Isaiah Chapter 7:3-9 (NIV)
Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub, to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field. Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid. Do not lose heart because of these two smouldering stubs of firewood—because of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah. Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted your ruin, saying, “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.”
Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘It will not take place,
it will not happen,
for the head of Aram is Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.
Within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be too shattered to be a people.
The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand firm in your faith,
You will not stand at all.”
James Chapter 1: Verses 6-8 (NIV)
Butwhen you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
Isaiah and his son were sent by God to bring a message of encouragement to the king of Judah. In spite of how things looked he was to stay calm and not be afraid, but he had to stand firm and trust God without wavering. God had things in hand but he wanted to see if the king was prepared to trust Him and take Him at His word. He had to be prepared to stand firm in his faith, otherwise God said he would not stand at all.
James the brother of Jesus taught the same in his letter encouraging the New Testament church. We are exhorted when coming to God in prayer to believe and not doubt. If we allow our faith to wobble and be affected by our circumstances, it is really not faith at all, since we are not really trusting God. Being double-minded in anything never works. We have to take a stand one way or the other. The reading from Isaiah today reminds me that no matter how things might seem to me, God sees and knows the full picture. He knows what lies ahead and will take care of it. But He does expect me to trust Him and stand firm. We know He has never let us down in the past, and He isn’t going to do so now.
Dear Lord,
Thank You that You see the end from the beginning. I can only see the present and can only imagine the future. I know You have it all in Your hands. Help me to stand firm even when I may be fearful of what’s round the corner. I pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.