September 16, 2018
EVEN THE WINDS AND THE WAVES OBEY HIM
Isaiah prophesied the destruction of the seaport city of ancient Tyre. He spoke of God’s power over land and sea. In the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, we are thankful for God’s protection. We are reminded of what the disciples of Jesus said of Him after He calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee, “Even the winds and the sea obey Him” (Matt. 8:27).
Thank you Lord for your protection and care. Now, empower us to help our neighbors throughout Eastern NC who have been hurt by the storm. Amen.
September 15, 2018
A BLESSING IN THE MIDST OF THE EARTH
The Lord spoke through Isaiah concerning a day when the rivalry between Egypt and Assyria would end, and Israel would no longer be the battleground between them. This must have been an astounding prophecy for that time. For Egypt and Assyria had been sworn enemies and Israel suffered between them in a brutal tug-of-war. Yet, the Lord said a day was coming when a “highway” would connect them.
There have been partial fulfillments of this prophecy since Isaiah’s time. Under Cyrus, the Persian king, there was peace between the three. And again, under Alexander, the three were under one banner for a brief time. But then, after Alexander’s death, his empire was divided into four. The Ptolemaic Empire was over Egypt and the Seleucid Empire was over what was formerly Assyria. Again, the land of Israel was the battleground between them until the time of Roman rule, when peace once again prevailed for a time.
Perhaps it was the Roman period that Isaiah foresaw. For it was during that time that Christ came and the “blessed” message of the cross was carried on Roman “highways” throughout the empire and beyond. Yet, surely there is a Day coming when the ultimate fulfillment will take place.
September 14, 2018
WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR US TO LOOK TO THE LORD?
The prophet Isaiah received this word from the Lord concerning the people of Israel. They had lowered their eyes from the Creator to the creation, looking to their idols for help and worshiping the work of their own hands. As a result, a day was coming when their cities would fall, their crops fail, and the glory of Israel grow dim. Yet in that day, the people would pull their eyes off of their idols and look again to the Lord.
Someone has said that true worship is pulling our affections off our idols and putting them on God. The Israelites of Isaiah’s day had broken the first two commandments of the Decalogue. They had put other gods before the Lord and they had made and worshiped graven images. The Lord would not allow His chosen people to continue in this way. His discipline was sending first the Assyrians, and later the Babylonians, to help Israel remember their God.
What will it take for us to pull our affections off of our material manmade stuff and put them on God? Will it take another event like 9/11 or the devastation of a hurricane to pull our eyes off of the temporal to consider the eternal? The word that the Lord gave Isaiah for his people is just as true for us today, as it was for them.
October 1, 2017
This is the problem with the idea that we can live a good enough life to please God and earn entrance into heaven–– “our righteousnesses are like filthy rags.” We make the mistake of comparing ourselves to those around us and concluding that we are as good as the next person, maybe better. We look at ourselves and feel that our good deeds outweigh the bad, but we miss the fact that even our good works are polluted by sinful attitudes and motivations. We know that we have sin areas, but we also dare to believe that we have good areas too. Yet from God’s perspective, our very best deeds and thoughts are like “filthy rags” (Literally, “menstrual pads” or “leper’s bandages”). We have chosen the wrong standard of righteousness for comparison. Only when we consider the righteousness of God as revealed in His Word, both written and incarnate, do we realize the vast chasm separating us. You see, it’s not only that He is without sin, but that His every word and deed shine as bright and pure as sunlight. It is this Light that reveals how truly we live in darkness. But God did not send His Son to condemn us, but that through faith in Him, we might be saved (John 3:17-21). When we come to Christ, we receive that which we could never earn, we receive His righteousness, a righteousness that fully pleases God.
September 29, 2017
The Lord promised that a “Redeemer” would come to Zion. In Hebrew, it is “Goel,” which is often translated “Kinsman-Redeemer,” as Boaz was to Ruth. Certainly, Jesus is our human “kinsman.” He is God with us, the Word made flesh, sharing all our condition, yet without sin. “Zion” is another name for Jerusalem or Israel, but points to the true spiritual Israel, which includes both Jew and Gentile, the latter being grafted in by faith. The apostle Paul interpreted this verse as taking place at the Second Coming of Christ, when the remnant of Israel would finally “turn from transgression” and turn to faith in Jesus as Messiah (Rom. 11:25-27). Jesus is our Redeemer. He has come and He is coming again.
September 27, 2017
“I gave…” Who is this that would willingly submit and give himself to such torture? Written 800 years before His coming, only the Messiah, Jesus Christ, could be its fulfillment. The prophet Isaiah was entrusted with this prophecy of the Messiah as Suffering Servant. Jesus gave His back to be scourged by the Roman soldiers. He gave His cheeks to have His beard plucked out. He gave His face to be buffeted with fists, spit upon and scorned. Yet, He spoke not a word of complaint and looked not away “like a sheep led to the slaughter” (Acts 8:32). Jesus suffered for our sins just as the Scriptures foretold. He fulfilled over 300 prophetic Scriptures concerning the Messiah in every detail. Jesus is the One who “gave Himself for our sins” (Gal. 1:4).
September 25, 2017
The Lord speaks. He has revealed Himself to us, not only through the evidence of creation, but also through communication through His prophets, like Isaiah. He declares His works, His plans and His character to us.
What can we learn from God’s revelation?
– The LORD (“Yahweh”) is the only God.
– The LORD created the heavens and the earth.
– The LORD established perfect conditions for life on earth.
– The LORD did not create in vain. His purposes will be
fulfilled.
– The LORD formed the earth as humanity’s home.
– The LORD desires recognition from His creatures that He
is the only true God and Creator.
Let us worship the LORD today! Let us shout, “LORD, You are God and there is no other!”
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 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).