The Best Is Yet To Come
Introduction
Well, Caitlyn, here we are. It is May 21, 2023. I have recently begun thinking about the space race and the moon landing and wanting to read about it and understand it. On the evening of May 21, 1969, the crew of Apollo 10 went to sleep. Theirs was the mission that got closest to the moon before the Apollo 11 mission and the lunar landing. On the morning of May 22, 1969, they expected to wake up to a wake-up call. Perhaps something like the US Marine anthem or something else, but on this morning there was a song played that they did not expect. It was a song recorded by Frank Sinatra in 1964. Perhaps those in the Houston control center were thinking about how far they had come and how close they were to what they had set out to do. So that morning the ears of the astronauts so close to the surface of the moon heard the words:
Out of the tree of life I just picked me a plumYou came along and everything started to hum Still, it's a real good bet, the best is yet to come Best is yet to come and babe, won't that be fine? You think you've seen the sun, but you ain't seen it shine...
The best is yet to come!
The LORD, through the prophet Isaiah said something to this effect. Isaiah 43 reads:
But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.3 For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.4 Since you were precious in My sight, You have been honored, And I have loved you...
8 Bring out the blind people who have eyes, And the deaf who have ears.9 Let all the nations be gathered together, And let the people be assembled. Who among them can declare this, And show us former things? Let them bring out their witnesses, that they may be justified; Or let them hear and say, “It is truth.”10 “You are My witnesses,” says the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me.11 I, even I, am the Lord, And besides Me there is no savior.12 I have declared and saved, I have proclaimed, And there was no foreign god among you; Therefore you are My witnesses,” Says the Lord, “that I am God.13 Indeed before the day was, I am He; And there is no one who can deliver out of My hand; I work, and who will reverse it?”...
16 Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea and a path through the mighty waters,17 Who brings forth the chariot and horse, The army and the power(They shall lie down together, they shall not rise; They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):18 “Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old.19 Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.20 The beast of the field will honor Me, The jackals and the ostriches, Because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, To give drink to My people, My chosen.21 This people I have formed for Myself; They shall declare My praise.
The LORD is saying to Isaiah's hearers that they have come a long way and God has done some amazing thing in the past to get them to where they are, but they should trust Him for the rest of the journey and anticipate the reality that He is a God Who does new things and who will often surprise us along the way. The Best is yet to come.
The life-journey of the Christian is not compartmentalized where spirituality is something that fits into a Sunday morning box or a checklist of spiritual practices that are done once a day. Every aspect of the Christian's life is sacred. Education, work, recreation... Paul said, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31). There is no sacred/secular divide. Our daily work is a calling into which we live. We should remember this:
1. What To Remember
This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters,17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together,and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
The LORD reminds them that nothing has caught Him by surprise. He has declared the end from the beginning. This is Isaiah's evidence for the solitary sovereignty of Yahweh. Nobody else can do that. No idol, no other god, only the LORD.
The LORD reminds them of the way he delivered their ancestors from Egypt. He destroyed Egypt because Pharoah would not let them go. Then He led them through the waters of the Red Sea (a type of Christian baptism). It was in the waters of the Red Sea that He destroyed Pharoah and his army. He destroyed Israel's past and the potential of the past to ever control them again. He led them on through the Cloud (a type of baptism in the Holy Spirit) (1 Cor 10:1-4).
He reminds them that often the good things are set against the backdrop of the bad stuff. There are challenges in life, but Caitlyn you have overcome those and succeeded thus far! And here you are standing at the threshold of the next season of your life. You're close to something that you've never done before and that no one else has either. Your experience is your own. God formed you in your mother's womb for a purpose that only you can fulfill. Your fingerprints are your own and the mark you will leave on the world is your's alone! Like those astronauts waking up on May 22, 1969, the song that we are playing in your ears this morning is, "The Best Is Yet To Come!"
And this is what God does for Judah in this passage. You know the Bible is filled with mysteries. It is so important that we keep reading and reading it ALL. I think something that has shaped your life is that you have had seasons of life where you were intentional about reading this Ancient-Yet-Ever-Relevant-BOOK-of-Books. This book reminds us of many things, but then sometimes right in the middle of what we are reading the same book tells us to stop looking at the past and look at the future. John said if all the things Jesus did the world couldn't contain the books. The prophet almost seems to contradict himself as he tells Judah to forget the past and look to the future. We cannot drive forward staring in the rearview mirror, or the mirror in the sun visor. There is a reason why the windshield is so much bigger than the rearview mirror! Caitlyn, where you are going is far more important than where you have been!
The past is a great place to visit ever so often, but it is a terrible place to live! And so we have to figure out what to remember and what to forget:
2. What To Forget
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
Caitlyn, there will be opportunities ahead and God will do new things. And so the next thing the LORD says to them is "Remember not." He tells them what to forget.
Some people live their lives stuck thinking about the difficulties of the past. It takes a lot of effort to get over some things and to walk forward. Some people also get stuck relishing in their past accomplishments or the past victories that God has given them. The LORD said, "Don't dwell on the past."
Celebrate, mourn, do what you have to do, but then get up and live. The reason that the Apollo 11 mission made it to the moon is that there were a group of people who said close is not close enough. There is something more. The best is yet to come!
Caitlyn, the LORD says, "I have more for you!"
3. What To Look Forward To
19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.20 The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen,21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.
The best is yet to come!
I saw something that I had not seen before in this passage. It is the LORD saying, "I am going to make the place where you go to flourish because you are there." Deserts are transitional places, but the LORD says, "Unlike the way Israel passed through the desert and it remained an uninhabitable wilderness when you pass through on your way home to Israel, I will make it all liveable."
All the creatures in the wilderness benefitted from Judah's journey. Your life should positively affect every place where you live and work. You will leave it better as you move forward!
God has shaped you by your past to bring you to your present and you've been an amazing partner so far. You have chosen to yield your life to His Spirit in spite of and in light of your challenges, and guess what! There is a reward for choosing to do the right things and for doing things at the right time. Good job! The best is yet to come!
Do you know one of the things that I love about God? He specializes in surprises. You have a plan! And we applaud you today. Wow! Congratulations! You have your associate's degree and high school diploma and a job all at once! You're awesome! Guess what! The greatest days of your life are ahead of you.
When you were baptized in the name of Jesus and He filled you with His SPIRIT, you were raised to walk with Him in Newness of Life (Rom 6:4).
God has some special things planned for you as you keep walking into them. So, our gift to you today is a devotional journal, a simple copy of one of my favorite translations of the New Testament, and a small book of Bible Promises for Graduates. Why?
Application
Your devotion to God has brought you to this point. You didn't often think about the reality that you were cultivating a place in your life where God's purpose could grow by His Grace, but you were. And you must continue to do so.
There will be new challenges and tests ahead, but your foundation is sure. Jesus paid the price for you with His sinless life, His death on the tree, His burial, His descent to the dead, His resurrection, His ascension, and the outpouring of His Spirit. He has redeemed you out of a world that is broken by sin.
So, as you walk forward, be open to what He will do next in your life. Don't ever get stuck in the past.
Read His Word, write your thoughts and the new things the Holy Spirit speaks to you down, claim His promises, and live them!
Shoot for the stars, if you land on the moon, you haven't lost anything! And remember God already knows what He is going to do. Stay close to Him and He will tell you about it.
Conclusion and exhortation
Caitlyn, Out of the tree of life you've just picked you a plumThe LORD came along and everything started to hum Still, it's a real good bet, the best is yet to come Best is yet to come and babe, won't that be fine? You think you've seen the sun, but you ain't seen it shine...
The writer of Proverbs said, "The path of the just is as the shining light that shines brighter and brighter unto the perfect day!" (Prov 4:18)
Live forward. The best is yet to come!
