I’ve been thinking a lot about Isaiah 43 this week. The first four verses especially are speaking to me.
A lot of people have the tendency to think that their Christianity should protect them from the ugly things of life. “I know that I had a lot of tough times when I was ‘out in the world'” they think, “but now that I’m serving the Lord things will get easier for me.” But, fortunately, that isn’t exactly the way it works. Difficult times in our lives force us to grow and God knows that so He lets hard times come … but He is always there with us.
My mother had a huge plant called a “Christmas cactus” … it sat on a cast iron stand in a pot about 18 inches in diameter all during the Christmas season. It was beautiful in its own way … the “branches” of the plant were actually serially attached, almost heart-shaped leaves about one inch long and they projected from the soil and arched over the pot much like a weeping willow tree. At the end of every “branch” was a single, dark pink blossom about 1 1/2 inches long. But the only time we ever saw that plant was during the Christmas season. The rest of the year, it was kept in a back room, under a black, plastic trash bag. It wasn’t watered or allowed any sunlight for 10 months every year. Didn’t my mother LIKE her Christmas cactus? Didn’t she want to show it off all year round? No doubt she would have liked that, but because my mother knew that the only way the cactus would produce those beautiful flowers was if it was kept thirsty and in the dark 10 months of the year she allowed that cactus to “suffer,” knowing that in the end beauty would result.
That’s what Isaiah 43 means.
He says, “WHEN you pass through the waters, I will be with you; WHEN you pass through the rivers they will not sweep over you; WHEN you pass through the fire you will not be burned, the flames will not set you ablaze…” (verse 2).
See, it is clearly stated here that there WILL BE times of trouble. You’ll get wet, you might have to swim to make it but God will be there with you. You will have times of burning anguish but, in the end, the burning will pass with no ill effects to you.
Why? Verse 3 answers that:
“For I am the LORD, your GOD, the Holy One of Israel, YOUR SAVIOR.”
No other reason than that. He is our God… our Savior. He loves us.
How much does He love us? Verse three goes on:
“I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.”
So He has given the most wealthy of nations as a ransom for us … to redeem us so that He may be our SAVIOR. Why would He do that? What makes us so important to Him? I don’t know … but I know what verse four says:
“Since you are precious and honored in my sight, AND BECAUSE I LOVE YOU, I will give men in exchange for you and people in exchange for your life.”
I know a lot of you are reading this and saying, “I don’t think that way … I know there will be suffering in my life” but think about this before you feel self-confident … have you ever said or thought something along the lines of, “Why me? Why do I have to suffer this? Doesn’t God love me? What have I done to deserve this kind of treatment at the hands of God?”
I have to admit that, in my 40+ years of serving Him there have been times when those thoughts passed through my mind. That’s why I’m doing my best to remember these four verses in Isaiah. I want to be able to run them through my mind whenever I start to wonder about why I am suffering. I invite you all to join me in memorizing Isaiah 43:1-4. It will give you a foundational answer when you need it most.