June 2, 2017

Isaiah 40:28-31

(All Scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated)

We were introduced in the last blog to the theme of Under Or Over?  It concerns the troubles, trials, and testings that come with life!  Do they have you Under their control?  Or are you Over (on top) of these hard times?  Isaiah 40:28 through 31 gives us the ‘secret’ of how to have victory Over the challenges of life!

      Have you not known?  Have you not heard?  The everlasting God, the
      LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. 
      There is no searching of His understanding.  He gives power to the weak,
      and to those who have no might He increases strength.  Even the youths
      shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those
      who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up
      with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk
      and not faint.

As far as experiencing the challenges of life – we are either currently in a trial, coming out of one, or entering into one!  There seems to be relatively few times in life where we are experiencing no troubles.  So how do we have victory Over troubles, trials, and testings?  The ‘secret’ is quite simple.  According to our featured Scripture, it is in two steps:

•      Victory over the trials of life comes from “…the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth….”!

•      We are to “…wait on the LORD…,” depending on Him!  As it says in verse 31, “…those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

So how do we wait on the LORD?

•      First – and we looked at this in the last blog – we realize He is in control – of everything!  But I want to add another thing we must realize:  We are not in control!  Well, that may seem like an obvious statement, especially if God is in control!  But how often do we take charge and try to live our lives by our own resources?  Too often!  And where does that get us?  According to…

      ✞      …Isaiah 40:29, it leaves us weak and with no might or strength!

      ✞      …Isaiah 40:30, we are so worn out trying to solve our problems by ourselves that it leaves us faint, weary, and ready to fall down and give up!  And even the natural energy of youth will not be enough to get us through!

We are also to realize that not only is God in control, but that He desires to give us the best for what we need!

      ✞      As we are told in Romans 8:31 and 32:

              What shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who can be
              against us?  He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him
              up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all
              things?

In other words, If God is willing to give us the best – His own dear Son dying in our place (see John 3:16; Romans 5:8-10; I Peter 1:18, 19; I John 4:10) – then He won’t hold back any good thing from us! (See Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13).  Anything else He could give us is a lesser gift than the One He has already given – Jesus Christ!

      ✞      So, as Paul reminds us in Philippians 4:19, “…my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”  This includes power and strength as needed!

•      Second – we are to wait on the LORD to renew our strength to cope!  Waiting on Him means…

      ✞      …we are not to rush ahead of Him nor lag behind!  In Galatians 4:4 it is written, “…when the fulness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son….”  So the Lord knows exactly the right time for all else to happen – which includes when He will provide the help we need!  Just look at the trouble into which Abraham and Sarah fell when they took it upon themselves to provide the child God promised them!  They produced Ishmael!  And he is the father of the Arab tribes – thorns in Israel’s side ever since – for four thousand years!

      ✞      …“Let[ting] the word of Christ dwell in you richly….” (Colossians 3:16).  Get in your Bible!  God’s Word will teach you (see Titus 1:9), feed you (see Jeremiah 15:16; Colossians 3:10), and strengthen you (see John 17:17; Acts 20:32; Romans 10:17)!  It will also give you peace (see John 16:33)!

      ✞      …spend time in prayer, communicating with your Heavenly Father (see Luke 18:1; I Thessalonians 5:17).

•      Third – obey Him as He leads you! (See John 14:15).  As Jesus said very simply in Matthew 4:19 – “Follow Me….”

We will examine the results of wait[ing] upon the LORD in blog number three of this series.