130. Established in Righteousness
Isaiah 54:14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression, for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.
Oppression, fear and terror will not come near to us for we have the promise from the Lord that we shall be established in righteousness. Being justified by faith brings many blessed consequences. One blessing is: No Fear. A common greeting from Jesus to us is, “Fear not!” Do not be afraid of the terror that flies by day or by night. The Lord commissions angels to watch and guard.
A sub-category under fear is worry and anxiety. Jesus says, “Do not be anxious about your life.” Paul says, “Be anxious for nothing.” Anxiety is a constant companion for most mortals, since sinners are subject to death and dying. Death is the Enemy: under death is the fear of death; under fear is unspecified anxiety and specific worries. Under the curse of death are also stress, toil, and the “sweat of your brow.”
From without, underneath the Curse, is war, intimidation, threat, kidnapping, slavery, extortion and many other evils that use the threat of death to force one’s will over others; included here is terror and violence used throughout history to steal, kill and destroy.
Many of these oppressions, fears and terrors are physical and earthly. It ranges from organized war and organized crime to daily domestic struggles and arguments between friends and families. However, the essence and central point of the promise is spiritual oppression, fear, and terror inflicted by the Enemies of the soul. These spiritual threats, scares and attacks come frequently and unexpectedly. But the promise says they will stay far from us and not come near. God does this for us by establishing us in righteousness. This promise is highly useful for us in our daily struggles since the Enemy is always close by; but the Enemies cannot come near to inflict eternal damage. The Lord delivers us from the evil of the fear and terror by establishing us in righteousness. On account of Jesus Christ the Lord declares us righteous. We are established in God’s righteousness by faith. Faith is the assurance and evidence of the Truth not seen. When we are securely established nothing evil can actually touch us to destroy and instill terror.
However, there is the just and sure “fear of God,” or the terror that arises from the prospect of eternal suffering and death in hell. This spiritual fear is proper and is used to bring us to repentance and faith in the Gospel. The gospel establishes us in righteousness, so established that we cannot be moved or intimidated. All we need to do is turn to the cross and behold the glory.