For behold, the LORD comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain. 

Isaiah 26:21 

God is, at the same time, the God of mercy and of justice. We must embrace a whole God, a whole Christ, and a whole Bible. We often speak of the mercy of God, of the grace of salvation, and of the saving work of Christ. This is not the whole story. God is also the Judge of all the earth who will do what is right. The Scripture makes it plain that He will judge the inhabitants of the earth and punish those who do evil. Our text refers to this judgment. When John writes of the revelation of Christ, he refers to it as well. The effects of Christ’s coming forth are quite devastating and terrifying. John writes, ‘And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?’ This is not a pretty picture. It is, however, an accurate one. If we embrace a whole Bible and a whole Christ, we must recognize that, in due course of time, these events will occur. The Savior of all who believe is also, the Judge of all the earth. We need not fear this day because Christ is the portion of all His redeemed people. Isaiah writes in the verse which precedes our text, ‘Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past.’ Thus, Christ’s people have hope, even in the most troublous times upon the earth.  

Our King and our God, 
we rejoice that You do judgment and justice. 
We praise You that You will right all the wrongs,  
in due course of time.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

Your dead shall live; Together with my dead body they shall arise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust; for your dew is like the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. 

Isaiah 26:19 

We live in the light of eternity. This life is only the prelude to it. Our text speaks of the resurrection of the dead. That resurrection of the dead is, in many ways, the commencement of the eternal state. Paul spoke at length of the resurrection. In I Corinthians 15, he said, ‘Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.’ His statement articulates in a didactic manner what our text says in a poetic fashion. Christ spoke directly about the resurrection, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.’ Four times in John 6, Christ speaks of those who believe in Him and says of them, ‘I will raise him up at the last day.’ All these things point to the resurrection, the commencement of the eternal state. We know this is coming. Therefore, we are making preparation for it, and urge others to as well. The first order of business is to repent and embrace Christ as the gospel freely offers Him. The next order of business is to follow Him as He leads us along the path of life. As we follow Him, we learn to imitate Him. As we imitate Him, we grow to be more like Him. As we grow to be more like Him, He prepares us to see Him Face to face.  

Our All-Powerful God, 
we rejoice that You are the God of the resurrection. 
We praise You that because Christ lives,  
we also shall live.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

O LORD our God, masters besides You have had dominion over us; But by You only we make mention of Your name.  

Isaiah 26:13 

How is it we arrive in life to the point where we speak boldly of Christ? It is not by our own doing. Because we are not Godward, by nature or by choice, we do not naturally come to the place where we make mention of God. Our spiritual inclinations do not come by our own will. Because we are, by nature spiritually dead, we are the servants of other masters, the world, our own flesh, and Satan. It is only when God intervenes to regenerate us, to give us repentance, faith, and to draw us savingly to Christ, that we begin to declare His name before all people. Therefore, ‘by You only we make mention of Your name.’ This bring us to proclaim Christ’s name first and foremost. It is ‘at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth.’ The signature stamp of Apostolic preaching was the preaching of Christ. Preaching which does not make much of Christ, is empty moralism. God enables His proclaimers to make mention of His name to the ends of the earth. Christ is that blessed name.  

Our Gracious God and our Savior, 
we rejoice that Your name is worthy of proclamation. 
We praise You that You have given us the privilege 
of speaking of You.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

LORD, You will establish peace for us, for You have also done all our works in us. 

Isaiah 26:12 

Salvation is, from start to finish, the work of God. All we have of life, breath, and all things, are from Him. He has created us, is Sovereign over us, and redeems us according to His Own plan. In order to satisfy His justice, He has willingly sent His only begotten Son to live perfectly, and die sacrificially. Christ has done all things well. He has purchased our redemption. What He has purchased, the Holy Spirit will not fail to apply to all for whom it is intended. This application of redemption includes the work of the Holy Spirit to renew us in the whole person after the image of Christ. His work will enable us to die more and more unto sin and to live unto righteousness. Thus, every desire we have toward God and toward the things of God is of Him. He has ‘done all our works in us.’ Our understanding of our sin; of our need of Christ; of His redemptive work; of the application of it to us; and of our experience of it, is all of God. Therefore, we make much of Christ. If it were not for Him, we would not experience saving grace and all that goes with it. God has done all our works in us. 

Great God of Wonders, 
we rejoice that You do all things well. 
We praise You for all Your works in us. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

LORD, You will establish peace for us, for You have also done all our works in us.  

Isaiah 26:12 

God establishes peace for His redeemed people. The context from which our text derives is Isaiah’s description of the eternal state. In the previous chapter he had used language we find repeated in John’s description of the eternal state. Isaiah, speaking of God says, ‘He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; the rebuke of His people He will take away from all the earth; for the LORD has spoken.’ The next chapter continues in the same vein. Our text makes the statement, ‘Lord, you will establish peace for us.’ It is important for us to understand that in order for us to have peace in any way, it must come from God and begin with our having peace with God. Paul relates this to Christ when he writes, ‘Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ We will not have peace within ourselves until we first have peace with God. Peace with God is the result of the justifying work of Christ. It is God Who has made this peace for us. Having peace with God makes way for us to have the peace of God. The peace of God is that settled composure of heart and mind that enables us to navigate the hardest circumstances of life with grace. This only increases in the eternal state when all things are at peace.  

Our God of Grace and Glory,
we rejoice that You ordain peace for us.
We praise You that Your peace is lasting.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning