Tuesday, March 24 2009
ISAIAH 17
Key Verse: V7 “At that day shall a man look to his maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel.”
1. Don’t Look at Success
V8 “And he shall not look to the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves, or the images.”
The people of Damascus and Ephraim had looked at their own idols and successes in all their battles and thought that they were invincible until they were almost wiped out by the Assyrians. When Christians look at our success as a result of our own wisdom and hard work and have forgotten that God is behind our success, it is the time when God shall judge us.
2. Don’t Look at Wealth
V10 “Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants, and shalt set it with strange slips:”
V11 “In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.”
The people of Damascus and Ephraim had looked at their great harvest because of their great effort and had forgotten that God was behind their harvest and wealth until God destroy their harvest! When Christians look at our wealth and possessions and thought that it was because of our business acumen and well-planned strategies and fail to realize that God was behind all our wealth and possessions, it is the time when God shall judge us.
3. Don’t Look at Power
V12 “Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!”
The people of Damascus and Ephraim had looked at their power and might and considered themselves as the mightiest until they met an even stronger opponent, the nation of Assyria which defeated them. When Christians look at our power and might and think nothing of God, it is the time when God shall judge us.
V7 “At that day shall a man look to his maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel.”
Let us look to God, our maker and creator, and know that without God, we are nothing!
Food For Thought
Look to God for everything.
