From Then to Now

In observance of the Advent Season, I continue this morning with my study of Isaiah 64:1-9. Having previously written on Isaiah 64:1-3, today I turn my attention to V4-6. Consider the wisdom of this passage:

Isaiah 64:4-6 (NIV)


4 Since ancient times no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.

5 You come to the help of those who gladly do right,
who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
you were angry.
How then can we be saved?

6 All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

[1] The Holy Bible : New International Version. electronic ed. Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1996, c1984

"There is none like You." As I read V4, the lines from that song come back to me and help me to meditate on just how unique our God is. The words from that song help me to appreciate this scripture all the more. Even so, there are three points that raise up through my meditation.

First is the spirit nature of God. Our bodily senses (taste, touch, sight, hearing, smell) are incapable of grasping a visage of God. They can only offer glimpses and reflections of His glory. Were we to be exposed to His full glory, our senses would be overwhelmed and even if not, we would be totally incapable of articulating our perceptions to any real extent.

Secondly is the unique nature of God. For the prophet to state "no eye has seen any God besides you" is to state the obvious. There are no other Gods (big 'G' gods) other than the One. True enough that we promote 'things' (money, power, sports, sex, success, food, leisure) to god-hood which obscure our vision of God and this all too easily. But they are just idols and impostors; nothing but gods (little 'g' gods). Even if our senses could perceive God, they could not perceive any other God for there are none to be perceived!

Thirdly is the patient and faithful nature of God. The prophet records here that there is no other God 'who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.' It is a paradox to me that as we serve Him, He serves us; that He came down from Glory not to be served but to serve. Surely, there is no 'god' of any kind, big or little, that can, will or desires to do such a thing for us. Yesterday in my Sunday School class, I shared the truth of this verse (V4) with respect to how God shows up during my morning devotional times. I come to my desk, pray for His presence, wisdom, insight and guidance and wait. HE SHOWS UP! He answers my prayer. He acts on my behalf, for my betterment, for my growth, for my sanctification, for my benefit as I wait for him. It is so utterly preposterous that it is incalculably beautiful! THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE LOVES ME!

Continuing with this thought I turn to V5 which states the steadfastness of the Lord and the hopelessness of the unrepentant. God comes to the aid of those who are obedient and not just obedient but gladly obedient. In John 14:21, Christ himself stated that "He who has my commands AND obeys them, he is the one who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by the Father and I too will love him and reveal myself to him." We know too from the numerous examples put before us in Scripture and from 1 John 5:12 that the unrepentant heart is punished. "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." V5 closes with the greatest question of all time "How then can we be saved?"

The next verse V6 builds upon this question and states the obvious that all of us are sinful which we are reminded in Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Not only are we sinful but our best efforts at righteousness, our "righteous acts" are utterly contemptible. The exact words are "filthy rags" but study reveals that this is a reference to used menstrual rags. The term 'unclean' is far too kind to reflect the nature of our best attempts at righteousness. The passage closes with the acknowledgment that the godless person is powerless in the face of temptation. They are reduced to a husk and swept away by their sinfulness.

This seems a 'mean' place to leave for the day yet it is appropriate that as we consider the coming of Christ we dwell upon, remember and meditate upon our need for his redemptive power. Were it not for His coming 'then' we would be totally hopeless 'now.' So from this point 'now' till the coming of Christ 'then' let us consider the depths of our depravity that can only be erased by the blood of His sacrifice.

There is no other. He is perfect and just. We are needful and foolish. It is after all, a match made in Heaven.

Checking the sky,
Carl