We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9.
Do you not know that…you are not your own? 1 Corinthians 6:19.
I was hungry, and you fed Me, I was thirsty, and you gave Me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited Me into your home. Matthew 25:35.
And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 185: No end to His Government, Throne, and Peace. Isaiah 9:7: There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. And, Luke 1:32-33: He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the LORD God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.
When I read these prophecies, I know hope. When we look at any of the governments of our world today we don’t find peace, justice, righteousness. We don’t find it in our cities or in our homes or in ourselves. When I read again today the devotional Hearing God by Dallas Willard, he shared the beautiful Scripture verse from James, the brother of Jesus our LORD: But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. James 3:17. And then Willard went on to write: “The sweet, calm Spirit of God’s voice carries over to the lives of those who speak with pure, peaceable voice. If we would heed James’s words about wisdom from above, we would never lack knowledge of who speaks for God and who does not. Reflect: What characteristics describe God’s voice to you? Be honest. Is it chiding or gentle? Insistent or willing to yield? Scolding or full of mercy? Rehearse in your mind how each quality mentioned in James 3:17 would sound within the still, small voice of God.” Do we hear wisdom from above in the words of those we follow today? If not, are they pulling us away from God’s pure wisdom? We can’t discount the world we live in today, even if we tried. In the first Scripture verse above, from the devotional, Rest In Me by Lina AbuJamra, she talked about the enemy, whose voice is nothing like God’s voice, writing, “Have you ever considered that sometimes the enemy behind us is the best thing that could happen to us in order to get us to where God wants us to go?” She talked about the children of Israel. They were led personally by God but were also pursued by the Egyptian army and that motivated them to keep moving. “Satan used that army to defeat them, but God used them to propel them into the promised land! The same is true in your life today: What Satan uses to destroy you, God will use to transform you. Because He is with you, you don’t have to be afraid of the enemy. You can remain undaunted no matter what. God is leading you ahead, away from the enemy’s reach, even while the enemy is pressing you to move forward from behind. You might feel afflicted, but not crushed; perplexed, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” We feel many emotions including those the enemy throws at us constantly: affliction, crushing, sorrow, perplexion from not understanding, forsakenness by people and our world, struck down, discouraged…confused, overwhelmed. That, my friend, is when we need to turn to Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, to be still and to listen to Him and His wisdom from above that will speak into your heart longing for Him.
God reminded me today to lay down the burden of fear for this world. To trust that He, I AM, is here. To take up my trust in Him and His love, to pray always and let my heart remember and rejoice in the good He is bringing. His love is tender and kind – and – is powerful and mighty! We so easily forget that in the cares of this life but when we turn to Him He gives His peace and His shalom so needed and found only in Him. Thank God’s Goodness for all of us, that His Government will rest on His shoulders, and that there will be no end to the increase of His government or of His peace, upheld with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore…and His kingdom will have no end!
***OVERFLOW – Dear LORD, saturate me with the experience of the love only You can give, so that it overflows from me to all whom I encounter throughout all the days of my life. Douglas Jacoby, Amen and Amen, 2025.***
