Year 3, Day 30: Isaiah 46

God Versus The Idols

Isaiah 46 brings us into a direct comparison of idols versus God.  Let’s briefly start with idols.  What power does an idol have over what happens to it?  If I have an idol and I lock it up in trunk, can it do anything about it?  If my idol is money and the stock market crashes, can it do anything about it?  If my idol is a beloved family member and they get sick – or even worse, die – can they do anything about it?  No.  As God says through Isaiah – the idols we make go into captivity with us.  They have no ability to affect the world around them.  We make them into idols, but they are just as powerless as we are.

On the other hand, we get a very beautiful statement in verses 3-4.  God carried us through life from the womb to old age.  He carries us when we are young (and immature, stupid, rash, etc) and He carried us into our gray years (feeble, weak, prone to sickness).  He created this world.  He bears its burden.  He carries us all in His hand.  He can save us.

As I wrote that last sentence, I was really struck by the layers of meaning found in the verse 4.  God says, “I will carry and I will save.”  Now, of course we think of ourselves as resting in God’s hands.  Of course God carries us.  But He does more than carry us.  He carries our burdens.  In Christ, He literally bore our burdens straight to the cross.  He carried our burdens and through the cross He saved us from those burdens.  As this verse says, “I have made, I will bear, I will carry, and I will save.”  What an incredibly blessed verse. 

Again, I think this is a verse of double-interpretation.  I think Isaiah meant it one way, but through Christ this verse takes on a whole new layer of interpretation!

In the next three verses we go back to the idea of idols.  I really love the idea that God puts forth about the idols being stationary.  Yes, human beings create the idol.  Yes, human beings lift up the idol and put the idol in its place.  But once the idol is set down, will it move again?  Can an idol that is placed by our hands ever move on its own accord?  If the idol cannot even move – rather we move it – what power can an idol really have?

On the other hand, consider one of the most important attributes of God.  God is always on the move.  In fact, can we contain God even if we wanted to?  No, God is always on the move.  He is everywhere.  His hand is upon everything.  Nothing happens of which God is not aware.  That which God purposes shall come to pass.

God Comes To The Stubborn And Distant

To end this chapter, we have two really neat thoughts.  First of all, look at to whom God makes His address in verse 12.  God speaks to the stubborn of heart and to those who are far from righteousness.  You might be wondering what exactly is so cool about this passage.  Well, who among humanity does not fit into these categories?  It tells us that God is not interested in forsaking those who are far from Him.  Rather, God is interested in calling out to those who are far from Him and drawing them close to Him.  This is a very comforting verse to me.  When we walk away from God, we do not walk beyond His ability to call to us.

Along these same lines is the other part of the ending that seemed to leap off of the page at me.  The righteousness of the Lord is not far off.  This verse really piggybacks onto what I said about the prior verse.  No matter how far we stray from God, His righteousness is never far off.  God will not delay in bringing His salvation to us.

Isn’t that a great thought to have at the end of the chapter?  We can stray, But God is waiting right there to bring righteousness back into our lives.  How generous and forgiving of a God do we have!  How generous indeed!  God is great and mighty.  To Him goes all the glory and praise.  We are the ones who walk away.  He is the one who follows, beckons us back, and wraps us up in His righteousness.

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