Isaiah 51:1-16

"Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the Lord:  Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn." Isaiah 51:1

There are many things going on in this world which could cause us to succumb to fear.  This Scripture passage in Isaiah chapter fifty-one offers comfort when we we are becoming entangled in the tentacles of fear.  A child of God need not be controlled by fear.  When we begin to fear anything or anyone, we must quickly run to the Lord for comfort and protection.  The Lord in His sovereignty already has our lives all planned, so we need not fear.

When we begin to sink into despair or fear for any reason; the Lord says to us in Isaiah 51:1, "Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the Lord:  Look to the rock from which you were cut."  We, who are the Lord's children and are seeking to live for Him, can look to Jesus, our rock and foundation.  Jesus Christ is "the rock" from which you and I "were cut." Jesus is the rock to whom we need to turn in times of great fear.  The Lord Jesus gives our lives a sure foundation even in times of uncertainty and fear.

Verse two of Isaiah fifty-one also suggests that we can follow the examples of the Biblical heroes of faith for inspiration in our own walk of faith.  Hebrews chapter eleven gives us a wonderful account of many of these Biblical heroes of faith.  Furthermore, we can emulate those examples of people in our current life who are walking in faith without fear and with sure confidence in their Lord. These people are all links in the chain of faith, and they can be an inspiration to us.

Isaiah 51:3 says that "the Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; He will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the Lord." Zion was a name for God's people in Isaiah's day.  The Lord will comfort His people when they go through fearful or difficult situations. He will turn the "ruins" and "deserts" of our lives into blessings.  A believer in the Lord Jesus Christ will proceed from victory to victory.  No ultimate spiritual harm can ever come to a child of God.  Even if we die we will immediately go to be with the Lord.  What have we to fear?  Therefore, Isaiah 51:3b goes on to say, "joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving, and the sound of singing."  Among God's people there need not be crippling fear, but rather joy, thanksgiving, and singing!

As children of God we need not fear, because the Lord is a just and righteous God.  God says in Isaiah 51:6 that the heavens and earth will vanish someday.  But then in that same verse the Lord goes one to say, "But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail."  We need to fear nothing, because our righteous and faithful God is always with us to comfort and protect us. God says to us in Isaiah 51:12, "I, even I, am He who comforts you."

With the Lord on our side we need never retreat of cower in fear.  The Lord can diffuse any situation that we consider to be potentially dangerous or fearful!  The great God of the universe says to us His children "For is am the Lord your God who churns up the sea so that its waves roar-the Lord Almighty, is His name." (Isaiah 51:15)  The great Lord of the universe personally cares about and loves us!  He knows us by name.  He knows everything about us.  He has our entire futures planned out moment by moment!  He will always give comfort and strength enough for every difficult and fearful situation in our lives!  Praise His name!  Let's rest our lives in Him in joy and thanksgiving and not in fear!  Romans 8:31 b promises, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"