Isaiah 51:2
We who are righteous;
before any of my family or close friends who know me well ask the question, has
Bob lost his mind, surely he does not see himself as righteous? Listen to these words of the apostle Paul; “Indeed, I count
everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my
Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as
rubbish, in order that I
may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that
comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the
righteousness from God that depends on faith—that I may know him and the power
of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in
his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the
dead.” (Philippians 3:8-11
ESV) The same message was also sent to
the church at Corinth; “For consider your calling, brothers: not
many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful,
not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is
foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to
shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in
the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.
And
because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God,
righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it
is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” Often, my actions are not righteous, and often my feeler tells me
I’m not, but God is greater than all and He calls me righteous because of my
faith in the blood that was shed to cover my sins and yours, Jesus is my
righteousness.
Isaiah
began this chapter or part of his letter or statement in verse one for the
righteous to listen to those who seek the LORD, and in the second verse he reminds
us to recall what God has done for Israel.
These are his words; “Look to Abraham your
father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I
might bless him and multiply him.” (Isaiah 51:2 ESV)
As a follower of Christ we are called to remember who bore us, not mother or dad, but Jesus
bore us out of the grasp of sin. And Isaiah’s words should move within our minds to our
calling, for each of us is called to introduce others to Christ. It is a holy calling to those who
have tasted the hope that is found only in Christ, and I’m sure you remember the words of
Jesus after His resurrection; “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven
and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you
always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20 ESV)
As followers of Christ we should say, look to Christ who bought us by His blood and broken
body out of sin, for He is the pure Lamb of God who has taken away the sins of all who by
grace and faith turn to Him. And our calling is to allow Christ in us to bring others to Him.
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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