March 7, 2025

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“‘Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet My unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor My covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” (Isaiah 54.10)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

The implications of Isaiah 53 and 54 (indeed the entire work) are simple. They are easily summed up in the teaching of Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of John the Beloved of Christ, “I AM the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me.” (John 14.6) The day will come when “…every knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.” (Philippians 2.10-11) In spite of the great men and women of faith who accepted God’s choosing of them to lead His people on earth, and we are grateful for them and their work of obedience to God’s Word and calling on their lives, our salvation is not dependent on them but on Christ alone. Our salvation comes from God and not from human beings. Human beings do the work of salvation in their preaching; teaching and modelling of the call of the Word to love God; love the neighbor; love self as God loves them; love those around them who are sharing together in the works of faith, hope and love; even to humble themselves to love the enemy leaving judgment to God alone. In that, those people, and us when we do them also, are participating in saving others from a fate worse than death. Their success and ours, however, is not dependent upon personal and corporate efforts nor the desire to be perfect in spirit and in truth. The success of those being saved is fully, completely and wholly dependent upon the love of God and His promise to be our God. Take away the great examples of faith throughout scripture, save Christ alone, and we are still left with the unchangeable and immutable God who loves us and desires for us to live. We are left with Jesus the Christ who demonstrated the life which God purposed and intended for all human beings to live not just on earth but in Heaven as well. This does not diminish the work of those who have gone before us modelling “the Way, the Truth and the Life.” The day will exist when others will look upon some mighty one of God in this generation, as in others, and give thanks for the Word and Work we did in response to faith given to us to fulfill our purpose and our commissioning. In this, we are able to be “at peace” knowing that all things can and do work together for good in and through those whom God loves (has compassion for), whom God calls and those who call upon the name of the Lord. (Romans 8.28)

Trust in this Word from God as we hear it in Isaiah 54.10. Let us focus upon it and recognize the truth which God speaks in it to every generation until the last. Do we not believe in the Word of God which says, “If God is for us, then who will be able to stand against us?” (Romans 8.31) Mighty ones of God, we do live in perilous times which will try the faith of every person regardless of who they put their faith in. Doesn’t it stand to reason that we put our trust in God who has proven in love to be trustworthy? Even if all the witnesses of earth were to pass away, His Word will never pass away! Hold fast!

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness which we know is folly but righteous works which declare Your glory and further witness the truth that can set all who believe free from death. So may we live by the name of Jesus our Christ. AMEN.