"In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious; And the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing For those of Israel who have escaped. ³ And it shall come to pass that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy—everyone who is recorded among the living in Jerusalem. ⁵ Then the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the Glory there will be a covering. ⁶ And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain."

Isaiah 4:2-3, 5-6

 

 

One of the things that we must try as much as possible to do as believers and children of God is to look beyond what is happening right now. Irrespective of the situations and the circumstances that we may have found ourselves, whether they are palatable or unpalatable, we are to look beyond the now. 2 Corinthians 4:18 tells us: "while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." The things we are currently witnessing right now in the world: Covid-19 lockdown, economic meltdown, looming news of recession, Crude Oil prices fallen; the Bible says are temporary. And because of the fact that they won't be here for long, we are admonished not to look at them or fixate on them.

 

Listen to Podcast: POSITIONING ONESELF FOR THE GLORY AHEAD OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC

 

The reason is because there is a Glory ahead and it is this Glory that the Scriptures admonished us to look towards. The Bible said concerning Jesus in Hebrews 12:2 that for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus was able to bear the shame and everything unpalatable that was thrown at Him because there is a joy, a Glory ahead of Him. Irrespective of what is happening right now, the future is bright and beautiful. There is a Glory ahead.

 

Verse 2 of our text tells us: "In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious; And the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing For those of Israel who have escaped." This is the word of the Lord to us and it is absolutely amazing to read and hear. The phrase "In that day" talks about sometime in the future. Even though the situation and circumstances look somewhat gloomy and dark right now, it says "In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious;"Although the branch of the Lord in that context of the Scripture was talking about Jesus Christ, but the Bible says that we are complete in Him, Christ Jesus.

 

Colossians 2:9-10 tells us: "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; ¹⁰ and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power." So when Isaiah received this revelation at the time, we were also in the picture. So, don't be tempted to assume that the phrase Branch of the Lord there was talking about Jesus alone, it was also referring to you and I because we have been made complete in Him. Jesus Himself confirmed this to us in John 15:5-6: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned." So, we are also the branch of the Lord that Isaiah was talking about.

 

So the latter part of verse 2 says: "And the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing For those of Israel who have escaped." What does this mean? That tells you that for you and I that God would help and is helping to escape this Covid-19 pandemic, when the whole thing is over; the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and appealing to us. Another interpretation we can give to this is in Job 22:29. It says: "when men are cast down, then you shall say, there is lifting up, and He shall save the humble person." When people are telling the tales how Covid-19 has ravaged their businesses and their families, when nations are groaning and looming towards economic recessions as a result of Covid-19, you will experience a lifting. And this is the word of the Lord.

 

Verse 5 is so beautiful and I want us to read it once again. After all these Covid-19 pandemic is over. After all the drama and the going back and forth of nations in order to combat it, see what the Lord says He will do: Then the Lord will create above every dwelling place of Mount Zion, and above her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night. For over all the Glory there will be a covering. I believe as a child of God, these words are worth meditating over and over again. It will so much bless you really. What God is saying here is that He will cover you dwellings and your assemblies with His Glory and over that Glory there will be a covering. That talks about a double-layer of protection so to say.

 

Haven said all these, How can you then Position Yourself for This Glory Ahead?

 

1. Abide in Christ Jesus. Our Lord Jesus Christ must be your permanent habitation if you are going to enjoy this Glory that has been promised us. John 15:4 tells us: "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me." You cannot partake of this Glory outside of Christ. That Colossians 2:9-10 says "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; ¹⁰ and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power." This Glory that is about to be revealed is in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:18 also tells us: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the Glory which shall be revealed in us." This Glory shall be revealed in us through Christ Jesus and to be a partaker, you must be found in Him and you must remain in Him. Colossians 1:27 tells us that Christ in us is the hope of Glory.

 

2. Anticipate the Glory. Haggai 2:6-9 says: "For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with Glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The Glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts."

 

3. Seek knowledge, and not just the regular knowledge but the knowledge of the Glory of God; Habakkuk 2:14 says:

 

For the earth will be filled
With the knowledge of the Glory of the Lord,
As the waters cover the sea.

 

When you are filled with the knowledge of the Glory, you will be able to position yourself to doing the right thing and know exactly what to do in preparation for the Glory that will be revealed. 2 Peter 1:2-3 shows us something as well when it comes to knowledge about Glory. It says: "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, ³ as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by Glory and virtue." So, you need to seek the right knowledge if you are going to position yourself for the Glory ahead.

 

There is this Scripture that the Holy Spirit showed me which I want to read to us as we begin to conclude. Isaiah 40:1-5, the Bible says:

 

“Comfort, yes, comfort My people!”
Says your God.
² “Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her,
That her warfare is ended,
That her iniquity is pardoned;
For she has received from the Lord’s hand
Double for all her sins.”

³ The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
“Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make straight in the desert
A highway for our God.
⁴ Every valley shall be exalted
And every mountain and hill brought low;
The crooked places shall be made straight
And the rough places smooth;
⁵ The Glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
And all flesh shall see it together;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

Isaiah 40:1-5

 

That verse is very instructive and I want to dwell on it a bit. The Bible says "all flesh shall see the Glory that shall be revealed", but it did not say all flesh shall partake of it. And I want us to be very careful in taking note of this. So, what does that tell you? if you are going to partake of the Glory that shall be revealed, you must position yourself, so that when that Glory is revealed, you will not just see it, but you will be a partaker of this Glory. I believe this word is instructive enough.

 

I believe you have been blessed!

Thanks for the gift of your time, I am Obayomi Abiola Benjamin!

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