September 19
September 19
God will not let go of his work of grace until every aspect of sin has finally been eradicated and the world is forever renewed.
One of the Old Testament’s brightest, most glorious visions comes from the prophet Micah:
It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and it shall be lifted up above the hills;
and peoples shall flow to it,
and many nations shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore;
but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree,
and no one shall make them afraid,
for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.
For all the peoples walk
each in the name of its god,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God
forever and ever. (Mic. 4:1–5)
When you come across a glory promise like this one, you should slow down and luxuriate in the beauty of God’s unrelenting goodness and the surety of the gorgeous kingdom that awaits you as his child. These kinds of passages are dotted throughout the biblical narrative to give you hope and to motivate you to not let the discouragements of life in this fallen world keep you from continuing to follow your Savior by faith. As you read your Bible, look for these passages where God takes out his brush of grace and paints a picture for us of the glories that are coming for all who have been blessed by his redemptive love.
Clearly, the words of this passage extend beyond the restoration of Israel and describe for us the final restoration of all things and what life will look like for us when the new heavens and new earth are our final address. Passages like this are in the Bible because God loves us. He knows how hard and disheartening life in this broken, groaning world can be. He knows the extent of the evil that is in us and around us. He knows how we struggle with temptation every day. He knows that we grow weary with the daily battle. He knows that there are times when it looks as though his great plan has failed. So, with a tender heart, he reminds us that he is not absent and that his work is not done. He will bring his plan to a final and glorious end. Everything that breaks our hearts and makes life hard will finally and forever end.
Your Savior will return and set up a kingdom of peace and righteousness that will never end.