Come, Lord Jesus.
Of all of the topics that we'll be covering this year, this is without doubt my favourite. I think I tend to judge prophets by how much encouragement they give us in terms of showing us what the kingdom is like. Isaiah ranks very highly, given the amount of descriptive text that refers to Christ's Kingdom.
I remember attending a summer Bible school a few years ago and heard one young lad say that he could understand why old wrinklies wanted Jesus to come back, but he wanted to enjoy life before Jesus came back to rule. I'm not quite sure what sort of things he had been taught at Sunday School or what his definition of “enjoy life” was. Of course some of modern society's “thrills” will be abolished, but these are more likely to be detrimental to our lives. We all know of the dangers of drink, drugs and illicit sex. Simply they have no place in our lives (as they are reserved for those who lead such sad lives that they need some form of escapism).
For those who follow Jesus his return will be the absolute epitome of perfection. We will be able to enjoy life in ways which are impossible now. Now I can't complain too much about my life. I've been very fortunate. I've a good house and family, I've a reasonable income which allow me to waste money occasionally on playing golf and going swimming, buying the occasional DVD or computer game. I'm well fed (possibly too well fed sometimes) and in good health.
But all that is nothing in comparison to what it will be like at Jesus return!
Sometimes it seem hard being a Christian. Sometime we feel alone and all those around us just don't understand. Sometimes we feel that it is difficult to talk about our faith. What will it be like then? Isaiah 2:3 “Many people shall go and say, Come, let us go to the mountain of the Lord...”
Sometimes we don't understand. The Bible can be difficult and God's ways are beyond understanding. Verse 3 continues “ ... and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths”
Well that sounds nice, but what's in it for us? Verse 4 continues with a message of peace; no more wars, no more bloodshed, no more hatred. But not only that, even the animals will be at peace. Isaiah 11 talks about the wolf living with the lamb, the leopard and the kid, the lion and the calf, all living together in peace.
I could go on for ages, but we'll have a look at one more chapter. Isaiah 35 is probably my favourite chapter in the Old Testament. Not only does it sort out global problems such as drought, famine and global warming, but it also gives such a picture of perfection that no one could possibly fail to want a place there. One of the reasons I like it is that my sister is deaf. Nothing that medical science can do is ever going to fix that, but God can. And it won't be only deafness that will be cured, the lame will leap, not just walk, the dumb will sing not just speak. All of our illnesses and injuries will be a thing of the past.
In the New Testament, we get a few references which speak of the need for God. Those who are rich rely on riches, those who are full rely on there own belly. Often we think we may have everything that we could ever need, yet it all comes at a price. If we've money we worry about it being stolen. If we've health we may worry about loosing it.
But in the kingdom things will be perfect. There we will know the real meaning of Joy. Isaiah 35 finishes with the perfect summary; “And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
The pleasures we may have now always end when real life reasserts itself, but the “everlasting joy” will last forever.
Can you find any other prophesies in the book of Isaiah that relate to the kingdom?
What does it mean by “everlasting joy”?