(Isaiah 62:1-12)
1 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning.
2 The nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name
Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.
3 You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
4 It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”;
But you will be called, “My delight is in her,”
And your land, “Married”;
For the Lord delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
5 For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the groom rejoices over the bride,
So your God will rejoice over you.
6 On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
7 And give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.
8 The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm:
“I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
9 But those who harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.
10 Go through, go through the gates,
Clear a way for the people!
Build up, build up the highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a flag over the peoples.
11 Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth:
Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation is coming;
Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”
12 And they will call them, “The holy people,
The redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City Not Abandoned.”
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning.
2 The nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name
Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.
3 You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
4 It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”;
But you will be called, “My delight is in her,”
And your land, “Married”;
For the Lord delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
5 For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the groom rejoices over the bride,
So your God will rejoice over you.
6 On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
7 And give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.
8 The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm:
“I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
9 But those who harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.
10 Go through, go through the gates,
Clear a way for the people!
Build up, build up the highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a flag over the peoples.
11 Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth:
Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation is coming;
Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”
12 And they will call them, “The holy people,
The redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City Not Abandoned.”
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
For "those God calls" - those who choose to believe and trust in Him - He will never give up on them. God's desire was and is for Israel to demonstrate His righteousness and glory, but they as a nation rejected the Lord when He came to earth in flesh the first time. The Lord will come again to fulfill His covenants with Israel in the Millennium, after they as a nation realize and believe in their hearts that He was and is their Messiah, King, Lord and Savior. As for everyone else, the Lord is just as loving and just as vigilant, no matter who we are.
The desire of the Lord is that all come to know Him personally. His desire is to delight in our walk with Him. In Revelation 21 and 22, the Church is described as the bride, and the Lord is the groom. This is the closest human relationship we have on earth to which we can relate, as a man and woman become one flesh. When we become a Christian, the Lord's Holy Spirit of promise indwells us and seals us for all eternity. We become one with Christ. (1 Corinthians 6 15-20)
And just like in a faithful marriage, once we become a Christian, the Lord does not leave us alone that we should flounder and wonder what to do next. He is with us always and forever, and desires that we continue together in a close walk with Him. This is why He provides us with what we need. The words of the Lord are found in the Bible for us to know Him more. The Holy Spirit is there to guide us in the way that we should go, leading us to a fulfilling life. We can talk with the Lord in prayer, all day, anytime, anywhere and ask for help, strength and guidance.
The Lord also provides us with a spiritual family - a community of believers - where we can serve and encourage one another towards maintaining a close relationship with the Lord. And as we live in God's will, we will shine out the gospel message - the good news - the free gift of salvation which is offered to everyone, so that others might also embrace a close relationship with the Lord and be satisfied!
As Revelation 22:1 says, "The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires, take the water of life without cost."
No comments:
Post a Comment