Thought from today’s Bible reading from Isaiah 49-53.
The Lord offers some words of comfort for all of His people who must suffer for their faith.
“Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, a people in whose heart is My law; do not fear the reproach of man, nor be dismayed at their revilings. For the moth will eat them like a garment, and the grub will eat them like wool. But My righteousness will be forever, and My salvation to all generations” (Isaiah 51:7-8)
Persecution is inevitable for the child of God (2 Timothy 3:12). Yet we must not fear those who would persecute us (cf. Matthew 10:28). The Lord gives two reasons why we should not fear or be overcome by them:
- Those who persecute us will be punished by God. Paul told the brethren in Thessalonica to take comfort in the fact that those who were persecuting them would face divine judgment (2 Thessalonians 1:5-8).
- God will save His people. No matter what we have to suffer in this life, we have the assurance that if we are faithful until death, we will receive the crown of life (Revelation 2:10).
There is a key point that we need to remember: we must faithfully obey the Lord. In the passage above, He addressed those who “know righteousness” and had His law in their hearts. If we are not “faithful until death” (Revelation 2:10), we have no reason to hope for His reward. Any suffering we endure in this life will be meaningless.
So let us be faithful to the Lord, obeying the instructions He has revealed to us in His word, and then endure any hardships or persecution that might come, so that we can be saved in the end.
Tomorrow’s reading: Isaiah 54-58
[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]
Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.
