Title Behold Your God / Isaiah 40:6-11
God told the prophet Isaiah to proclaim the words of comfort to the people of Jerusalem, saying, “Your service is over, and your sins are forgiven.” This wonderful and beautiful news proves that humans wither like grass, but the word of God is eternal.
1. The Certainty of God's Promises
The work of salvation that will be accomplished through the gospel of Jesus Christ is not accomplished through the unsaved human body or the glory of this world, but comes only through the Word of God. Life has “a heart longing for eternity” (Ecclesiastes 3:11), and this is a gift from God. Also, the Word of God fulfills this, and Isaiah says that the new world that the gospel of Christ will bring is eternal.
The eternal Word of God said, “The time of labor is finished, and their iniquities are forgiven.” God's salvation cannot be resisted or stopped by man, and he tells us not to depend on human life like grass for salvation.
2. Behold the God who sees, rules, feeds, and guides
God tells the prophet to cry out about the liberation of the Jews who were taken captive to Babylon. The message of liberation is beautiful, so do not be afraid and raise your voice to cry out to the cities of Judah. The content of the message is “Behold your God” (verse 9).
Of course, these words were not limited to that event, but prophesied the gospel of seeing God, Jesus Christ, who would come in a human body. People can see God with their eyes only in Christ. That God will be present and come with power, with rewards and retributions before him.
(1) God comes with the power and majesty of a king
“He will rule with his arm” (verse 10).
The strong will come our Lord Jesus Christ. He is full of power and comes as a strong man who overcomes Satan who has strengthened his arms. God removes all obstacles in the process of spiritual redemption. He destroys and removes our prejudices, idols, wickedness and selfishness, washes away our sins and transgressions, and establishes the kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy.
“Behold, the Lord Yahweh is coming as a wrathful one, and his arm will rule over him. Behold, his reward is with him, and his retribution is before him” (verse 10). Grace.
The reward that God gives us is the gospel, and to those who accept this gospel, he gives eternal life as a reward. God told the prophets to go up to Zion and proclaim this wonderful news, the gospel. We too must witness the gospel of God to the whole world. I should not be satisfied with the fact that I have been saved, but must fulfill the mission of an evangelist to spread the gospel.
(2) God comes like a shepherd
“He will feed the flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms and take them into his bosom; he will guide the suckling females with gentleness” (verse 11).
The shepherd loves his sheep. God loves his people, who are sheep like a shepherd. God loves us so much that love is essential for an earthly shepherd to care for his flock. A true shepherd does not neglect even a single sheep. Without love, tending the sheep is the job of a paid shepherd.
As the Heavenly Shepherd, God envelops us with love, faithfulness, patience, and abundant grace beyond our ability to comprehend. As human beings, we cannot comprehend the great and deep love of God. Because God's love transcends human concepts and understanding. God feeds the flock like a shepherd, gathers the lambs with His arms, takes them into His bosom, and gently guides the females who are suckling (verse 11). He gives them green pasture, so that the heat and the sun do not harm them, and he leads them to springs of water (Isaiah 49:10).
Not one sheep in God's field is taken away or lost. There is no lion to harm God's flock, and no wild beast to attack God's flock. Because God keeps his enemies day and night. The one who keeps Israel neither sleeps nor sleeps. Only those who live by the word of God who keeps us will be protected by God.
God lays his flock in green pastures (Psalm 23:2) and feeds them in good pasture (Ezekiel 34:14). The Lord also called himself the bread of life and said that if a person eats this bread, he will live forever (John 6:48). God gave His people the Lord, the bread of life, more precious than the manna He gave in the wilderness. Therefore, those who eat the flesh of the Lord will live with the Lord.
Dear brothers and sisters,
May you enjoy eternal life in the arms of Jesus, who is the overseer of our souls and our shepherd, and may you be guided and blessed in Him. God tells us to cry out to the world to see God like this. This is evangelism. It is good news and we must go out and shout. This is also a confession. The only one who saved me is Jesus, the Chief Shepherd.
In the name of the Lord, I earnestly pray that you will faithfully serve God before God and live a life of evangelism, testimony, and confession.