- I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold; so my own arm brought me salvation, and my wrath upheld me. Isaiah 63:5 – Here we have this image of God looking out over His people while they were being overwhelmed by their enemies. He speaks of looking out to see if any would step up to help. To see if the idols they have trusted in would help or if their own strength they’ve boasted about would come through for them, but nothing. So God Himself said He chose to step in and bring the much needed salvation Himself. Not that salvation could be found elsewhere anyways, but it does remind us that the only one truly fighting for our salvation is God. All the other things we can trust in can’t provide that for us, only God can and only God will step up to the plate to offer us salvation. Let’s celebrate today that we have a God who saw our need and didn’t sit back and wait for someone else to step in and take care of us. By His own arm He reached down and destroyed our enemies and at the same time brought us the life we longed for. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1264
- For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and my year of redemption had come. Isaiah 63:4 – We are seeing the Messiah, Jesus Christ, speaking in this prophecy from Isaiah. The grander picture happening here is God is speaking of His punishment on the sin of the world and His people, and then beyond that judgement the future redemption and saving of His people. Yet when we read a passage like the one above and see that “the day of vengeance was in my (Christ’s) heart,” that can seem a little confusing to us to hear. Was Jesus looking forward to this? What was in Jesus’ heart was His desire to make things right between us and the Father, to take full judgement on the sin that separated us from Himself. Also notice the lengths of time God established here for vengeance and redemption. A day for vengeance, but a year for redemption. One commentary put it this way, “A day is time enough for God to take vengeance, to kill, and to destroy. He hastens over work that is necessary, but uncongenial. But he lengthens out the time of release and redemption for his loved ones.” While vengeance and judgement are not actions we love to attribute to our Jesus, they are necessary for our salvation to be possible and for God’s plans to be fulfilled. Thankfully the God handling the judgment is full of steadfast love, is forever wise, and eternally trustworthy. Let us also praise the Lord that He is a God that handles judgement quickly yet prolongs the outpouring of His blessing. We truly do have a great God that deserves our faithfulness. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2730
Daily DEVO 