Isaiah Chapter 2 - Lord Reign in Me - Today! Unless you've been living in a cave, you can't miss the fact that the world seems to be unraveling at a rapid pace. Every day the headlines bring a new problem, a new conflict, a new tragedy; Russia invades Ukraine; Iran is building a nuclear bomb; Boko Harem slaughters an entire village; ISIS butchers Christians… there's so many bad things happening it's hard to keep track of them all! There's lots of hand-wringing, but it seems that nothing can be done to get things under control. "Can't the UN do something?" Sure, they can hold another meeting, or pass another resolution.
But friend let me tell you, it won't always be that way, and Isaiah chapter two gives us a glimpse of what the future holds: The Day of the Lord.
The "Day of the Lord" is not so much a day, but a period of time. Now is the day of man, but when Christ returns and establishes His Kingdom, it will be the Day of the Lord. That period, the Millennial Kingdom, is a period of one-thousand years where Christ will reign from Jerusalem in righteousness and justice (see also Psalm 72, Isaiah 11:4-9, Jeremiah 23:5-6, Luke 1:32-33 and 19:12-27, Matthew 5:18, Rev 20:4-6):
2 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. 3 Many people shall come and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4 He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. (Is 2:2-4)
During the Millennial reign, the Lord Jesus Christ will be King, and Jerusalem will the superpower of the world. The Lord Jesus will rule the nations with justice and righteousness, and all disputes will be settled by Him without war:
"You will break them with a rod of iron..." Ps 2:9
"He will rule them with an iron scepter." Rev 19:15
… it will be a time of perfectly administered and enforced righteousness on the earth!
But mankind will not submit to God easily, it will require the judgment of God to bring mankind to the place of being willing to humble themselves to Christ. Verses 6-22 describe what's referred to as the "Seven Year Tribulation" (see also Dan 9, Dan 12, Matt 24, Rev 11, Rev 13), where the pride and arrogance of man will be brought down.
Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. (vs 10-11)
Isaiah paints a picture of humanity that's relevant to his time, and yet it also fits perfectly in our time. Fortune-tellers (false religions, pundits), silver and gold (riches), ships of Tarshish (ships, planes, trains)… mankind has build up an empire on this planet that is truly majestic and capable of great things, Mankind is in awe of all that he has accomplished. But when the Day of the Lord comes, none of these things will hold a candle to the judgment that God will bring to this earth:
They shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, from the terror of the Lord and the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth mightily. In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which they made, each for himself to worship… (vs 19-20)
In that day, mankind will witness firsthand the mighty hand of God, and there will no other conceivable response than to bow down and worship the Lord God Almighty.
But, why wait? Hear what the Lord encourages Judah to do:
O house of Jacob, come and let us walk In the light of the Lord. (vs 5)
In other words, while there is a future promised where all will submit to the Lord Jesus, and He will reign in righteousness, Jesus can reign in our lives, and in our hearts RIGHT NOW - TODAY!
There's a song we used to sing at our church, "Lord Reign In Me,"
Lord reign in me,
Reign in your power.
Over all my dreams,
In my darkest hour.
You are the Lord
Of all I am,
So won't you reign in me again?
That's my prayer today, that I would humbly bow down and submit my heart, my mind, my dreams, and my life to Christ, so that Christ may reign in me, today!
Pastor Clay
To download the daily reading plan for Isaiah, CLICK HERE.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment