SEPTEMBER 20
Isaiah
33:13-36:22
Today we have read more than half of Isaiah. Not only that, we are
coming to the close of the first half of the book. These first 39 chapters deal
with the coming attack by Assyria and how God would protect Zion. The Assyrians
will be defeated tomorrow. The second part of Isaiah has to do with the coming
of the Babylonians. They will eventually destroy Jerusalem and the temple. Through
Isaiah, the Lord will be talking about this judgment of Israel. He will tell of
the reasons for the judgment and how He will restore His people. That
restoration will not only be at the end of the Babylonian exile, but Isaiah
will look ahead to the final restoration when the Lord brings Israel back to
Zion in the millennial, and eternal, kingdom of the Messiah.
Isaiah 33:13-24
V. 13 So, the day the people have been
fearing for years is coming. Some have trusted the Lord; some have trusted
political strategy, and some have been burning incense secretly and praying to
a piece of wood coated with gold or silver.
V. 14 Guess which group this is? Notice the
use of who. Who will be answered in the next verses.
Vs. 15-24 This is the blessing and these are
the promises for those who fear and trust the Lord, now and in the future in
Zion.
V. 23 This is an image of a wrecked ship, a
picture of the Assyrian army after God takes care of them.
V. 24 These are the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
looking to the near deliverance and to the future and final deliverance.
Isaiah 34
This is apocalyptic imagery regarding the
final battle and flows into an eternal punishment. It is also a warning to the
surrounding nations that might rejoice over the hardship of God's people and
the destruction of Jerusalem.
Vs. 1-4 Notice how this points to the end
times.
Vs. 5-17 So why this curse against Edom? I
believe it is a future warning, both for Edom in the not-so-distant future and
for all the nations present at the time of the Tribulation.
Zion would not be overthrown now, but it
would in about 100 years. This was fair warning to Edom. After Nebuchadnezzar
destroyed the city and the temple, after the smoke cleared, the Edomites went
up on the temple mount and held a drunken celebration. There was more, but this
was the main stroke. The book of Obadiah (only 21 verses) and a chapter of
Jeremiah are devoted to this future judgment of Edom. When you get to the book
of Malachi, these actions by Edom are the explanation of Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. God put both nations into exile
because of their sins. Edom's sin was what they did in God's city. Jacob was
loved, in that Israel returned and Jerusalem was restored. Esau was hated, in
that the Edomites never returned and they ceased to be a people. Now imagine,
those actions and judgments are still over 100 years away. You can't say they
didn't see it coming. Regardless of how God judges His own, He still loves His
people and His city and they will become a stumbling block for all nations who mistreat
them.
Anyone who
has ever visited Petra has seen that what God foretold has come to be. If Edom says, "We are shattered
but we will rebuild the ruins," the LORD of hosts says, "They may
build, but I will tear down, and they will be called ‘the wicked country,’ and
‘the people with whom the LORD is angry forever.’" (Malachi
1:4)
Vs. 16-17 are the restoration of Zion. You'll
see this if you look at the end of Obadiah, v. 21.
Isaiah 35
This is a chapter of millennial blessing as
God restores His people and Zion.
Vs. 1-2 This is the declaration of hope.
Vs. 3-4 Based on the hope that is promised,
the people should be strengthened and be without fear. Notice how similar this
is to Hebrews 12:12.
Vs. 5-7 I
guess this is the blessing of health to the people and to the land. Notice how
vs. 5-6 sound like Jesus' ministry as the Messiah. And
he answered them, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed,
and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to
them." (Luke 7:22)
Vs. 8-10 The way of return to the Lord will
be holy and safe, and the saints will be singing.
This ends the prophetic section of how God
prepared the people and the city for the attack from Assyria.
Isaiah 36
This is the third time this event is
mentioned. It must have been very important.
Vs. 1-3 Back in Isaiah 22:15-25, God spoke
about both Shebna and Eliakim. One was a practical, political animal and the
other was a man of God. The heart of Shebna is described in Isaiah 33:14. Eliakim
is described in Isaiah 33:15-24.
Vs. 4-10 When I read these words of the
Rabshakeh (officer), I can hear in the background Satan shaking Eve's
confidence and trust in God. This is why we always need to stay in the Word and
allow God and His love in Christ to be enough for us. Remember that last line
of the Lord's Prayer, And lead us not
into temptation, but deliver us from evil (NIV - the evil one). Since we
never hear what this guy's name was, maybe he was inspired by Satan.
Vs. 8-9 Notice his boasting of the Assyrian
army. God would strike him in this area of his pride.
Vs. 11-12 It is interesting that this guy
spoke Hebrew. It is also interesting that he is offering the people a culinary
choice between this and what he offers in vs. 16-17.
Vs. 13-20 The attack on Hezekiah and God is
very strong and must have been emotionally overwhelming.
Vs. 21-22 It is amazing that the people
obeyed Hezekiah. God was right. For
thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, "In returning and rest you
shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength." (Is.
30:15)
As disciples
we will eventually be called on to hear this kind of strong antagonism and
arrogance. Our strength is not in having a good answer; it is in the Lord and
His Word. These things I have spoken to
you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy
may be full. (John 15:11)
Galatians
5:13-26
In Paul's letters he frequently had to
address two extremes. We find some mention of both of these extremes in
Galatians. We've already seen Christians becoming enslaved to religious works
to gain discipline, guidance, approval, love and favor from God. The other
extreme was to misuse their freedom in Christ. We saw this very clearly in 1
Corinthians. The Jewish teachers were trying to correct this "misuse"
of grace by moving people back to the law. The false argument against grace was
that if God's love was totally unconditional, you could do whatever you liked
and still be forgiven. And apparently then, as today, some of the Galatians
allowed their conduct to slip, using grace and forgiveness as a "get out
of jail free" card. The real response to the freedom of grace and love is
the freedom to be grateful and lovingly obedient in following the Spirit.
Vs. 13-15 The
key "directive" here is to love. Knowing the love of Christ, our
primary response is to love God and our neighbor and use that love in following the Great
Commission. In dealing with some who were trying to bring the law into the
rebuilding of the church at Ephesus, Paul told Timothy in 1
Timothy 1:5 (RSV), "…whereas (in
contrast to them) the aim of our charge is love
that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and sincere faith."
Vs. 16-26 The phrase, walk by the Spirit, is the key to life as a Christian. We can
understand following the impulses of the flesh, but what are the impulses of
the Spirit? Walking by the Spirit is what we don't sense. It is not the same as
walking by the thoughts of your head, just like following sinful desires isn't
necessarily following your head. The sense of impulse and leading is important.
We are pros at the one and very "kindergarten" regarding sensing or
following the Spirit. Freedom in grace means following Christ and being able to
respond to the Spirit in every situation. If we are exposing ourselves to the
Word to learn the mind and heart of God, we have the maturity to ask Him to
direct us and show us what He is doing. We don't have to live by following
religious rules. Since Christ is in us, we follow Him as He leads. Jesus
followed the Spirit as He led Him every day. Jesus didn't live guided by works
or a religious routine. That isn't how we should walk in Christ either. We are
free to know Him, surrender our hearts to seek Him and follow as the Spirit
leads.
Psalm
64
Reading this I was caught by the opening
requests to God: Hear my voice, preserve
my life, and hide me. I guess
that sums up what I need most days.
Vs. 1-6 This is a fairly long complaint at
the beginning of this psalm. Apparently David was moved by the relentlessness
of these people, thinking that God would not see.
Vs. 7-8 I was reminded of what Paul told the
Romans in 12:19-21. Let God take care of it.
Vs. 9-10 David was already saying this before
God had delivered him. He knew that God would judge in His time. For us, as
disciples, we need to wait, but still be doing what Paul suggested in those
verses in Romans.
Proverbs
23:23
It is interesting that we expect this stuff
to just come to us as a consolation prize or byproduct of life. God is saying
to make it our aim, and everything else becomes the consolation prize.
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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