Frustration
When Almighty God called Isaiah, he was informed that his ministry would be a failure as man might measure success. In the eyes and values of men, Isaiah accomplished little, yet his book
God explained to Isaiah that his preaching would make some people worse. The more you prophesy the less they will believe. But preach, prophesy, although few will pay serious attention to you.
The Word of God either softens a man or hardens his heart. It either blesses or annoys.
These words of God to his servant, Isaiah, are quoted six times in the New Testament. This can become a constant frustration and try and test any disciple’s initial zeal. Isaiah asks, “How long will this last?” And God answers, “Until you virtually lose your whole congregation, and the land becomes desolate as the people are taken away captive into Babylon for 70 years.”
Even when Jesus spoke to people, tenderly and graciously, inviting them to come for cleansing and forgiveness, the response was limited.
As Isaiah stands there in the Temple knowing he is called, yet asking questions and receiving answers which proved to be historically accurate, God shows him the stump of a tree, and from that stump, a shoot would grow, and Israel would return and be restored to her land.
Isaiah never forgot this either, and over the years it influenced him greatly.
This also points forward to the miraculous conception of Jesus. From what appeared virtually nothing, Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, from the womb of a woman who was a virgin, just as had been prophesied.
In the darkest of passages in Isaiah, there suddenly shines shafts of light and hope. That is when faith overcomes any frustration.
If you are facing a dark dry distressing season, let that light which comes from a loving God shine as brightly as it did in Isaiah’s life.
Sandy Shaw
Sandy Shaw is Pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship, Chaplain at Inverness Prison, and Nairn Academy, and serves on The Children’s Panel in Scotland, and has travelled extensively over these past years teaching, speaking, in America, Canada, South Africa, Australia, making 12 visits to Israel conducting Tours and Pilgrimages, and most recently in Uganda and Kenya, ministering at Pastors and Leaders Seminars, in the poor areas surrounding Kampala, Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.
He broadcasts regularly on WSHO radio out of New Orleans, and writes a weekly commentary at http://www.studylight.org entitled “Word from Scotland” on various biblical themes, as well as a weekly newspaper column.
His M.A. and B.D. degrees are from The University of Edinburgh, and he continues to run and exercise regularly to maintain a level of physical fitness.
Tags: Inspirational, motivational, Spiritual