by Pastor Travis
The book of Isaiah is filled with judgment, grace, repentance, hope, and love. However, when you take off the layers in the book of Isaiah you find Jesus. Everything in the book of Isaiah points to Jesus. The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. In Isaiah 26 God promise to give “perfect peace” to those who trust in Him. This promise comes at a very odd time.
The Israelites where going through the hardest time of their lives: facing the wrath and judgment of God; 70 years of captivity; and the fall of their nation. However, God promises to give them “perfect peace” in the midst of of their “storm”. The Bible says in Philippians 4:6-76 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Here we see that the peace of God will guard our heart and mind. It is God’s peace that will keep us protected in the midst of a storm. This is why Isaiah 26:3 is so important, because the Israelites needed the peace of God to protect them in the storm.
Isaiah 26 reminds us of a story in Mark 4:35-41 where Jesus and the disciples encounter a storm while going to the other side of a lake. As the storm nearly drowned the ship the disciples (specially Peter) were mad at Jesus because he was asleep during the storm. The disciples had drop their guard (peace) and that resulted in them questioning God’s love for them. Jesus then rebuked the disciples for their lake of faith in Him.
As we face this week, let’s keep our guard up. Do not allow the worries and cares of this world to take away your peace. Here are a few practical steps you could take this week to “keep your guard up”.
Prayer Life- Commit to pray three times a day for five minutes.
Be thankful- Find one thing daily to be thankful to God for.
Ask yourself daily “How am I trusting in Jesus, rather than myself?”
Remember the promises of God.