Isaiah 52: 1-15
Saturday, 27 November 2021
Isaiah 52:1-2: “Awake, awake, put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for there shall no more come into you the uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake yourself from the dust and arise; be seated, O Jerusalem; loose the bonds from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.”
God’s salvation has two distinctive parts to it. One is God’s part and the other is our part. His part is to make all the provision for our salvation and our part is to participate in the provisions given by God. God’s provision was more than we could imagine--He gave His own Son on our behalf to meet the just demands required for our salvation. He fulfilled His part to the last bit and nailed down our provision and declared in John 19:30: ‘So when Jesus…., He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.’ The wonderful fact is that Jesus rose again on the third day and celebrated with his dear ones this victory won on the cross of Calvary. It is now theirs; He has done His part! For anyone who dares to believe this truth the experience of union with our Father in heaven happens when His Holy Spirit comes into the one who believes- through whom he can cry out: “Abba Father!” 1 John 3:1 “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God …”
The Second part of Salvation is ours to fulfill. Salvation is a wake-up call to anyone sleeping in the pile of his iniquity. God brings in this wonderful truth to the ends of the earth through His servants, who walk this dark world with this message. Rom. 10:15: “And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!” This wake- up call is distinctively clear to the hearers because it has no comparison in this world. It stands out from all the loud voices of this world. It is directed to the sinner’s conscience and he has to make a decision whether to respond or neglect. Once this response is made on his/ her part, then the Good Shepherd leads the sheep into His fold. But when the Shepherd calls us out we need to walk out in faith— this is our part. Nobody else can do this for us. If we decide to disobey we will lose out in experiencing this great life that God has given us. Since we don’t know the way we need the Shepherd to lead us into streams of living waters and lush green pastures. It is only here we find the peace and joy in abundance. Many Christians are still dull, “asleep” and do not come out where the Lord is calling. There are a few things we need to do as part of experiencing this wonderful salvation:
Put on the garments (Isaiah 52:1 & Eph 4:22-24)
Put on strength (Acts 1:8 & 2 Cor 12:9)
Shake off every bondage (Isa.10:27 & James 4:7)
Acknowledge your position in Christ (Eph.2:5-6)
In the narration given by Jesus Himself in (Luke 15: 11-32) regarding the Prodigal son, we see how all these are provided by the father himself and it was on the part of the son to accept it and appropriate it. Let us appropriate our Salvation in Christ!
Meditate on: But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. (Luke 15:22)