"This is what God the LORD says - he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: 'I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.'" (Isa. 42:5-9)
Deep in the heart of every person is a desire for wholeness - for things to work out, for fulfillment to come, for life to be filled with things that are right and good. In some hearts, that desire is deeply suppressed and obscured, probably from years of bitter disappointment. But it's there. It's always there.
The promise of the Messiah addresses that desire. Isaiah prophesied to a people in rebellion and headed to captivity, and he gave them a picture of deliverance, justice, restoration, and life (vv. 3-7). He would shine light in darkness and bring hope to every remote island. He would release captives and open eyes to see truth. He would give the human heart everything that long-buried desire was afraid to hope for. And He would bring it about by taking us by the hand and leading us into His righteousness and blessing.
Too many Christians approach the life of faith as an obligation, seeing obedience as a "have to" rather than a "get to." But according to God's Word, righteousness that comes from God is a privilege that leads to wholeness. It has the power to reach down into the soul, stoke the embers of that dying desire, and blow it into a living flame. His righteousness brings life and fulfillment - the kind we always hoped for.
The irony is that we think we can find life and fulfillment in other things and that righteousness will depress us with a long, painful to-do list. But the whisper that told us that didn't come from God. It came from a thief who steals, kills, and destroys, a liar who hates God and anyone He loves. The truth is that when God takes us by His hand and leads us in His righteousness, all of life comes into focus.
Don't be afraid to be led by God, even at the expense of those things you thought might bring you life. Only His truth, His Messiah, His righteousness can make you whole. Walk in them. Run in them. Never let go of the hand that leads you.
"The righteousness of God is not acquired by acts frequently repeated...but is imparted by faith." - Martin Luther
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