The work of righteousness will be peace, And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. Isaiah 32:17
What assurances do you have in this life? As far as this world is concerned, there is nothing you can count on. Like the sand on the seashore, every wave brings change so that you never know for sure how it will look even from one wave to the next. Everything changes and, just when you think you can be sure of something, you are reminded that in this world, there is nothing solid to build on — it’s all just so much shifting sand!
Yet, as a child of God and a citizen of heaven passing through this world and serving as an ambassador for Christ while you are here, you have assurances not only for tomorrow but for forever! The word that is translated “assurance” in our verse today means something that represents a place of refuge and a feeling of safety and security.
If the only assurances you have are the ones that are of this world, then you will find yourself battling with insecurities, even if you do not realize it. You will go from one disappointment to another as people and circumstances let you down, not living up to your expectations or to their assurances. It’s like you are watching the sand as it is shifting!
You can buy a product with a “rock-solid guarantee” only to find, when you need to avail yourself of that guarantee that the company is no longer in existence. Or, someone could have made you a promise and given you their solemn assurance of something only to go back on their word or find themselves unable to carry through, and leave you with nothing but an empty promise and the feeling that maybe promises are never kept.
You may tend to find comfort and a feeling of security in something if millions of people believe it, but there is no guarantee that something is true just because people believe it and tell you that you should believe it as well. You may find comfort and a feeling of security in the way things are because that’s the way things are; it is familiar to you and it’s always been that way. But, just because something is the way it is, there is no guarantee that it will remain so. A volcano is just a beautiful, majestic mountain, sometimes for entire generations, until one day it becomes a giant lava dispenser. You can’t find a place of refuge in this world because there is nothing that you can be sure of.
That brings us to our promise for today. Does it really make a difference how you live your life? After all, it is your life, right? Actually, you are a steward of your life; it really belongs to the Lord. You were created by Him and for Him and He has a divine purpose for your life that involves not only time but eternity as well. Putting your faith or hope in anything of this world is like thinking you can know how that sand will look after the next wave, but you can’t. Anything you build on that foundation will one day come crashing down.
On the other hand, as God’s child you can choose to live a life that is in accordance with His word. That is to say, you can live a life of righteousness. And what effect will that have on the quality of your life? You will be blessed with quietness and assurance forever!
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