LogosWalk Word Journal

Archive for the '23: Isaiah' Category

Isaiah 66:1-2 • To This One I Will Look

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

“Thus says the Lord,
‘Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that I may rest?
For My hand made all these things,
Thus all these things came into being,’ declares the Lord.
‘But to this one I will look,
To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.'”
—Isaiah 66:1-2 (NASB)

OK…I’m going to take this in a whole other direction. Yes, it has very deep and personal application to how we should each live and behave. But I would like to suggest that these verses also provide a measuring stick by which we can discern whether someone or something claiming to be of God is indeed so. How someone treats not just the person of God but His Word is one of the most visible indicators of whether or not they are actually on His side.
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Isaiah 65:11-12 • Those Who Forsake & Forget

Friday, October 30th, 2009

“But you who forsake the Lord,
Who forget My holy mountain,
Who set a table for Fortune,
And who fill cups with mixed wine for Destiny,
I will destine you for the sword,
And all of you will bow down to the slaughter.
Because I called, but you did not answer;
I spoke, but you did not hear.
And you did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight.”
—Isaiah 65:11-12 (NASB)

I think the “fire and brimstone” messages throughout the Bible should not be used exclusively to motivate those that repeatedly refuse to respond to God’s call, but to inspire those of us that HAVE responded. Granted, a part of us is glad to escape such consequences, but it should still weigh a great burden upon us as that there are those to whom this will apply.
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Isaiah 64:8 • He’s God and We’re Not

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

“But now, O Lord, You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand.”
—Isaiah 64:8 (NASB)

Why do some people find God where others fail? The common denominator for those that find Him is that they finally stop seeking Him on their own terms and conditions. As long as one insists on encountering God only within the limitations and terms they themselves have imposed, it never happens. This is because the roles of potter and clay are reversed, the mere mortal trying to dictate to the immortal the conditions by which a relationship will take place. Every successful relationship with God begins when one truly recognizes and acknowledges the sovereignty and authority of God and His rule over them.
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Isaiah 62:6-7 • Never Keep Silent

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

“On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who remind the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
And give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”
—Isaiah 62:6-7 (NASB)

We are admonished not to pray by incessantly repeating phrases and patterns, chanting the same thing over and over and over again. But we’re most certainly encouraged to continually bring things before the Lord, particularly where the work of His kingdom is concerned. It may seem like a long time coming from our perspective, but it will come. In fact, when it comes to His work, we’re to never cease bringing it to Him in prayer. Perhaps it’s one of the indications when we finally become more concerned for His name and glory than our own, when the salient points of our prayers number greater for His kingdom than our own personal desires.
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Isaiah 60:1-3 • They’ll Come to His Brightness

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

“Arise, shine; for your light has come,
And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For behold, darkness will cover the earth
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the Lord will rise upon you
And His glory will appear upon you.
Nations will come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.”
—Isaiah 60:1-3 (NASB)

Yes, I’m sure there are dual allusions here to Christ’s earthly ministry and First Coming, but it’s very clear from the context that the ultimate, final fulfillment is directed specficially at Israel and speaks of the literal appearance of the Messiah to Whom all nations will be drawn. There are several times in Isaiah alone where God mentions that all the nations of the earth will be physically drawn to the Messiah reigning from Jerusalem, bringing the Jews back to their land. ^[1] ^[2] ^[3] ^[4] ^[5] There can be no doubt that there is also a literal fulfillment to come of not just the physical return of Israel, but their spiritual return centered around their recognition of Jesus as Messiah.
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Linknotes:

Isaiah 2:3 ‡
Isaiah 11:10 ‡
Isaiah 43:6 ‡
Isaiah 49:22 ‡
Isaiah 66:12 ‡

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Isaiah 59:16-17 • Vengeance and Zeal

Monday, October 26th, 2009

“And He saw that there was no man,
And was astonished that there was no one to intercede;
Then His own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.”
—Isaiah 59:16-17 (NASB)

It’s truly amazing how much of New Testament teaching isn’t entirely “new” at all, but an extension of the foundation first provided in the Old Testament. When we come across these verses, we immediately connect them with Paul’s teaching concerning the “armor of God” ^[1] But there are two things here listed that Jesus dresses in which are excluded from our own armor: “Vengeance” and “zeal”.
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Linknotes:

Ephesians 6:10-18 ‡

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Isaiah 58:6-7 • Proper Worship

Sunday, October 25th, 2009

“Is this not the fast which I choose,
To loosen the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the bands of the yoke,
And to let the oppressed go free
And break every yoke?
Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry
And bring the homeless poor into the house;
When you see the naked, to cover him;
And not to hide yourself from your own flesh?”
—Isaiah 58:6-7 (NASB)

I remember as a kid being in the back seat of the car, listening to the adults converse about one of the local churches we’d just passed. Apparently this particular congregation’s pastor had initiated a program to feed and clothe homeless people. The comment that has always stuck in my mind from that conversation is one adult’s deriding assertion, “That pastor thinks EVERYONE should be doing that.” It was clear that these adults did not see the need for this activity within their own congregation.
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