Monday, December 12, 2011
Isaiah 11:6-9 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
THE MESSIAH'S KINGDOM OF PEACE (1)
That is one of the most beautiful descriptions of the peace that the Messiah would bring. Read it again and just try to picture it. It's like we're back in the garden of Eden before sin. There was nothing to fear. Predators and prey lived together in peace and harmony.
So where is this peace? Many conclude that it is it just a fanciful dream that will never come true. In the two thousand years since Christ was born, there have always been wars and disasters. Others conclude that since we don't see this peace in the world, it must be some future kingdom that is still coming. They make up their own dreams about a millennial kingdom which the Bible doesn't talk about.
We know that all God's promises are faithful and true. So we ask again, "Where is this Peace?" Is it a description of what heaven will be like? Many think so. As always, we need to pay attention to the little details. God tells us where this glorious peace is to be found. He says in the last verse above, "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain."
God is not promising world peace or peace between the nations. He tells us explicitly that there will be wars and rumors of war and every type of disaster until the end of the world. This peace is only found in God's holy mountain.
So where is this holy mountain? If we look to Isaiah chapter two, God describes it as "The mountain of the LORD's house." In the Old Testament that was Mt. Zion where the Temple was built in Jerusalem. But He says this mountain of His house will be exalted above all others and all the nations will flow to it. That is a description of God's Church where He dwells with His people. As He promised, people of every nation have come to this mountain to dwell with God and receive His salvation. This is a description of the Messiah's Kingdom of Peace.
In our devotions this week we will take a closer look at other details of Isaiah 11 to learn about this glorious kingdom of peace.
