Category: Isaiah–BibleTrekToday
Prophet to the Nations
Scripture reading for July 22nd: Isaiah 17-20
Isaiah was not only a prophet to his own people, but was used by God to speak words of warning concerning coming judgment to other nations. One of the powerful nations of that day was Egypt. It was the nation that had held the Israelites as slaves about 750 years earlier and had experienced God’s judgment in the miracles wrought through Moses. Egypt was the nation that Israel turned back to for help and actually desired to return to as they wandered in the wilderness. It is a type of the world in its humanist power and idolatry. God will judge the nations of the world and the world system as well.
The reason for this judgment was sin against God. They were responsible for the light that they had; God had demonstrated His power over their idols earlier and given them time to repent. They persisted in idolatry and witchcraft. (Isaiah 19:3-4) They made plans in their human thinking and consulted mediums instead of the Lord. God’s judgment would expose their folly and devastate their plans as well as their land.
Isaiah was instructed by God to dress as an exile, stripped and barefoot and was to walk around like that for three years. (Isaiah 20:2-4) The message of God’s judgment was visual as well as spoken to these sensual people. God would send the Assyrians against Egypt and Cush and the Egyptians would be led stripped and barefoot into exile! Their shame would be exposed and they would become an example to all who trust in the power and idols of Egypt. Even God’s people would learn a lesson in this regard!
What lessons can we learn today as we read of God’s judgment on these nations that trusted in idols and human wisdom? Our nation must take heed! We, like Egypt, have had much light from the Lord. To choose to depart from that light and trust in human wisdom will not escape God’s notice. He watches every nation and all of it’s people and will judge them. He warns them first through His messengers. Today the church bears this responsibility. Sadly, many in the church are caught up in “Egypt” themselves! God is watching and warning us. Today is a good day to evaluate your own life and realign it with God’s purposes!
The Day of the Lord
Scripture reading for July 21st: Isaiah 13-16
God is in control of history and the future. He alone knows the future and can accurately predict what will happen. When God chooses to reveal his knowledge of coming events, He chooses a prophet or prophetess to tell what He will do. He is merciful so He warns those headed for His wrath so that they can escape through repentance. This time of judgment often spoken of in the Old Testament is called the “day of the Lord”. (Isaiah 13:9)
“See, the day of the Lord is coming–a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger– to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and humble the pride of the ruthless.” (Isaiah 13:9-11)
This day of the Lord is appointed by God. Man doesn’t know the time, but does know what it will bring. It will be a time of wrath against sin. Sinners, as well as the land, will be destroyed. The heavenly bodies will not shine forth their light as is usual. Even the sun will be darkened in the morning and the moon will not give any light. This day will be a day of punishment for the world and the wicked. The arrogant and ruthless will be dealt with and broken. God will be exalted on this day as the supreme ruler over all!
Jesus Christ warned his followers of this day. They were to be aware of the signs of the approaching day and not be caught unprepared. In Matthew 24:29 Jesus quotes Isaiah 13:10 as the event that will immediately precede His coming again to gather His elect from the corners of the earth. No one will know the day or the hour, but we are to be watchful and not be caught sleeping or unprepared! (Matthew 24:36-44) We must be ready because this day of the Lord could come at any time and only those who are ready will go! Check out your preparedness today! Tomorrow may be too late!
The Branch and the Spirit
Scripture reading for July 20th: Isaiah 9-12
From the remnant or stump, comes a Branch. This branch will come from the stump of Jesse. From the roots of this stump, the Branch will produce fruit! (Isaiah 11:1) Sounds like a riddle, but there is great prophetic insight contained in these word pictures from Isaiah. The Branch is none other than Jesus Christ, the son of David through Jesse.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on the Branch and cause Him to manifest the character of His Father. This Spirit will be a Spirit of wisdom and understanding. The Branch will be wise and have great understanding concerning God and His will. He will be anointed with the Spirit in order to rule justly and judge righteously. (Isaiah 11:2-4) The Spirit will be a Spirit of counsel and power and knowledge. The Branch will give wise counsel and manifest the power of God to do God’s will. He will possess knowledge and ability to share His understanding to help others.
The Spirit of the fear of the Lord will also rest on this Branch. He will delight in the fear of the Lord! This fear or holy respect will be evident by his total obedience to God and His will. This Branch will judge with righteousness and give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth. This means that His words will have great power to shake the earth and bring down the wicked.
This Branch will have righteousness for His belt and faithfulness for the sash around His waist. He will bring in an era of peace on earth that will come from His righteous rule. He will broadcast the knowledge of the Lord over all the earth. He will stand as a banner to the peoples of the earth as well as gathering up the scattered people of Judah! (Isaiah 11:10-12)
As we read this prophecy, we can see how Jesus fulfilled much of what is written. He came full of God’s Spirit and was totally righteous and faithful to God. He feared His Father God and delighted in obedience. He has promised to come again and gather His people from Israel and the nations. He will usher in a rule of peace for a thousand years. He will shake the earth and judge the wicked! The Branch will produce fruit!
Song of the Vineyard
Scripture reading for July 19th: Isaiah 5-8
Isaiah continued calling out the sins of God’s people and telling of the coming judgment. Prophets must keep an open ear to the Lord and maintain the ability to communicate clearly with His people. They are not always well-received because of the message that they must give.
Isaiah sings a song to the Israelites to help them hear the message. Isaiah 5:1-7 is called the song of the vineyard. In this song, God uses the analogy of planting a vineyard, setting up a watchtower in it, and cutting out a wine press to process the grapes. He had done all that was necessary to develop a fruitful vineyard but when God looked for fruit, it yielded only bad fruit. He was furious and decided to take away his care from this choice planting.
“The vineyard of the Lord Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of His delight. And He looked for justice, but saw only bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.” (Isaiah 5:7) Israel was the vineyard in this song. God was angry with their lack of fruit. They were not responding to God’s careful cultivation and the watchfulness of the prophets. They were supposed to produce a crop of justice and righteousness, but all God could find was bloodshed and violence.
The fruit of God’s vine was bad. Isaiah pronounced “woe” over those who were greedy for land and houses. God spoke to him of the destruction of the great houses and mansions of those who would be judged. Those who were drunkards and were self-indulgent would also reap woe. They forgot God and neglected His work. “Therefore My people will go into exile for their lack of understanding; their men of rank will die of hunger and their masses will be parched with thirst.” (Isaiah 5:13)
Jesus Christ told His followers that He was the true Vine and they were the branches. His Father was the gardener and He would cut off any branch that did not bear fruit. He would prune all fruitful branches to maximize fruitfulness. (John 15:1-7) His followers must remain in Him in order to produce fruit. Jesus probably got this analogy from Isaiah and used it to encourage and warn His followers. Are you abiding in the True Vine today and is the fruit of your life good and abundant?
Sunday Rest and Reflection:The Branch
Dear Friends,
Greetings on this day of rest and reflection! God is good to us and we have much to praise and thank Him for! We have a rich inheritance in Jesus Christ! He is our portion and the way to our promised eternal inheritance! As you gather today with God’s people for worship and receiving His Word, bow your head and heart and thank Him for loving you and saving you! Offer your heart to Him afresh today and humbly receive His grace!
Reflecting on the reading from this week, I would focus our attention on Isaiah 4 and the “Branch of the Lord”. Isaiah had been seeing a vision of Jerusalem and Judah under God’s judgment for their sin of rebellion. After that harsh judgment, Isaiah saw this “Branch of the Lord” that would be beautiful and glorious. He would come from the remnant that the Lord left by His grace. This remnant would be called holy and remain in Jerusalem. (Isaiah 4:2-3)
The Lord would wash away their crimson stains by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire. His glorious presence would enshroud Mt. Zion and those assembled there with a cloud of smoke by day and a flaming canopy of fire by night. This glorious presence would be a hiding place and a shelter from storm and rain.
As we look at this passage today, we see God’s grace in sparing a remnant of His people in order to fulfill His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as well as King David. This “Branch” grew out of the remnant and was of the lineage of David. His ministry was to offer cleansing and forgiveness of sins first to His own people and then to the world. He took our own sins in His body on the cross and shed His sinless blood to cleanse us by a spirit of judgment and fire of the wrath of God. He rose again from the dead and ascended to the Father to send the precious Holy Spirit to be a glorious presence residing in His people. Through the Spirit, they would be kept safe and empowered to be witnesses through any storm.
We are enjoying the initial fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophetic word. One day, we who know the Lord will enjoy His glorious presence face to face! Come Lord Jesus!
In His Love, Pastor John
Crimson Stains in the Holy Nation
Scripture reading for July 17th: Isaiah 1-4
Isaiah is one of the major prophets of the Old Testament and his writing contains a rich treasure of revelation concerning God’s plans to redeem His people and send the Messiah. He spoke and wrote these words from about 722 BC to 681 BC. As we begin this book, it would be helpful to take a moment to ask the Lord for His guidance in understanding and applying it to our lives as 21st century followers of Christ.
The first vision of Isaiah recorded in today’s readings concerned Judah and Jerusalem. “Ah, sinful nation, a people loaded with guilt, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! They have forsaken the Lord; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.” (Isaiah 1:4) People reap what they sow and God does nothing without warning His people by the prophets. (Amos 3:7) God sent Isaiah various visions to warn these backslidden people of the coming wrath. He told them of the desolate land and burned cities that would result. (Isaiah 1:7-9) He warned them that only God’s mercy could save them from becoming like Sodom and Gomorrah!
These people attended to the temple and sacrifices, but God was not honored or pleased! They offered prayers and sacrifices, but did evil in His sight. They oppressed the widow and orphan and shed innocent blood. Religion without repentance is hypocrisy and only wearies the Lord. (Isaiah 1:11-15) God’s warning was clear and concise!
“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 1:18-20)
God’s people needed to listen and use their heads. God offered cleansing from these deep stains of sin if they would be humble and willing to change. If they refused and rebelled, they would be devoured by the sword. God is offering to reason with people today as well. Many need to heed His offer of grace through Jesus Christ. The way is narrow that leads to life and blessing but broad that leads to destruction. Let those crimson stains be made white as snow!
Highly esteemed by God!
Scripture reading for August 4th: Isaiah 63-66?
What are some things that you highly value? Our culture values material wealth very highly. We love to look at the holdings of the extravagantly rich and imagine what it would be like if we could live in that luxury. We also value those with talents or abilities that make them famous. The recent death of the “king of pop”, Michael Jackson, revealed that many people idolized this man. Nearly two million applied to go to his funeral! The prices of his albums, music, and other memorabilia went up as people grabbed for them after his death. News outlets are still talking about him and his legacy and death. Wealth and fame because of talents and ability have been highly esteemed by our culture. If we are honest, we have probably been caught up in this in some way or other.
God owns the universe and everything in it has come from His gracious hand. (Isaiah 66:1) The God who made us and all creation has something that He esteems and values highly. His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9) “This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at My word.” (Isaiah 65:2b) God values the man or woman or child who is humble and teachable. He cares deeply for those who value His word. In fact, He gives His word to them to encourage them that they will be rewarded for their faith and humble spirits!
God promises them that their enemies will be repaid for their mistreatment. Isaiah 66:5-6 promises that the Lord will repay them! He will come with fire and destroy those who have opposed God and His people. (Isaiah 66:15-16) God promises that those who love Him and Jerusalem will find joy and satisfaction when God delivers Jerusalem and brings in the age of peace! (Isaiah 66:10-12) They will enjoy a “new heavens and a new earth” (Isaiah 66:22) that will endure forever along with the righteous and their descendants! When God’s people tremble at His word, it brings confidence and assurance. It enables them to wait on the Lord to bring it to pass and to live quiet and godly lives of faith and trust. (Isaiah 30:15) (Isaiah 40: 31) Their strength is renewed and they can finish their race with joy and expectation!
The last words of Isaiah have to do with the final punishment of the wicked. “And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against Me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.” (Isaiah 66:24) I am so thankful that through faith in Jesus Christ, I am now “highly esteemed” by God! What a blessing it is that He was broken and contrite and trembled at the Word of God! He perfectly kept it and offered His life for mine so I can escape this punishment! What a God we serve!
Walls of Salvation, Gates of Praise!
Scripture reading for August 3rd: Isaiah 58-62
“”No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders, but you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise. The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.” Isaiah 60:18-19
There’s a newer song out that uses the thoughts of these verses of Isaiah. Chris Tomlin sings “My Deliverer” and I love the chorus about the walls and gates of the New Jerusalem! This passage and chapter of Isaiah have many similarities with Revelation 21 and the vision of the Apostle John and it is exciting to see that God’s plans are firmly established and moving forward.
Our nation and world are in deep darkness. The peoples of the earth for the most part are living in ignorance of the Lord and His light. It was the vision of Isaiah that as the world lay in darkness, a call to arise and shine would be given to God’s people. (Isaiah 60:1-2) This might refer to the rapture of the Church at the end of time as well as when Jesus first appeared. The Glory of the Lord will rise upon the earth and nations will come to the brightness of that new dawning. Jesus Christ came into the darkness of this world and proclaimed that He is the light of the world! (John 8:12) Whoever will follow Him will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life! We shine with the brightness of God’s light and reflect that light to a dark world. At the end of time we will shine like the brightness of heaven and the stars! (Daniel 12:3)
From the witness of that light of God within His church, Jesus Christ is populating the New Jerusalem. It’s walls are salvation. We are protected by God’s saving grace through the gift of forgiveness. We are saved from the penalty of our sins and eternal judgment in the lake of fire and outer darkness. It’s gates are praise! Those who enter come singing and praising the One who gave them life and eternal light! God is their light and they have no darkness in them! There are no more tears, crying or pain. Eternal light from God’s glory fills the city and it’s inhabitants!
When this will happen is not known by any man. But the Lord tells us that in it’s time, it will be done swiftly! We must be ready and watching! “I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.” (Isaiah 60:22b) “He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon. (quickly)” (Revelation 22:20)
Sunday rest and reflection: thirst quencher!
Dear Friends, Greetings on another day of rest! Summer is a time of heat and humidity in Kentucky! Every time you work or play outside, you work up a thirst! It is easy to get dehydrated because of sweating and fluid loss. Plenty of water is needed to stay hydrated and healthy. But there’s another kind of thirst that I want us to talk about today. It’s a spiritual thirst for God Himself!
Isaiah 55 is a chapter in this week’s reading that I did not get to comment on. It is a prophetic call to those who are thirsty. This thirst is not just for water, but thirst for the love of God and intimacy with Him. “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. (Isaiah 55:1) The fare offered doesn’t cost money but it isn’t totally free either!
Listening to God is one of the ‘costs’ that Isaiah lists as essential to enjoying the banquet of love with the Lord. We must come to the Lord and listen to His Word. We must hear what He says and obey. We must be careful not to spend our money on that which is not bread. (Isaiah 55:2-3) Many people today are investing their time, money, and labor on frivolous pursuits that won’t count for anything in eternity. They are seeking pleasure from things, building fine houses, and living for their flesh. Seeking the Lord first while He may be found should be the priority of life. (Matthew 6:38) (Isaiah 55:6) In the Lord is the finest of pleasures and a delightful satisfaction of our hunger and thirst!
God’s call in Isaiah 55:7 is to those who are living in wickedness and evil. He calls out to them to join the feast by repentance and dependence on God’s mercy. God is not desiring to punish anyone but rather have them come to His banquet and enjoy the ever-lasting covenant of his faithful love. (Isaiah 55:4) His thoughts are higher than ours and His ways are beyond our ways. He has spoken a word of mercy to all who will call on Him and just like the rain and snow coming from heaven to water the earth, so His Word will accomplish His purposes! (Isaiah 55:10-11)
God’s promises can quench your thirst! They are true, obtained by faith. They are given by God because of His faithful love and everlasting covenant through our Lord Jesus Christ! “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not been glorified.” John 7:37-39 May your thirst be quenched by drinking from Jesus today! In His Love, Pastor John
Beautiful feet!
Scripture reading for August 1st: Isaiah 52-57
When you think of beauty, what parts of the body do you immediately think of? Are the feet the first parts to come to your mind? Do you give lots of attention to your feet to make sure they are “beautiful” and noticed? Isaiah, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, made particular mention of the feet of those who would bring the “good news” of God reigning on Zion. “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” (Isaiah 52:7) God would Himself come to Zion and lay bare His holy arm and all the earth would see His salvation! (Isaiah 52:10)
Isaiah saw the servant as “high and lifted up and highly exalted”. This servant would act wisely, but would be marred and disfigured. He would not even look human anymore! In His suffering, He would sprinkle many nations and bring understanding of His salvation to those who did not know! (Isaiah 52:13-15) Isaiah saw this servant as one with no natural beauty that would attract us to Him. (Isaiah 53:2) He was actually despised and rejected by men and was a man who knew sorrow and grief intimately from personal experience. He took our infirmities and carried our sorrows but we assumed that God was punishing Him. (Isaiah 53:3-4) In actuality, this Servant was willingly pierced and crushed for our sins and iniquities. He took wounds for us that brought us healing!
When we think about this amazing description of a willing Servant and what He did for us, we better understand beautiful feet! Our Savior walked on this earth on human feet! He willingly walked in total obedience to God so that we can walk in healing, salvation and freedom! He offered His feet to be nailed to a cross for us! He was “high and lifted up” on that cross! Those feet took our Savior to the place of suffering because of us! What beautiful feet and what great good news He brought to us!
Now, we can have “beautiful feet” too! We can continue the mission of our dear Savior by obeying Him and taking this message of “Good News” to a lost and dying world. We may not be much to look at, but the beauty of our feet is that they are obediently walking in the path of Jesus Christ! “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20