Isaiah 29:13-16 – The Wise Embrace God’s Wisdom

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

Who are we to strive against God and what success can that lead to?

Today’s devotional reading: Isaiah 29:13-16

Let us understand that those who are wise will choose to work with God rather than against Him. The gravest mistake that man has made from the beginning is to contend with the one who made him in His image, according to His likeness.

After delivering the children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt, God gave the children of Israel His law. In His faithfulness to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God made a covenant with the children of Israel and delivered them to the Promised Land. God had shown Israel many signs, many wonders, and great faithfulness, yet in return, the children of Israel chose to serve other gods. Rather than heeding God’s prophets, the children of Israel chose to raise up their own prophets who justified the sins of the people.

Israel had grown to be so wise in their own eyes that they began to believe they could outsmart the Lord. God questioned such a thought, asking, “Shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding?'” God would permit the Assyrians to conquer the northern kingdom (Israel) and the southern kingdom (Judah).

Do you know what awaits those who choose to embrace their own wisdom over God’s wisdom? Certainly not success. Certainly not a blessing. The blessing is always with the Lord. What this means is that you have a choice to make when it comes to your blessings: You can either walk with God or against Him. Just know that if you choose to contend with God for your blessing, that blessing will never come. However, those who choose to cling to the Lord and hold on to Him are those who receive God’s blessing.