Humming Cedars

Scripture:

Isaiah 35:2 It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, [and] the excellency of our God.

Observation:

No one can call Isaiah a prophet of doom. At the slightest provocation, He becomes a poet and a songster when he sees what God has in store for His people. Each time he is compelled to prophesy the judgment of God, he follows with a picture of God's redemptive purpose. As his oracles of punishment have deepened in severity, so his oracles of promise have soared to new heights. Therefore, after Isaiah's gory revelation of God's fury against the nations and Edom in chapter 34, we can expect poetry and song unmatched in his earlier prophecies of promise. Isaiah does not disappoint us. In his vision of the future transformation of Zion, all of his creative impulses are released in the text and tone of divine inspiration. One way to capture those impulses is to join Isaiah in the transformations that turn the "wilderness and the wasteland" of Zion into a garden of gladness to which the redeemed come singing the praises of God.

As creation was reversed in the devastation of Edom, so the garden is restored in the transformation of Zion. As a means of communicating with the children of Israel, Isaiah may well be envisioning the desert region known as the Arabah, which runs down through the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Arabah on the Persian Gulf. A deep valley below sea level, the Arabah is the Death Valley of the Middle East—uninhabited, unproductive, and uninviting. To transform that desert into a carpet of crocuses whose beauty gladdens the heart and puts a song on the lips is a miracle indeed. Every person in Judah and Jerusalem who had seen the Arabah would understand the transformation that brought the cedars of Lebanon, the oaks of Carmel, and the roses of Sharon to the wasteland (Isaiah 35:2). The smell, the strength, and the sight of these wonders of nature would cause every eye to open wide and see the "glory of the LORD" and "the excellency of our God" (Isaiah 35:2).

Application:

Picture the wind blowing through the cedars of Lebanon and some of them 'humming' in response. And the greater the storm, the sweeter their song. These were called humming cedars. And God uses humming cedars to build strong churches. In Acts, a couple of 'humming cedars' were incarcerated in a Philippian dungeon, their hands and feet locked in stocks, their backs flogged, the contempt of society heaped on them. How did they respond? "At midnight Paul and Silas were… singing hymns to God… Suddenly there was a great earthquake… the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed" (Acts 16:25-26 NKJV). One old preacher said: "God got so caught up in their praises that He began to tap His big foot. And when God taps His foot, you get earthquakes."

Praise breaks chains and opens doors; it's the strategy for victory. Satan will try to stop you from praising God because he knows: (a) The importance of praise. "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised… (Psalm 48:1 NKJV). (b) The healing effects of praise. God's answer to "the spirit of heaviness" is "the garment of praise" (Isaiah 61:3 NKJV). But like any garment, you must put it on. (c) The power of praise in times of crisis. When Israel was outnumbered by the enemy, God told them to put a choir in front of the army and march into battle. And it worked! "When they began… to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the [enemy]… (2 Chronicles 20:22 NKJV). Don't wait until the battle is over to shout; go to war with the praise of God on your lips and watch Him turn your situation around.

Prayer:

"Lord, help me today to be like the cedars and give you glory and praise! My the winds that in the midst of a storm, cause me to "hum" even louder to You, and may my praise song be even sweeter! It is the high praise of Your people that helps solidify Your church. I praise You today Lord while everything is going great. Help me to praise You even more in the midst of the storm! In Jesus' name, amen!"