Isaiah 7:9b
If you are not firm in faith,
you will not be firm at all.’ ”
Isaiah 8:11-13
11 For the Lord spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: 12 “Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. 13 But the Lord of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
Ahaz was one of the most wicked kings that Judah ever had. He led the nation away from the Lord, and he brought upon them the chastisement of God. He participated in some of the worst pagan and idolatrous practices including child sacrifice. Ahaz reshaped the temple and brought foreign religious practices into the very holiest of places.
In that context, it is no surprise to see God bringing on Ahaz and Judah enemies who would threaten their very existence. Yet, as we know from a faithful understanding of the word of God, he would not let the nation be completely destroyed. God was still going to use that nation, as messed up as they were, to bring Messiah to the world.
Ahaz and the people of Judah were scared. Syria and Ephraim had teamed up to destroy Jerusalem. But God says that he would not let it happen. And God spoke to and through Isaiah to remind him of how the people were supposed to deal with the fear they were facing.
In chapter 7, Isaiah simply told Ahaz from God that if he was not firm in his faith in the Lord, he would not be firm at all. In chapter 8, God told the people to stop fretting about all the talk of all the people about who was conspiring with whom. Instead, God told the people that the way to survive this troublesome time was to put their fear where it belongs, in the Lord.
There are lessons here for us as American Christians. The world is going nuts. People are opposing the word of God and the ways of God left and right. It looks like groups are working together all across the nation to make things harder for people of faith to survive in our nation, a nation founded on the concept of religious freedom. What do we do?
If our faith is not in the Lord, we will not stand firm. If we put our hope in anything else we are in trouble. The government is not going to fix our problems. The courts are not going to stop legislating from the benches. The media is not going to suddenly shift and start treating us fairly. At least none of this is going to happen on its own. But there is a God in heaven who is still on his throne. He will not let his people be destroyed.
“If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.” “Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the Lord of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” These words are as good for us today as they were for the people who were dreading the consequences of the godless Ahaz messing up their nation.
So, what do we do? Stop fearing the mean old world out there. Stop fearing the government or the courts or the media or the entertainment industry. Fear God. Set your hope in God. He is faithful. He will not lose. He will not fail. Yes, we may face hardships. We may face persecution. But Christ will reign. God will not ultimately let this world fall apart. He will be glorified, and we will rejoice in that glory.
Pastor Travis Peterson 