Wake Up

Isaiah 52:1-2 (NIV) “Awake, awake, O Zion, clothe yourself with strength. Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again. Shake off your dust; rise up, sit enthroned, O Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, O captive Daughter of Zion.”

Revelation 21:2-3 “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.”

In scripture, Jerusalem is often referred to metaphorically as the people of God. In the Old Testament this was the people of Israel; in the New Testament we see that all of God’s people, Jews and Gentiles, are included. This verse from Revelation shows that God’s people have been prepared, just like a bride is prepared for her wedding day. The purity of a bride symbolized by being dressed in white is the reason for God’s people being compared to a bride. This purity is made possible by the sacrifice of Jesus, yet in order to be prepared to come down from heaven, an awakening must happen in the people of God.
This call from Isaiah is a prophetic act which serves to rouse the church and wake it for action. Notice what needs to happen. First, there needs to be clothing with strength. The Holy Spirit gives us power to act for the Lord. Then, garments of splendor must be put on. This is the purity that comes not just from the righteousness given to us in Christ, but also from the right living that is a result of living in the power of the Holy Spirit. Once this movement towards purity happens, the church will not tolerate wickedness within itself. Shaking off the dust refers to removing the sinful, earthly nature, and rising up and sitting enthroned points to the glorious high calling of every Christ-follower. This is our destiny: to throw off every chain of sin which so easily entangles us and to be prepared for our eternal dwelling with the Lord.
Our prayer must become focused on crying out to the Lord for his bride to wake up and shake the dust and the chains of worldliness from her. Ours is a high calling. We have been given the nature of heaven in hearts. Now is the time for God’s people to rise up and live according to the calling we have received.