“Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength.’” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and exult.
Isaiah 45.22-25.
Yesterday we saw the climax of God’s plans and purposes when every knee bows before him but we passed over the incredible statement that as all bow they will confess that ‘In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength.’
Does this mean that all will be saved? Many want to believe that this will be the case. However such belief flies in the face of what the Bible says in many places and indeed here, as God through Isaiah notes, that at that great assize there will be those who, in spite of their confession have raged and will rage against him and be put to shame. Being put to shame is perhaps euphemistic for it will not be shame that brings them to repentance but the shame of being ushered out of God’s presence for eternity.
It is important to view our broken world through the lens of God’s word. The future of our world is not doom and gloom. Care of the planet is part of the mandate given to humankind at creation but we do not need to fear all the dire predictions of the ‘green’ lobby for God is sovereign and our concerns should be his concerns namely that he desires that all mankind should worship him in spirit and in truth rather than raging against him.
As we have often noted, that requires that we make the gospel known and that the invitation that begins these verses is universally proclaimed. Tragically there will still be those who rage and will ultimately be put to shame but ‘in the LORD all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and exult.’
As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and as members of his church we are ‘the descendants of Israel’ a great crowd which no man can number who will gather before the throne of God robed in white (righteous) and singing his praises (exulting) for all eternity. Revelation 7.9-17
Therefore take heart and stand in the assurance that whatever this world throws at us there is a glorious future that awaits God’s people. Praise his name!