Isaiah 41:1-16

Scripture: from verse 14

Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel!
I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord

Observation:  “I’m nobody!  Who are you?”  (Emily Dickenson)

Israel was nothing special.  They were not large, not powerful, not rich.  There was no reason for them to be anything but afraid, given the objective facts of their situation.

But God told them not to fear.  Not because of who they were, but because of who He is.

Like Israel, we are nothing special.  In the grand scheme of things, I’m nobody.  But I don’t have to be bigger than I am.

Emily Dickenson found comfort in being nobody, because it meant she could hide.  But God isn’t calling us to hide.  He’s calling us to wield His strength.

I am nobody, but I bear His name.  Instead of keeping our heads down and hoping the world will leave us alone, God tells us not to be afraid.  We are called to battle, or to parade, or to sing, or to dance, or to write, because we bear His name.  Because He helps us.

We don’t have to be somebody to do something.  We bear His name, and that is everything.

Application:  Do things.  Don’t try to do them on your own.  Don’t be afraid.

Prayer:  Yeshua, I praise you because your life is a joyful and carnival and powerful life, because you are brilliant and powerful.  I praise you because you call us to battle, not to the milky fastidiousness that the social psychology course seems to be promoting lately.  Thank you for having a plan for me.  Help me to walk in it.  Amen.

Isaiah 2:12-22

Scripture: verse 17

The pride of man will be bowed down,
the arrogance of men will be humiliated,
and when that day comes,
Adonai alone will be exalted.

Observation:  Matthew 24 says that heaven and earth will pass away, but the word of the Lord will stand.

Humans are astonishingly bad at long-term thinking.  We think the fluctuations we see today are global trends that will lead to catastrophe or prosperity for all time.  (Some of them are, of course, but we’re very bad at spotting which ones.)  And the things we think aren’t changing and aren’t changeable usually are changeable and are changing.  We just can’t see it.

All of our guesses and predictions and ideas for new world orders will end someday.  God will be revealed and very little of what we have done will stand up to His light.  But some of it will: if we choose to seek His help now, we can do things that last.

Sooner or later, God will stand glorified.  Sooner or later, we will acknowledge our own weaknesses.  But when we are weak, then we are strong (2 Cor 12:10).

Application: Don’t stand on false pride.  It won’t last long anyway.

Prayer: Father, I praise you for being the Rock that is higher than I.  I can rely on you when I cannot rely on myself.  Help me to see my own weakness and turn to your strength.  Amen.