Can I pray for you in any
way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com.
In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
** Follow The Christian
Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk
** Like posts and send friend
requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn
** Become a Follower of
The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“This is what the Lord says to His
anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before
him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates
will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains.”
Isaiah
45:1-2a
This ends this
reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Over the next 18 devotions, we’ll
center on specific things the Lord is saying to us in Isaiah 45. One could
easily gloss over this if they weren’t careful but I believe the Lord wants us
to slow down in certain places in the scriptures and savor each morsel of
wisdom and knowledge He is seeking to impart upon us. And although these words
are directly spoken to King Cyrus of Syria, the Lord reveals things that He
would be willing to for anyone called to His service and that includes all of
us.
Let’s look at what He is saying to
us today:
“This is what the Lord says to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand
I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to
open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and
will level the mountains.” Isaiah 45:1-2a
The Lord had specific tasking in
mind for Cyrus. He was to overthrow the Babylonian empire and assume reign of
the kingdom. Maybe it would have seemed to be a surmountable task but in this
instance, Cyrus had one very big ace in the hole.
He had God on his side.
We see this in the opening verses
of Chapter 45. Cyrus was set apart for the work of God, anointed to carry out
His will and way. This was not just something that happened by chance. It was purposed
by God from the start and Cyrus didn’t need worry that he was on his own in the
task at hand. No, he was simply an instrument God was using, an extension of
the One who called him.
The scriptures affirm this as the
Lord says that He took a hold of Cyrus’ right hand to subdue the nations that
were before him, to strip kings of their armor and authority and make the way
clear to victory for Cyrus and his forces. No one or nothing would be able to
hinder what was to come before the Lord was going before Cyrus, assuring him of
triumph in any and all conflicts.
Truly, as the Apostle Paul would
later assert, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)
Friends, we are all called to do
the work and will of the Lord each and every day. As Christians, Jesus gave us
our marching orders in the Great Commission:
Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey
everything I have commanded you. Matthew 28:19-20a
Note the call to action here. Being
a Christian is not a life of passivity. Rather we are to be about our Lord’s
business every moment possible that He blesses us with. Through Christ, we have
victory over death and the grave, sealed in the salvation promise we received
when we placed our full faith, hope, and trust in Him. We need not worry or be
afraid of anything in this world. Rather, we are set free and liberated to
throw off all that would bind us to this world and go forth to help others find
that same sense of freedom in their own lives. We’re to do our part to help the
lost become found, to help those destined for destruction to find glory.
This task is not for the faint of
heart. It can be tough. People are dying today, just as they have throughout
history, for the cause and cross of Christ and the gospel truth that originated
there. It would be easy for us to see the task at hand as too dangerous, one
laden with risks we aren’t willing to take because of our fears.
This is why Jesus, just as God did
for Cyrus, offers us comfort and assurance in the midst of our call to His
service. For look at these final words of the Great Commission:
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew
28:20b
Jesus doesn’t send us forth to
fulfill His purposes on our own, alone and vulnerable. Rather, He is with us
every step of the way. Surely, He is with us because He said He was, and not
just now but forever, until the end of the age.
We don’t serve an absentee Savior.
Rather, we serve a Savior who is very alive and well, a Savior who communes
with us every waking minute via the Holy Spirit. All we need to do is seek Him
and He will be found.
Friends, this is what the Lord is
saying to us today:
“I am with you, I am for you, and I
am going before you in all that you do.”
With this blessed assurance, let us
all live with a renewed sense of boldness and confidence in our faith as we go
to work for the cause of the Lord, serving Him and others through all we do.
Amen.
In
Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment