ISAIAH 26:1-12 BE KEPT IN PERFECT PEACE2016 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Isaiah 26:1-12 Be Kept In Perfect Peace

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2016.

This morning, as we look at Isaiah chapter 26, I would like to encourage you to be kept in perfect peace. Be kept in perfect peace. And that is talking about a peace within, a quietness, a stillness, a calmness that God can provide for those who trust in him.

Now, of course, as we talk about peace today, it's easy to look at the world around us and have things that would challenge our peace, things that would challenge us in having peace and having a calmness. And it's very easy for us to become calm.

to become worried, stressed, fearful, angry over the things that we're seeing around us. I'm sure you heard the news this weekend. There was an attempt to overthrow the government there in Turkey. And it was just, you know, craziness that ensued in CNN in reporting on that incident.

wrote an article, How a Night of Death and Mayhem Unfolded. They described that as a night of death and mayhem. And this just was happening just in these last few days.

In the article, they say the chaos and confusion was reflected in the question of how many people had been killed in just a few hours. Describing it as chaos and confusion, this event that took place there in Turkey. Now, I bring that up not just as, you know, look how unusual this is, but just as an example of, well, this has been going on in Turkey.

You know, the weeks prior and the months prior and the years prior, we've been seeing these kinds of things unfold all over the world. All kinds of mayhem and death and chaos has been unfolding.

And then, of course, we look at our own nation and we see, you know, in the events in just the past few weeks, there has been chaos and death and mayhem and no signs of that, you know, coming to an abrupt stop or finishing anytime soon. But there is this

serious pressure and stress and anxiety, and these issues are building and building. We have the continuation of terrorist attacks around the world, and we saw France also get hit recently, and, you know, just on and on and on we could go. There's lots of things that would challenge us in regards to having peace within our hearts and within our lives.

So much so that it's on the hearts of many people and all over the nation, there's all kinds of walks for peace and stands for peace and marches for peace and all these different groups and gatherings. In fact, there was one yesterday in Los Angeles and NBC Los Angeles reported on that and they described it as this event has been going on for a long time, but it was the biggest turnout in recent years as a result of everybody is,

looking for and desiring and wanting peace. And so this March for Peace that happened in Los Angeles had a big turnout, a big gathering, because there are lots of people who want peace. It's on our hearts. It's on our minds because of the chaos, because of the difficulties, and because of what we're seeing in the world around us.

For some people, a big challenge to peace within is the political campaigns that are going on. And that is, you know, kind of really distressing and disturbing and

No matter who wins this coming November, there is going to be a lot of people freaked out. No matter which side wins, there's going to be a lot of people freaked out either way. And there will be proclamations of, you know, the end of the world and the Antichrist and all kinds of things as a result because whichever side wins, you know, there's going to be that fear, that anxiety, that stress over what's going to take place within our nation.

Those are a few things. But then, of course, you have your own personal life. So in the world, things are crazy. In your world, well, there's lots of challenges to having peace within, isn't there? News from the doctor, news from the boss, financial stresses, family issues. There's so many things that happen in our personal lives as well that can cause us to be unsettled.

The idea of peace, that word peace, it paints the picture of tranquility, that calmness, like a calm pond where the water is not disturbed and not being thrashed around. And yet so many times, that's not the picture of what our hearts are like and what's happening within us. So many times we're disturbed and we're in turmoil and we go from one thing to another thing to another thing. It's this constant state of turmoil and we don't have peace within.

But the Lord wants you to have peace within. And you might wrestle with that. How can we have peace in the midst of all these things that are going on? Well, Isaiah here in verse 3 talks about peace. He says, Isaiah here talks about perfect peace, which is what we'll be looking at today and talking a lot more about.

But just as we begin to consider this concept of perfect peace, we might think, well, you know, it's easy for Isaiah to talk about these things. He didn't see what's going on in the world like we see what's going on in the world. And perhaps he didn't have as much going on in his personal life like we have in our personal lives. But may I remind you the context of Isaiah the prophet. He was a prophet sent by God to a people who was in rebellion against God.

So the people he was sent to deliver God's message to did not want to hear the message from God. They were a people who were in the midst of experiencing judgments from God and

Because of their rebellion against God. And so here he is as the messenger of God, speaking to people who don't want to listen. And he's experiencing the effects of the battles that are taking place and the famines that are going on. The things that are happening as God is bringing judgment after judgment, calling their attention to their rebellion against him. He's going through it as well.

On top of that, he's announcing the complete destruction of the nation of Judah, which is where he's at ministering to. So it's not just the judgments that are happening currently, but he's announcing, hey, Babylon is going to come. He's going to wipe out Jerusalem. He's going to take away captives. There's not going to be anybody left here in the land. He's announcing their full destruction, which will take place by the nation of Babylon a couple hundred years after Isaiah finishes ministering.

Not only that, but he's also prophesying about the tribulation period, something that's still yet future as we read these things today, that final time where God will pour out his wrath upon the earth for that seven-year period. And so Isaiah is fully acquainted with death and mayhem and chaos. Now, on top of all that,

Their sister nation, you might remember, Israel was split in two. And Isaiah was there in the southern kingdom. In the northern kingdom, they also were rebelling against God. And during Isaiah's ministry, they watched...

while the nation of Assyria conquered the northern kingdom and took them all away captive. And that wasn't a pretty picture. That wasn't, you know, nice. There was no Geneva Convention or anything like that. I mean, they stripped people naked, chained them together by different, you know, limbs, and carried them away or, you know, walked them out, marched them out. It was an atrocious thing that took place right before their eyes, right next to them.

There was much reason for Isaiah, for Judah to not have perfect peace. And yet here he is talking about perfect peace. He knows what he's talking about and it relates to us. And we can have this perfect peace that God wants for us. Now, the phrase here, perfect peace,

It's a little bit of an interpretation or a translation, but even more of an interpretation from the Hebrew. Literally in the Hebrew, there's no word perfect there. Instead, the word peace is repeated twice.

The Hebrew, they did this often to emphasize a particular thing or to give the completeness of it, the idea of a fullness of it. And so the idea of perfect peace fits well, but literally it says, you will keep him in peace, peace. And that made me think about it in a little bit different way because I heard a comedian a while back, and he had a whole bit on how we are funny with our English language and

how we will use the same word multiple times in order to convey something different or something deeper. And so I might say that comedian was funny. He wasn't funny funny, but he was funny.

You know what I mean? And we use that idea. We say that same word. We repeat that same word. You know, I'm not hungry hungry, but I'm hungry. And you get the idea. You understand, okay, you know, there's a little bit deeper level. There's a little bit more meaning to, even though I'm saying the word again. And so thinking about that in regards to peace, you know, I was thinking about how we kind of need to get beyond the surface. If I were to ask you today, do you have peace?

For us as believers, many times we would just answer, yes, we have peace, because we know that's the Christian answer. That's what you're supposed to say. And so we say, yeah, I have peace. But if I were to ask you, do you have peace, peace? Take it a little bit deeper beyond the surface. Sometimes when we say, yes, I have peace, all that means is, well, I'm pretending to have peace. You know, things aren't so agitated underneath that I can't continue to fake it and put a smile on my face, even though I don't have peace.

And this is something I really want to encourage us to consider for our own hearts. Do you have peace, peace? Not just enough peace where you can keep faking it and, you know, smile and everybody thinks everything's okay within your heart. But do you have peace, peace? Is there a genuine stillness deep within you? There's a quietness. There's a tranquility. You're settled. You're rested. You're

Because it's what God has provided for you. Listen, that's the kind of peace that God wants to give you. Let me just remind you of a few different passages. I know I'm spending a little bit more time here in the beginning than I usually do, but this is an important concept. And I really believe that many times as believers, we miss out on perfect peace, where God has perfect peace for us, but we miss out on it.

We don't experience that stillness within. Here's what Jesus said in John chapter 14, verse 27. He says, Jesus says, I'm giving you peace. Now, this was on the day that he was going to be crucified.

He spends a few chapters talking to his disciples and preparing them for what's about to take place. And one of the things that they need, one of the things he wants to make sure they know they have from him, one of the things he wants you to know you have from him is peace. He says, peace, I leave with you. I give it to you. And it's not like the world gives.

The world gives things that don't last, that don't fully satisfy, that are unfulfilling. But Jesus says, I'm giving you peace. And it's not like the world gives. The peace that I give you will leave you in a place where your heart is not troubled and where you don't have to be afraid. It's a real peace. It's a genuine peace. It's a real calmness and stillness within.

In a couple more chapters, in John chapter 16, verse 33, he says, these things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. It's a few chapters later, but it's that same evening. Jesus is still talking to his disciples, and he says, look, I'm telling you these things. I'm bringing forth my word to you that in me you may have peace.

Jesus wants to give you peace. He says, look, in the world, you're going to have tribulation. He's recognizing, we often quote this passage and we talk about the tribulation that we're to expect. There is going to be difficulty in this world and there is going to be chaos and there is going to be terrorism and murder and all kinds of atrocious things. But what Jesus is saying here is in the midst of that, you can still have peace in me.

In Jesus, you can have peace. That's what he has for you. That's what he wants for you. And if you don't have that, you're missing out on what God has for you. He wants to give you peace. Now, that was the ministry of Jesus. That was the testimony of Jesus. But that's always been God's plan and desire for his people.

I could give many examples, but let me just rewind the tape back all the way to Numbers chapter six to give one last example of this. And that is the benediction, the blessing that God told the priest to give to his people. Here was the blessing they were to give to the people. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

God has always wanted his people to have peace. From Numbers 6, through John 14, through John 16, and through the rest of the scriptures, you can see that God wants you to have peace. That is clear. The question is, do you have peace? Now, not just do you have peace, but do you have peace, peace? Again, beyond the surface, beyond the easy, you know, where you can fake it, but is there that real genuine stillness within? Now,

I think also we need to be careful not to take this a wrong direction. That happens sometimes. So let me clarify. When I'm talking about having peace, I'm not talking about being emotionless. And sometimes we need to be challenged with some of the things that we just kind of pick up over time or people kind of tell us. We talked about this a lot in the book of Psalms that God wants you to be genuine, especially with him.

And if you're hurting, you're struggling, you're unsettled, you're all shaken up, you're angry, you're sorrowful, whatever it is, you need to be genuine. And so don't pretend, okay, I'm going to pretend like I don't have those feelings, like I'm not going through those things, and then smile and say, you know, I have peace, you know, and try to fake it. That's not what God is saying, and that's not the kind of peace that God provides. But sometimes that's kind of what people project on us and expect us and say, well, you're supposed to have peace, so, you know.

start faking it. But I like to, when people try to say, well, this is what you should do, that kind of thing, or when I start thinking, well, I should be like this, or I should do like that, I like to test those kinds of thoughts, those kinds of challenges with Jesus. Test it with Jesus. If you look at the life of Jesus, you'll find that he, of course, he had peace. He's the prince of peace. And yet he experienced anger. He experienced sorrow. He

He was affected by the world around him. He was affected. It impacted him. And the peace that God provides for us is not just like you won't experience anything. You won't have any emotions. You'll never be happy. You'll never be sad. You know, not like that. Or you'll always be happy. No, God provides a substantial peace within that even though you're experiencing anger and sorrow, and even though there's chaos in the world around you,

There's a peace within. It's a stability that God provides, a tranquility within. It's not emotionless. Paul the apostle talked about this a little bit in Corinthians. He says, look, we're hard-pressed on every side, but we're not discouraged. There's things happening all around. We're squeezed in, but we're not perplexed. We're not given up. We're not in despair. We don't know what's going on fully, and we're experiencing all kinds of opposition, but

but we have a peace within. He says, outwardly, we're wasting away, but inwardly, we're being renewed day by day. That's describing the kind of peace that God wants to provide for us. And so this is the kind of peace that God wants us to have. Do you have that kind of peace? Yeah, you still experience anger and sorrow, and you still get affected by things, but it doesn't shake you to the core, because there you have the peace of God, the stability within.

that comes from the Lord. Notice it says there in verse three, you talking about God, you will keep him in perfect peace. This peace is not something that God calls us to generate ourselves. Well, if you don't have peace, well, you better get it real quick. That's not the way that God gives us peace. He doesn't require us to generate it or manufacture it.

But he does give us some things to do. And that's what we want to look at as we work our way through this passage this morning. Four points to talk about how to be kept in perfect peace. The pieces that God has given to us that we can do so that he keeps us in perfect peace. And so the first point we'll look at is found in verse 1 and 2. And here, in order to be kept in perfect peace, you need to remember the Lord's full plan.

Remember the Lord's full plan. Check out verse one and two. It says, As Isaiah begins this chapter, he says, there's going to be a song that will be sung.

Now remember, Isaiah is prophesying about judgment and destruction that is going to happen currently and in the future and in the tribulation period. He's watching all this unfold, but here he's talking about a song that will be sung.

And he says a specific time this is going to happen. He says, in that day, there in verse one. In that day, this song will be sung. Now, when Isaiah uses that phrase, in that day, he's talking about a very specific time period. He's talking about what we would refer to as the tribulation. That's the seven years where God is going to pour out his wrath upon the earth. He's also talking about the return of Jesus or the return of the Messiah, right?

Jesus, of course, hadn't come as Isaiah is writing these things, but looking back on it now, he has come, but he's coming again. He will come at the end of that tribulation period and establish his kingdom to rule and reign here upon the earth for a thousand years. This is the time period that Isaiah is referring to when he says, in that day.

And you can see that by just looking a little bit at the context of Isaiah 26. Would you back up with me to Isaiah chapter 24 for just a couple seconds? Isaiah chapter 24 is really kind of the beginning of this whole section that he's talking about this time period. Isaiah chapter 24 verse 1 says, "...behold, the Lord makes the earth empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface and scatters abroad its inhabitants."

Now, as you continue to go on through the chapter, you see he's talking about the tribulation period, the wrath of God being poured out. And here it's described as the earth being made empty and being made waste. Then jumping down to verse 21 here in chapter 24, it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones and on the earth, the kings of the earth.

Then verse 23, then the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed for the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem and before his elders gloriously. So Isaiah, as he begins talking about that day here in chapter 24, he talks about the judgment. He talks about the destruction. He talks about the king who will come, the return of Jesus Christ and

The high and lifted up ones will be punished, but the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion there in Jerusalem. The return of Jesus Christ, the establishing of his kingdom. That continues on into chapter 25.

In Isaiah chapter 25, verse 9, it says, Talking about his kingdom and his reign, again referred to in that day.

And so as Jesus comes back at the end of the tribulation and establishes his kingdom, there's going to be a glorious kingdom. And the people will say, hey, we've waited for this. And we're glad and we rejoice in the kingdom of the Lord. And then that brings us to chapter 26, verse 1. Again, it says, in that day, this song will be sung. It's talking about a praise song. It's talking about a song of rejoicing that

that says, we have a strong city. God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks, open the gates that the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. It's a praise song that will be sung in the kingdom that Jesus establishes when he returns. So in the midst of all the chaos, in the midst of Isaiah's ministry, in the midst of the judgments that are happening and that will happen and that are yet to come,

He talks about perfect peace as he looks forward to that day. He's keeping in mind, he's remembering the Lord's full plan. The whole picture, the whole scene that God has declared will take place. And these are things that are still on the agenda for us as we read through these things today. The tribulation period has yet to take place, but there will be that time.

where there is a seven-year period of the wrath of God being poured out upon this earth. And that will be concluded by the return of Jesus Christ. He will establish his kingdom here on the earth for 1,000 years. At the end of that, there'll be one last little rebellion, and then we'll enter into eternity. This is the plan of God. He's declared it. He's reminded us of it throughout the scriptures over and over again.

We know the plan of God. We know that God will make all things right, that he'll wipe every tear away. He will work all things together for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose. We have so many promises. We have the end of the story. We know that these things will take place. And in order to be kept in perfect peace, really the first thing that we need to do is remember the Lord's plan.

Remember what he has said he will do. Remember what he has declared and look to eternity. Again, I refer to peace, I referred to it earlier as a stability. And that's, it's a good word. If you really want to have stability, look to eternity. If you want to have that peace, that calmness within, understand that God is on the throne.

and he will accomplish his purposes and his plans. There will be wars and rumors of wars, but remember the Lord's full plan. There's going to be violence and chaos, but remember the Lord's full plan. There's going to be bad news in your life, but remember the Lord's full plan. Consider what Paul said in Romans chapter 8, verse 18. He says, for I consider...

that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Paul says, I consider, I'm thinking, I'm remembering what God has said in God's promises. And in that, I've considered, I've come to the conclusion, the sufferings of right now don't compare to the glory which shall be revealed.

He's looking to eternity. He's remembering the Lord's full plan and it's helping him to have peace in the midst of the present suffering. Be kept in perfect peace by remembering the Lord's full plan. Well, continuing on into verse three, we have point number two, and that is stay your mind on the Lord. If you want to have perfect peace, here's what the Lord charges you with.

Stay your mind. Fix your mind. Keep your mind on the Lord. Verse 3 says, you will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts in you. God will do this work of keeping you in perfect peace. Not just peace, but he'll keep you in peace, peace when you stay your mind on him. I think it's interesting that it's worded that way. I think it's

insightful for us to think about peace as a battle in the mind. Even as believers, we've believed in Jesus Christ. We often, you know, refer to that as giving him our hearts. We give our heart to the Lord, right? He has our heart. We believe in Jesus. We love Jesus. And yet, even then, so many times in our mind, there's a real battle.

And peace comes to that battle in the mind, where your mind is wrapped up in other things, even though you've given your heart to the Lord in that sense. And you still believe in Jesus. You still love Jesus. But we can still be lacking in peace as believers when our minds are not stayed on the Lord. And it's easy for us to get distracted, for us to get caught up and consumed. And our minds get

So that, you know, we're focused on these things that are not the Lord. And it fills our minds. It fills our day. It fills our conversations. And it prevents us from the peace that God has for us. Listen to what Dave Guzik has to say about this. He says,

If our mind is stayed on ourselves or our problems or the problem people in our lives or on anything else, we can't have this perfect peace. Here we're being encouraged to have some maturity regarding our thoughts, regarding our thinking and our thought life and what's happening in our mind. To catch when we're being distracted, it's really easy to do.

To be distracted and caught up in something and your mind just chews on it and just stays there and stays there and stays there and you can't get it out of your mind. We often use that phrase, don't we? I can't get it out of my mind. But what Dave Guzik is saying, what the Lord is saying through this is, if you keep your mind stayed on something else, you won't have perfect peace. So when you have that problem and that's all you think about,

And that's what your focus is. And you wake up thinking about that problem. You go to bed thinking about that problem. You talk about that problem all day long. Your mind is there. It's there. It's there. It's there. You're not going to have peace about that problem by thinking about that problem. Instead, we need to stay our mind on the Lord. Not that we don't deal with problems or handle problems or address problems, but we don't let those things consume our minds.

But instead, we learn to take every thought captive, like Paul says in Corinthians, to make it subject to Jesus Christ. Again, it requires a little bit of maturity to recognize, listen, I'm thinking about this. That's not good for me. I need to change the subject and stay my mind on the Lord. But it's so easy to get distracted, isn't it? It reminds me of Peter. When Jesus was walking out on the water to the boat, the disciples are freaked out. And Jesus says, hey, calm down, guys. It's me.

peace, you know? And Peter says, if it's really you, hey, call me out to meet you there on the water. And he says, all right, come on out. And so Peter gets out of the boat, which is just totally crazy, but he gets out of the boat. He begins to walk to Jesus. He's walking on the water just like Jesus is. I mean, radical stuff is happening. But then it says, he saw the wind and the waves, and he's distracted. His mind has not stayed on Jesus. His mind is caught up in the wind and the

Now he does the right thing. He calls out to Jesus, save me. And the Lord saves him. That's always what we need to do. But it's a good reminder of how easily we can become distracted and our minds can be fixed on something else. And we lose that peace. And we begin to sink in the wind and the waves that are happening there in our lives. We need to fix our minds, to stay our minds on the Lord. Maybe it's like having a rebellious dog. You tell it to stay.

And then it gets up and wanders around. No, stay. And it gets up and wanders around. No, stay. And the same thing in our minds. We got to tell it, stay. We got to train our minds. We got to train our hearts to focus on the things of the Lord, to stay our minds on the Lord. Do you have peace? Again, not pretend peace. Not that, well, you have enough peace that you can fake it, that nobody has to know the turmoil that's happening within. But do you have peace, peace?

That there's a real tranquility, there's a real calmness, a settledness in your heart from the Lord. If you want that kind of peace, God says, I'll keep you in perfect peace. That's a promise for those who stay their mind on the Lord. Now, thinking about this, you might think, well, okay, so keeping my mind, you know, free from those things that just cause that churning, that tribulation within. So maybe I just need to cut out the news, right?

Someone might have that approach, right? Let me just cut out the news because that messes with my peace. I start thinking about all the problems. And so I just won't watch the news. And that's how I'll resolve this issue. Let me just encourage you. It's not about just avoiding the things that disturb you. To have perfect peace is not just avoiding the things that kind of get you riled up. To have perfect peace, you need to replace that with the Lord. So it's not just, I'm not going to watch the news.

I'm not going to let my mind go there. I'm not going to think on that. I'm not going to dwell on that. But it's, okay, but now what are you going to do? Just think about black emptiness? No. Fill that spot with the Lord. The apostle Paul in Colossians chapter 3 says, if then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

As we talk about having perfect peace and the need to stay our mind on the Lord, understand this is not like a new development. This isn't, well, you know, we have so much media and so much available to us now and all this technology. And, you know, so of course we have this issue more than any other generation before. No, this is not a new issue. They're in Colossians. Paul says, look, if you've been raised with Christ, you need to on purpose decide to seek the things which are above.

You need to set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. And the things on earth, the things that are right in front of us, they're calling out to us, trying to get our attention, trying to get us to consume ourselves with those things. But he says, if you've been raised with Christ, you're a believer in Jesus Christ, change the subject in your mind. Set your mind on things above. And God's promise, as you fix your eyes on him, you fix your mind, you fix your thoughts on him,

is that he will keep you in perfect peace. And so it begins with us remembering the Lord's full plan. It continues with us staying our mind on the Lord. Then continuing in verse three on to verse six, we have point number three. We also need to trust in the Lord. It's not just thinking about the Lord, thinking about God. These two things go hand in hand. They're intertwined.

You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you. And then notice, because he trusts in you. See, here's the core. The reason why we stay our minds on the Lord is because we trust in the Lord. Having your mind stayed on the Lord needs to come. It must come from a trust in the Lord, a confidence in the Lord. When we trust the Lord,

and focus our mind on him, stay our minds on him, he promises to keep us in perfect peace. And so he goes on in verse four to say, trust in the Lord forever, for in y'all the Lord is everlasting strength. So now he exhorts us. So those who stay their mind because they trust, they experience perfect peace. So trust in the Lord forever.

He says in verse four, so start doing it. Start believing, start trusting in God in this way. And he tells us, hey, you have good reason to trust in the Lord because Yah the Lord is everlasting strength. Everlasting strength. I also like the way the ESV puts it. It says, trust in the Lord forever for the Lord God is an everlasting rock forever.

We can trust in the Lord because he is an everlasting rock. I'm sure you've heard the phrase rock of ages. We used to sing that song, rock of ages, right? Jesus is the rock. That idea, that concept of the rock of ages is what's contained here. That everlasting rock, that's who he is. That's what he is. And that's why you can trust in him.

I'm sure you've had the experience. At some point in your life, you've been hiking around somewhere, you've been walking up a hill or down a path, and you set your foot upon a rock because you think it's stable. You think it's sturdy. You think it can hold you. But when you put your weight on it, you find, you discover that rock is loose and it shifts. And maybe you twist your ankle or you fall over, you almost stumble. It's

It's shocking. It's unexpected, right? Because you placed your foot there on purpose. Oh, there's a rock. I can put my foot there and have a sure footing, right? And then you find out, oh, it's not a sure footing. It's not reliable. When it comes to the Lord, here's what we need to understand. He is an everlasting rock. That is, you will never have this experience with the Lord that when you put your trust in him, you find out, oh, he's a little bit unstable. You

Didn't quite, you know, have what it takes to carry the weights of that problem, of that issue, of that thing that I needed. No, here's the point. Trust in the Lord because he's an everlasting rock. He's more sure than anything else. You can count on him. You can put your full weight on him. All of your problems, all of your concerns, all of your anxieties, all the troubles of this world, all the chaos, all everything, we can put it on the Lord.

He is an everlasting rock. He will not be shaken. He will not be moved. And not everything is as reliable as the Lord. That's what he points out in verse five and six. It says, "'For he brings down those who dwell on high, "'the lofty city, he lays it low. "'He lays it low to the ground. "'He brings it down to the dust. "'The foot shall tread it down the feet of the poor "'and the steps of the needy.'" The Lord is an everlasting rock, but not everything else is as sturdy or reliable.

And the Lord is going to bring down those who dwell on high. Here's the general idea. The people of Isaiah's day were trusting in those who dwell on high. And so God is going to bring them down. He talks about the lofty city being laid low. They're trusting in their city. They're trusting in their walls. They're trusting in the fortress. The things that they think will protect them from the judgments that are taking place.

And Isaiah says, he lays it low to the ground. He's going to bring it down to the dust. It's just going to be completely wiped out. So poor and needy people just walk right across it. And the people of Israel might say, over my dead body. And God says, okay, if that's your choice, whatever you trust in besides God, understand he will bring it low. God will always do that.

Without exception, everything that we trust in apart from him will be brought low because he alone is the everlasting rock. You can see this played out in the nation of Egypt. When God brings his people out of Egypt and you have the 10 plagues, those are not just random things. Like God just like, oh, let's think about frogs. All right. Yeah. Frogs. Yeah. That'll be a nuisance. Let's bring the frogs. All of the plagues that God brought upon the nation of Egypt are

were related to things that they trusted in instead of the Lord, so that he was defeating their trust, defeating those things that they trusted in instead of God, defeating those things that they hoped in instead of God, showing them that they need to trust in the Lord and not in those things. Now, bringing that to us today, we need to understand the Lord is an everlasting rock, and there's nothing as reliable as he is.

You are not as reliable as the Lord. And so if your trust, if your peace within, your calmness, your quietness within is based upon resting upon you performing well, you and your talents and your capabilities and what you can accomplish and your plans and your desires, if that's what your peace is based on, you're not going to have peace. And you're certainly not going to have perfect peace because you're going to fail. You are not as reliable as the Lord.

If your peace is based upon your money, you're not going to have peace. Your money will fail. It's not reliable. You can't rest your weight upon it. It won't hold you. Your plans, your money, your talents, your family, if those are the basis for your peace, you will not have perfect peace. Here is God is writing to the nation of Israel through Isaiah. He's saying to them, you're a proud nation.

lofty and high and lifted up, and you're gonna fall. Listen, a proud nation is not as reliable as the Lord is. Nations come and go. It's hard for us to see that. But look at the big picture. Look at the picture of history. Look at what history has taught us. We see nations come and go. If your hope, if your peace is based upon the nation that we live in, you're gonna have some trouble. You're not gonna have perfect peace. It's not as reliable as the Lord is.

Every high and lifted up nation, every proud nation will be brought down. Even to take it a step further, the earth is not as reliable as the Lord. It's not an everlasting rock. The galaxy is not as reliable as the Lord. The universe is not as reliable as the Lord. The Lord is the only one. He's the everlasting rock. He's the one who can carry you. He's the one who will never fail. He's the one who can carry you.

The Lord is the alpha and the omega. He's the first and the last. He has always been. He always will be. He always fulfills his words. He fulfills every promise he makes and he doesn't change. You can count on him. Thus the point, trust in the Lord because anything else you trust in will be inferior, will let you down and will not give you the perfect peace that God wants for you. Do you have perfect peace?

Not just peace, but do you have peace, peace? Do you have real peace? Because you're trusting in the Lord, because your faith and confidence is based upon who God is and what he has said. Paul the Apostle addresses this a little bit in Philippians chapter four. He puts it this way. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Here's the way Paul puts it. You're much more familiar with this one, I'm sure. Be anxious for nothing. Talking about peace. There's lots of things in your life that can cause you to be anxious.

And if you let your mind go there, you're going to be worrying about those things. You're going to be stressed out about those things. Whether it be things happening in the world, things happening in our country, things happening in your life. Paul says, be anxious for nothing. How do you do that? Stay your mind on the Lord. He says, in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Bring all those burdens, bring all those stresses and anxieties, and give them to God. He can carry the weight.

Place them in God's hands and say, God, these things are in your control and I'm trusting you with those things. And then the result, he says, is the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. That's a perfect peace. The peace of God which surpasses understanding. The idea there is it doesn't make sense for me to have peace when my life is falling apart and my family's a mess and my nation's crumbling and the world is, you know,

It doesn't make sense for me to have peace, but I can have peace because I have trusted in the Lord and I've placed my life and everything in the Lord's hands. And he gives me perfect peace, a real genuine stillness, calmness, and peace within. It doesn't, again, just to point out, it doesn't mean there's no emotions. It doesn't mean that we don't get angry, that we don't have sorrow, that we don't get affected by the things of this life.

but that those things, although they affect us, don't take away the peace that God has given to us. And just because we're angry or upset or frustrated doesn't mean we've given up in trusting the Lord. We know it's going to be worked out, but the process still takes what it takes. And that's why Jesus was angry and sorrowful. He experienced this life. Now, I don't know if Jesus ever got hangry, but, you know, maybe you do. And you could still have peace in the midst of

Being hungry and angry at the same time. It doesn't have to shake you to the core is what I'm saying. You can still have peace. You're still gonna experience life and things are gonna happen. You'll have tribulation. But Jesus said, be of good cheer because I've overcome the world. And so both are true. You will experience those things, but you can still have peace if you trust the Lord and stay your mind on the Lord and remember his full plan. Let's finish it up, verses seven through 11. Point number four, walk in the Lord's ways.

This is really the result from the first three things. If you are remembering the Lord's plan and staying your mind on the Lord and trusting in the Lord, that's going to result in a life that's lived out in the ways of the Lord. You're going to be walking in the ways of God and living your life by faith. Verse seven, the way of the just is uprightness. Oh, most upright. You weigh the path of the just.

So he goes on to comment, the way of the just is uprightness. And then notice what he calls God, oh, most upright. So the way of God's people is the way of uprightness. And God is the one who's most upright. In other words, we walk in the ways of God. God is right. He is perfect. There is no one more just than God, more right than God. His ways are the right ways. And his people walk in those ways.

So let me just put it a little bit more simple in another way. If you're practicing sin, you're not going to have perfect peace. We all stumble, we all fall, and we have forgiveness, and so we can have perfect peace in the midst of that. But if you're making deliberate choices, deliberate lifestyles of sinfulness, and you're just disregarding what God says, and you're doing what you want to do, you will never have perfect peace. There will always be turmoil within. You'll always be unsettled. You will never be fulfilled and satisfied when you're pursuing sin.

But when you remember the most upright and stay your mind on him and walk in his ways, you can have peace. That's his promise. Verse eight. Yes, in the way of your judgments, O Lord, we have waited for you. The desire of our soul is for your name and for the remembrance of you. With my soul, I have desired you in the night. Yes, by my spirit within me, I will seek you early. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness."

Here he's describing that yearning, that desire within, that again, it's a genuine thing that you desire to know God and to walk in his ways. He says, we've waited for you. The desire of our souls is for your name. He says, in the night, I've desired you and I'll seek you early. He's talking about this is your lifestyle. You are seeking God.

You want to know God. You pursue God. You want to hear from him. You want to walk in his ways. You want to do what he calls you to do. It's a diligence in seeking the Lord and then living out and doing what he says. Verse 10, let grace be shown to the wicked, yet he will not learn righteousness. In the land of uprightness, he will deal unjustly and will not behold the majesty of the Lord. Lord, when your hand is lifted up, they will not see.

but they will see and be ashamed for their envy of people. Yes, the fire of your enemies shall devour them. The upright, the just, they walk in the ways of the most upright. They walk in the ways of the Lord. But the wicked, even when grace is demonstrated to them, they don't turn from their wickedness, but they continue on in their sinfulness and they will experience shame. They'll never have peace, but they'll be ashamed as the judgment for sin is brought upon them.

Walk in the Lord's ways. Do you have peace? Not fake peace, not just enough peace where you can kind of fake it and, you know, smile and put on the, you know, the Christian expressions and say, yeah, praise the Lord. I have peace. But do you have real peace? Is that really what's happening in your heart right now? You're settled, stable. There's not roaring waves, crashing wind, but you're settled within. God wants you to have that kind of peace.

Even though there's lots of crazy things happening in the world, even though there's lots of crazy things happening in your world, God wants you to have peace. Do you have that? And again, let me remind you, you don't have to generate that kind of peace. You don't have to make that happen. It's God's promise to you that he will give you that peace as you fulfill the things that he's given you charge of. Check out verse 12 to finish it up. It says, Lord, you will establish peace for us

This is all thrown back upon the Lord. God, you will establish peace for us. We can't do this peace. We can't make this peace happen. We can't quiet the storm in our hearts. But Lord, you can. And you will establish peace for us. And notice, It's like Paul said in Philippians.

It's God who works in us both to will and to do for his good pleasure. Our lives are his work. It really comes down to us allowing him and joining with him in the work that he wants to do. But it's his work. And your peace is his work. And the promise is he will finish the work in us and for us. He will give you a peace now and in the future.

He will give you a peace now because of the future. So remember the Lord's full plan. Look to eternity. You want to have that stability and peace within? Focus on the plan of God, the things that he will accomplish in eternity. And stay your mind on the Lord. You're going to be distracted. There's going to be lots of things competing for your attention, for your focus. But continue to say, stay, stay. Change the subject.

And make the Lord the focus of your mind because you trust in him, because you know you can rely upon him. You can count on him. You can trust him with your life, with your children, with your plans, with your dreams, with your hopes, with your goals, with your savings. You can trust him with everything, knowing that he is good. He wants good things for you. He will work those things out. You can count on that. So walk in the Lord's ways. Turn from sin.

If there's anything in your life that's not of the Lord, turn from sin. You'll never have perfect peace while pursuing sin. Walk in his ways. Seek him daily, nightly, diligently. Make the Lord the focus of your life, the trust of your life, and you will have perfect peace. That's his promise. He'll keep you in it. Let's pray. Lord, I pray for each of us that you would establish in us your peace.

no matter what's going on in the world around us, no matter what's going on in our own lives. Lord, help us. You've given us some responsibility in this process, Lord. You want us to remember you and your plans. You want us to think on you and focus and set our minds on the things above. You want us to trust you, to really deliver our hearts and souls and minds and everything over to you.

And Lord, you want us to walk in obedience as you speak to our hearts and reveal to us areas that you want to change and you want us to go forward or hold back. Lord, these are the things that you've charged us with. Help us, God, to recognize if any of those things are out of line. Help us, Lord, to recognize where we are not trusting you, not staying our minds on you, not remembering your plan or not walking in obedience to you. Help us, God. Show us those things that we might turn and live the way that you've called us to live.

And Lord, I pray as we do that you would be faithful to your promise and to your word and that you would give us a perfect peace. Lord, that there would be a stability, a quietness, a calmness deep within that we would be settled. I pray that you would do that in Jesus' name. Amen.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.