Have you ever had one of those moments where you knew from the very beginning that something wasn’t going to end well? It is in those moments where you have the option to do one of two things: you can watch it all go down in flames, or you can stop it from going any further and ending in disaster. The point is that you have a choice. In Isaiah 46, God says that He knows the end from the beginning. God designed this world, and He has made it clear all throughout His Word what the ending will be. However, He has granted us the freedom to choose our own personal ending.
“Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” Isaiah 46:10, King James Version
I was lying in bed last night, trying my best to sleep, and the words, “He knows the end from the beginning,” kept running through my mind. So when I woke this morning, I went to search it out. Sure enough, there it was in Isaiah. I wanted to make sure I got a clear understanding of the verse, so I went back to verse 9.
“Remember the former things of old: for I amGod, and there is none else; I amGod, and there is none like me,” Isaiah 46:9, KJV
Remember! Go back to the beginning!
Back to my research, I went and found a couple of commentaries that really highlighted the words in this verse.
Verse 9. – Remember the former things of old; i.e. God’s wonderful dealings with Israel in times past – the miracles in Egypt, the passage of the Red Sea, the deliverances from Midian, and Ammon, and the Philistines, and Zerah, and Sennacherib – which proved him God in a sense in which the word could be applied to no other. I am God… I am God. In the original, “I am El… I am Elohim.” El is “the Mighty One,” “the Omnipotent;” Elohim, “the Godhead” in all its fulness. Isaiah 46:9
Pulpit Commentary-BibleHub
Remember the former things … – Bear in mind the repeated and constant proofs that have been given that Yahweh is the true God – the proofs derived from the prediction of future events, and from the frequent interpositions of his providence in your behalf as a nation.
Barnes’ Notes on the Bible-BibleHub
There are times in our lives where we come to a point where we truly wonder about our end. We wonder if the season of pain we are going through will ever come to an end. We wonder if somehow God has forgotten who we are. We begin to doubt that God even cares about us anymore. Then, with those thoughts of doubt, we start to think that no one cares about us. We feel so alone. Our focus begins to shift, and we start wallowing in self-pity. The negative thoughts tend to supersede the positive. Yet, God says, “Remember!”
Go back to the beginning!
Go back to the times when God has done things for you and proven that He is Elohim. Name one, and then start to think of another. When you start remembering the things that the Lord has done for you, it will increase your faith to know that He is still right there. He hasn’t forgotten you. Trials happen to all of us. It is how we handle the trial that determines how everything will turn out in the end. Remember, this trial gives you a testimony.
My husband preached a message recently titled “Go Back to the Memorial.” He used 1 Samuel 7:1–12. Israel found itself in a predicament. So they asked Samuel to call on the Lord on their behalf. They turned from their sin and dedicated themselves to the Lord. God heard their cry and answered. As a result, Samuel set up a memorial as a reminder of the things that God did on that day. We have got to go back and remember the things that God has done for us in the past to give us strength to keep moving forward.
God knows the end from the beginning.
See, God has told us over and over again in His Word that this world will come to an end. One day, He will return for His bride, the church. Are you ready for that end? I have said this in a previous post: God loves you so much that He has given you a choice between life and death. He did it the day He created Adam and Eve. They were created to worship Him, but He still gave them a choice.
You have a choice for your ending.
God will definitely see you through your trial, and He will stand beside you every step you take, as long as you choose to allow Him to do so. Yet, you have to choose Him. Choosing Him requires a life of dedication, casting the world aside, and dying to this old flesh. No more are we partakers of this world.
“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:19, KJV
When we died to this flesh, we became new creatures in Christ!
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17, KJV
The ultimate decision is yours. You have the choice to keep pressing forward, knowing that when we choose Him, things WILL get better. Go back and revisit the things that God has done for you in the past. Remember! All is not lost!
Have you heard it said, “The darkest is just before dawn”? This term is meant to be motivational, implying that things often seem their worst just before they get better. However, I am here to tell you that this isn’t always true. The brightness of the night depends on the brightness of the moon. The moon may be full, allowing light to still shine through the night. It is the same with God! When we allow Him to be front and center, then during those moments when we feel like it is the darkest, He is right there, shining so that we can still see what is right ahead.
You are the deciding factor of your end. What will you choose?