Ep. 162. Isaiah 40-41 | Who Has Measured
EPISODE 162
WHO HAS MEASURED: ISAIAH 40-41
Isaiah 40 is one of the more recognizable texts among those who have been in church for any length of time. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted, but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength."
The majority of this chapter shows us the magnitude of the God we serve. No one taught him wisdom. No one gives him counsel. The nations and islands are like dust on a scale to him. They are of no account. There are not enough beasts on the earth to offer him an adequate offering nor enough trees to kindle the sacrificial fire. He marks off the heavens simply by stretching out his hand. Every ocean, every stream, every mighty rushing river, every pond, lake, and bubbling brook would be as a few drops in the cup of his hand.
"To whom then will you compare [him]?" He calls the stars out by their names and numbers. He is the everlasting God and the creator of the ends of the earth. "He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable." A young man has strength to spare. He outpaces his father. He labors long and barely breaks a sweat. He can stay up half the night and then go about another day full of adventure. But, though he is stronger than the aged, he will eventually succumb to fatigue. Eventually, even the stout warrior will require sleep. In time, even the most physically strong of all humanity will faint from thirst, and his knees will buckle for want of food. Even those "tireless" youths tire. But God tires not, and those who wait on him will find their strength renewed. Those who cast themselves upon God find that weariness falls off them like the scales from Paul's eyes. God imbues his faithful followers with the strength to press on, and they shall not faint until the day Christ parts the clouds, or they close their eyes in death and awake in glory.
God is bigger. God is better. God is our strength.
ADDITIONAL READING: Matthew 3: 2-4; 1 Peter 1:23-25; Romans 1:18-20; Psalm 19:1-2; Psalm 73; Hebrews 13:5
