer to this question: ‘My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth’ (Psalm 121:1-2).
Comments
Post a Comment