Getting It All Sorted
Isaiah 24:14-23
Is the world mostly good or mostly bad?
Photo by Katelyn G on Unsplash
They lift up their voices, they sing for joy; they shout from the west over the majesty of the Lord. Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord; in the coastlands of the sea glorify the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise, of glory to the Righteous One. But I say, I pine away, I pine away. Woe is me! For the treacherous deal treacherously, the treacherous deal very treacherously. Terror, and the pit, and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth! Whoever flees at the sound of the terror shall fall into the pit; and whoever climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For the windows of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble. The earth is utterly broken, the earth is torn asunder, the earth is violently shaken. The earth staggers like a drunkard, it sways like a hut; its transgression lies heavy upon it, and it falls, and will not rise again. On that day the Lord will punish the host of heaven in heaven, and on earth the kings of the earth. They will be gathered together like prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished. Then the moon will be abashed, and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before his elders he will manifest his glory. - Isa. 24:14-23
We like to think most of us are good people and that there are a few bad apples in the bunch. But Isaiah’s lament here is for the many bad apples, while his hope is for the few who are good.
Isaiah talks about many being gathered up to await judgment. We tend to think we have a pass on judgment, as followers of Christ, but what if we don’t?
Jesus said that he will come to judge, separating the sheep from the goats, so all will go through this judgment, even those he knows.
The thought of being judged terrifies me. It reminds me of when my sister and I would get into an argument, and Mom or Dad would punish us both. It didn’t matter who started it, or what it was about.
We were advised not to hang out with the wrong bunch, those bad apples, or we would wind up like them. But will we be judged based on who we associated with, or based upon how good we were as individuals?
We like to think we will have time to set everything right before we die, but that is a gamble. And even if we do attempt to gain forgiveness for being lousy people, what if God asks us why we waited?
Why did you keep being a lousy person, knowing you were doing wrong? Did you think this is all a game?
Oops.
From the moment we realize we are doing wrong, we need to repent and seek God’s forgiveness, along with the forgiveness of those we hurt. That’s tough. But it’s doable.
And it is easier to accomplish if we start now.
Start with God, and then seek out the people we hurt. With God’s help, we can do that.
More to come...