Today is a day to remember. It was a day to remember the cost of freedom. It was a day to remember those who fought and gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy today. Fathers, sons, brothers, uncles, cousins, friends and unknown soldiers purchased with their lives our liberty.
It’s good to remember. It creates is us a heart of thankfulness. It makes us realize that we are not alone in life. It provides us with an eternal perspective. That is true in the spiritual realm as well. When times are difficult, when it is most simple to give in to discouragement and distrust, it is best to remember.
In Isaiah’s prophecy, he not only encouraged Israel with the truth that in the Day of the Lord, God would reign supreme over the earth, but he also provided them a song to sing in the Millennium (Is. 26). It is a song that expresses thanks to and confidence in God. Why should they give thanks? Because God did for them what no one else could or would. He made a promise to them that they would be His special people and He would be their God. He promised that they would one day inhabit a land that He had established solely for them. He promised that they would reign with Him forever.
“Indeed, while following the way of Thy judgments, O Lord, We have waited for Thee eagerly; Thy name, even Thy memory, is the desire of our souls” (Is. 26:8; NASB).
That memory, along with a host of others from the Scriptures, was the passion of their hearts (v. 8b). It was what enabled them to trust in Him and remain inwardly content and peaceful (vv. 3-4). And it was what enabled them to walk obediently in His ways (v. 8a). Don’t miss the principle of the song. To remember God and His promises and works on our behalf is to be encouraged in a life of faith and obedience. When times are tough, “tough people” (i.e., faithful, godly people) remember God.
As Kent Hughes has said, “There is no better shield against spiritual declension and weakness than Christian remembering.”
Words of Grace 