This is what the Lord says – your Redeemer – the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.” Isaiah 48:17 NLT.
It is so easy to overthink God’s intent towards you and me. A good exercise is just to look at what God says about His purpose towards us. In this one verse we learn quite a bit:
Our redeemer: God is our redeemer. While there may be others who pose as a redeemer, there is only one true redeemer.
The Holy One of Israel: This is important to understand. “The Holy One” is a phrase that is about one truth. There is only one holy one. He is not “holy among other holies”. He is it. He is holiness, he is the essence of holiness. He is the source of holiness. He is the holy one. Of Israel: God chose to make himself known to the rest of the world by focusing on one people. The people of Israel. When Jesus, God’s son, comes on the scene he makes it very clear that what God established for the Israelites is available for everyone.
I am the Lord your God: This is a declaration. While the world may think that there are other gods one can be loyal to, at the end of the day, there is one Lord. He is God.
…who teaches you…: God teaches us. He is engaged with us. He is involved in our lives.
…what is good for you…: God is all about good. He establishes good in everything he does.
…and leads you along paths you should follow.: This is the image of a trail guide who is with us on the trail of life. He is literally leading us on the right trails through places where we could easily get lost and confused. He simply asks that we follow.
Let’s not overthink God and His purposes towards us. While He is completely God and absolutely Holy, he is not disconnected or distant. He teaches you and me. He guides us on the “trails of life”. He is with us.