“Thus says the LORD: ‘Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed.’” Isaiah 56:1 The message within Isaiah 56 and 57 talks of two groups of people, those who set their hearts toward God and those who set their hearts away from God. The message proclaimed is one of urgency, devotion, and dependence. The time is drawing near when God will collect all those who have trusted, hoped, and believed in His Son, Jesus Christ. Where have you set your heart? Are you resting steadfast upon the promises of God or have you decided that your life is your own kingdom to be conquered? There is hope for everyone. No matter where you find your hearts devotion you can turn and trust in God alone for your hope. Continue Reading…
Urgency and devotion of the hearts desire: Isaiah 56 and 57
Completely incomplete apart from God: Isaiah 54 and 55
I love how Scripture is poignantly intentional to hit at the heart of the human condition. God designed us to be complete but when we allowed sin to entice and separate us from Him we became completely incomplete. We are all craving acceptance and identity and more often we define ourselves by what we do not have. I am not married, successful, loved, rich, or happy. What does God tell those who are lacking and incomplete? “‘Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married,’ says the LORD.” Isaiah 54:1 God desires those who are incomplete to celebrate and sing for joy. Why is that? How can we sing for joy in the midst of our despair? Continue Reading…
Despised, rejected, oppressed, and crushed for you: Isaiah 52 and 53
Such beauty seen from the grandstand of life is seldom beheld as is seen in Isaiah chapters 52 and 53. We read the beautiful foreshadowing of our present day Hope and Faith. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’ The voice of your watchmen-they lift up their voice; together they sing for joy; for eye to eye they see the return of the LORD to Zion.” Isaiah 52:7,8 Within the pages of Isaiah we are given a picture of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Did the audience who received these worst realize how precious and beautiful these words of God truly were? ”Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted.” Isaiah 52:13 Continue Reading…
You are the image of the Immortal God: Isaiah 50 and 51
Who are you? More precisely put, what defines you? Is identity defined by what we do, what we know, or what we posses? Is our identity fixed and defined from birth depending on our parents? Can identity change? “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him. For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.” Isaiah 51:1-3 Can clearly say that you are defined by God and His redemptive process at work in your life? Continue Reading…
Will you abdicate the throne of life to the True King: Isaiah 48 and 49
What can be learned of God? As we look upon the interaction between God and his creation throughout scripture we start to glimpse how perfect God is and the completely dysfunctionality of mankind. We easily align ourselves in complete allegiance to God but do we truly live as a child of God? “Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and who came from the waters of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD and confess the God of Israel, but not in truth or right. For they call themselves after the holy city, and stay themselves on the God of Israel; the LORD of hosts is his name.” Isaiah 48:1,2 Have we progressed to a point where we only view our faith and religious endevours as chic, trendy, fashion? What percentage of people claim to be religious because they attend church once a year or because they feel in tune with themselves or nature? Continue Reading…
Escape the weariness of life and find hope for tomorrow: Isaiah 46 and 47
What is pride? How does it dwell in your life? The weariness of life often times begs for some relief, any relief, a simple escape but our desire always eludes us. We often will think that if we could just have a little more prowess, luck, or even love we will finally be able to overcome the stress of life. Can anything in this life give us a lasting hope and pleasure? Is there any hope for us? “Now therefore hear this, you lover of pleasures, who sit securely, who say in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one besides me; I shall not sit as a widow or know the loss of children’: These two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day; the loss of children and widowhood shall come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the great power of your enchantments. You felt secure in your wickedness, you said, ‘No one sees me’; your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one besides me.’” Isaiah 47:8-10 We cannot afford to believe that we live in a world without God. We build up our fortresses and towers of rules, regulations, and ideologies but we cannot keep the living God outside of our walled existence. There is nothing that we should value more than God and His desire for our life. Continue Reading…
What idols have you carved to worship this week: Isaiah 44 and 45
What type of television do you have? Is it a real joy to watch movies on it? I love to think about buying a new car. What car is the best one to own? “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me” Isaiah 45:5 Do you enjoy drinking alcohol, what type of drink to you prefer? I love the feel of a tailored shirt. It feels great to have something that fits just right. ”Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.” Isaiah 45:22 I long for a wife. Do you long to be married,to have children or grandchildren? I have become more physically fit by working out a lot. Do you love to workout too? ”For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): ‘I am the LORD, and there is no other. I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right. ’Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save.’” Isaiah 45:18-20 Continue Reading…
Trust in God who declared you worthy: Isaiah 42 and 43
Do you know God? Do you trust God implicitly? Listen to the words of Isaiah and think about the quality of the relationship with God that we must desire. “And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them. They are turned back and utterly put to shame, who trust in carved idols, who say to metal images, ‘You are our gods.’” Isaiah 42:16,17 Our relationship with God is marked by complete and total trust and dependance. Continue Reading…
