"So Have I Sworn"
Isaiah 54:9
As the Lord God swore to Noah that he
would never again flood the earth with water, so he has sworn that he will
never be wroth with or punish his elect for any reason. What a word of grace
and mercy that is! As there is absolutely no possibility of a universal flood,
so there is absolutely no possibility that the Lord our God will ever impute
sin to, be angry with,or punish his elect. God has so
thoroughly forgiven us of our sins, and so justly, that he will not and cannot
be wroth with us! That is the meaning of Isaiah 54:9. "God, who cannot
lie," will never break his oath or covenant promise for any reason.
"My God, the covenant of Thy love
abides forever sure,
And in its matchless grace I find my
happiness secure!"
The promise of God is absolute. There is
not an "if", "perhaps", "maybe", or
"unless" in it. No conditions, circumstances, contingencies, or
considerations of any kind can alter it. The Lord said to Noah, "I will
not again destroy the earth with water" (Gen. 9:11-17). Dark clouds arise,
but no deluge. Partial floods sweep over lands and destroy nations, but no
universal deluge. God has not and will not break his word to Noah.
In exactly the same manner, the Lord God
has sworn to us absolutely, "I will not be wroth with thee nor rebuke
thee." Trials come. Persecutions arise. We pass through deep waters of
adversity and the fiery furnace of affliction. It sometimes looks like God is
angry with us and feels like he is punishing us.But that can never be true.
Read the promise again, "I will not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke
thee." We must never judge God's love, grace, and faithfulness by outward
providence,any more than we might imagine that when
the rain falls he is about to destroy the earth with a flood!
Spurgeon once said to his congregation,
"Get a firm grip of the glorious truth, that there is not a drop of divine
wrath in all your sufferings." The strong mountains of earthly security
shall depart. The rolling hills of temporal tranquility shall be removed.
"But my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of
my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee."
Don Fortner