As Christmas draws ever nearer, some people dread the arrival of this holiday. For them, there is no joy. They may have lost a loved one. Their bodies may be wracked with pain. They have faced persecution, beatings and even death. Their tears flow at the thought of another holiday spent in sorrow.
But God provides a promise for these who weep. In Isaiah 25:8, we read:
“He will swallow up death forever!
The Sovereign Lord will wipe away all tears.
He will remove forever all insults and mockery
against his land and people.
The Lord has spoken!”
Someone might point out to me that this is not an “I WILL” promise but a “HE WILL” promise, which I grant is true, but go back and reread the last line of the verse: “The Lord has spoken.” The oath is God’s own.
In Rev. 7:17, an angel explained to the apostle John that one day, “The Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.” The Sovereign Lord of the universe promises that he himself will wipe away our tears! What’s more, we learn in 21:4, that there will be no more death, no more sorrow, no more pain. All these things will be gone forever.
Why not sing the favorite old carol “Joy to the World”? Pay special attention to the verse where it says, “No more shall sin or sorrow reign!”
