A Day of Reckoning

 People don't use the words "reckon" or "reckoning" very much any more. When I was a kid we used to say, "I reckon," when we agreed with how another person was explaining something, or when we could see their point of view on a subject. However, I haven't said that in years. I believe these words are used in some professions like surveying and engineering to mean that something is lined up correctly and not out of balance. The Bible uses this word to denote a time of judgment.

Isaiah was a prophet. He was commissioned by God to come and to deliver God's message to His people, because they were way out of balance and far from where the Lord intended for them to be in many ways. (Isaiah 2:12) He warned them by telling them that the Lord of Heaven's Armies has a day of reckoning when He will punish the proud and mighty and bring down everything that is exalted. That warning was not just for Israel. We need to hear what God was saying then, too.

Pride and power are very destructive forces in our lives. Pride makes us think that we don't need God or other people. It leads us into sin and all kinds of mistakes. Power makes us think we can do anything we want to do, so we end up making a mess with that power. When we are exalted, God will bring us down. It might be a day of reckoning at our job, at our school, in our church, or in our family, but we will have to pay for our sins.. God will not let us get away with the sins caused by being proud, powerful, and exalted. We should repent of these things before that day comes to avoid God's punishment.

Also, the Day of Judgment will be a Day of Reckoning. We will have to give an account of all we have done in our lives and how we have done it. It will be a terrible day for us, if we have allowed pride to cause us not to trust God, so that we did things our way, not His way. It will be a very sad day when we see His power, and realize we could have lived by His power and accomplished so much more for His kingdom. It will be a day when God humbles us, if we have allowed ourselves to be exalted. Therefore, we need to start today to prepare for that Day of Reckoning and correct any of these sins with God's help. Then, we can get lined up with the Lord so He won't have to bring us down.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read Isaiah 3-5.