Isaiah 26

Isaiah 26:8, 10, 12 NIV

Yes, Lord , walking in the way of your laws,
we wait for you;
your name and renown
are the desire of our hearts.

But when grace is shown to the wicked,
they do not learn righteousness;
even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil
and do not regard the majesty of the Lord .

Lord , you establish peace for us;
all that we have accomplished you have done for us.

This is a rich chapter. It is a song to be sung when the King reigns in Jerusalem. In that light three phrases caught my attention. First is the phrase, "your name and renown are the desire of our hearts." It makes me wonder how true that is for believers. For myself I have to admit that there are days when the desires of my heart seem to be anything but that. Yet, as someone has suggested, every desire is really a desire for God. As the song goes, "You are the treasure that I seek. You are my all in all." Realizing the vanity of my supposed desires and the truth of who God is allows me to realign my desires. He is my all in all.

Second, is the phrase, "When grace is shown to the wicked, they ... do not regard the majesty of the Lord." I think that we sometimes have the idea that if we could only express the gospel better, if we were only better witnesses, if we were only better examples of the grace of God then people would believe. The truth is, some will never believe no matter how clear the expression of the good news or how clearly they see and understand who God is. The truth is Satan knows the majesty and glory of God better than anyone yet he has deceived himself into believing that he is somehow God's equal. Can we expect any different from those whom he has deceived?

The third phrase that caught my attention is, "all that we have accomplished you have done for us." The truth is, we can do nothing in and of ourselves to the glory of God. We can't change anyone's heart. We can't convince anyone to believe. We can't even change our own hearts. We certainly couldn't save ourselves. But God... That's why he is the desire of my heart, and that's why those caught in the pride of self refuse to believe. It's all about Him.

Father, I take pleasure in you, and you for some reason take pleasure in me. I rest in your grace, and glory in your greatness.

By His grace,
Rick Weinert
District Superintendent
EFCA Northern Mtn District