September 23, Isaiah 16
But now the LORD has spoken, saying, "In
three years, like the years of a hired worker, the
glory of Moab will be brought into contempt, in
spite of all his great multitude, and those who
remain will be very few and feeble.”
- Isaiah 16:14
You're probably familiar with limited time offers.
The manufacturer or seller of some product or
service offers a reduced price until a specified
date. Maybe you’ve heard the term referring to
a special menu item or some service that’s
available until a certain date, after which it's no
longer offered.
We read in Chapter 15 about Isaiah's
compassionate heart cry for the ruined people
of Moab. In Chapter 16, Isaiah wrote about an
offer of hope and shelter God offered the fleeing Moabites. The Lord invited the Moabites to leave the altars of the high places where they
worshiped idols and bring their sacrifices to
Jerusalem. He instructed the people of Judah to grant the Moabites who came to them
sanctuary. The scattered and harried Moabites
could enjoy shelter and protection among the
Israelites in Judah until the threat passed. Their
situation was hopeless, but God offered them
peace and protection among his people.
But the Moabites were too proud to accept the
offer. They were too entrenched in idolatry to
turn to God. Isaiah was broken-hearted, but the
Moabites rejected the offer of safety and
protection God had offered. The prophet wept,
but the limited time offer to the Moabites would
expire. Only a few feeble people would remain
of what had once been a great multitude.
Do you hear the essence of the gospel itself in
Isaiah 16? Can you see Messiah and detect the
blessings of salvation offered to Gentiles in his
kingdom? Can you hear the offer of deliverance
and sanctuary coming from its point of origin in
Jerusalem? Those Moabites who accepted
God's offer and came to Jerusalem had to leave
their idols behind.
Their pride would be the major obstacle to their
salvation. Can you see the same demands in
the gospel call to humble ourselves and repent?
Also, the call to leave their pride and idols
behind was a limited-time offer. God told Isaiah
that time for the scattered Moabites to respond
was counting down. In three years, time would
run out, the offer would expire, and once proud
Moab would be ruined and scorned.
Just so, God's offer to save us in Christ is a rich
and wonderful opportunity. But it is a limited-
time offer. God invites Jews and Gentiles alike
to come to Christ and be saved. But the offer is
limited to here and now. In Jesus' story about
the wise and foolish virgins, the wise ones were
ready when the bridegroom came. They went
into the celebration with him, and the door was
shut. When the foolish ones came knocking, it
was too late. The door was closed. The
invitation had expired.
These chapters are about far more than the fate
of an ancient nation. They're about you and me,
and our hopeless condition without Christ.
They're about Christ and how he becomes the
hope of the hopeless who humble themselves
and come to him. They're about Jews and
Gentiles being welcome in Christ's kingdom.
And they're about the urgency of the call to
come before it is too late and the limited-time
offer expires. For you or me that time to
respond will run out when we die, when the
Lord comes again or when we so harden our
hearts that we are incapable of responding. So
through Paul, the Lord admonishes, "Behold,
now is the favorable time; behold now is the day
of salvation." Wise folks will respond and be
ready when time runs out.
Copyright © 2023 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—September 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
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