Isaiah 9: 19: “Through the wrath of the LORD of Hosts is the land darkened…”
This is the sad reality that faces man across nations but which we never take to heart but rather point fingers to those in leadership. The truth however is that the darkness that covers the land is an indication of the wrath of God. Verse 17 of Isaiah chapter 9 further describes the state of men’s heart. “For everyone is a hypocrite and evildoer and every man speaks folly.” For all these it concludes “the anger of the LORD is not turned away but His hand is stretch forth still.” The book of Ephesians 5: 11 warns: “And do not have fellowship with the unfruitful deeds of darkness.”
Men have used religion as a cloak for wickedness. They shed blood, promote violence, exploit the weak and radicalised the weak minded. They hurt and destroy because they lack the knowledge of God. But thank God for His promise that a time shall come when the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD and they shall not hurt nor destroy anymore (Isaiah 11: 9). In the book of Genesis, the violence of men and their wickedness was so much that it grieved the LORD God. In Genesis 6: 6 we read: “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” What a sad testimony, that man whom God made in His likeness and in His image would turn around to grieve the LORD God so much to this extent. Unfortunately the heart of man is darkened with their deeds and they take not to heart the iniquity of their ways or how they displeased the LORD continually. The the book of Proverbs in chapter 13 verse 15 says: “the way of transgressors is
hard.” They lack understanding of the the consequences of their ways.
In the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 8: 11 we read: “Because sentence against iniquity is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of men is fully set to do evil.” This is complete lack of understanding and for this the scripture says the anger of the LORD is not turned away but His hand is stretched forth still.
On the one hand we have man whose heart is fully set to do evil continually. On the other hand we have the LORD God, the Judge of the whole earth who hates iniquity and whose anger is not turned away from the iniquity of man. As the scripture says in the book of Romans, the carnal mind is in enmity against God because it cannot submit to the law of God neither indeed can it because it minds only the things of the flesh and follow after the works of the flesh (Roman 8: 7).
Man at it were is set on the path of destruction all over again as in the days of Noah. Psalm 90 verse 11 says: ” If only we knew the power of Your anger. Your wrath is as great as Your fear that is Your due.” There is only One Person who knows God and knows the power of His anger and His wrath against sin, the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ. He warned man in the gospel of Luke chapter 12 verse 5 saying: “I will tell you whom you should fear. Fear Him who after He has killed has the power to cast into hell, yeah I say fear Him.” It is not a threat, it is a warning of judgement against iniquity. Thus, our Lord Jesus came to atone for the sin of man and to reconcile us back to God. He that knew no sin became sin for us that we might stand righteous before God. For Man that was dead in trespasses (Ephesians 2: 1), Christ came to give life to them for God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son that whosoever believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3: 16). The book of Titus chapter 2 verse 11 says: “The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” Jews and non Jews, men and women, men from every race and tongue the grace of God (even in Christ) that brings salvation has appeared to all men to wean them from all ungodliness and every worldly lust which is the focus of the carnal mind. The same grace has come to teach every man also how to live holy, godly and upright.
The salvation that comes by grace is through faith in Christ Jesus. It is an individual choice, it is through faith and not by compulsion or coercion. This is the time for all men to flee from the wrath that is to come. Of a truth, the sentence against iniquity will surely come for it is appointed for all men once to die and afterwards judgement (Hebrews 9: 27). The book of Revelation 6: 15 -16, painted a vivid account of when men will be faced with the wrath of God’s judgement. “Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!” But we are in the acceptable time for salvation for every man for there is no repentance in the grave. And there is salvation in no one else (other than Jesus Christ) for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4: 12). Before a man harden his heart to this light of the gospel, he should first ask himself this question. If the wages of sin is death, and all men have sinned how is he going to pay the penalty for his sin. Naturally it is by death. That will be folly for we are not talking of physical death here. We are to fear God who after passing a sentence of death has power to cast into hell fire (Luke 12: 5). But God Himself had made a sacrifice for sin by making Jesus Christ who knew no sin to become sin and to pay the penalty for our sins. Animals cannot take the place of man. It will take a man who did not sin to stand in the place of man and become a propitiation, an atonement, for our sins. Book of Proverbs 13: 15 says: “Good understanding gives favour, but the way of the transgressors is hard”, what work can any man do in the grave to atone for his sin. Is it not surer and wiser to believe and be saved?
It is time we quit our hypocrisy, the pointing of accusing fingers to others for the darkness in the land. There is darkness upon the land wherever we are because of the wrath of God against the sins of all men, not only those in the leadership. Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin (Hebrews 9: 22), Jesus Christ by His death on the cross has shed His own blood for the remission of our sins. We have to express faith in His death and resurrection, and having done this, we are to turn in genuine repentance from our old and wicked ways unto a new and living way in which it is now Christ living in us, and allowing grace to teach us to shun all ungodliness and every worldly lust and to live holy, godly and upright. The LORD God said in the book of 2 Chronicles 7: 14 : “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” The healing of our land, the solution to the darkness over our nations is conditional and depend on us fulfilling the conditions. We must humble ourselves by admitting the error of our ways. We must pray, seek the LORD genuinely and repent from our evil ways, our hypocrisy, evil doings, foolish and pervert conversations. Then the LORD says He will heal our land, our nations. It is time all men in every place return and begin to seek the face of the LORD in repentance. Let those who rule over others not do so to the detriment, to the hurt of their souls (Ecclesiastes 8:9). But let them rule justly and in the fear of the LORD. Let the hypocrite, the pervert and the wicked turn from their evil ways. It is time to return and seek the LORD while He may yet be found (Isaiah 55: 6). His anger is but for a moment and His mercy, His favour endures forever (Psalm 30: 5). We procure His favour when we show good understanding by appropriating His salvation through faith in Christ Jesus and turning to God in true repentance.
