ISAIAH 61:2
2. To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;
This is telling us the last days will be the time the Lord brings His rewards and His judgment. He is saying the rewards will take a year because He delights to bless and will have a lot of good to bestow and will take His time doing it. His vengeance will take only a day. Isaiah 61 is full of rewards. Let us examine some of them.
DEFINITIONS
Mourn -d) to feel or express sorrow for something regrettable.
Many of us have had painful experiences that we think could have been avoided. We regret them but cannot reverse them. Maybe they were of our own making or maybe we were falsely accused and must wait the Lord’s timing for vindication. This is the day He will take all the bad and turn it into good. He will judge righteously and clear up misunderstandings. He will lift up the humble and put down the prideful.
He will give beauty for ashes. When we go through the refiner’s fire or fires of affliction, the purification causes the unwanted part of our nature to be burned away. He takes away what is not wanted and replaces it with something beautiful. This is the time He will do great works of beauty in His people.
Many times, we mourn for reasons that come because of the battle with the enemy. He knows how to upset us and mess with our day. The Lord sees our struggle. He sees how we respond to the trouble. If we are thankful and positive the trouble will be short lived. But if we get stuck in the complaint mode it may take a while for us to receive our reward of joy for mourning.
When we come to praise Him in times of pain and trouble, if we just sit down with the poor Me’s and do not sing our songs of thanksgiving with a grateful heart, we can also get stuck in this sad state. But if we focus on the good things we have been given, He will give us the garment of praise and remove the spirit of heaviness that is attacking us in our times of worship. We will wear this garment of praise throughout the rest of our days as He calls us the planting of the Lord that He might be glorified. What great rewards these are!
These whom He is rewarding will build up the waste areas. They will rebuild and repair the desolate places. They will be known as the Priests of the Lord. Double shall be given to them. Everlasting joy shall be theirs. Their seed or spiritual children shall be known as the that which the Lord hath blessed.
This is the time of the beginning of His reign. He will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before the nations, (verse 11). And how will He do that? He will place righteousness and praise within us, and we will go forth praising Him in His righteousness. He is truly making His people beauty for ashes! It will be a wonderful Day!
WENDA's WINDOW.com 