“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” Isaiah 43:1 ESV
Reflection: why are we fearful at times?
Have you ever found yourself in a “dry patch” in life, where nothing seems to work out as you had planned? Or perhaps in a place feeling totally overwhelmed with the towering demands of life, even the people around you? You wonder how in the world you got to this place, as you have been trying to follow the Lord as best you can. Did He lead you there? And as you look around you at all the problems, you see no way out of your situation. Anxiety and even fear start creeping in. What will happen next?
As I was reading the beautiful passage of the Lord’s promises found in the beginning of Isaiah 43 this morning, my eyes initially were drawn to the phrase “Fear not” in our focus verse. Notice that it is the first thing the Lord tells His people, and He repeats it again later “Fear not, for I am with you;” Isaiah 43:5a ESV. But, as I was pondering this passage, and specifically the command to “Fear not”, I started wondering why “fear” was my primary focus, as opposed to the actual command of the Lord to specifically fear “NOT”.
When we read on, we hear why the Lord commands us to “fear NOT”, as He says “for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” Isaiah 43:1b ESV. Did you see that? Starting with “for I”, we understand that the Lord God Himself is directly involved here, doing the work; and it is He who says of His work that “I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” He Himself is our redemption; our calling and protection are all very personal to the Lord God, calling us His own. His people, His beloved children. Therefore He tells us,
“Fear NOT”.
Perhaps we are so conditioned to fear what dangers, what troubles we face in the world. We therefore end up staring at, and perhaps even becoming paralyzed at times of some of the perceived and even real dangers. But the Lord commands us NOT to fear, because “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life.” Isaiah 43:2-4 ESV. In addition to seeing how personal this is to the Lord, we also see that He may not remove us from the dangers and difficulties. But instead, He is saying that He will walk with us through them, and He will not let these dangers overtake us. It is His personal guarantee. Because He is so much greater than anything we encounter in this world.
There are some beautiful parallels here to God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, taking them through the waters and rivers, a scorching desert, leading them to the promised land. It wasn’t an easy journey, perhaps intentionally, as the Lord needed them to trust in Him alone. And the Lord always led them and provided for them. We therefore read a bit further down “Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings forth chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down, they cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick: “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise.” Isaiah 43:16-21 ESV
Sometimes He needs to lead us into the desert, metaphorically speaking, to some place where we have no solution, no answers on our own. Only then can He make it clear to us that the path laid before us is only His doing. He is the “way-maker” as the song goes, through the waters and rivers, through the desert. And, as we have the right focus, on His majesty, His strength and abilities, He will show us what He is doing. “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19 ESV.
