“For thus says the high and exalted One
Who lives forever, whose name is Holy,
‘I dwell on a high and holy place,
And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit
In order to revive the spirit of the lowly
And to revive the heart of the contrite.'” ~Isaiah 57:15
Let me start by saying that a bunch of different conversations, situations, a different devotional, and the prayers/ideas of others are all mixed up in contributing to today’s devotional…this is a testimony to God and His perfect orchestration and authority. He alone owns truth and distributes it to whom He wills.
One of the situations that goes into this devotional is something that happened yesterday between two of my brothers. We were actually in the middle of a singing practice when one of them asked the other to toss the first one’s smartphone to him (he wanted to do an audio check by the speaker he was standing by). The second brother tossed the first one’s phone to him from several feet away and it was in watching that happen that I was struck (again) with awe at God’s creative and wise power. Why? Well, when you stop and think about the math that your brain has to do in order for your hand to catch a flying object – it’s terrific! Not only that, but to catch that object (which had some rotation to it) in mid-air and with little time to spare… And this is not to even mention the calculations to throw it in the first place!
What does that have to do with our passage? Well, this: The high and exalted One who lives forever, who name is Holy, is the wise and awesome Creator and Sustainer of all that exists. Only He is capable of giving such conscious and unconscious ability (whether that it throwing and catching an object, breathing, walking, etc.) and only He is able to rule the entire universe without counselor or teacher. Just as He has no equal in wisdom, so He has no equal in power and authority; He is holy – meaning set apart from His creation – and He is higher and more lofty than anything or anyone else. He is truly the “King of the mountain”, the undefeated Champion and Ruler of all nations.
The amazing and dumbfounding thing about all of this is the second part of this passage: The LORD, while high and lofty and unmatched in every way, chooses to associate with the humble and contrite (broken in spirit, cast down, or even “very much crushed” like dust) in spirit. Our natural way would be to only associate or draw near to those who are like us or who have a greater position of prominence than we ourselves do. Not so with the high and exalted One! No, He pushes the proud and lofty away and draws near to those who rightly recognize their insignificance and brokenness. Is this because He needs an ego trip or wants to show off His position? Not at all; rather, those who are humble and contrite realize their need for revival (bringing to life) while those who are proud cannot. The need is the same for both and He is the solution for both alike, but only those who know and admit their need to Him find His grace and His compassion.
So what about you? Are you finding yourself in awe of this Holy and Awesome God? Are you seeing your need for Him in every moment? Or, are you in denial of His power and authority (thereby further alienating yourself from His goodness and revival)? Let us not waste the precious gift of His grace and His mercy! Allow Him to humble you and be honest with your true position; there are truly no he-man Christians, only those who are of a broken and contrite spirit who have come to know the powerful grace and strength of the high and exalted One.
Thank You, Father! You are holy and exalted in all of creation! May You reign preeminent in our hearts too!