December 25: THE ARMS OF THE LORD

“Listen to Me, My people; And give ear to Me, O My nation; For law will proceed from Me, And I will make My justice rest As a light of the peoples. My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, And My arms will judge the peoples…” Isaiah 51:4-5a

The nearness of God’s righteousness to us is in perfect keeping with the beloved doctrine of His unbroken desire to be with us, as emphasized in the lovely name: Immanuel! (7:4; 8:8; Matthew 1:23)

The Hebrew word sedeq, translated righteousness can also be translated justice, success, or deliverance. It is a broadly powerful word, and one that is worthy of meditation. A man who acts upon the revealed will of God is one who sows righteousness; that man will reap justice, success and deliverance. Imagine a coin engraved on one side with the word RIGHTEOUSNESS, and on the other with DELIVERANCE, JUSTICE, SUCCESS. Every shade of meaning in the word sedeq is intended here. In a supernatural sense, both cause and effect are illustrated in this word.

Chapter 51 of Isaiah is a wealth of glorious riches. As the LORD helps His people to gain righteous understanding, the progressive and continuing nature of learning comes to light. This light is not only for His people Israel who know of Him, but also for the world in its entirety, that an eternal nation of true Overcomers will ultimately live to tell of their journey through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23:4).

The righteousness of God is revealed in His Son, Immanuel. A foundational verse for this concept is found in Isaiah 42:6. “I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles.”

Most anyone would agree that injustice causes unrest. Each of us has suffered injustice in one form or another. And each of us is guilty of inflicting injustice upon others. All of these things hurt the LORD, for He suffers the pain of any and every injustice along with us.* The double-sided fact of the matter is that all of us need the LORD’s divine forgiveness and all of us need to forgive others. Our forgiveness toward others is simply a statement of trust toward the loving Lord Jesus who, in bearing the sins of the world, will ultimately make everything right. One of the most effective ways to let your light so shine (Matthew 5:16) in this world is to, by faith, let go of grudges and grievances.

Jesus is the covenant to the people. Run into His arms [which] will judge the peoples. They were voluntarily stretched out for you at the cross. You will find that He has borne all of the injustices of a fallen world upon Himself in order to bring you to the eternal riches of RIGHTEOUSNESS, DELIVERANCE, JUSTICE, and SUCCESS!

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

*see Matthew 25:40; Acts 9:1-4