“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert". (Isaiah 43:18-19)
The promises of God are yes and amen and true and will never fade away. Jesus Christ, the Creator of ALL things, is the same yesterday, today and always. All things were created by Him and for Him. He is the Image of the Invisible God, the First Born of All Creation...begotten but not created. He considered equality with God not a thing to be grasped but humbled Himself to be born as a baby to a corrupt and filthy generation. Before His brief time on earth, He brought Isaiah up to the Throne Room who immediately realized his unworthiness. Still even though we - you and I - are like Isaiah and a people of unclean lips in a foul society run by evil men and women, He uses us.
Jesus Christ sends out the call "Who will go for Us?" Who indeed?! Not one of us, on our best days are worthy to shine the brass sandals on His Holy Feet, yet He stands at the right Hand of God when one of us is martyred for His Name (Stephen in Acts 7 ). Who will go for the Lord? We will. He has no one else. We are His people. We who are called by His Name are His elect. He was born for us. He was born to reconcile us to God. He was born to make things new! He said so in His Word.
The Apostle Paul, who was taught by the Savior, whose followers he killed and jailed previously, said in 2 Corinthians 5:17 "if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation...behold all things are now new". The amazing thing about becoming a new Creation in Christ is that it can happen in deep depressing depths of winter to the bright days of summer or the beautiful blossoming Spring.
The Savior bids us go back to His promise in the lead verse above from Isaiah 43:18-19 to forget the past and not dwell on our sins and past transgressions, iniquities and sins against Holy God, but focus on what He is doing - as the God for all Seasons. What Abba Father, through the Son is saying is the "new thing springs forth", is God taking our dead in the water flesh and souls we were. which were absolutely and completely useless, unproductive, fruitless and of no use, even to other people - and making a NEW Creature out of us! In essence He has taken us to a new height which we could never attain on our own, or even knew we wanted!
Then knowing that God is doing this new work of rejuvenation in our lives, He is asking us "do you not perceive it...can't you see it, acknowledge it, understand it or know it"?! It is a rhetorical question! He knows that after this rejuvenation, like then one when the Spring snows turn to green grass and blossoms, the lights He put there will eventually come on.
This is all His Work. This is our Great God making a way in the former dry, dead barren wilderness of our lives! Things we never noticed before - creation, evidence of the Flood and young earth, God's Hand in the affairs of mankind or even the signs of the evil times - we start noticing. This is because He has made "a way in the wilderness" to lead us to the fertile ground.
This fertile ground is His Kingdom, which knoweth no end! This Kingdom is an oasis, thus sayeth the Lord! He made a new thing and did something which no sudden rare wadi or rainstorm in the desert can do - He put rivers in the dry deserts of our lives. Our great God says of rivers and streams in the desert that those whom He has chose, the man or woman who walk in His Ways, learn and live His Word and Worship Him will be "like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season" (Psalm 1:3a). This is the paradigm of those whom God has renewed, if we are willing, submitted, committed and most of all - forgiven.
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