As I study Isaiah again, over and over I've been shocked to see how closely it correlates with what's going on in the world today. In Isaiah 33, the prophet tells the Jews what's going to happen to them and why, and then comforts the remnant who will be left, telling them what they can look forward to in their future. Here and now, we are that remnant. No, not the Jewish remnant, I don't mean that. There will always be a Jewish Remnant and in the tribulation they will be kept safe and saved. I'm not talking about them, but rather I'm talking about the remnant of true believers that God always leaves for Himself in every generation.
Let me share with you the reason Isaiah gave for the disasters coming on the people and their land and you can tell me if you agree that it sounds just like what's going on right now.
There were a couple of specific types of people that were bringing this judgment on Israel then. The first group were the traitors who'd sold out to the enemy completely. The second group were the ambassadors and government officials who tried to manipulate things, and get help from other countries instead of seeking God's help. Basically they sold out Israel to other nations thinking that if they did, the other nations would help them. The third group were all the hypocrites who pretended to serve God but really didn't. They were the false prophets, and false teachers that were over running the land.
Just by looking at the news that's been posted here I see all three of those groups here and now, and I see them in an abundance. They've always been around, so it's certainly nothing new. What is new though is the abundance of them and the sheer numbers of their followers. Enough followers to elect Obama, not just once, but twice! And to elect congressmen, representatives, and state governors who are all saying and doing the same kind of things he does. We have more traitors in the government then those who are fighting for truth and justice and following the ways of the Lord.
Again, just looking at the news we can also see that there's an abundance of hypocrites, false teachers, and false prophets. Again, they've always been around, just not in the vast numbers with the vast number of followers they have now. There are more of them then there are of us.
Some people try to convince us nothing has really changed, that there have always been this huge number of hypocrites and traitors. They say the difference is that due to technology we can cover it all now where we couldn't before, so we just didn't know about it before. I don't believe that for a second. Why? Because if that were true, a majority of people's life styles would have looked like they do now, way back then too, and they didn't.
They say the same things about the judgments we see in so called natural disasters, bad weather, etc, but again, I don't believe them because it doesn't hold up to the way life was back then. Judgments that we've seen recently would have made it into people's life stories and been passed down through generations, so we'd know something about it even now, and it wasn't.
Isaiah speaks of the land itself wasting away saying it was happening because of God's judgment. Isn't that what we've been seeing more and more of here? Horrible storms, tornadoes, dust storms, hurricanes, blizzards, droughts etc. all have had devastating effects on our land and continue to. And once again the false teachers tell us that this has always happened and isn't anything new, that we shouldn't be alarmed about it... funny, that's what the false teachers said in Isaiah's time as well.
Crime has gotten out of hand all over and we're experiencing it in ways we haven't ever seen in this country, and that hasn't been seen in other civilized countries in a long time either. Disease has increased all over the world. More people are sick then ever before and more people are disabled then ever before. Everywhere we look there's a health crisis. The governments have tried to blame that health crisis on just about everything except what's really behind it - sin.
The remnant in Isaiah are distressed by it all and cry out to God, just as we do: Isaiah 33:2 —O LORD, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress. The Lord watches over them, but that doesn't mean that they didn't go through some very terrible times. We know in fact that they did. However, the Lord gave them the strength to make it through those times and they gained an ever more personal relationship with Him because of it.
Then, when things looked their worst, when there was absolutely no hope left because everyone knew that it was beyond human ability for Jerusalem to be saved, then, God stepped in and took over. That's what He often does, in all kinds of situations. He waits until we have to admit there is no possible way any human can change the course of events in whatever it is we've been begging Him for, and then He does the impossible for us.
Like many prophecies, Isaiah's had both a near and a far fulfillment. In the case of the near fulfillment, (near to Isaiah's time) God rescued them at the last second by killing the 185,000 Assyrian soldiers that were encamped around Jerusalem overnight. By doing that, He saved the faithful remnant and caused some of the hypocrites to turn back to Him and serve Him faithfully instead. The far fulfillment speaks of Armageddon, when the Lord will return and save the remnant of Jews from the Antichrist and his army.
But it also can speak to us today as well if we apply what we've learned to our own lives. We can see that if a Godly remnant prays, that the Lord will save them. He won't necessarily save them from experiencing some of the troubled times, but He will enable them to get through those times and become even closer to Him and know Him better because of them. To those people Isaiah says, He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure. (Isaiah 33:6).
So the first result we see is that the trials we're going through in our time will drive us closer to the Lord, and into His Word for wisdom and knowledge, developing an ever deeper relationship with Him in each of us. It tells us that this will be our sure foundation so that we can't be shaken by fear or worry, or stress. That's always true of those who fear the Lord, for when we fear Him, we realize we have no reason to fear man or what man can do. Of course that doesn't happen automatically, instead, as we find ourselves driven to the Lord and His Word more and more, we find that our faith grows stronger and the more we grow, the more fear of the Lord we have and the less fear of man we have. The fear of the Lord isn't a cringing fear of someone who's afraid, but rather a respectful awe, reverence, and love, which always includes obedience. It's what we see in a young child toward their parents, if the parents are good ones anyway.
Lastly, I think we can also count on another fulfillment in our time too, and that is a supernatural rescue before God unleashes His final wrath on this world. The reason I believe this is true is because of why God says He does this. He says he rescues them at that last minute that way so that He is exalted. He wants it to happen in such a way that no one can figure out any way for it to have happened except for His supernatural intervention. I can't think of a better way of explaining the rapture, can you?
So how can we apply this to our lives? The same way the faithful remnant did in Isaiah's time. As this world continues to get darker, instead of allowing it to cause us to withdraw, we should listen to His Spirit and let it draw us closer to Him and into His Word for encouragement, strength, and hope. Knowing that our God always keeps His promises, we should wait expectantly for our Blessed Hope. And as we wait, we should do as they did, and warn others of what's to come, in hopes that they'll turn from the darkness and come into His light. We need to warn brothers and sisters from the false teachers, and warn them of the traitors and hypocrites that abound. We need to remind them that Satan goes around like a roaring lion, seeking those he can devour, and that he often masquerades as an angel of light. Remind them to be alert and to keep their guards up all the time, and stand firm in their faith, for we're in the last battle and can't afford to stop for even a moment right now. We also need to remind ourselves of all those things as well. Keep in mind too, that we can't and don't stand firm in our own strength, but rather it's God who will make us stand firm. (2 Cor 1:21) But again, in order to have that strength from Him, we need to stick close by His side and be in His Word daily! So let us encourage each other as James tells us, You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. (James 5:8)
