Challenged to Remember

With the first part of Isaiah 43:26, the verses preceding it to verse 16 gives us eight things concerning our remembrance of God.

Despite our sin and the problems associated with our sin, . . .

I. God Provides The Remedy 16-17

“Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea

And a path through the mighty waters,

17 Who brings forth the chariot and horse,

The army and the power

(They shall lie down together, they shall not rise;

They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):”

“Sea” in the Word of God is often a metaphor for the world as is Egypt. Just as God brought Israel up from Egypt to make them into a new nation, God desires to rescue each person from the world system and make them a new creation in Him. Just as Egypt’s glory and power faded away, so does the world system (1 John 2:17).

II. God Redirects Our Thoughts 18

“Do not remember the former things,

Nor consider the things of old.”

Oftentimes in the Old Testament God called upon Israel to forget the “glories” of Egypt. The same holds true for everyone who truly surrenders to Christ. We are to forget the ways and the glory of the world system and press on in Christ unto the glory of God.

III. God Reveals His Glory 20a

“The beast of the field will honor Me,

The jackals and the ostriches,”

These critters in verse twenty can devotionally represent unsaved individuals that have known the true disciple before they surrendered to Christ. They might outwardly mock and / or disregard the evident godly changes in a person’s life who is a true Christian, but oftentimes they inwardly realize that God has done a definite work. If some do not realize these things in this life, there will come a time when every knee shall bow and give glory to God due to the fact that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:11).

IV. God Refreshes His People 19, 20b

“Behold, I will do a new thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert.”

“Because I give waters in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert,

To give drink to My people, My chosen.”

When anyone is truly transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of Christ their spirit becomes alive and they realize they now have spiritual blessings they did not have before. Just consider how the world is right now. Does it offer any real hope? It does not, it never has and never will. The only true refreshing is in Christ the only Lord.

V. God Is Revered And Praised 21

“This people I have formed for Myself;

They shall declare My praise.”

Praise unto God should naturally flow from those whom He has redeemed. We are God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10). As He graciously and miraculously changes us from day to day we need to give Him the glory for it, and visibly praise His glorious Name. We visibly praise His Name not with only devotional worship, but more so in the way we live, how we permit Christ to conduct us each day.

VI. God Is Rejected By Some 22-24

“But you have not called upon Me, O Jacob;

And you have been weary of Me, O Israel.

23 You have not brought Me the sheep for your burnt offerings,

Nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices.

I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings,

Nor wearied you with incense.

24 You have bought Me no sweet cane with money,

Nor have you satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices;

But you have burdened Me with your sins,

You have wearied Me with your iniquities.”

Sadly, just as there were many in Judah and Israel that called themselves Jews and trusted in the fact that they were sons and daughters of Abraham, there are those today that call themselves Christian but only superficially honor Him. They might go to church, but too often that’s where there Christianity ends, because during the rest of the week they live their life as if the Word of God has little or no bearing upon it. They have forgotten Him.

VII. God Removes Sin 25

“I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake;

And I will not remember your sins.”

One of the many great blessings for the redeemed is that their sins are wiped away because of the all atoning work of Christ. Even sins committed during the Christian walk can be forgiven under the right circumstances (1 John 1:9).

Forgiveness of sins is never a license for flippancy in regard to sinning. We need to strive against sin and press on into Christ at all costs.

VIII. God Is Worthy To Be Remembered By Obedience 26a

“Put Me in remembrance;”

Because of what Christ has done for each true Christian, we need to forget the ways of the world and remember God every moment, not just in our mind, but by our actions.

Notes:

This article is a form of a message (sermon) outline. God willing, you will find links to the actual message (sermon) sometime hopefully by January 22, 2013 at http://www.sapphirestreams.com/life/audioM.html#M49 .

Holy Scripture, unless otherwise noted, is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The NKJV text was copied from http://www.biblegateway.com.

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