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A House of Prayer for All People

“Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.”

— Isaiah 56:6-7


The Sabbath is about Jesus, for he is Lord of the Sabbath day (Matt 12:8). The holy mountain refers to Jesus, for the joy of the whole earth is mount Zion (Ps 48:2), and in him are all families of the earth blessed (Gen 12:3). He is the true temple, for when it was destroyed he raised it up on the third day (John 2:19-21, Mark 14:58). He is the perfect once for all sacrifice for the sanctified ones (Heb 10:10). He is the true altar. Before the ceremonial law of Moses, Jacob made an altar with stones gathered rather than carved (Gen 28:18 because we cannot add our works to the gospel of Christ, who is the stone cut out of the mountain without hands that destroys the image of iron, brass, gold, silver, and clay (Dan 2:45). A rough, jagged stone will be rejected by the builders of this world, but unto you therefore which believe he is precious (1st Pet2:7).


The seed of the woman (Gen 3:15), called in Isaac (Rom 9:7), redeemed by the blood of the lamb out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation (Rev:5:9), is the proper fulfillment of this marvelous prophecy in Isaiah 56. In the days of national Israel, all were welcome to become citizens and partakers of the covenant if they took hold of it by faith, and walked in God’s law. There was no distinction to be made between a Israelite born in the land and an Israelite who was born abroad and joined the nation (Ex 12:48, Eze 47:22-23).


Solomon’s prayer for the first temple is echoed in verse 7 of Isaiah 56. He prayed that the temple would be a house of prayer for both Jew and gentile, that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel (1st Kings 8:43, 2nd Chron 6:33). God’s marvelous plan of redemption always included all nations because he is Lord of heaven and earth and everything within both realms.


"The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." — Psalm 24:1

No Weapon That is Formed Against Thee Shall Prosper

“Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me.”

— Isaiah 54:16-17


God, as creator of all things, has ultimate control over all things. This does not make him the cause of sin, but it does mean that even the existence of sin will ultimately glorify him when he abolishes it either through his atoning blood or his eternal retribution against all unrighteousness at the second coming.


In the mean time we can rest assured that the Lord of Hosts has promised us victory. No weapon formed against thee shall prosper. After all he is our shield, and our exceeding great reward (Genesis 15:1).


"Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken." — Proverbs 3:25-26


Selah.

Be Strong and of Good Courage

With a constant barrage of wild headlines, it’s easy to believe that the end is nigh. Every report is more absurd than the last and it seems impossible for civilization to continue on with so much deception and evil. We start to interpret the dumpster fires around us as signs of the end times without realizing that humanity has been completely depraved since the days of Adam.


The end might be nigh for some nations, but the Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory are His, now and forever.


Christians, remember, “…the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.” (1 John 4:14)


This earth is the center of His attention. We are His creation and he loves us, which is the entire reason he sent the Christ. His intention has always been for the Israel of God to dwell in this land and for us to shine as lights in the world (Phil 2:15). It was not to whisk us away in hard times and to leave the spoils to the wicked antichrists.


“They that trust in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.” -Psalm 125:1


Our reward does not come from being removed from the earth. Our victory has already been achieved through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.


“It is finished.” -John 19:30


Our victory is also not physical. It's not a utopia, it's not a constitutional republic, it's not a life of material comforts and wealth. Our victory is that we’ve died in Christ and we cannot be put to death any more than when we were crucified with Him at Calvary. Our victory is that we've risen with him in eternal LIFE. Amen!


"...Death is swallowed up in victory." -1 Cor 15:54


We’ve accepted our mortality and understand that we deserve nothing less than physical death as punishment for our sins, but we are free from these sins through our faith in the Son of God. It is by this faith that we persevere until the day of judgement, whenever it may come.


This life is not some pointless waste of time where we should be praying to “get outta here”. No, the earth belongs to the Lord and his people and we have a duty is to serve Him with every breath left in us. The message of the bible is not a defeatist death cult. The scriptures tell a story of victory through faith.


"Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." -Deuteronomy 31:6




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