God's will to deliver and strengthen you cannot be revoked.
Isaiah 45:21-25 (NIV)
21 Declare what is to be, present it—
let them take counsel together.
Who foretold this long ago,
who declared it from the distant past?
Was it not I, the LORD?
And there is no God apart from me,
a righteous God and a Savior;
there is none but me.
22 “Turn to me and be saved,
all you ends of the earth;
for I am God, and there is no other.
23 By myself I have sworn,
my mouth has uttered in all integrity
a word that will not be revoked:
Before me every knee will bow;
by me every tongue will swear.
24 They will say of me, ‘In the LORD alone
are deliverance and strength.’ ”
All who have raged against him
will come to him and be put to shame.
25 But all the descendants of Israel
will find deliverance in the LORD
and will make their boast in him.
Canons of Dordt
Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election
6 - God’s Eternal Decision
The fact that
some receive from God the gift of faith within time,
and that others do not,
stems from his eternal decree.
For “all his works are known to God from eternity” (Acts 15:18; Eph. 1:11).
In accordance with this decree
God graciously
softens the hearts, however hard, of the elect
and inclines them to believe,
but by a just judgment
God leaves
in their wickedness and hardness of heart
those who have not been chosen.
And in this especially is disclosed to us God’s act
—unfathomable, and as merciful as it is just—
of distinguishing between people equally lost.
This is the well-known decree of election and reprobation revealed in God’s Word.
The wicked, impure, and unstable
distort this decree
to their own ruin,
but it provides holy and godly souls with comfort beyond words.
Summary
The LORD here gives instructions to his prophet Isaiah to declare what is to be. (Remember, a prophet is one who represents God to the people, whereas a priest represents the people before God.) The fact that the Old Testament is comprised of so many books written by prophets, plus numerous sections of prophecy embedded into the other books, shows just how much God wants His people to hear of His salvation!
As we begin this new week, we're jumping into some deeper water as we work through the Canons, specifically coming to grips with the fact that God has decreed that some receive from God the gift of faith..., while others do not. God makes clear to His prophet that He has foretold this long ago, and declared it from the distant past.
We refer God's choice in eternity past as to those He would save as election. It's comforting to know that our righteous God and Savior knew our names and included us in His covenant before the creation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) to find deliverance in the LORD and make our boast in Him.
But election has an ugly cousin. We will see this week that God's choice to grant salvation to some necessarily means that He chose to leave others in the sinful condition that we put ourselves in. We call this doctrine reprobation.
Dig Deeper
It's important to understand that although He chose to leave some in their sinful condition, God does not force them to stay there. We've already seen this year in the Canons what the LORD here makes clear to Isaiah: that He announces His salvation to ALL people. He cries out to all, Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other!
Notice also that all people will come to acknowledge and worship God. Every knee will bow, and every tongue will swear allegiance (v23 ESV). But this demonstration of submission will be quite different for all those who have raged against the LORD in their lifetimes. As they come to Him on that day of judgment, they will be put to shame.
But those who have been elected by God unto salvation - the spiritual descendents of Israel will find deliverance in the LORD and will make their boast in Him.
If you came here longing to be reminded of God's grace in your life, that's a sure sign God is drawing you to Him and that He has extended His promises to you. The question really isn't whether or not you will accept His grace (we'll learn later this year that His offer is irresistable), the question is how exactly will you make your boast in Him in your actions and words today for the grace and salvation He was already conveyed to you?
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, whose word will not be revoked;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will live in a way consistent with God's irrevocable call in your life;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Acts 8
Verse 25 seems unclear in meaning - It says "all descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the Lord"...