If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
SEPTEMBER 25
We have a special day today. We will meet some passages regarding our
Lord and His working to reach the world. In Ephesians we are entering the
practical half of the letter, and again, some famous verses. You may not feel
it, but the Lord is using all of this to strengthen and renew your heart as you
follow Christ in the harvest.
Isaiah 45:11-48:11
By now you are noticing again and again how often God repeats that He
is the Creator, and the One who declares things from long ago. This is set in
contrast to idols and those who make them and depend on them. Over and over
again God declares Himself to be the only Savior for mankind and the gracious
forgiving God of Israel.
Vs. 11-13 This seems to be talking about Cyrus as a representative of
the Persian Empire. As a result of Daniel, God moved Cyrus to send the people
back to rebuild the temple; but the city wasn't rebuilt until Artaxerxes sent
Nehemiah years later. The focus here isn't Cyrus or Persia; it is the Holy One
of Israel who stretched out the heavens and moved nations. It mentions that God
stirred him up in righteousness. If you look at how God worked with Pharaoh and
with Nebuchadnezzar, you see that the only difference was how the two men
responded to God. Everything that God did to Nebuchadnezzar became a lesson to
the young Persian prince, Cyrus.
V. 14 What a long verse. The blessing here seems to be people coming to
Israel to seek God.
Vs. 15-19 It is interesting that it says God hides Himself, yet He is a
savior. In v. 19 He says that He didn't speak in secret. The point is that God
needs to be sought in a spirit of truth and sincerity. God remains dark to
those who really don't want Him. There is so much in these verses.
Vs. 20-25 This looks like a call to the entire earth to come to God for
salvation. These are incredible verses. Notice how God mentions again that He
has been saying all of this from the beginning. Since the earliest parts of the
Bible were written down by Moses, it is safe to say that mankind has had a
written record of God's words for most of recorded history. That would mean we
are without excuse. The words are there to be read and believed.
V. 23 This is a rather famous verse in the NT. Every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess, regardless of
race, language or religion. Because there is only one God, there is no religion
other than knowing God through Jesus Christ. These verses in Isaiah are good
evidence, if anyone should need it, that there is one God and there is only one
way to come to Him.
Isaiah 46
Vs. 1-2 This is judgment on Babylon for their idolatry. Notice the
irony of having to have their livestock haul their idols. Their idolatry made
Israel sick of its own. Just for trivia, these two names of their gods will
come up again. Bel we'll see in the
renaming of Daniel to Belteshazzar. Nebo
we have already seen in Nebuchadnezzar.
Vs. 3-7 God calls Israel to listen to Him regarding the madness of
making idols. Notice how tender vs. 3-4 are. God has borne them and promises to
keep bearing them.
Vs. 8-11 God tells them to remember the words of prophecy He spoke and
how He determined events. Ironically, the people who went into exile would have
been reading these very words, over a hundred years later, as the events were
happening to them; and they still didn't believe.
Vs. 12-13 God tells them to listen,
for as surely as all this other stuff has happened, God will put salvation in
Zion. This blessing is for the Millennium.
Isaiah 47
Vs. 1-7 Now God pronounces judgment on Babylon for its pride and
comfort. Nebuchadnezzar was humbled by God, but the other Babylonian kings had
no regard for God.
V. 4 Even though the people were in exile, they still had a strong Redeemer
who was working for them.
V. 7 You could make a case that Nebuchadnezzar "laid to
heart" the position he was in as God's sword to punish Judah and
Jerusalem. The kings who followed Nebuchadnezzar did not have this respect for
God or Israel. In fact, look at what happens in Daniel 5. The entire judgment
on Belshazzar was that he should have known better and should have "laid
to heart" what God had done to Nebuchadnezzar.
Vs. 8-11 Notice the alternating between vs. 8 and 10, and 9 and 11.
Verses 8 and 10 talk about how indestructible the people felt. Verses 9 and 11
talk about their dependence on sorcery and enchantment.
V. 9 It happened to the city on one day, in a few hours one night. This
is Daniel 5.
Vs. 12-15 Being seated in the city of Nimrod, the Babylonians thought
they were strong because of spiritual power. In Daniel 2 when Nebuchadnezzar
couldn't get the wise men, magicians and enchanters to figure out his dream, he
was shaken. He depended on their power. The same would be true of Belshazzar on
the night the Babylonian Empire fell. The wise men couldn't help so he had to
call Daniel.
Isaiah 48:1-11
Vs. 1-2 God is rebuking Israel for calling themselves by God's name,
but not being faithful to follow Him and live for His glory.
Vs. 3-8 Again, God uses prophecy to defeat their idols and their pride.
Vs. 9-11 Yet for His glory and for His name's sake, God will save
Israel and obtain glory through them.
It is interesting that in Daniel's prayer in Daniel 9, he pleads with
God at the end to answer the prayer for His own name's sake; because the people
are called by His name. I wonder if Daniel read this portion of Isaiah.
This morning I read where Jesus said in John 7:18, The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the
one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no
falsehood. Jesus was speaking about Himself, living to give glory to His
Father. Jesus said that He has given His glory to His followers so that we may
be one with our Lord and the Father. Clearly, we are to walk and work in the
harvest, reflecting His glory as we reach out and make disciples, who make
disciples.
Ephesians 4:1-16
This chapter has the blueprint of church ministry in the harvest.
Vs. 1-3 This is what Paul wanted to say at the beginning of chapter 3.
The church can't bring the message of redemption if they can't work together.
Living worthy of our calling is the same as living to bring glory to Christ for
what He has done for us.
Vs. 4-6 The unity of the church is found in all of these factors.
Vs. 7-10 Once again, the issue of gifts rises. God gives the gifts. We
don't choose them. Paul seems to be mentioning gifts, because they caused some
disunity here as they did in Corinth. Notice how Paul ties the giving of the
gifts to the victory of Christ and our redemption. My observation is that if
each person isn't deeply in love with Christ for their salvation, and if the
church is not primarily focused on being in their local harvest, either the
gifts become irrelevant in that church, or they become a point of fighting and
envy. The church unites in the love of Christ to work in the harvest, and then
the tools make sense.
V. 8 Look at Psalm 68:18 from yesterday's reading. Pretty cool, huh?
Vs. 11-16 The gifts of these leaders are to be used to equip the
church, making it ready for use, like mending a fishing net, so it can catch
stuff.
Mentioned is the equipping for
the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ. In a couple of
verses this building will be described as makes
the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. This is both bringing in
from the harvest and making disciples, who make disciples. In this entire
process the leaders are bringing the group to maturity in Christ. This also has
a protective function in the church and in preserving the truth for the next
generation. In this maturity and unity in Christ, the church works as a team,
each part doing its job without rivalry or envy, working toward the harvest.
This is taking the love of Christ to their area, bearing fruit that brings
bodily growth and strengthening themselves in the love of Christ.
Notice too that bringing the church to maturity is unity in the faith
and knowledge of Jesus. Unified in Jesus we imitate Jesus and follow Him in the
harvest. The winds of doctrine and lies keep us from growing in Him, keep us
from unity, and make us unable to bear fruit in the harvest. Churches that do
not bear fruit, regardless of their reasons, have usually gotten off on some
point of doctrine or practice that has neutralized them.
Psalm 68:19-35
I know it says that this was written by David, but it sure has a
"post exile" ring to it. During the time of the Judges to David,
Israel fell prey to its enemies. It was not a respected nation and people were
captured and taken as slaves. That might be a possible explanation for v. 22.
Vs. 19-23 As David was beginning to rescue the nation as their new
king, he could assure them of God's help and salvation, because he, himself,
had been experiencing that salvation and help every day for the past 10 years.
Vs. 24-27 In David leading the people, he led them to the Lord and led
them in worship. Significant here is the mention of Benjamin. This was important
because Saul had been from the tribe of Benjamin. When the nation split, Judah
and Benjamin remained together as one nation. Also, Zebulun and Naphtali would
have been the northernmost tribes. For me it is interesting because this area
is where the "Son of David," Jesus, was raised. When he began His
ministry, these tribes saw a great light.
Vs. 28-31 It seems that David was looking forward to the day when there
would be a temple at Jerusalem, where
all the nations would come to honor God. In Psalm 27, David refers to the
tabernacle as the pavilion, sanctuary and temple.
Vs. 32-35 David, as usual, is giving testimony to the nations and
praising God. During David's years people came to Jerusalem to seek God because
of the grace poured on David and the people. In the future there will be
another call to the nations of the earth to sing praises to God. That will
happen someday, and in the meantime, we're working in the harvest until we hear
the dinner bell.
Proverbs 24:3-4
It is amazing how many people begin marriage and a life together
without having a goal or a plan. God is better than a plan. He is someone who
guides us daily in His Word and gives our lives a goal and a purpose bigger
than marriage that draws two people together.
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are 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, that is, 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 and important discipleship manual we have and it is the 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, or whom we are to be following. 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, as disciples, 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, making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular
One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die
Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the
ESV Bible.
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. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both
historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background,
theological training and my personal study.
I'm doing
this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that will
keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are reading. Remember,
the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a supplement, a disciple’s
commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we will keep following our
Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make
disciples. Being in the Word every day,
sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the essential essence of
being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of
Good News Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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