It's been a few weeks since I've updated my site. There are a few reasons for this, but one is the fact that I have had the worst carpal tunnel pain EVER! I am currently living off ibuprofen. So I covet your prayers. But during this time, I've had a lot of writing ideas. Today, I decided to press through and just write. And I'm so glad I did!
If you’ve ever felt abandoned, neglected, or even forsaken, I can assure you that you are not alone. Maybe you have even grieved a loss so great that you no longer see a way out of the pain? Still, you’re not alone. Ancient Israel was well acquainted with suffering and even captivity. They often needed the encouraging words of a prophet to get their focus off of their pain and onto the eternal. What about you? Do you need the same? If so, keep reading...
Long before the Messiah entered the picture of humanity, the prophet Isaiah became a source of encouragement that God’s chosen people so desperately needed. As the Holy Spirit breathed life into the prophet's words, the people were filled with much needed hope, grace, and vision for a promising future.
For the Lord has called you! (Isaiah 54:6a)
Israel was called by God! I'm sure that gave them hope because it’s nice to know that God is involved in your life and even calling you to greater things, but you need to know that your calling doesn’t come without a price. Israel knew this, and the rest of the verse reveals a pain that cut so deep, I have no doubt it affected their present and future vision.
Like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,
Says your God (Isaiah 54:6).
As I read this passage, somehow their pain brought my own pain to the surface. Amazingly that’s how this ancient text works. It’s supernaturally alive, active, and sharper than the sharpest of swords. Lately, I’ve felt the same feelings: forsaken, grieved, and rejected. But I knew there was more to the story than the pain Israel endured, and if I kept on reading I would find hope in the midst of my own darkness:
For a brief moment I forsook you,
But with great compassion I will gather you. In an outburst of anger
I hid My face from you (for a moment),
But with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you,
Says the LORD your Redeemer (Isaiah 54: 7-8).
I highlighted the hope in that passage, but I also highlighted the part that shows God’s displeasure with His own people. Why? Well, because in our day and age, there is a strong movement that suggests God simply sits in the Heavens, with a silly grin on His face, and winks at sin. Yet, Israel can testify to the fact that this is a bold face lie. They endured the pain of rejection. Their own God, the God of the whole earth, forsook them, and even raged against them. Yet, in this same passage, God reveals Himself as a compassionate restorer who is full of eternal lovingkindness! I don't know about you, but I needed to hear that.
Maybe you haven’t done anything deserving of the rejection and abandonment you've experienced. I’m sure Israel felt that they received a harsher punishment than they deserved too. But that’s not really the point here. Because the best news of all, and for everyone Jew and Gentile alike, was displayed when God Himself announced “I am your Redeemer.”
Says the LORD your Redeemer (Isaiah 54:8)
Without a doubt, Israel knew what that meant. I’m sure the story of Ruth and Boaz came to mind as they heard Isaiah’s words. If you don’t recall the story, Boaz, a Jew and non-relative of a gentile woman, willingly chose to become Ruth’s kinsman redeemer. In ancient Israel, the redeemer paid a hefty price to buy back or purchase something or someone. And this beloved story set the pattern for the redemptive work that God always intended to do:
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law so that He might redeem (pay the price for sin) those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons (Galatians 4:4-5).
I’m so glad that God, in the flesh, became our Redeemer. I’m so thankful that Messiah Yeshua willingly paid a price He didn’t owe- revealing God’s everlasting lovingkindness to His people and ultimately to the world! And I know the pain that I’ve felt, that you’ve felt, and that ancient Israel felt can’t compare to the future glory revealed in Christ, the Redeemer:
For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever (2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT).
Listen, today it might seem like God is far away from your troubles, but take heart because His unseen redemptive work has always been alive and active. And today He still redeems lives from pits of darkness. The glory that awaits us (in Christ) is greater than any troubles we now face.
With this hope in mind, here are my God Notes for Psalm 10!
My God Notes- Psalm 10
My Prayer- Psalm 10
Father,
Sometimes it seems that You hide Yourself in times of trouble. And today it often looks like the wicked are prospering while the Godly suffer. But the Psalmist declared that You do see the evil that permeates our land, and You will execute justice for all who are oppressed. By faith I declare that You are King forever! And the King that I serve hears every prayer that is offered in humility. Thank you Father for Your eternal redemptive work.
In Messiah Yeshua’s name,
Amen!
Long before the Messiah entered the picture of humanity, the prophet Isaiah became a source of encouragement that God’s chosen people so desperately needed. As the Holy Spirit breathed life into the prophet's words, the people were filled with much needed hope, grace, and vision for a promising future.
For the Lord has called you! (Isaiah 54:6a)
Israel was called by God! I'm sure that gave them hope because it’s nice to know that God is involved in your life and even calling you to greater things, but you need to know that your calling doesn’t come without a price. Israel knew this, and the rest of the verse reveals a pain that cut so deep, I have no doubt it affected their present and future vision.
Like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,
Says your God (Isaiah 54:6).
As I read this passage, somehow their pain brought my own pain to the surface. Amazingly that’s how this ancient text works. It’s supernaturally alive, active, and sharper than the sharpest of swords. Lately, I’ve felt the same feelings: forsaken, grieved, and rejected. But I knew there was more to the story than the pain Israel endured, and if I kept on reading I would find hope in the midst of my own darkness:
For a brief moment I forsook you,
But with great compassion I will gather you. In an outburst of anger
I hid My face from you (for a moment),
But with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you,
Says the LORD your Redeemer (Isaiah 54: 7-8).
I highlighted the hope in that passage, but I also highlighted the part that shows God’s displeasure with His own people. Why? Well, because in our day and age, there is a strong movement that suggests God simply sits in the Heavens, with a silly grin on His face, and winks at sin. Yet, Israel can testify to the fact that this is a bold face lie. They endured the pain of rejection. Their own God, the God of the whole earth, forsook them, and even raged against them. Yet, in this same passage, God reveals Himself as a compassionate restorer who is full of eternal lovingkindness! I don't know about you, but I needed to hear that.
Maybe you haven’t done anything deserving of the rejection and abandonment you've experienced. I’m sure Israel felt that they received a harsher punishment than they deserved too. But that’s not really the point here. Because the best news of all, and for everyone Jew and Gentile alike, was displayed when God Himself announced “I am your Redeemer.”
Says the LORD your Redeemer (Isaiah 54:8)
Without a doubt, Israel knew what that meant. I’m sure the story of Ruth and Boaz came to mind as they heard Isaiah’s words. If you don’t recall the story, Boaz, a Jew and non-relative of a gentile woman, willingly chose to become Ruth’s kinsman redeemer. In ancient Israel, the redeemer paid a hefty price to buy back or purchase something or someone. And this beloved story set the pattern for the redemptive work that God always intended to do:
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law so that He might redeem (pay the price for sin) those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons (Galatians 4:4-5).
I’m so glad that God, in the flesh, became our Redeemer. I’m so thankful that Messiah Yeshua willingly paid a price He didn’t owe- revealing God’s everlasting lovingkindness to His people and ultimately to the world! And I know the pain that I’ve felt, that you’ve felt, and that ancient Israel felt can’t compare to the future glory revealed in Christ, the Redeemer:
For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever (2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT).
Listen, today it might seem like God is far away from your troubles, but take heart because His unseen redemptive work has always been alive and active. And today He still redeems lives from pits of darkness. The glory that awaits us (in Christ) is greater than any troubles we now face.
With this hope in mind, here are my God Notes for Psalm 10!
My God Notes- Psalm 10
- God seemingly hides Himself in times of trouble
- God’s judgments are (for a time) out of the sight of the wicked
- God sees all that the wicked do
- God helps orphans
- God is the eternal king
- God hears the desires of the humble
- God strengthens the hearts of the humble
- God listens to the humble
- God vindicates (executes justice) the orphan and the oppressed
My Prayer- Psalm 10
Father,
Sometimes it seems that You hide Yourself in times of trouble. And today it often looks like the wicked are prospering while the Godly suffer. But the Psalmist declared that You do see the evil that permeates our land, and You will execute justice for all who are oppressed. By faith I declare that You are King forever! And the King that I serve hears every prayer that is offered in humility. Thank you Father for Your eternal redemptive work.
In Messiah Yeshua’s name,
Amen!
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