“O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!” (Isaiah 40:9)
The prophet Isaiah prophesied about the deliverance from Babylon. It was good tidings. It was a work of God. It was good news to the Israelites who were in bondage in Babylon. Isaiah’s prophecy can also be a prophetic word for us. Zion represents the kingdom of God and points to the New Jerusalem.
The Kingdom of God brought Good News to us. “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” (Luke 2:10) This is the Good News from Zion. It’s deliverance from our bondage to sin, to death, to the kingdom of darkness. It’s for all people of every age, social position, race and nation. It’s for all to receive. It’s peace with God our Creator. Peace with the Almighty Who is merciful and just. Merciful because of His Love for us. Merciful because He delivers us. And just because He punishes sin and disobedience. It’s freedom to come before our God without fear. Jesus speaking to His disciples says: “And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” (Luke 24:46-47) It’s the holy ability to go up the high mountain.
Some of us don’t live near mountains and don’t have the experience of seeing from a high place. Some of us have been on airplanes and have had a similar experience as one on a high mountain. It’s a different perspective. On ground level, we don’t see the whole picture. Our sight is limited. How far can we see on the ground? But as we go up higher, we see more than we could on the ground. God is telling us through the prophet Isaiah to go up to the mountain and to higher ground, where we will get His perspective and where we will see things the way He sees things.
What is God’s perspective? It is not what the world thinks, yearns for or strives for. “He that cometh from above is above all: He that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: He that cometh from heaven is above all.” (John 3:31) God is calling us to that higher ground where we can see what He sees. “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:1-2)
What are the things of the world? John tells us “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” (1John 2:15-16) Notice the Scripture says, “all that is in the world.” That means that everything in this world is in a nutshell “lust.” We associate lust with sexual desire, but it’s not necessarily sexual. It’s a strong desire, a craving, a yearning that consumes. That’s what is in this world. Let’s look at what these lusts are.
We should be very familiar with the lust of the flesh. It’s what makes us choose the easy way, the most comfortable thing for us and the things that make us feel good. In everyday perspective, we choose to watch a movie instead of fellowshipping with our Heavenly Father or studying or meditating on a Scripture that we don’t understand. We choose to take a nap instead of cleaning up the kitchen. We have decisions to make every second. One of them is to obey the Spirit or obey our flesh.
The lust of the eyes is that consuming desire to have everything that looks good to us. It’s having clothes we don’t wear. Shoes we don’t need. I know a lady who buys dresses that catch her eye. She never wears them, but just buys them because they are pretty. It’s having more vehicles than you need. It’s putting your finances in danger because you just have to have something that caught your eye.
The pride of life is an internal need to be on top, have the best, do the best and be the best. It manifests itself in dominating personalities in relationships, families and different social settings.
When we think about it, that’s what all the striving is about here in this world. God is right! So, let’s get up the mountain, the higher ground and get God’s perspective and “behold our God.”
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