“I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness;
I make well-being and create calamity;
I am the LORD, who does all these things.” (Isaiah 45:6b-7)
Our nation is in the midst of social chaos brought on by a number of factors, but stemming from
the fact that over the years people have rejected God in Christ Jesus. Hence our national leaders,
educators, and scientists do not know how to properly respond in the midst of any crisis
including COVID and racism. And yet they claim they have all the answers. The truth is,
however, that they do not: true wisdom only comes from God. And the Lord God has
chosen to work through His people, the Church to bring comfort, peace and mercy to the world.
Yet the Church has been deemed non-essential. So who do we trust to help us: the government
and the medical professionals or the Word of God?
Isaiah prophesied that in 150 years from the time he wrote a king would arise by the name of
Cyrus. He would defeat Babylon and restore God’s people to Judah. 2500 years later we know
the prophecy came to pass as written. The Lord made this promise to comfort and encourage His
people so that they would trust in Him in the midst of great tribulation and suffering.
In our self-centered, media-saturated culture people seek comfort in predicting what will happen
in the future. Economists, celebrities, politicians, mediums, psychics, and pundits all like to
announce with certainty what will happen in the future. Such predictions give them and their
devotees the feeling that they are in control of life’s uncertainties. Many people will make plans
based on such prognostications. Yet most of these predictions and plans will not come to pass
and will be forgotten because they are made apart from wisdom and will of the Lord God.
What the Lord God has spoken through His prophets, His Word, and His Church and what He
says will happen as He promises. Therefore, we who have faith in Christ can take comfort in this
prophecy of Cyrus and the other prophecies and promises the Lord makes in His Word. Through
His Word we can find assurance and comfort in the midst of our own uncertain and confusing
times. Through that Word we find that by faith we have the hope of eternal life in God’s
Kingdom. By that faith we have the wisdom and strength to preach the gospel all we meet that
they too may believe in Jesus. Jesus brings order out of chaos.