“And the government shall be upon His shoulders.” Isaiah 9:6
Dear Ones:
Throughout Scripture, God is revealed to us as being Sovereign, All-Mighty, All powerful, and in every place. The concept of Him being our Creator and Redeemer is clearly kept before us. Essential in our consideration of Him, is the truth of Him being the King, the Lord, the sovereign and eternal Monarch. This Lordship speaks to us of His rule, His reign, His authority and power over His creation. That which makes this concept unacceptable to fallen man, and terribly misconstrued, is the very heart of sinful man. In essence, man was created to be dominated, ruled over, brought and kept in conformity with His Creator and Redeemer. However, just as we see Adam and Eve cowering in fear, hiding from the presence of the Lord after they had sinned, so we see men today running as fast as they can away from God, and in particular away from His reign or rule in their lives. The last thing that sinful man wants is to yield to God, cede the control of his life to Him. This is for two reasons. First of all, sinful man is born with the notion that he is his OWN Lord and God, the “determiner of his fate.” We might call this concept, “sovereign self.” The second reason that he does not want God to rule over him, is that his idea of God does not conform to the truth of who God truly is. His twisted ideas and concepts are those born out of a context of unbelief, fear, and deceit by the devil. Hence, he fears the very God who created him good. What will it take for such an individual to change course, his ideas, and submit to the rule of Christ? The hymn-writer puts the answer so clearly before us: “And grace alone can reach me, and love alone can win.” The good news is that this is exactly how God works, in order for the rebellious, defiant heart of the sinner, to “turn” to Christ, and truly be brought into a right relationship with God. How does He do this?
We seek our answer in Paul’s letter to the Romans: “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of Whom they have not heard?” (Romans 10:13,14) If the individual heart is to truly CALL upon God, and in a manner in which God will truly ANSWER, then he must do so according to the truth. True faith, however great or small, has its only basis in the truth of WHO God is, and What Christ has done on the cross. God always blesses the truth, and when a person comes face to face with the truth of what God declares in His word, then He works by grace to win the heart, the trust of the sinner. God is willing, and so very desirous, to meet every person who is willing to hear Him, see Him for who He is, and respond to the overtures of His heart, to forgive, cleanse, and give new life. However, He can, and will, do this only according to the truth.
Isaiah’s great word concerning the Love of God for every person, is so clearly seen in His words: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given.” (9:6) The great purpose of this revelation of the love of God is to draw all men to Himself, that they might truly KNOW God. In bringing the sinner under His reign, into His kingdom, the blessed and benevolent God, perfect and gracious in all of His dealings with us, brings him to the “sweetness” of sins forgiven, tasting of His joy and peace, the fruits of eternal life in Christ.
Dear Father, reign over us. Lord Jesus, be our King and Lord, teaching us of Your kingdom. May your blessed life fill us, and reveal itself in us to others, so that they too can say: “…grace alone can reach me, and love alone can win.” In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad