Today’s passage: Isaiah 64
Helpful thoughts:
- By Isaiah’s description, there is no one who “waits for Him” or who “joyfully works righteousness” without God first intervening in grace.
- God is therefore glorified in creating a people for Himself and then defending them against their adversaries.
- Asking God to come down is an act of faith. If a person has not received God’s gift of salvation, the last thing they should desire is to see the coming of the holy and just God.
- Righteous acts done for selfish gain (Manipulating God) are as filthy rags. A person who is trying to do enough good deeds to earn entry into God’s family without the grace of God purchased entirely through the blood of Jesus is actively sinning.
Questions to consider:
- Why is it impossible to earn salvation? What does the word “salvation” mean? What chance do any of us have of being “good enough” to go to heaven?
- Why is it a sin to try to get into heaven or to earn God’s favor in some different way than He has designed? In what way could good works be helpful toward other people yet sinful before God?
- Are you ready for God to rend the heavens and come down? Do you know how a person is saved? Have you been saved?