Isaiah 61:4-6 – Rebuilding Old Ruins
Those whom the Lord Jesus has delivered will be used by God to do wonderful things. They will be rebuilding the old ruins. In verses 5-6 we have a picture of the one people of God working together. Some Jews and some Gentiles but bound together as one people of God. Isaiah is being allowed by God to look ahead a couple of hundred years when Jerusalem will lay in ruins because of the work of the Babylonians, or even further to the destruction by the Romans. But we must remember that we’re looking in the wider context at the days of Messiah. We’re looking at the wreckage of the people of God. Paul describes this in Romans 9-11. In Romans 11 you have a changed picture from this glorious building falling into wreckage, changed to the olive tree which, because of unbelief, experiences branches snapped off and new ones from a wild tree grafted in, but the ones that were broken off shall be, by God’s grace, grafted back in again. It’s like a ruined building being restored. We shouldn’t just apply this to the wreckage of Israel, but the wreckage of humanity and of man’s societies and cultures that try to live without God. The individual has this wreckage. The seeds of death are in every one of us. The mind loves foolishness. The heart chases after idols. What hope is there? Our Lord Jesus has come. And how does it work out? The ruin, the destruction, the sad, sad effects of sin are not the end of the story. God is gracious. God is merciful. God is kind, God is loving. He is good. During eternity He made a plan of salvation, and He had a Savior to come to rebuild the ruins and make us to be part of the City of God. But this isn’t so only for us as individuals. This is for us together because we are part of the Church of Jesus Christ. Jesus promised Peter, “I will build my church”, and from there all things will be brought under Christ’s head. Under the Church the world is being restored. And our King has taught us to pray: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven”. Does he command us to pray this so He won’t do it? He did not tell us to pray this in vain. Will the earth not be full of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea? (Isaiah 11:9 and Habakkuk 2:14) Jesus is using you for His glory. Trust His promises that He’s doing so. Trust His assurance here that He is doing so!
Question
- What does God work through to build His kingdom.
Prayer Points
- Give thanks that Christ is at work.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.