Growing Salvation, Sprouting Deliverance
Isaiah 45:1 – This is what the LORD says to his chosen one, to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold in order to subdue nations before him, and disarm kings, to opendoors before him, so gates remain unclosed: 2 – “I will go before you and level mountains. Bronze doors I will shatter and iron bars I will hack through. 3 – I will give you hidden treasures, riches stashed away in secret places, so you may recognize that I am the LORD, the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel.
verse 4 – For the sake of my servant Jacob, Israel, my chosen one, I call you by name and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize me. 5 – I am the LORD, I have no peer, there is no God but me. I arm you for battle, even though you do not recognize me. 6 – I do this so people will recognize from east to west that there is no God but me; I am the LORD, I have no peer.
verse 7 – I am the one who forms light and creates darkness; the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. I am the LORD, who accomplishes all these things. 8 – O sky, rain down from above! Let the clouds send down showers of deliverance! Let the earth absorb it so salvation may grow, and deliverance may sprout up along with it. I, the LORD, create it.
These verses say that Cyrus, the King of the Medes, would be armed for battle, be given a respectable title, and be given a clear path to subdue, disarm, and have doors opened before him to successfully overcome nations. All of this took place when He successfully overthrew the powerful nation of Babylon. Through all of this he would not recognize that God was doing all of this for him for the sake of Israel, His chosen people.
Let’s look at this at a personal level. Do you believe in God? Do you trust Him? Our Creator God is so powerful that He will create situations that are favorable for the salvation of His children. God is patient and longsuffering as He takes the time in His infinite wisdom to grow salvation and cause deliverance to sprout up and mature at the time of His choosing so that those who believe in Him will not fail to see that He has been working things out in their best interest from the very beginning – using even powerful people, who don’t recognize Him, to accomplish His wishes on our behalf.
Will we let a disappointment or an unexpected tragedy derail our faith in Jesus when He has been patiently working things out in the big picture of salvation? Let’s not give up hope! Jesus can create favorable conditions out of nothing. Where you see hopelessness He sees endless opportunities to create. His arm is not shortened. He has every resource at his disposal and will use people and entities who do not even recognize Him in order to save you.
O sky, rain down from above! Let the clouds send down showers of deliverance! Let the earth absorb it so salvation may grow, and deliverance may sprout up along with it. I, the LORD, create it. – Isaiah 45:8.
Where two are gathered 