Rose of Sharon!
Isaiah 53:2 “….And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.”
Rose of Sharon is His name but here the prophet Isaiah says that ‘there is no beauty that we should desire Him.” On a particular day, back while I was working for a bank, I meditated this particular scripture early in the morning before leaving for work. The scripture stirred my heart and did a deep work inside my heart. Verse 3 goes on to say “He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” Jesus bore all the shame and pain for our sake! This love bowled me over and I was moved beyond words can explain. As I was traveling in my scooter for work, this scripture kept working in my mind and tears kept flowing down my cheek. Little did I know that God was preparing me in advance to face a volcanic explosion at office!
As soon as I reached my desk, I was summoned by the Human Resources Head to meet her in her cabin. Early in the morning least did I expect an attack of this nature; a string of false accusations was flung at me and I was asked to explain. It was very clear that a ‘group’ had worked against me. I was questioned about my ministry in the office and various other things. Even today I am amazed at the way I calmly handled the scene. Did not Jesus promise that He would lead us to ‘still waters?’ I was absolutely unshaken! Unfazed I denied the allegations against me; yet, I kept smiling. Where did I get that? From His Word! I had just meditated that morning, that God loved me much to suffer much for me hence nothing, I repeat nothing was going to depress me or worry me. The love of Jesus on the cross is just immeasurable and whatever suffering that I was facing for His sake just brought joy on the inside of me instead of fear. I knew God was in control of the entire situation. He is still on the throne! What have I got to fear? I was asked to meet my boss the next day for further enquiry. Guess what happened? God fizzled out the entire situation, the enquiry never happened.
Rev. Billy Graham said, “Do you want to know the height and depth and length and breadth of God’s love? If so, roll back the pages of time and stand with Him on Golgotha’s brow. There, suspended between the heavens and the earth, Jesus, the Son of God, is substituting Himself for you. That love was for you and me. All of God’s pardoning mercy was invested in the cross. All of God’s love towards us appeared in the cross.”
Friend, if you have gone far away from God, I want to encourage you to come back to Him. Will you??? He is an Eternal God and His love is everlasting! He would forgive your sins and accept you into His arms. Isaiah 55:7 says, “Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.” God bless you!
