When God spoke this message originally, He was speaking concerning a heathen King; King Cyrus. In spite of the fact that Cyrus did not even acknowledge God, he was going to be God’s instrument of restoration and even redemption to His people. He had no choice in the matter. God was saying that He was going to remove every barrier and show this King His goodness and use him for His purposes; even to the point where King Cyrus and everyone else would know that God was God!
God uses people to demonstrate His reality. God used Cyrus. Further on in Isaiah 45:5-7 God says “I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, people may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.”
I know this may sound simplistic, but God is God! He can do anything He wants, of course He won’t do anything which violates His character and nature. But to bring about His plans and purposes, He will use good and bad things. He will demonstrate His reality to people in many ways. We have our set formulas for how God works, but sometimes He works outside of our formulas.
In my own life, I can say that I was a godless man; a man with no interest in God. God in His mercy revealed Himself to me in such a profound and real way, I was left with no doubt that God was real. There are times in our lives where God says, like He did to Cyrus, ‘Even if you don’t believe in me or acknowledge me, I will remove every barrier between you and the reality and blessing of God so you can be left in no doubt that I am real!’
I felt I had no need of God in my life. I was happy, successful, and was moving in the direction of my life’s goals. God in His mercy came to me and showed me His beauty, power and holiness in such a way that I was ruined for anything else. Some feel God has to break and humble people to bring them to a place of repentance, and sometimes He does. For me it was the goodness, beauty and reality of God that led me to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.
In this passage, the treasures of darkness refers to the wealth of the earthly kingdoms that Cyrus would defeat and subdue. God wanted to show Cyrus He was God by blessing Him, by giving him this treasure. I believe in the importance of making people aware of their sin, but there are times when God uses blessing and Divine encounters to convince people of His reality.
I believe that God will move heaven and earth to bring people to a realization of His reality. Consider the Apostle Paul, a persecutor and murderer of Christians. God so shook Him with His reality that He became an Apostle and prolific writer of much of the content of the New Testament. I believe that God wants to do the same for so many people. We live in an age and a generation so void of God’s reality, and I believe God want’s to do more to reveal Himself to those that do not believe in Him or acknowledge Him.
I believe the treasures of darkness refer to the wealth God wants to bring to His people to extend His Kingdom. I also believe it refers to the greatest treasure in the world, the human soul. Charles Finney in his sermon ‘The infinite worth of the soul’ states: “But let me say once more, the salvation of his soul is the great business of a man’s life; his great errand in this world is to secure his own salvation and that of as many as he can. Why, who does not know this – than as eternity is longer than time, in just so much is the soul more valuable than all that relates to this world.”
There are so many people still living their lives in the kingdom of darkness, surely their souls are the greatest treasure on earth. And God says here for us today “I will go before you and make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron. I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, that you may know that I, the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel.”
God Almighty knows the infinite worth of a human soul. Nothing is more valuable to God than a human soul. I believe this should also be our focus and understanding of what is truly valuable in this world. When we die, we won’t be able to take anything with us, but those we have influenced for Christ. Only those whom we have impacted for the Kingdom of God will last forever.
I believe God wants to remove every obstacle in your life. Every barrier between you and reaching out to a lost world. God wants you to have these ‘treasures of darkness.’ God wants to bless you, God wants to reveal Himself to you in such a way that you will know that He is the God of Israel who summons you by name.
Maybe today you have some obstacles in your way. God has the ability to remove every obstacle. Every mountain can be moved. Every gate of bronze can be broken in pieces. Every bar of iron can be cut through. God has a calling, I believe, on the whole body of Christ to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. To make disciples of the nations.” (Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19) I believe He is at work to remove the barriers to the fulfillment of this Great Commission.
Maybe your finances are an obstacle. I believe God want’s to give you the wealth of His Kingdom to reach the unsaved. Maybe your own fears are an obstacle. I believe God wants to baptize you in a fresh fiery boldness that removes every trace of the fear of man in your life. Maybe it’s just the difficult circumstances of your life that are an obstacle.
No matter what you are faced with today, it is my prayer that God will move so powerfully in your life that every barrier is removed. God wants you to know today that He is real. He wants you to know He cares about the unsaved. He wants to bless you so greatly and so powerfully and reveal Himself to you in such a powerful way that you and others will know He is the God who summons you by name!
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