Friday after the Twenty-First Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on November 3, 2023 by under
Scripture: Isaiah 30:15-19 (NKJV)
30:15 For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
“In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
But you would not,
16 And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses”—therefore you shall flee! And, “We will ride on swift horses”—therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
17 One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain and as a banner on a hill.
18 Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; You shall weep no more. He will be very gracious to you at the sound of your cry; When He hears it, He will answer you.
Devotion
What could be more damning than Judah’s response to the Lord’s stated desire in our reading? Only the similar responses of those who refuse God’s declarations: “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12); that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life”; “No one comes to the Father except through [Him]” (John 14:6); and thus “by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph. 2:8–9)!
The Lord wished to give His nation triumph over, and freedom from, those who served other gods and would ultimately work their hurt. “Returning…rest…quietness…[and] confidence” in Him would give His people victory, but they so wished to ‘be in control’ of their lives that they relied on their own calculations, instead. When they saw they must flee, He would teach them the futility of their desired autonomy: the pursuers would be faster! Yet, when His people would see their failure and cry out to Him, He would be found still waiting with His mercy (St. Luke 15:11–24). So He remains today—yet none ought trifle with His grace as Judgment Day approaches as a thief in the night (2 Pet. 2:9–10) and death may come at any hour (Gen. 6:3, Heb. 9:27–28, St. Luke 12:15–21).
Prayer: Lord, we beseech Thee to keep Thy household, the Church, in continual godliness; that through Thy protection it may be free from all adversities, and devoutly given to serve Thee in good works, to the glory of Thy Name; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
