Isaiah 1:1-6

I've mentioned on my Facebook account that our family is engaged in a study of Isaiah so I am going to post here the contributions that I am making to the study. The members of the study are pretty spread out, with some of us here in Idaho and some over in the state of Washington so our study is taking place through old fashioned mail! Anyhow, here are the notes for the first few verses!


Tidbits about Isaiah:
 Isaiah prophesized for 40 years
 Tradition states that Isaiah was martyred in 687 BC by being cut in two by a wooden saw.
 Isaiah was a prophet during the division of Israel, with Israel in the north and Judah in the South…
 Isaiah is longest book of prophecy
 In the NT, Isaiah is quoted more often than all of the other OT books except the Psalms

On prophets:
We all know that prophets communicated the words of God to His people, and there are those today who think we still have prophets in our midst. John Calvin provides a good description of what a prophet did…a status by which we may judge those who come to us today claiming to hold to this office.

He referred to prophets as commentators of the Law; “[t]hus when the Prophets inculcate moral duties, they bring forward nothing new, but only explain those parts of the Law which had been misunderstood. For instance, the people thought that they had discharged their duty admirably, when they offered sacrifices and performed the outward services of religion; for the world measures God by its own standard, and renders to him a carnal and counterfeited worship. The Prophets sharply reprove this, and show that all ceremonies are of no avail, when sincerity of heart is wanting, and that God is worshipped by believing on him, and by actually calling on his name. This had indeed been plainly enough declared by the Law; but it was necessary that it should be earnestly inculcated and frequently brought to their remembrance, and likewise that there should be an exposure of that hypocrisy with which men cloak themselves under the guise of ceremonies.”

Calvin goes on to say that “what Moses had stated in general terms they [the prophets] minutely describe. They have likewise visions which peculiarly belong to them, by which the Lord revealed future events, in order to apply the promises and threatenings to the use of the people, and to declare more fully the will of God.”

Read Isaiah 1:1-6

Isaiah was the son of a man named Amoz, and we read in the first verse that his prophecies were given throughout the reign of four different kings of Judah, the Southern Kingdom, finally being killed by a fifth King, Manasseh.

The people of Judah, Israel, have been God’s own special people. Ever since He called out Abram from Ur, they have been a group called out to bear special witness of His nature, both His mercy and His wrath.

Indeed, note the sad quality of verses 2-3

God nourished Israel…He brought them up and cared for them as his special people, His very own children. But have they been faithful to Him? Have they appreciated the care with which He has protected them? No. God says that even an animal can show appreciation towards a master, yet His very own people do not understand Him.

The entire earth is in rebellion against God, yet His concern is that Israel is not obedient…likewise God today desires that His people walk in complete obedience to His Word, and despite the fact that the whole world is a moral cesspool, it is the disobedience of His elect that grieves our Lord. That the elect can sin and remain elect is a testimony to God’s mercy and to His love for if He did not have a special love for us, He would quickly damn us to hell.

And consider just how terrible Israel is that God calls it a sinful nation, laden with iniquity. The word “laden” is the Hebrew ka^be^d (kaw-bade'), which means “heavy.” John Gill comments that it brings forth the imagery of a beast of burden carrying a heavy load. The big difference being that Israel has placed this load on itself and refuses to unload it!

Next, the Lord calls them “a brood of evildoers.” We have to understand this: our sin is not simply something “bad” that we do. It is evil. But let’s be honest…we don’t really look at it this way, do we?

If we did, do you think we would be so quick to lose our tempers? So eager to expose our eyes to images we should avoid?

All of the urges we face, all of the temptations we encounter…they would lose so much of their power if we would do a couple of things: 1) Read our Bibles, and 2) Believe that what we read is true. Not just give it mental assent, but make it a part of us. It is sad to ponder, don’t you think, how terribly we must grieve the Spirit that lives within us?

When you think of a child, what do you think? Innocence? Vulnerability?

Imagine, then, the horror of a child that is evil, and that causes others to do evil. Yet this is what God likens Israel to. They have forsaken God, and by their sin they have aroused God to anger. The Holy One of Israel is now angry at a backsliding Israel!

What about the elect today? Are we children who corrupt? Do we masquerade as lovers of the Word and prostitute ourselves with the world? A world that does not honor our Father? Yet how can we expect the Father to be honored by the world when the children don’t honor Him?

Look now at verses 5 & 6)

“Why should you be stricken again? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints”

The Lord brings correction to those who are His…many times He has indeed stricken Israel and brought them back to Himself, causing them to repent of their rebellion against Him. Yet here He asks…“why?”

In other words…”what’s the point?”

Not one of us here today should fail to be condemned…struck in our very souls, as we read these words to Israel and consider whether they could be applied to ourselves!

God is a loving Father who chastises His children when they err, because He loves them! Now imagine His frustration…imagine the rebellion it must take for Him to say, “yeah I would discipline you, but you’ll only do it again!”

What a rebuke!

Here the object of this rebuke is Israel, but do not think for one minute that we are exempt! Let us make sure we walk in the path of obedience, let us encourage and exhort those around us to do likewise, that our God will be pleased with us. And if we should fall into sin, let us express sorrowful repentance that our God will discipline us for His sake, for our good.

“From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; they have not been closed or bound up, or soothed with ointment.”

God, speaking through His prophet Isaiah, continues to compare Israel to a sickened body. The body that is Israel is filled with illness…the virus has taken over the entire body!

(I'll post the next few verses another day!)

The Word of God

We have not had the sword tag group out in awhile but today, on Christmas Eve day, we are hosting the group. I think we are expecting about 7 or 8 teens but I'm not sure how many will actually show up. The following is a little study I wrote up this morning...though really it is more of a directed conversation! :-) I'm hoping it will spark discusssion and further research on the part of these young men.

Here is the study (I will post a p.s. later today!):
__________________________________________

The Word of God

December 24, 2009

Ask: What is the Bible?

It is a collection of books written by men who were inspired by the Holy Spirit, therefore the very Word of God.

Two key passages that substantiate this are 2 Timothy 3:16-17 & 2 Peter 1:16-21

R.C. Sproul writes that it is a fallible collection of infallible books…what does this mean?

• Every book in the Bible is infallible (meaning incapable of error)
• The order of the Bible itself is not infallible, but the content of the books themselves only

The Bible is not a textbook for history or science, but when it speaks on such things it is correct. The purpose of the Word of God is specifically to communicate to man the plan of God and His desire for our lives. By it we are to order our lives and judge the things we do and the things we do not do (see 2 Peter 1:3)

As Christians, the Bible is the ultimate authority for things…we may use the writings of learned men to guide us and help us understand the Truth, but it is the Bible that we turn to in the end. No matter how godly, no matter how intelligent…if anyone tells us something contrary to what the Bible teaches, we are to turn away from them. Paul himself warned Believers of this thing in Galatians 1:6-9. We also hear from Jude that our faith, which is founded on the very words of God, was “once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

Finally, Jesus the Lord demands our obedience. He says in John 14:15 that if we love Him we are to keep His commandments. Such a command could not be given and then those commands hidden from us could they? No, of course not!

So this is a very basic overview of what the Bible is and what it means to us…it is an affirmation of the term sola Scriptura, one of the five solas of the Protestant Reformation:
• Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone)
• Sola Fide (Faith alone)
• Sola Gratia (Grace alone)
• Solus Christus (Christ alone)
• Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God alone)
Are there any questions?

Next time we meet we will discuss the question of how we can trust that the Bible is what it claims to be…or rather, what evidences exist to support our faith in the Word of God?

Close in prayer

UPDATE:

We had a total of seven boys today, the youngest about 12 and the oldest was, I think, 18. I had a great time being defeated by everybody! :-)

Ashamed of Christ?

"...what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels." - Luke 9:25-26

I hope somebody will soon point out these verses to our supposedly Christian president, Mr. Obama. It appears that the Obama family briefly considered doing without a nativity as a means of being sensitive to those of other faiths. See here for more on that.

Now I know there are many people who deny that we are a Christian nation, and I agree with this sentiment. We are NOT a nation that abides by the teachings of the Word of God. We are, however, a nation founded upon Christian principles and a nation where the majority of people at least give lip service to Almighty God. Only a revisionist would try to deny this (and a silly revisionist at that since it would require ignoring actual historical data!). As a nation founded upon such principles, I think it is silly for us to attempt to minimize any mention of Christianity in the public realm for fear of offending those who believe differently or those who are atheist (who possess their own form of faith as well). Trust me, if we travel to Muslim nations, Islamic teachings will not be obscured for fear of offending our delicate American sensibilities. If we travel to Latin America, Catholicism will be overwhelmingly in our faces! And yet, we in America are so afraid of offending others that we have set aside our own faith in order to appease those who immigrate to our country...forgetting that it is the duty of the one coming here to assimilate to our culture and not the other way around.

The point, however, is this: We have a man who professes to be a Christian as head of our nation (though based on the lack of fruit I question the sincerity of his faith). This man was more than willing to have a Ramadan dinner with Muslims IN the white house, yet in order to appease these very Muslims and all others, he is hesitant to display a nativity? Hmm...it's okay to celebrate the beliefs of others, but not our own? That is foolishness and political correctness run amock!

Saddest of all, however, is what this means for our President. He will one day stand before the Lord and will give an account for all that he had done, is doing, and will do. If he continues to deny the Lord he claims to believe in, then the reality is that he will not be recognized by the Lord of Lords on judgment day.

Let us pray that our President comes to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and that he bears fruit worhty of the Master.

A New Prayer for School

Over on Facebook one of my teen volunteers sent me this and I loved it so I decided to post it here.

I hope you like it as much as I did...and I hope you are troubled as much as I was!

___________________________

Since the Pledge of Allegiance and The Lord's Prayer are not allowed in most public schools anymore because the word "God" is mentioned a kid in Arizona wrote the attached NEW School prayer. I liked it.

Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule
For this great nation under God
Finds mention of Him very odd.

If Scripture now the class recites,
It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow
Becomes a Federal matter now.

Our hair can be purple, orange or green,
That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.
The law is specific, the law is precise.
Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall
Might offend someone with no faith at all.
In silence alone we must meditate,
God's name is prohibited by the state.

We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,
And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks.
They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.
To quote the Good Book makes me liable.

We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,
And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.
It's "inappropriate" to teach right from wrong,
We're taught that such "judgments" do not belong.

We can get our condoms and birth controls,
Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,
No word of God must reach this crowd.

It's scary here I must confess,
When chaos reigns the school's a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:
Should I be shot; My soul please take!

Amen

Freedom in Christ

The following is a brief summary regarding our study on 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 from last night at church:

- "All things are lawful for me" is a uniquely Christian statement in one important sense. All other religions prescribe rules which must be kept for a person to be saved. In God's system of salvation (the only true one) the opposite is true (Ephesians 2:8-9). The truth is that you are free from needing to keep religious laws in order to be saved or to stay saved. [this is directly from the handout the pastor gave us]

- Two heresies flow from a misunderstanding of this passage, antinomianism (using our Christian freedom to justify our sins) and legalism (adding rules to the Bible and imposing them on self and others). Our pastor is fond of stating that we need to obey what the Bible commands us to do and we need to abstain from what the Bible prohibits. Aside from this we are free in Christ to do as our conscience dictates. Again, aside from what is commanded or prohibited, the only limits we should have are the ones we impose on ourselves for the sake of our witness/testimony or out of love for the brethren.

Four rules by which we can judge the things we wish to do (or not do):
1. Does God's word forbid this thing? If not, you are free to do it

2. Is it profitable? In other words, will you be better off spiritually if you do this thing?

3. Has this thing become your master? A thing that is "lawful" should be put away if it keeps you from maturing in Christ. Two Christians may be able to do the same activity with different results. For one it may be joyful, but for the other it may lead to bondage

4. Does this thing edify? Is anyone being built up toward maturity in Christ because of this activity (I would add that we should ask if anyone is being tripped up by this activity as well!).
[This list of four questions is paraphrased in some places and in others I took it word for word from what the Pastor said in his handout...items in parentheses being the main exception]

For my own life, I can think of one main thing off the top of my head: food. I love to eat good food. I don't deny it. So while it is lawful for me to eat heartily, it is not profitable for me and I have allowed it to become my master.

When I think of the words of Paul in Romans 7:14-15 "For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do" I think immediately of my own struggles with what I eat. Now I know I am in some ways taking liberties here with the context of what Paul is saying, but permit me to do this for the simple reason that I am using the words and applying them to my experience and not saying this is exactly what they refer to. Anyhow, this indulgence of mine is a master in my life, therefore for me it is sin. So when I think of this passage in 1 Corinthians I know fully well that I am free to eat what I want...and even that I am at liberty to indulge in an excess of food for pleasure on occasion. BUT, since I have no control over my appetites in this area, then I need to repent when I eat more than I should. If I were truly eating enough only to sustain my body and maybe a little extra every now and then I would not be at the weight I find myself at right now.

Another area where I sometimes limit my freedom is in the movies I watch. This is not an area I struggle with since I don't very often watch movies and I prefer to read a good book. Where this comes into play, however, is in deciding what movie to watch. There are movies out there that I am curious to watch but have not watched because I think of how it might impact my witness. Our society has a certain expectation of what Christians should be like (even if they do mock us); and in my opinion the less different we are than they the less likely they are to listen to us. So while there are movies I don't believe would be sinful to watch, I don't watch them for the sake of maintaining my testimony. Does that make sense? I have similar feelings about alcohol. And notice that I don't say anyone else has to abstain from these things, only that for myself this is what I choose to do. I have the freedom to do either.

As an aside, what I do find interesting about this last point is how so many Christians become upset when I say I choose to abstain from things for the sake of my witness. They infer from this that I mean they too should do so. This is not the case. Whether they indulge or abstain from alcoholic beverages is between them and God. In my household, however, we do not drink alcohol, and while I certainly hope my children will always agree with me based on my reasoning, I don't think they will be less than faithful Christians if they choose to indulge. I will certainly be saddened, but they have the freedom to do as they wish (when they are of legal age of course). Drunkenness, of course, is a clear violation of the word of God and not at issue here.

God bless!

Hate Crimes

Just posting this quick link to an excellent article by Star Parker on the passage of the hate crimes law recently enacted:

You can read the whole article here but I want to quote the last couple of sentences:

"We already have a source, which instructs against murder and to love your neighbor as yourself.

But this has been banned from our schools and our public spaces.

So once again, in what is becoming our Godless nation, we mistake the disease for the cure."

Good insight, don't you think?