Good Monday to you my ‘Walking with Jesus” friends,
Have you ever felt forgotten? In America we have several special days in our annual calendar that help us remember certain people. There’s Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and Veterans Day and Memorial Day and others. Probably you’ve heard someone bemoan that no one remembered their birthday. But have you ever heard someone say they felt GOD had forgotten about them?
Again, let’s turn to Isaiah 44 for it seems some of the people of Israel were feeling forgotten by God. The northern kingdom Israel had been destroyed in 722bc by the Assyrians and by about 680bc the southern kingdom Judah, under the wicked reign of king Manasseh, had also turned away from God, so Judeans were feeling God had forgotten them too.
But God had a special message for His people Israel scattered all over the middle east in those days. “Remember these things, Jacob, for you, Israel, are My servant. I have made you, you are My servant; I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.” (Isaiah 44:21,22) Now it’s important we understand this was a dual time message, do you see it? The first two lines of hope were assurance to all Jews, no matter where they were living, that God had not forgotten them, they were His chosen people.
The third line was a promise that someday in the future, God would forgive their rebellion against Him! And do you see the fourth line was God’s appeal? In view of God’s love, in view of God’s readiness to forgive, God was calling His people to turn from their wicked ways and come back to Him!
Now let’s personalize this. Most of us are parents and grandparents. We’ve all experienced the need to discipline our children. And when we did so, we made sure to tell them we loved them and they were our children, either natural born or adopted. Our discipline of them did not undo our family relationship, and God wanted Israel to understand the very same important message. Discipline does not undo biology or adoption!
Now as we saw yesterday, let’s look at this powerful God statement through lenses of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and apply it to you and me in 2024! Yes, we are each biologically created by God and our sin, as bad as it is, does not undo the biological relationship of God sustaining our lives by keeping our hearts beating and lungs breathing. And when we repent of our sin and trust Jesus Christ to be our Savior, God forgives us, wiping our record clean by the blood of Jesus.
And then, as Christians, either Jewish or Gentile Christians, if we stumble and sin again, our sin does not undo that glorious work of Redemption and Reconciliation and Regeneration and Justification that God is accomplishing in our new life in Christ. You understand that, right my friends?
So yes, my friends we can claim Isaiah 44:21,22 as a promise of God intended for His people Israel but also applied to us born again Jews or Gentiles because of the saving work of Jesus Christ in our lives!
I love that God then added one more powerful promise which Isaiah recorded for us in Is. 44:23 “Sing for joy, you heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, you earth beneath.” Not only was God telling Isaiah to call the Jews, living under the idol worshiping reign of king Manasseh, to stand firm because God had not abandoned them, God was also promising that when finally Manasseh was gone and the people would repent and turn back to God, there would be great rejoicing in heaven and on earth, as God would respond with forgiveness and restoration!
Yes, did you know heaven sings in celebration of God working on earth to transform the lives of repentant people? Jesus said, “I tell you there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10) Oh my friends, I love it when the Word of God speaks to Jews and Gentiles BOTH and to many different generations all at the same time. That is what God is doing here through Isaiah the prophet and I hope you’ll embarace it!
No one is ever forgotten by God, that’s impossible for He made and sustains our lives! He paid the ultimate price by sending His Son Jesus to pay the full price for our rebellion so God could redeem us and restore us into relationship with Him. So No my friends, reject any notion that God may have forgotten you. Embrace the truth that right now God is watching you, ready to respond to your seeking Him and repent of anything that separates you from Him! I think it’s time to worship Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord and thank God for His faithful attention to us, even when we have turned away from Him.
Here’s a worship song to help us with that. . .
Today’s Scripture: Is. 44:21-23.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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