Articles
Confidence in God for Our Part
Isaiah 10:15a - “Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it?” In the Old Testament, it was not uncommon for the LORD to use other nations to punish His people. In 722 B.C., God lost patience with the northern kingdom of Israel and sent the Assyrians to destroy them. The Assyrians were simply a tool used to bring destruction on God’s people, yet they became prideful saying, “By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this...like a mighty man I brought down their inhabitants” (Isaiah 10:13).
The Assyrians were the axe God used to chop down the Israelites, and yet the axe boasted as if it swung itself. The saw bragged as if it moved on its own accord. As Christians, we are to be zealous for good works (Titus 2:14), but we must remember we are simply God’s tools. Axes and saws are useless without someone to wield them, and we are only useful in God’s kingdom because He is wielding us “to the praise of His glory” (Eph. 1:12). Thus, even for our part in this life our confidence must be rooted in God and not ourselves. Let him who boasts, boast in the Axe Wielder (cf. 1 Cor. 1:31).
