Read
The Lord Has Rescued
1Descendants of Jacob,
I, the Lord, created you
and formed your nation.
Israel, don't be afraid.
I have rescued you.
I have called you by name;
now you belong to me.
2When you cross deep rivers,
I will be with you,
and you won't drown.
When you walk through fire,
you won't be burned
or scorched by the flames.
3I am the Lord, your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
the God who saves you.
I gave up Egypt, Ethiopia,
and the region of Seba
in exchange for you.
4To me, you are very dear,
and I love you.
That's why I gave up nations
and people to rescue you.
5Don't be afraid! I am with you.
From both east and west
I will bring you together.
6I will say to the north
and to the south,
“Free my sons and daughters!
Let them return
from distant lands.
7They are my people—
I created each of them
to bring honor to me.”
The Lord Alone Is God
The Lord said:
8Bring my people together.
They have eyes and ears,
but they can't see or hear.
9Tell everyone of every nation
to gather around.
None of them can honestly say,
“We told you so!”
If someone heard them say this,
then tell us about it now.
10My people, you are my witnesses
and my chosen servant.
I want you to know me,
to trust me, and understand
that I alone am God.
I have always been God;
there can be no others.
11I alone am the Lord;
only I can rescue you.
12I promised to save you,
and I kept my promise.
You are my witnesses
that no other god did this.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
13I am God now and forever.
No one can snatch you from me
or stand in my way.
Reflect
The themes of forming and creating come up over and over in Isaiah. People in rebellion against God form and create idols. God, here, forms and creates Israel. When people create idols, they turn to them for salvation. When God creates his people, his people need to turn to their creator for salvation. The message is clear: The creator is prior to and more powerful than what is created.
Carved idols may be less common today but we often look to the work of our hands, to technology, for salvation with the same kind of confidence that Israel looked to idols instead of God. God’s message is that he created us, he loves us and he will save us, not the things we create. God says, “Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me. I am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior.”
God loves us because he created us. He knows your name. He calls you by name. He will be with you when you pass through all kinds of trials. “They shall not overwhelm you”; “They shall not consume you.” We are “created for [God’s] glory.”
We do not have to fear, because God loves those he created. He doesn’t say that we won’t face fearsome trials, but he does promise that he will be with us in those trials and that by going through them with him, they will not overwhelm us. He doesn’t just say Israel will survive. He will “bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you up,” and restore the exiles to the Promised Land.
Fear not, he formed you, and he calls you by name.
Respond
Heavenly Father, Thank you that you formed me and know my name. Thank you that you will be with me through the waters and the fire I’m currently going through. I trust that you will redeem and restore me. Forgive me for my confidence in the things that I have created and formed. Help me always to look to you, my creator to be my redeemer. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Rick Hiemstra
Rick Hiemstra is Director of Research and Media Relations at the EFC. Prior to coming to the EFC, he served as a Wesleyan pastor and as a high school mathematics and computer science teacher. Rick speaks on Canadian church and cultural trends, including the new Renegotiating Faith research about emerging adulthood and faith formation. He has recently contributed to Canadian studies on Bible Engagement, local church missions engagement and emerging adulthood and faith formation. Currently he is leading a study on small evangelical churches and another on parental discipleship of children in the home. He holds a BMath from the University of Waterloo, a BEd from Ottawa University and an MTS from Tyndale Seminary.