The Righteous Is Taken Away
Isaiah 57
1 The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. 2 He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.
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I have a theory.
For years I’ve kind of held this theory to myself. It’s nothing amazing or staggering. But it has helped me to grapple with why God prematurely takes unto Himself those I thought He could use to stand against the encroaching darkness. As you get older I guess you think more about these sort of things.
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I’ve known good Christian believers that had (and have) Parkinson’s and left us too early.
I had a friend from my college days who took over a well-established Christian academy started by his father here in the northeast. He passed into glory this year, age 65.
But …
The recent passing of messianic teacher Brad Scott of Wildbranch Ministries really hit me. It caused me to wonder what God was thinking. (Actually, my exclamations to God weren’t quite that anti-septic.) Brad died from a brain tumor at age 66 — my age. Our family owes Brad and his ministry more that I think we even realize. He was a humble man of God that traveled this country and the globe spreading the Gospel message of Yeshua.
Even before he knew of his future illness, Brad was weary. Not weary in a bad sense, but just plain ole’ weary. I remember thinking the same thing too when Lester Roloff died unexpectedly in 1982 at age 68 in his plane crash. He was weary.
And so perhaps …
After years of service to the Lord by preaching the gospel to the lost, teaching the Word to the saved, and living dedicated lives to the Lord … God did a merciful thing for these dear servants. He took them “away from the evil to come”.
That’s part of my theory anyway.
Here’s the rest.
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The following verses in Isaiah 57 go on to enumerate how far astray God’s people had gone from His purpose for their lives. While reading those verses, it becomes very obvious that God’s people were as bad as the heathen. Actually, they matched and even excelled the wickedness of the world in which they lived.
So … you have “heathen” religious folks so enmeshed with the lost world in which they live, that they are virtually indistinguishable. That gets God’s attention.
My theory:
When God is getting ready to bring about intense, long due judgment upon a people (any people in any era), He takes out sources of light so the darkness can be revealed and therefore justly judged. The darkness then becomes so dark there can be no mistaking it for what it is — rebellion against God and His Word.
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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, in a cave, or in your make believe world of ignorant bliss, you are aware of the encroaching darkness that has been engulfing our country and the world for the last 50 years or so. The acceleration has been staggering, really, if you step back and take an objective look.
My hesitancy when talking like this is that it’s easy to assume —
OK, so what’s the big deal? This always happens.
Or …
Somebody like me is just slightly left of dead center and not really seeing things “like the rest of us do.”
Or …
The Book of Revelation is true but … it’s not going to happen for a very looooooong time off in the future. And after all, there’s always the hope God will once again arrive on the scene, right all wrongs, and allow us to continue on getting … worse, and worse, and worse.
Well, I think a Book of Revelation “perfect storm” is brewing.
Why?
*Many prophetic Scriptures are (have) seemingly coming to fruition. And what is interesting to me is that, in my 47 years of salvation experience, I’ve never seen so many of God’s people across the spectrum thinking something “end-timeish” is happening.
*Take a seat. I’m just going to say it this way — Our Country is all shot to Hell. There is no turning back or stopping this runaway train of full scale sin, national debauchery, baby killing, disobedience to God and His Word … NONE.
*In addition to our Country, there’s also the worldwide permeation of wickedness — on a massive scale.
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I thought I had an idea of how bad things have been getting for many years hence. But, I don’t. My assessment of how bad things are falls inadequately short. Most of us are just seeing the proverbial tip of the ice-burg. We have no idea of the huge system that has been in place, and building, over the last 100+ years. And from where I sit, it all seems to fit the pathway that leads to the end-time scenario presented in the last Book of the Canon.
And so, back to the title of this blog and my theory …
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Something is definitely up. Not just in an ordinary fashion. But in an end-time Book of Revelation something is up. And God is taking out a few select lights to enhance the darkness and the justification of His ensuing judgment.
The other side of my theory is that some of God’s people will be left behind to be lights. While the darkness descends, they will have the blessed opportunity to shine with an ever increasing intensity. Their light will be the final beacon that attracts the last lost ones to Yeshua for salvation.
We who live now have the task of blazing the trail for those that will follow. We are to let our lights shine brighter and brighter. It won’t be easy to stand for Yeshua and the truth of God’s Word. But God, as He always has, will give enabling grace when the time of our need arrives.
One day “the righteous is taken away from the evil to come” will be us. Until then let’s take our stance and fight against “the evil” that is here now.
Our task is clear …
“Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:13