September 18, 2017
The Lord spoke through Isaiah of a “precious cornerstone” that He would lay in Zion (“Jerusalem”). This coming cornerstone would have certain attributes:
1) It would be laid by God Himself.
2) It would be the foundation.
3) It would be tried (tested) and found perfect.
4) It would be precious (none other like it).
5) It would be sure (faithful, unchangeable).
6) It would inspire belief and bring rest.
This Cornerstone is Jesus. He is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. As the apostle Paul wrote, “Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself” (Eph. 2:20). On the day of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem He quoted Psalm 118:22 to His detractors saying, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone’?” (Matt.21:42).
Christ is the Cornerstone, the foundation of our faith.
September 17, 2017
If the law cannot save, what purpose does it “serve?” Paul asked this rhetorical question after making the point that the “promise” of God was given 430 years before the law of God was added. The “promise” was given to Abraham that through his “Seed” all nations would be blessed (Gen.22:18). This “Seed” is Christ. So, since faith in the “Promised Seed” is the only way of salvation, why was the law given? It was given “because of transgressions.” The promise is for salvation, but the law is “because” of sin. Paul goes on in his epistle to the Galatians to give what some have called the three “R”s of the law, which answers his question, “what purpose does the law serve?”
THREE “R”s OF THE LAW:
1) Reflect our guilty condition (Like a perfect mirror).
2) Restrain our sinful behavior (Like a prison guard).
3) Reveal our need for a Savior (Like a pedagogue).
The law is good and useful, but it cannot save. Only faith in Christ saves.
September 16, 2017
God’s grace, as Paul speaks of it here, is that which saves and sustains the one trusting in Christ’s finish work of salvation. Grace is about God’s mercy, while “works righteousness” is about our merit. But grace is more than mercy, for mercy only withholds the punishment we deserve. Yet, grace gives us the opposite of what we deserve. This is not only saving and sustaining grace, it is scandalous grace. For it gives the one who deserves an “F” on life’s test, an “A+.” How is this just? It is just because Christ died in our place. He took our “F” and offers us His “A+.” When we attempt to add law-keeping to salvation, we “set aside” grace. And having nullified grace, we nullify the work of Christ on the cross with it. Grace (Greek: χάρις, charis) is God’s unmerited favor freely bestowed on those who having recognized their own inability to save themselves, put their trust in Christ and His finished work of salvation. Grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone saves.
September 15, 2017
This was a pivotal meeting in the history of the Christian Church. The apostle Paul was moved both by a revelation from God and by his desire for unity with the other apostles concerning the matter of salvation by grace alone through faith alone. Certain people had come behind Paul into Galatia teaching that the Gentile believers should essentially become Jewish, following Jewish laws and customs. Paul was confident that the gospel the Lord had given him by revelation was not just a reform movement for Judaism, but good news for the whole world. One could come to Christ without becoming Jewish. The apostles in Jerusalem affirmed Paul’s gospel as the same gospel that Christ had given them. The gospel was for every nation, tribe and tongue. It was for the whole world. And it still is!
September 14, 2017
The apostle Paul warned the Galatians against adding or subtracting from the gospel. He said that they were at risk of deserting the “grace of Christ” and perverting the “gospel of Christ.” The gospel is not only that which sets free the one in slavery to sin, it is also that which sustains the freedom of those who are now sons of God. We never outgrow the gospel. As one commentator has said, the gospel is not only the ABCs of Christianity. It is the A-Z of Christianity.
September 13, 2017
Isaiah prophesied that while Babylon would soon take Israel captive, the day would soon follow when Babylon would be overthrown by God. The judgment of God against Babylon would be like it was against “Sodom and Gomorrah,” for He would make it uninhabitable. This prophecy must have been hard to believe as Babylon was considered to be one of the greatest cities on earth. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Yet, Isaiah’s prophecy came true. Today, the ruins of Babylon lie in the desert South of Baghdad in Iraq. They have been uninhabited for generations just as the Bible predicted.
September 12, 2017
Isaiah foresaw a day when a “Root of Jesse,” would come as Messiah. Jesse was King David’s father. And the “Root” is Jesus Christ. A root is the hidden source of life to a plant. In like manner, Jesus is both the preincarnate Son of God who is the source of all life, but also the One who became human, born into the line of Jesse, to be the Redeemer of life. God revealed to Isaiah that this “Root” would become a “banner” drawing all people, Jew and Gentile alike, to Him for rest. Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy. As He said, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32).
September 11, 2017
In the climax of Paul’s “boastings,” he spoke of himself in the third person as a man who was “caught up to the third heaven.” Perhaps he felt it too immodest to speak of himself in the first person as one who had been entrusted with such a heavenly experience. Yet, he shared it with the Corinthians as a part of his apostolic resume to refute those who had challenged his authority.
Some have read too much into Paul’s reference to the “third heaven,” imagining three levels or more in spiritual elevation. A simpler explanation would be to understand it as the Jews of that day did. In their view, the first heaven was the blue sky at day, the second, the night sky with its starry host, and the third, the unseen heaven, where God and His heavenly host dwelt. Paul used the phrase “caught up” to describe his experience, which in the Latin Vulgate was translated “raptured” (Greek: “harpazó,” Latin: “raptum”). His experience was so beyond comprehension that he didn’t know whether it was “in the body” or “out of the body.”
Paul did not go into detail about what he had experienced, only saying that he heard “inexpressible words.” He apparently experienced first hand what Isaiah had prophesied and what he had written about in his first letter to the Corinthians, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (Isa. 64:4; 1 Cor. 2:9).
September 10, 2017
Isaiah was given a difficult preaching assignment. He was to preach knowing that the people of Israel would not “understand,” nor “perceive” his message. The Israelites had been given the greatest access to the Word and works of God of any people in history, yet they had not listened to His Word, nor remembered His works. Therefore, God’s judgment would be according to their sin. He would continue to declare His Word and perform His works before them, yet they would not hear, nor see. The fulfillment of this prophecy was during the time of Christ, who was the supreme revelation of God to His people, yet they did not receive Him. Jesus quoted this passage from Isaiah many times during His earthly ministry knowing that only a remnant would believe (Matt. 13:14-15, Mark 4:12, John 12:40).
I’m glad that we have a new preaching mission today, the same one given to the apostle Paul by Jesus “to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me” (Acts 26:18).
September 9, 2017
There is a theology of work. God works. God made man in His own image and gave him work to do too. The modern view that there is a division between secular and sacred work is in error. All work is sacred when done “as to the Lord” (Col. 3:23). When good work is done with excellence, even kings take notice. Such a worker will “stand before” well known and important people. Their work will become a platform from which to communicate. Will they accept glory for themselves or will they give glory to God? Jesus worked. He said, “My Father is working until now, and I am working” (John 5:17). A right theology of work teaches us that there is no work that is to be considered beneath us, for Jesus Himself washed the disciples feet. And a right theology of work also teaches us to rest, for Jesus Himself knew when to rest. All work is sacred when done in Jesus’ name.