For A Moment

In overflowing wrath for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you, says the Lord, your Redeemer. (Isaiah 54:8)

Isa. 54:4-8; Gen. 22:18; Mt. 6:24; Jn. 3: 16. Compare Isa. 53:5-9 with Mt. 27:11-13

What Is God Saying?

In Peter's last book, we have a window into the heart of God: "God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance" (II Peter 3:9). And in Genisis, "By your (Abraham's) descendants shall all the nations of the earth be blessed because you have obeyed my voice" (Gen. 22:18). In the hardest trial of his life, Abraham showed he was willing to obey the voice of God. As long as his descendants obeyed, God blessed them. They didn't always obey, so he did not always bless them. "For a moment, I hid my face from you."

The true Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ (this is very clear in Isaiah), was to be the real servant, the one who obeyed, the one who, through his sacrifice on the cross, would open the door of salvation and blessing for the whole world. It couldn't be plainer. "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). God's wrath against sin, the hiding of his face, is for a moment, but his love through Christ is everlasting.

How Does This Apply To Us?

God is "the father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow" (James 1:17). He doesn't turn away; we do. We can't see something if we are not looking at it. To turn toward darkness is logically to turn away from light. Jesus said that having two masters doesn't work. When his face seems hidden, when we are discouraged and feel forsaken, remember his hidden face is for the moment and for a purpose.

Pray With Me

Lord, you are my strength and my redeemer. Your discipline may seem long, but in the light of eternity, it is just for a moment. You hide your face so that I may come to understand the source of my only true life. Your wrath overflows for a moment to keep me from walking in paths of folly and destruction, and I remember what leads me to true life, which is forever.

You lead me through the wilderness that I might learn the lessons of trust and obedience. Help me to understand that, however great the discipline, it will not seem too long and too hard when I see You. Against the darkest cloud, there is the loveliest rainbow. At the end of the longest night, there is a radiant morning. Beyond the overflowing wrath, there is everlasting love. Help me to die the death of self-surrender that I might live the life of self-discovery. Help me to see the purpose of your overflowing wrath that I might experience the blessing of your compassion forever. Help me to make a sacrifice now that I might live in my redeemer's presence and favor forever.

Moving On In The Life of Prayer

In prayer, we earnestly search our souls for that which may cause God to hide his face. In prayer, we let the Spirit help us repent of those things. Let us pray with complete trust in the unchanging love of the Lord, our Redeemer.