DCLM Daily Manna 2025: DCLM Daily Manna 9 May 2025: Go Back to the Prince
KEY VERSE:
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” – (Isaiah 26:3).
READ: Isaiah 26:1-11 (KJV)
In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
“We have a strong city;
God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.
2 Open the gates,
That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in.
3 You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You.
4 Trust in the Lord forever,
For in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.
5 For He brings down those who dwell on high,
The lofty city;
He lays it low,
He lays it low to the ground,
He brings it down to the dust.
6 The foot shall tread it down—
The feet of the poor
And the steps of the needy.”
7 The way of the just is uprightness;
O Most Upright,
You weigh the path of the just.
8 Yes, in the way of Your judgments,
O Lord, we have waited for You;
The desire of our soul is for Your name
And for the remembrance of You.
9 With my soul I have desired You in the night,
Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early;
For when Your judgments are in the earth,
The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
10 Let grace be shown to the wicked,
Yet he will not learn righteousness;
In the land of uprightness he will deal unjustly,
And will not behold the majesty of the Lord.
11 Lord, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see.
But they will see and be ashamed
For [f]their envy of people;
Yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them.
Thomas à Kempis, the German-Dutch author of the renowned book The Imitation of Christ, wrote of the concept of peace: “The more humble and obedient to God a man is, the more wise and at peace he will be in all he does.” He meant that if you want peace, associate with God in obedience and humility. And as He gives peace, He also delivers wisdom to the seeker.
Kempis’ counsel, given hundreds of years ago, is a direct pick from the Scriptures and applies to our present world which is trapped in insecurity across the nations. Peace has eluded the nations as we hear of full-scale wars, low-intensity conflicts, insurrections, gang wars, coups d’état, economic depression, failed governments, drug wars, violence, and so on, all defying tested human policies. But the Bible, as found in today’s text, highlights the perfect peace reserved for God’s people as well as other divine mercies and hope they enjoy in contrast with the frightful fate of the ungodly and unrepentant people. Even in the darkest and most challenging times, those who put their trust in God remain cool and calm because God’s presence is with them.
We must return to the Prince of Peace to recover our sanity which was lost as we disconnected from God. Self-rule and secular humanistic thinking have led us to a life of ruinous existence and waste, like the prodigal son. The prevailing global economic and social chaos is threatening to destroy the planet and its inhabitants as we continue to grope for solutions. The prodigal boy did not get deliverance until he returned home to his father. We cannot expect to enjoy the fruits of God’s mercies while holding on to our rebellious and sinful ways.
Satan is standing by to heap more insecurity and instability on those who forsake the ways of the Prince of Peace and bar Him from entering their world. But God is also close by, ready to “open the… gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.” Entering in means allowing that precious virtue, peace, into our lives.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: To reject the Prince of Peace is to sign up for peril and perdition.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Corinthians 1-4
Daily Manna 9 May 2025
