The desert and the parched land
will be glad;the wilderness will
rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the Lord,
the splendor of our God.
Isaiah 35:1-2
It was only just recently that I heard the concept of a “return to the Garden.” I mean I’m quite familiar with the promise of eternity but I just never made the full circle of an opening of the guarded Eden gates.
These past few weeks as myself, Todd and Madison have been reminded of the many promises of God, I keep hearing the word I have heard for more than a year – “obey.” With each promise there is a covenant agreement. God is sure and trustworthy about His side of the covenant. But we “mule-like” humans struggle to hold on to God tightly and sign at the bottom line. I wonder if it really just boils down to that little bit inside of us that doesn’t fully believe.
On March 26, 1997, San Diego Sheriff’s deputies discovered the bodies of 39 members of the group, Heaven’s Gate. The home where the bodies were found is just a stone’s throw from my own home. If you don’t recall their beliefs, I’ll give you a brief summary. The leaders, using the Bible and science fiction works by Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke convinced their followers that extraterrestrial beings were clearly mentioned in the Book of Revelation. And the comet Hale-Bopp, was the sign for them to give up their early bodies and hitch a ride to the heavens. They twisted a lot of theology to meet their beliefs.
Sometimes when I’m talking about the concept of Jesus, salvation and eternity I think about those Heaven’s Gate souls and wonder if I sound just as crazy to non-believers. I shy away from talking about God and loosen my grip on Him. Of course, one of the large differences is that God never asks us to speed up the date and time of the end of our days here on Earth. And we have been constantly assured that we cannot know the hour of Jesus’ return.
But that return is definitely promised. And if we believe that God is the creator, the sovereign LORD overall, then we must also believe in our return to the Garden.
The prophecy from Isaiah in 35:1-2 was written as a message of hope for the people of Jerusalem. It’s likely the Assyrians had ravaged all the nearby cities and had made the roads too dangerous on which to travel. The people, as Warren Wiersbe says in his commentary, “Were cooped up in Jerusalem, wondering what would happen next.” Sound familiar?
He goes on to write that the faithful were praying continuously to God for hope and relief. And God answered their prayers. As He had done so many times before and since.
“The time has come,” he said.
“The kingdom of God has come near.
Repent and believe the good news!”
Mark 1:15
How many jokes have we seen and heard related to this verse? And yet it is surely true. Jesus himself makes this statement. I heard an evangelist pastor say once, “I don’t know when Jesus is returning and we will see the Garden again, but the time is certainly nearer than it was yesterday!”
It’s said that the new Garden will be even more magnificent than the first. And although that sounds wonderful, I’ll be joy-filled just to be able to have my name written on the list to enter any type of garden God has for me.
Each day I am here on this Earth is another day to hold on tightly to God’s promises and obey and believe. Each day we are here is another gift God gives us to step out of our comfort zones, out of our cooped up lives and work on putting just one more name on that list.
I hope you have enjoyed these 25 Promises of God through the Book of Isaiah. Please join me for our next series titled, “Pray It Till You Make It!” It’s a focus on praying to be the people we know God wants us to be and watching the transformation work He does in us!
emboldened.net 