Devotions

Isaiah foresaw the humiliation of Satan. He also watched as God brought down all the power and pride of wicked principalities. “In this mountain shall the hand of the Lord rest, and Moab shall be trodden down under him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill” (Isaiah 25:10).

Isaiah makes it clear: Satan’s humiliation happens on the mountain, in the place of prayer and worship, where Christ’s presence is manifested. Moab here was an actual enemy of Israel. But it became a symbol representing all that was evil and satanic.

Peter preached that Isaiah’s vision was already being fulfilled in the church at Jerusalem. “Those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:18-19). Peter reasoned that if the prophecies about Christ had been fulfilled to the letter, then all other prophecies would come to pass. And that included times of refreshing by being in the Lord’s presence.

Isaiah referred to such times of refreshing (see Isaiah 28:12). These are times when God chooses to revive and heal. And He does it not because we’ve earned it, but for the glory of His own name. Peter saw this fulfilled at Pentecost: Christ’s presence was manifested, bringing revival and refreshing to a crowd of thousands. Multitudes were set free, including whole families. We see this later when Peter brought Jesus’ presence into Cornelius’ house, and the entire household was saved.

Right now, I believe we’re in the very beginning of the last reviving. We’re going to see families brought out of captivity. Millions of backsliders will have their veils removed and wayward sons and daughters will be restored to their parents.

What is our part? We’re to do as Daniel did when he read Jeremiah’s prophecy and discerned the times: “I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes” (Daniel 9:3). Daniel did what we’re all called to do: come to God’s holy mountain. May every devoted servant of Jesus Christ in these last days meet there!
 

In the coming days, many are going to come under the power and presence of Christ. Those who return to Him fully—who repent, forgive, and feast with Him in prayer and in His Word—will see all their tears turned into joy. Around the world right now, vast rivers of tears are flowing from those who’ve already been set free. After centuries of satanic bondage, people are being loosed from chains and they are crying tears of repentance and praise to their Deliverer.

Isaiah prophesied that when we begin to see God’s miraculous works in our midst, we’ll cry, “And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (Isaiah 25:9). Isaiah was so excited by what he saw, he nearly exploded in amazement.

“The rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth” (Isaiah 25:8). The word rebuke here comes from a Hebrew root suggesting “railing, disgrace.” This speaks of satanic powers that mock and rail against devoted believers. Such attacks come mainly when we are praying for a loved one to be rescued from a demonic stronghold.

Maybe you have heard these railing rebukes from hell. They taunt you, saying, “You boast that God answers prayer. Well, where’s His answer? You’ve fasted and prayed for your child for years, but you still haven’t gotten through. After all this time, nothing has changed. He’s never going to get saved.”

Then you hear this accusation: “It’s your fault. You planted the seeds of rebellion in that child (or that friend or loved one). It was you who hardened his heart.” Beloved, this is the devil’s foremost rebuke against God’s people and we are never to listen to it. Instead, we are to stand on God’s sure Word to us: “The rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth” (Isaiah 25:8)
 

“He will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations” (Isaiah 25:7).

Here are two marvelous prophecies, the first of which involves the Jews. The veil Isaiah refers to here is the spiritual blindness that had covered Jews’ hearts since Moses’ time. The apostle Paul speaks at length of this blindness:

“When [they] shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away” (2 Corinthians 3:16). “Blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. . . . There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Romans 11:25-26).

Paul believed what Isaiah prophesied about Israel: that the Deliverer would cast off their veil of blindness. A Jewish remnant was going to turn to the Lord and obtain His mercy (see 11:30). Beloved, this prophecy is being fulfilled right now. Around the world, Jews’ eyes are being opened to Christ. One secular magazine reports that Jews are now taking a new look at Jesus. That’s all it takes—just one look.

But Isaiah’s prophecy also has another meaning, which has to do with your immediate family. It applies to every spouse, every child, every family member who has had a veil of spiritual blindness cast over them by Satan. I receive many letters from parents who write of their children being blinded by the enemy. They raised their young ones in a Christian environment but now the parents are confused and bewildered, saying, “I don’t understand what happened. They just don’t believe. Nothing I say gets through.”

Paul says the god of this world has blinded these young ones. They’ve lost faith because the enemy has shut out the light of the gospel to them. Therefore, it doesn’t do any good for a parent to try to look deeper for a reason behind it. It’s all the work of Satan. He wants to keep that child bound, confused and in sin. The problem goes way beyond counseling, preaching or parenting strategies. It’s going to take a miracle, plain and simple.

Our battle must take place in the Spirit. After all, we’re up against a spirit from the god of this world. And that wicked spirit is affected only by our feast on the mountain. It’s going to require the presence of Christ in our lives such as we’ve never known it. Only Jesus’ manifest reality will melt Satan’s bondage like wax, rendering it powerless against our loved one.
 

Do visitors sense the presence of Jesus in your household? Does the aroma of His holiness permeate your family, your marriage, your relationships? Are there tears of intercession by family members, cries of brokenness, a sincere desire to make all wrongs right? Or, does the flesh rule?

Every Christian household ought to be an elevated place, a mountain of separation from the world and the flesh, a holy banqueting hall with Christ. Yet this doesn’t happen in many Christian homes because they’ve been defiled by filth. Lewd, vile wickedness is allowed in through TV and the Internet.

How amazed the angels must be as they witness such evil in households that ought to be cultivating Jesus’ presence. Multitudes of Christians now spend their time dabbling in Internet porn, renting sensual videos, drinking in corruption on TV and actually paying to attend movies that blaspheme Christ’s name. And then they wonder why the pall of spiritual death hovers over their home.

It is the Holy Spirit’s work to bring and maintain the presence and power of Christ in our homes, our churches, our hearts. But multitudes continue to grieve the Spirit with idolatry. What sense does it make for us to pray for unsaved loved ones when our own homes are defiled?

God intends to work an amazing array of miracles that will overwhelm our minds and hearts. And He’s had all this planned since before the world existed. If He has devised such a covenant plan, then it must and will happen. Yet some aren’t going to make it to the banquet table. Those who have grown lukewarm, lovers of ease, people who’ve given themselves to the world’s pleasure-madness—none of these will be at the feast.

The prophet Isaiah describes those who are present at the banquet table this way: “In this mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined” (Isaiah 25:6). This speaks of a people who aren’t satisfied with just the milk of God’s Word. These servants love their Lord’s reproof. They hunger for meaty truth; a godly word from tested, tried shepherds; a message set on fire by the Holy Ghost. And they seek God’s Word daily for themselves, thirsty to taste His refined, aged wine.
 

Several years ago a group of friends and I took a road trip to San Antonio, Texas, to see the Alamo. One of the guys on our team offered to navigate for us. “That’s my hometown and I’d love to be your guide,” he said. But once we arrived in San Antonio, things got a little confusing when a few of us noticed we had passed the same store three times.

“Hey, aren’t we going in circles?” someone asked. “No, no, we’re getting close,” my friend assured us.

We found ourselves in a rough part of town—then in a massive traffic jam—then going in circles again. Finally, someone said to my friend, “Hey, I thought you knew your way around. You said this was your hometown.” “It is,” he answered, “but we moved away when I was two.”

Obviously, Michael wasn’t our ideal guide. He had good intentions but no idea where to lead us. He represents the kind of guide we may think we want in life, but one that ends up leading us in circles instead of into the rich and satisfying life Jesus designed for us.

Another kind of guide may have the right information but may be missing other essentials. My wife, Kelly, and I went on a mission trip to the Philippines. On our day off, we took a guided canoe tour. The crew consisted of several small but athletic Filipinos. At one point we came to a place in the river too shallow to float through. “Uh-oh,” I thought, “this must be the end of the line.” To my surprise, our strong young guides lifted up our canoe—with Kelly and me still in it!—and carried it to deeper waters. “Wow,” I thought, “talk about reliable guides!”

Later, we came to a beautiful spot where the river widened, and the leader signaled for us to stop rowing. “Oh, good,” I thought, “now we’re going to hear some rich history. Maybe this is where the country’s democratic leaders planned their revolution.” Visibly excited, our guide pointed and exclaimed, “Here on this spot is where the movie Rambo was made!”

That was a little disappointing. But soon we came to another beautiful spot where the river opened up to a lush, green field. It looked like the kind of place where an historic battle might have taken place. “On this spot,” said the guide, clearing his throat, “Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie had a picnic!”

There are some guides in life who have the knowledge to get us through some troubling dilemmas. But do they also have the knowledge to carry us to the abundant life Jesus promises?

“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10, ESV).