Wednesday, September 23, 2026

Opening Scripture

Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it! The LORD is angry with all nations; his wrath is on all their armies. He will totally destroy them, he will give them over to slaughter. Their slain will be thrown out, their dead bodies will stink; the mountains will be soaked with their blood. All the stars in the sky will be dissolved and the heavens rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree. Isaiah 34:1-4

Opening Prayer

Almighty God, You are holy and worthy of praise. You are my Father, and I walk humbly in Your love. You are my Shepherd, who guides and protects me. I make myself available to You to accomplish Your will in me. I surrender every attitude, thought, and action to You. You are my Provider, and I trust You to meet my needs. Forgive me when I disappoint You and fall short. Help me to forgive others, that I might reflect Your forgiveness. Show me my sin, so I can confess it to You. Don’t let my feet stray from the path of righteousness. Protect me from Satan’s temptations, lies, and deceptions. Strengthen my faith and trust in You alone. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Daily Bible Reading

Isaiah 35:1-2

The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.

Reflection  

In today’s passage, Isaiah shifts yet again to focus on the future day of the LORD’s blessing. He begins to describe the fulfillment of the promise Yahweh first made to Abraham. He starts to paint a picture of the eternal kingdom that God’s people have longed for since the Great I AM commissioned Moses to lead the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt.

This blessing in Chapter 35 will not take place, however, until God’s judgment on the unbelieving world, described in Chapter 34 (Opening Scripture). How quickly we forget that Almighty God is large and in charge. How quickly we ignore that the Holy One of Israel is in fact holy and righteous. How quickly we try to make Almighty God in our own image, holding him to our standard of “justice.”

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God,” but one day, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Peter addresses the apathy and misunderstanding of most people in his second letter.

“Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this coming he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’

But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:3-13).

All of that is expressed in the Book of Isaiah. The world has been repeatedly notified that its rebellion and anarchy will not be tolerated forever. The Day of Judgment is coming, and a person ignores that truth at their own peril. The evil actions and awful consequences we see in the news each day pale in comparison to what is ahead. Isaiah’s graphic description in our Opening Scripture provides a glimpse of it, and Peter’s instructions above are the appropriate response.

Flourishing Habit

Flourishing Christians

Evangelism (euangelizo) is the act of “sharing good news.” The message of salvation and eternal life through faith in Jesus is the Good News (euangelion). It is a very good message for all people at all times in all places! The reason the good news is so good is because the bad news is so bad.

Every person has sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. The consequences of that sin are physical and spiritual death, which means eternal separation from Almighty God in Hell. Jesus referred to Hell as “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” The agony of that eternal condemnation and everlasting lostness is beyond our comprehension. That is the bad news.

The good news is that the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Jesus – the Word, God the Son – is the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one can be forgiven and cleansed of sin except through Him. We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus’ sacrificial death on our behalf. When we trust in Jesus as Lord, we receive the Holy Spirit and become children of God. We then look forward to the new Heaven and new Earth that God will establish for His people.

The eventual destruction of all God’s enemies has been building for thousands of years. Isaiah describes it in detail throughout his book. The Apostle Paul also addresses the topic. “Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death” (1 Corinthians 15:24-26).

Again, our loving God has made every provision for sinful people to be reconciled to Him. “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” (Romans 5:8-11).

How does this reality shape your life?

Who do you know that needs to hear and respond to this truth?

This week’s collective prayer: Father, please place someone in my path who needs to know you truly love them and are seeking after them. Amen.

Remember: Nothing changes until something changes!