ARISE DOES NOT MEAN STRUGGLE (1)
TOPIC: ARISE DOES NOT MEAN STRUGGLE (1)
TEXT: ISAIAH 60:1-22
MEMORY VERSE: "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the
glory of the LORD is risen upon thee " - Isaiah 60:1
We all must be careful the way we handle the Word of God, for the fact that we have money to buy a version of the Bible does not mean the Word of God is cheap. You may read the Bible from cover to cover and not receive the Word of God, for the Bible may look like a storybook to you. Isaiah 60:1 says, “Arise, Shine” and there are many messages out there that interpret the word, “arise” here to mean you must have a job or be doing something before you can shine or be blessed. I think otherwise and that is why I sited a note of warning earlier. The Word of God never said go and struggle before you shine, He only says, arise which means take a position, He did not even say go and work before you shine; He said, take a position, then shine. The Word is without any condition, stand up and shine. The next statement, “for your light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon you” shows you do not have any responsibility in shining forth; the only one you have is to take a position. You don’t have to struggle and struggle before you hit it. No! The only responsibility you have is to position yourself in the Word of God.
I believe also in having something one is doing daily in order to have an income, but it is not the work we are doing that brings to us what we need, it is the Word of God. Get this right (and the earlier the better), it is not your job that bring blessing to you, it is the Word of God that works for you. If you listen to some people, they says, if I don’t do this or that, or if I do not have different streams of income I will suffer or God will not bless them. No! That’s not the Word of God. When Jesus’ disciples came to Him to teach them to pray, He said unto them, “Our Father who hath in Heaven, Hallow be they name, ...Give us this day our daily bread.” - Matthew 6:9-11. Your daily bread is from God, not from what you are doing. You miss God’s blessings when you think it is your job that feed you and your family, not until you know it is the Word of God, one will continue to suffer and labour till there is no more strength. It is dangerous to think you are being fed through your work, that’s not Bible.
If you set God before you and you believe in His word, you will prosper without any hassle. Isaiah 60 says, “Arise, shine”, no responsibility attached except to rise and take a position, because your light has come and the glory of God is risen upon you. He continues, in verse 2, behold darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness the people, but did He say you should light your own candle? No! He says, “…the LORD shall arise upon you, and God’s glory shall be seen upon you.” What’s your own struggle here? Nothing! Beloved, you are reading this, this morning because henceforth we shall be doing daily affirmation of the Word of God until we see results in our lives. The Bible says, “In Him (the Word of God) we live, in Him we move, and in Him we have our being.” – Act 17:28. So you live by the Word and not by your work, men have lived by their works and have attain unto nothing. Going out to work and having skills are good, but they are not the ultimate because the Word of God is the source of all. The Word of God must work and walk with your work before you achieve any result.
Personalize Isaiah 60:1-22 now and close your Bible, repeat this daily. Pray the Bible, not just prayer points. You can pray amiss, but when you pray with the Word of God (Bible) whether you open Him to pray or you know Him off hands, you can never pray amiss. For the Word of God will stand till He accomplished that which He is sent to do and will never return to God void.
“For the fact that you have money to buy a version of the Bible does not mean the Word of God is cheap.”
Central Truth