SEPTEMBER 27
Today's
reading has two very important sections of the Bible. When we realize that God
has crafted His Word to strengthen and lead us, we realize how He loves us.
Being able to be in His Word every day is a privilege we don't deserve, and yet
we can enjoy it if we want to. Jesus promised to speak to us in John
16:12-15, I still have many things to say
to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth,
for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will
speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14He will glorify me, for he will take what is
mine and declare it to you. 15All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take
what is mine and declare it to you. Time to have a talk.
Isaiah
51-53
When we read this section today, it is easy
to see how the people in Jesus' day thought the Messiah would bring the kingdom
and eternal deliverance at His first coming. They didn't understand that the
purpose of His first coming was to present Himself as an offering for sin. They
didn't understand the Scriptures, that they would reject Him. They didn't see
the church age, but then no one did. The church was hidden.
We will read today that God will deliver the
people by the hand of the Messiah. There was a hint of that final deliverance
in their release from the Babylonian captivity, but the way this final
deliverance is described, it is certainly focused on the second advent of
Christ, when He comes to reign in Zion for a thousand years.
Isaiah 51
As you read this chapter circle the commands
to listen, look, and awake. Try to
understand what unique thing God is saying in each of these sections. There are
lots of words that are repeated.
Vs. 1-3 The people of promise are really from
the promise of Abraham. The law showed their inability without faith to follow
God. It revealed sin. They were born in the redemptive plan of God. Israel had
been barren because of their sin, but God would lead them to blessing as He
used them to fulfill their destiny.
Vs. 4-11 Notice the mentions of God's righteousness and His salvation. God will not only save and
bring people to Himself, but it will be done with righteousness. All of
mankind, bowing their knees before God, will have to admit to His justice and
righteousness. All those who are judged will know they deserve it. All those
who are saved will know that it was grace and that God did it righteously.
V. 5 Notice the mention of God's arms. When Mary praises God in Luke
1:51, she says, He has shown strength
with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
She and the Spirit clearly saw the coming of the Messiah in this show of power
and regard for the weak.
V. 11 In Isaiah, there has been a continual
focus on Zion.
Vs. 12-16 This section seems to be God
declaring that it is He who comforts
the people. He says to Zion, “You are my
people.” This is interesting when you think that Jesus wept over Jerusalem.
The people were living in fear because they trusted in other things.
Vs. 15 and 16 are God's declaration of His
love and power to protect. This is a very tender reminder to the people that
God wants them to embrace Him. It speaks to me too.
Vs. 17-23 Here it seems, prophetically
speaking, judgment has been passed on Israel, and God again will redeem and
restore His people. Then, God will take the cup of judgment given to Israel and
pass it around to the nations who have oppressed Israel.
Isaiah 52
Vs. 1-6 Jerusalem is to rejoice in its
restoration from captivity. But v. 6 indicates there will be a future
recognition of the Lord. That would be when the Messiah comes and they truly
have God's law written on their hearts.
Vs. 7-10 This is definitely when Jesus comes
again to Jerusalem.
V. 10 is pretty cool. CNN will probably carry
this live. On a more serious note, Jesus doesn't say what the sign in the sky
will be that heralds His coming, but all nations will see it at the same time,
and they will mourn. Everyone will know that Jesus is the Messiah and God has
come to set up His kingdom. Israel will not mourn, and Jerusalem will be a very
exciting place to be.
Vs. 11-12 This is safety for those who trust
God in those final hours before the Messiah comes.
Vs. 13-15 When the world sees the Messiah
come, there will be some surprises and some shut mouths. I wonder what the ACLU
and those voices for religious pluralism and tolerance will say.
Isaiah 53
These verses answer the shock of the past few
verses. They should have believed but didn't. This chapter is spoken from the
perspective of Israel, the failed servant, speaking in repentance about its
Lord, the Suffering Servant and Savior of man. At the end, the voice is from
the Father.
This isn't "law," but I would
suggest that every serious disciple memorize this chapter. I wish I had done it
earlier in my walk with the Lord. I have a feeling that this chapter will be
very important to the Jews in the Tribulation.
V. 1 The initial question is regarding who has believed and why they should
have believed.
V. 2 There was a contrast. Those who sought
the Lord saw Him. For the others, Jesus had as much desirability as looking at
a root of a tree exposed above the surface of the ground. That is still true
today.
V. 3 Humanly speaking, Jesus was a jobless
man from a poor background with nothing going for Him.
V. 4 Some may have sensed that He was bearing
our sin, but it looked like He was having a lot of bad luck, like God was
against Him.
V. 5 But the reality was this.
V. 6 This is their confession of sin.
V. 7 This was
true at His death, and even when you read what Jesus said in conflict with the
Pharisees, He could have said so much more. I was reading today when Jesus told
Peter He could have asked the Father for 12 legions (12,000) of angels, but His
thought was for us. He said to Peter in John 18:11, Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has
given me? Matthew 26:54 says, But how
then should the Scriptures be fulfilled,
that it must be so? Being quiet was important and it took commitment
and strength.
V. 8 At the point of Jesus' death, not even
His disciples understood.
V. 9 Jesus was killed with two thieves; and
Joseph of Arimathea, a rich man,
placed Jesus' body in his own tomb.
V. 10 This is the Servant as commissioned by
the Father. Notice that Jesus not only had to submit, but also had to actively
make Himself an offering for sin. And
look what happened after He did this.
V. 11 I like the RSV here; He shall see the fruit of the travail of His
soul and be satisfied. By His knowledge of God's plan He obeyed and we are
saved. As His disciples we have this knowledge too. Do we live by it?
V. 12 As a man, Jesus is the greatest man who
ever lived. No one has ever accomplished for mankind what Jesus has.
Notice that He (Jesus) shall divide the spoil with the strong. I associate this sharing
of spoil not as giving eternal life to believers, but in the harvest, sharing
richly with those who labor with Him. You see this in Ephesians 4:8. Jesus also
said to His disciples, the one who
endures to the end will be saved. (Matt. 10:22, 24:13) In that context,
being "saved" isn't salvation, it is preservation from damage. A
person who endures will maintain a clear attitude of faith. It is no news to us
that trouble is coming. In the song that Paul quoted to Timothy in 2 Timothy
2:11-12, he says, If we have died with
Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure, we will also reign with Him.
I think there is a special sharing of strength and blessing with those who are
working strongly in the harvest with Him.
Ephesians
5
Vs. 1-2 This is like striking the tuning fork
to focus us again on the correct tone. That tone is the love of Christ and the
example of Jesus for the church. It is interesting that we just read Isaiah 53.
Vs. 3-6 Our lives are to be different,
following the example of Christ. This is a dying world with all sorts of people
being deceived and needing the truth. The church in the harvest shouldn't treat
this stuff lightly within her walls. We should extend forgiveness, but as
disciples we need to be focused on our Lord and the harvest.
Vs. 7-14 Living our lives for Christ in the
harvest, connecting with people near us, will cast enough light to be used by
God in His purpose for us. But, we need to live for Christ. We need to allow
His change in us, following Him and praising Him, to make us distinctly His. If
we lie and complain and do what everyone else does, what good is that? Jesus
told His disciples to be salt and light. If you read those commands by Jesus in
Matthew 5, you see that they are very strongly stated.
Vs. 15-21 This is the nature of our walk with
Christ.
Notice that we are to be alert, walking like
a super spy, observing everything. That is why this is linked to not being
foolish (walking unaware) but instead understanding what the will of the Lord is. This is like in John 5, where Jesus
observed what the Father was doing and did it. We are to walk observantly and
expectantly, knowing that the Lord is around us working; and once observed, we
should join in.
Vs. 19-21 This sounds like a worship service,
but this is still our walk. So, how do you define being filled with the Spirit?
Here it is:
·
Addressing one another to strengthen and build each other up for
our walk as disciples.
·
Having
our lives focused in the reality of our salvation (chapters 1-3), as we walk in
the harvest.
·
Always
and for everything, giving thanks.
·
Submitting to one another (in accordance with Christ) out of reverence for Christ.
Vs. 22-33 It is funny, that when God points
to us being salt and light, following the Spirit, He addresses marriage first.
Vs. 22-24 I didn't write this, but it is
still in force.
Vs. 25-33 Husbands are to love their wives in
two ways -
Vs. 25-27 First, by showing the love and
leadership of Christ to their wives. This is a test of a man's understanding of
this spiritual truth. If you know how Christ loved the church, it will be
visible in your marriage.
This section says that Christ sanctified the
church by the washing with the Word. So how does a husband imitate this with
his wife. I would say that it is by him being connected to God, and in the Word
daily himself, and then sharing what the Lord says to him with his wife. Many
women suffer from franticness and insecurity, and it is the husband's
responsibility to share the comfort of the Word with his wife. It is sort of
like washing her feet, to take away the dust of the day.
Vs. 28-33 Second, husbands are to love their
wives by showing their understanding of the physical and spiritual unity of man
and woman, which reflects the unity of Christ and the church. There is
something extremely spiritual about the bond of a man and a woman, and if a man
ignores this, he ignores it to his own harm.
The marriage relationship is not only salt
and light in a dying world, but I think too, it comes under the command to be
very careful how we walk on this dying planet as we follow Christ in the
harvest.
Psalm
69:19-36
It really is interesting to read this psalm
and to also be reading about the Messiah in Isaiah. I know this was written by
David and he experienced all of this; but having read Isaiah 53, and knowing
that the psalm has application to Jesus, it is easy to see how it reflects what
Jesus suffered for us.
Vs. 19-20 I was just reading today how Jesus
asked the disciples to watch with Him, but they fell asleep. Finally the Father
sent an angel to strengthen Jesus during that moment when He was praying in
agony and sweating like a dying man.
V. 21 is quoted when they offered Jesus
vinegar on the cross to keep Him alive long enough to see if Elijah would come
and rescue Him.
Vs. 22-23 are quoted by Paul in Romans 11:10,
describing God's judgment on Israel for their self-imposed blindness and
rebellion.
Vs. 24-28 Although many were saved after
Jesus' resurrection, the nation of Israel, its leaders and people, were judged
by what they did to Jesus. This happened in 70 A.D., as the Romans destroyed
the temple and the city.
V. 26 Think of this in terms of what you just
read in Isaiah 53.
Vs. 29-36 These are not only the blessings on
the Messiah for giving Himself, but the redeemed will share this blessing with
Him in Zion.
And it all works together in praise to God.
Proverbs
24:7
In
the gate is referring to the
place of the judges and the elders of the people. It is not that the fool is
suddenly wise and knows to keep his mouth closed; it is that he is not invited
in, to give his "wisdom." Because it mentions the "gates"
here, I automatically think of the elders of a church. There is some wisdom
necessary and some dues to be paid in order to lead a church to work in the
harvest, making disciples, who make disciples. Too many of the wrong men are
often invited into the gates, having neither reaped nor sown in the harvest. They
have made no disciples, and therefore, really have nothing to model or say,
regarding the church and its mission of making disciples.
If you’re reading along
and don’t have a One Year Bible, click on this link http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/every-day-in-the-word/. If that doesn't work, go to http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/ and click on “Every Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these
comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in
growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see
the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting
weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make
disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we
have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused
on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to
provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of
redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us
focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in
these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others
to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making
disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a
complete description of this model of being and making disciples you can find
it in my book: Simply Disciples*Making Disciples.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011WJIDQA?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
If you would like a more
descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the
Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is the
commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never
hurts.
I am not endorsing any
particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte
Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with
us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their
own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular
tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to
criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has
written to us, as I understand it. Send comments or feedback to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
If you would like
documents containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes. You can download these to use on your computer or to
print.
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