July 28th~Of Time and Space

Isaiah 63:15-66:24


2 Kings 20:20, 21


2 Chronicles 32:32, 33

We finished the book of Isaiah, who ended with prophecies about the last days, the end times, when a new Jerusalem will be built amidst the new heavens and new earth. “Look, I am creating new heavens and a new earth, so wonderful that no one will even think about the old ones anymore! Be glad and rejoice! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness... The sound of weeping and crying will be heard no more” (65:17-19).

The Lord continued describing what those days will be like, “No longer will babies die when only a few days old. No longer will adults die before they have lived a full life... For My people will live as long as trees and will have time to enjoy their hard-won gains... The wolf and lamb will feed together. The lion will eat straw like the ox. In those days, no one will be hurt or destroyed on My holy mountain” (65:20-24).

While it is fun to ponder on those future days, I am more struck by the fact that God talks about them like they’ve already happened. It is as if He were looking at them presently and describing them for us, as I would sit on my couch and describe to you what my living room is like. But, of course, when we consider what we know of God, that He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, that He is the everlasting God who was and is and is to come, then we recognize that this observation is not strange or unbelievable.

God sees the past just as well as He sees the future; and, since He has seen and can see it all, from beginning to end, then it makes sense that He would be able to describe it for us. What a marvelous mystery, an incredible thought! Perhaps that is why Isaiah wrote, “Since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you!” (64:4).

I must admit, while I believe these things to be true, they are difficult to imagine, that our God is so vast that He is not contained by time or space. Though they might restrain us, to Him they are nothing. “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Could you ever build a temple as good as that? Could you build a dwelling place for Me? My hands have made heaven and earth, and they are Mine!” (66:1).

Daily Reflection

You might plan a day, a week, or even a month, but the Lord has plans for all of time! He has already written a script by which all things will play out. Are you not awed by the scope and knowledge of your God in light of your finite and short-sighted goals?

How do these truths encourage your faith?

How exactly should your plans and goals fit into His plans and goals?

“I am God. I alone! There is no one else like Me. Only I can tell you what is going to happen before it happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish...” (46:9-12).

BiAY.org | Day 209 — 156 Days to Go