Christmas Lights

O. T. #1581  "Christmas Lights"
Dec. 9, 2019
Isaiah 9
For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulders: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (verse 6)

LET IT GLOW

Now, who doesn't enjoy driving around town or the big city looking at the Christmas lights? Houses are lit up, yards are glowing. We have several places that set up the nativity scene using lights.  Seeing them each year doesn't get old. Don't those lights seem to brighten up our life? Try looking at them without smiling-impossible, I say.

The territories of Zebulun and Naphtali represent the northern kingdom as a whole. These are also the territories where Jesus grew up and often ministered; this is why they would see "a great light."  John referred to Jesus as the "true light" (John 1:9). Jesus referred to Himself as "the light of the world" (John 8:12). Whenever we see lights at Christmas, let them remind us that they recall Christ, our True Light. (Life Application Study Bible)

Theses two tribes of Israel, located west of the Jordan River and northeast Galilee, were the first invaded by Assyrian king, (2 Kings 15:29) which marked the beginning of dark days for Israel.

God promised to send a light shining for everyone living in the shadow of death. Then and later was a difficult time for the Jews during the Roman Empire, which ruled during the birth and life of Jesus.

Is Jesus the Light of our life? Do we ask Him to remove the darkness of captivity in our life?
Are we letting our light shine before people? Do we ask Jesus to brighten up our life?

LET IT GROW

Shall we take a closer look at the second prophecy Isaiah wrote? (The first one was found in 7:14. In case you missed it, check it out.)

This special child born to a virgin is the Son of God and the Son of David, the divine-gift. He was placed in Mary by the Holy Spirit.(7:14)
The government will upon His shoulders. His authority is superior.  Jesus is our God-like King.

What are the 4 names given to this Christ child? (Notice the 2-word titles):

• Wonderful, pele' (peh'-leh), refers to a miracle; marvelous thing.
• Counsellor, in the Greek, is the same word and meaning. The two words of this title are actually an appositional genitive and may be rendered a wonderful counselor or a wonderful counselor. (Falwell)
• Counselor is often used parallel with king. He is a God-like counsel of a God-like King. (Falwell)
• Mighty God, Heb'el Gibbor, means powerful; warrior; hero.
• Everlasting Father, 'abiy'ad, literally means Father of Eternity; the Lord of eternity and Author of eternal life.
• Prince of Peace, shar-shalom, refers to happy, favor.

We know of His kingdom, throne, world rule, peaceful reign, and eternal kingdom, as well as His virgin birth. Also, we know Jesus is God Himself incarnate. What a Wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord!
Do you need Him to work wonder in your life today? He is able and ready. Just ask Him.


Which one do you and I need in our life today? for me, I always need a Wonderful Counselor. I ask for His wisdom to make decisions about this and that.


LET IT GO

Praise Jesus for being my Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

What to Do During Our Wait

O. T. #1580 "What to Do During Our Wait"
Dec. 6, 2019
Isaiah 8-Part 2

LET IT GLOW

Waiting for the Lord is not an easy task. Do I hear an amen? We are there now in our ministry. In the meantime, we are resting in His promises. What are we do while we wait for the test results, wait for an illness to pass, wait for a child to return to God and the church, wait for God to make matters right in a particular situation, or wait for His will to be revealed, is important.

Wendy Pope, a writer connected with Proverbs 31, a women's ministry of encouragement, gave some good suggestions in her book, Wait and See:

• Waiting well looks forward to the future while staying present in the present.
• Ask God to show us His plan, and begin to align our heart with His heart.
• Trust that God acts on behalf of those who are willing to wait and see (Isaiah 64:4) and that He does immeasurably more than we can think or imagine (Eph. 3:20).
• As we wait, find peace in God's plans and hope in His pauses.
• Our focus moves from the object of our wait to the Person of our faith.
• The wait is more about experiencing God than enduring the delay.
• Waiting for God means activity under His command; readiness for any new command that may come, praying for His direction; involves the ability to do nothing until the command is given.
• We need to prepare in the pauses so we're ready to embrace God's plans.
• Waiting well pushes through the pause by doing what we know to do. (Continue to read Scriptures, pray, and trust God.)
• What if we view waiting as a pause or an interlude, a place we can experience the peace of God while He works in us so He can work through us?
• We have to allow God to do a work in us before He can do a work through us.
• Waiting on God is a good time to solidify your love for Him and others.
• The closer we get to God's heart, the further we get from sin.
• Waiting well demonstrates a willingness to adjust our perspective.
• God is never inactive while we wait.

Dear one, are we in a position of wait and see? Keep on keeping on with God.

LET IT GROW

Wendy gives us skills for our wait training:

• Do what we know to do until we know something else to do.
• Move when God asks.
• Nurture our relations with the Person of our faith through prayer and His Word.
• Accept help from the unexpected and defeat the uninvited.
• We have to believe the God of possibilities rather than be overwhelmed by the impossibility of our situation.
• Apply biblical truth to lies, for then the lies Satan tells us die.
• Pray. Prayer is a simple conversation with God birthed out of a humble heart to simply seek Him.
• Sing praises to God, our fortress, who shows us steadfast love.
• Waiting on God isn't wasting time; it's training time; be where we should be, dong what we should be doing. 
• Don't fret; trust; commit; be still. Read Psalm 37.
• Delight in the law (Word) of the LORD and meditate on it day and night. Psalm 1
• For armor fashion tips, read Ephesians 6: put on the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes of readiness fitted with the gospel of God's peace, helmet of salvation, sword of the Spirit.
• Counteract depression, discouragement, and doubt during the wait with the right-minded strategy of thoughts of whatever is truth, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. Philippians 4:8
• What we are waiting on is too good to hurry!

I hope this is not overwhelming, since it is a lot of material. If you are waiting, then I recommend reading more of Wendy's book that is published by David C Cook company.

David waited 15 years to be come King of Israel; Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years for the son of promise, Issac; Moses waited 40 years for Israel to enter the Promised Land, though he did not get to enter it; Judah waited over 500 years for the promised Messiah to be born.

surely we can wait just a little longer for our prayer to be answered.

LET IT GO

Help me not rush this waiting time, but trust Your timing in my wait.
Jesus, grow my faith more, use me for Your glory.

What Frightens You?

O. T. #1579  "What Frightens You?"
Dec. 5, 2019
Isaiah 8

LET IT GLOW

Children's names-Isn't it interesting to look up the meaning of people's name? Many times when parents are looking for a name of their child, they will do this. When we named our two children, we did. Their names are derived from the same name in the Greek, which means crowned one. They were a prince and princess to us.

There are three children that are named so far in our reading.

1. The coming Messiah (Annointed One) would be name Immanuel, which means God With Us.(verse 7:14) In chapter 9, we will read of more names for Christ.
2. Then, Isaiah had two sons. The first one is named Shea-jashub, which meant A Remnant Shall Return.  (verse 7:3) His meaning referred to a remnant of Judah that would survive during the captivity. It was to be a reassurance to the king so he would not panic. God would restore a remnant of His people. God would be faithful, and we know that He was.
3. Isaiah's second son was named Maher-shalal-hash-baz, meaning speed the spoil, hurry the prey. The New American Standard Bible says it this way: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey. His name was to symbolize the successful Assyrian conquest of Damascus and Samaria.

Aram (Syria) fell to Assyria in 732 B.C. and Israel followed in 722 B.C. Isaiah had put his message on a large scroll in a public place. God was warning His people that He was Deliverer and Judge.

Isaiah's family and the promised Immanuel provided silent symbols of God's intention to show His presence among His people by disciplining them quickly and preserving only a small remnant. (Blackaby)

There was no doubt who was going to win the battle with Israel. Assyria would reap the benefits of the conquered land quickly (5:26). (MacArthur)

Is Immanuel important to us? Do we desire God to be with us always? Are we where we should be, doing what we should do, honoring our God with our life?


LET IT GROW

What frightens you?
Fear is a powerful enemy of our faith and a strong deterrent to the believer's peace of mind. Fear of war, terrorist attacks, disease, and pollution can rob us of our trust in God. God is our shelter and refuge (4:6) Ask Him to drive inappropriate fear from your heart and to help you fear only Him.
(Life Application Study Bible)

The Lord gave Isaiah a warning to not think like everyone else in Judah and how to live (verses 11-22):

• Don't call everything a conspiracy, like they do.
• Don't live in dread of what frightens them.  
• Make the LORD of Heaven's Armies holy in your life.
• God is the one you should fear and make you tremble.
• He will keep you safe.
• Preserve the teaching of God; entrust His instructions to those who follow God.
• Don't seek guidance from the dead, asking mediums about the future, but from God.
• Look to God's instructions and teachings!

Fragments of all of the Old Testament books, except for Esther,  were discovered by a shepherd looking for a goat in 1947. He found a scroll in a jar in a cave in the side of a mountain at Quram in Israel. During the next 10 years, more scrolls were found in 11 caves across from the Dead Sea. The book of Isaiah was found complete. The manuscripts are at least 2,000 years old. It is said that some Jewish men lived there and wrote these scrolls from original pieces, hiding them from the Romans. We saw this place whenever we took a trip to Israel earlier this year.

What does this mean to us? Isaiah was faithful in preserving what God had told him to write. Our Bible is The Truth and truly preserved from God for us to be able to read today. Isn't it fascinating?

Dear friend, we cannot fear things and trust God at the same time.

LET IT GO

Trust Jesus with everything.

Hope is Here

O. T. #1578 "Hope is Here"
Dec. 4, 2019
Isaiah 7-Part 8

LET IT GLOW

We left King Ahaz refusing to ask God for a sign, but God gave it to him anyway. It was due to his pride and lack of faith in God to defeat Judah's enemies. Since God revealed His plan of the birth of a coming Savior, Ahaz should have realized that Judah was not going to be annihilated.

Did you know that God gave Isaiah three prophecies of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. They are found in 7:14, 9:6, and 11:1 and 10. As we come to those scriptures, we will discuss them. Writers in the New Testament quoted those, also. Matthew quotes 7:14 in Matthew 1:23.

Hope is here and now for you and me. Jesus Christ came to earth, died in the cross, and rose from the dead. He who knew no sin became the sacrifice for our sin so we came be in heaven eternally. It is through faith in Him that this happens. Do you believe in Jesus? Have you asked Jesus to forgive your sins and be your Savior? That is why we celebrate Christmas. He is our hope of life after our death.

Was Isaiah able to look down through history to the time of Christ?
Isaiah's prediction of the coming of the virgin-born Son can literally look down through history to the time of Christ, while the time-indicator of His growing to discernment within a couple of years of His birth is used to illustrate the fact that within a couple of years Judah would be rid of her nemesis. (Falwell)

 Don't you like it when a plan comes together?  That is our God. In less than two years Judah's enemies would be defeated. The symbolism in verse 16 indicates Syria and Ephraim (Israel) would loose their kings.

Folks, are we trusting in our God or are we trusting in our government?

LET IT GROW

For the rest of chapter 7, Isaiah reveals his vision in verses 17-25. The king of Assyria brought destruction upon Israel and it fell in 722 BC.
We previously studied the history of Israel and Judah back in the books of the Kings and Chronicles.

Life Application Study Bible gives us a summary of what happened to Judah, as the flies and bees were symbols of God's judgment:

• Egypt and Assyria did not at this time devastate Judah.
• Hezekiah followed Ahaz as king, and he honored God; therefore God held back His hand of judgment.
• Two more evil kings reigned before Josiah, Manasseh and Amon, of whom it was said that no other king turned so completely to the Lord (2 Kings 23:25).
• However, Judah's doom had been sealed by the extreme evil of Josiah's father, Amon.
• During Josiah's reign, Egypt marched against the Assyrians. Josiah declared war on Egypt, though God told him not to.
• After Josiah was killed (2 Chronicles 35:20-27), only weak kings reigned in Judah.
• The Egyptians carried off Josiah's son, Jehoahaz, after three months.
• The next king, Jehoiakim, was taken by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. Egypt and Assyria had dealt death blows to Judah.

That is a lot of history of Judah. The land "flowing with milk and honey" would soon be overrun by briers and thorns because Judah turned away from worshiping God.
Take courage, friend, for God spared a remnant that would eventually return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple and the religious system of the Jews as the worshiped God.
Not only is God love, but He is wrath, also. We will read about them in the next chapter.

As we look forward to celebrations of our Savior's birth, let be sure to pass in God's Word as truth and how He has kept His promises to our children and grandchildren. The Messiah was promised and came.

LET IT GO

Love God with all my heart. 
Share His love with someone today. 

Immanuel, God With Us

O. T. #1577  "Immanuel, God With Us"
Dec. 3, 2019
Isaiah 7-Part 2
Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (verse 14)

LET IT GLOW

In this chapter, we read of a conversation where God is speaking through Isaiah to King Ahaz of Judah. What was Ahaz told?

• The invasion that Ahaz was afraid would happen, was told it would never take place. (verse 7)
• Within 65 years, Israel would be crushed and completely destroyed. (verse 8b) Therefore, Ahaz was not to fear Syria and Israel invading Judah.
• Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm. (verse 9b) Would Ahaz trust God to deliver Judah or would he trust Assyria?

King Ahaz refused to ask God for a sign that Judah would not be destroyed by Syria and Israel. He was not trusting in Almighty God, but army men of another country. God gave Ahaz a confirmation, a sign, that this would happen.

• Ask the LORD your God for a sign of confirmation. (verse 10)
• When Ahaz refused, indicating that it would be testing the LORD, God gave him a sign anyway (key verse)

If Judah believed God, she would stand; if not, she too would fall. We know how that turned out-135 years after Israel was captured by Assyria, Judah was captured by Babylon.
Do we believe that God keeps His promises?
Do we trust Him to keep His Word?
God brought on all that destruction; He had the power to prevent it. If only Judah and Ahaz had trusted Him, all would have turned out differently. But it didn't.

LET IT GROW

Judah should have been reassured that they would not be completely wiped out, for the Messiah Savior, Immanuel (God With Us) was going to be born. He was coming through the line of David and Judah-a remnant would be saved.

What was the miraculous thing that would occur as a sign for Judah?

• A virgin would conceive and bear a son. A virgin was a lass; damsel; maid. This could not happen through man, but it was the Holy Spirit that made this happen.
• We believe this happened when Mary gave birth to Christ Himself many years later. (Luke 2)

Jesus Christ was of divine origin, not fathered by a man. Therefore, He was God, who took on physical form. It was through divine power and divine purity that this divine, extraordinary person, (not an ordinary man with a sin nature) Jesus, was born some 500 years later.

Jesus Christ is God come in human flesh, yet without sin (John 1:14). He is not merely a "good man" or a "great teacher"; He is the very Son of God. To deny this is to deny the Word of God
 (1 John 4:1-6).  (Wiersbe)

Joy to the world, the Lord is come! This is why we celebrate Christmas, the birth of the Savior. (Although we are not sure exactly when this occurred, for it could have been in the spring.)


LET IT GO
                              ... of all the worldly philosophies and worldly celebrations and simply thank Jesus
                                  for coming to be our Savior, enduring the hardships of being in the form of a
                                  man.
                              ... of all the disappointments, hurts, and frustrations, and simply believe in God's
                                  love.
                              ... of fear and completely trust Jesus.
Thank You, Jesus, for loving me so much that You left Your glorious home in heaven to take on the form of a lowly man, in order to be my Savior.! Such love!

Promises and Faith

O. T. #1576 "Promises and Faith "
Dec. 2,2019
Isaiah 7
If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established. Verse 9b

LET IT GLOW 

Prophet Isaiah is dealing with a definite crisis in Judah's history. During the previous 103 years, they had good Kings that reigned. Then King  Ahaz reigns as a bad king. What is happening in Judah?

• Assyria is growing stronger and threatening nations, so Israel and Syria join forces to protect themselves. They wanted Judah to join their alliance, but Ahaz would not. He had his own plan.  (Verse 1)
• Secretly, Ahaz bargained with Assyria to protect him (2Kings 16:1-9). Judah was frightened because Syria and Israel were about to attach them. (Verse 2)
• Ahaz did not seek the Lord in this matter, so God sent Isaiah and his son Shear-jashub, whose name means the remnant shall return, to meet Ahaz as he inspected Jerusalem's water supply. 
• The message was one of hope and confidence: Syria and Israel will be broken within 65 years.(Verse 8)
• Alliance with Assyria was unnecessary. Syria and Israel 's plan would not stand nor come to pass. (Verse 7)
• God intervened and Judah was safe, for within 65 years, Assyria conquered Israel and took them captive. 

Isaiah's prophesy came true. Assyria defeated Syria (Damascus) in 732 and Israel (Ephraim, Samaria) in 721, within the allotted time given.
[Resource: Wiersbe's Expository Outlines on the Old Testament]

God keeps His promises. We see it as He sent judgment in these nations.
What promises are you and I waiting to come to pass in our life?
Keep your faith strong in the Lord and wait patiently.

LET IT GROW 

Look at our key verse above. If Judah would believe, she can stand; if not, she too would fall. 

What does God insist on before He delivers His people from danger? Lack of faith thwarts God's promises. (The Experienceing God Study Bible)

Is our faith shakened? Is our spirit unsettled and unquietened? Has something happened to  us recently to cause this?

We were on our way home one rainy, dark night, on a familiar road, when a curve sneaked up on us. We were going too fast to make it the curve and my husband slammed on the brakes and turned the wheels sharply. "Jesus, Jesus," was all I could say frightened. I couldn't even say ,"Help." It happened so quickly. The truck kept sliding toward a gate that we thought we were going to hit. 
Miraculously, the hand of Jesus stopped our truck only inches away from the gate. We both were thanking our Protector, Jesus!

How strong is your faith? Are you daily living so close to Jesus that one word and He comes to your rescue?


The grace of faith is absolutely necessary to the quietening and composing of the mind in the midst of all the tosses of this present time. (2Chronicles 20:20) (Matthew Henry)


LET IT GO

How wonderful You are, Jesus!
Help my faith in You to keep growing.

How Long?

O. T. #1575  "How Long?"
Nov. 29, 2019
Isaiah 6-Part 6


LET IT GLOW

How long before my prayers are answered? How long before this and that happens?
How long before change comes? Isaiah ask the same question. We can go on asking, but it is in God's hands.

When Isaiah looked up, he saw the Lord; when he looked inward, he saw himself; when he looked outward, he saw the need. The prophet no longer was wrapped up in his own needs, but he wants to do the will of God; no longer burdened by sin, since he has been cleansed; no longer discouraged, for he knows that God is on the throne. Now he is ready to go to work.
God could have used an angel, who would have obeyed instantly and perfectly, but when it comes to His Word being proclaimed, God uses human lips. Only a remnant in Isaiah's day, would obey. (Wiersbe)

Why did God send Isaiah  since He knew the majority of people would not listen to His message of repentance? There would be some, a tenth of the people, called a remnant, that would return to Jerusalem, rebuild the Temple, and worship God there. God's plan for these, holy seed, faithful followers, was the ones through whom the Messiah would come (Mary and Joseph's families). We can be encouraged that God is merciful to His believers and followers. So if we are faithful to Him, we can be sure of His mercy.

LET IT GROW

God warns Isaiah about how most of the responses to his prophecy (destruction is coming) would be:

• They will hear, but not understand, so the message would mostly fall on deaf ears.
• They would see, but not perceive, not respond with believing faith.
• Their heart would be fat, so the more he preaches, the more they reject.
• Their ears would be heavy, so they would tire of the message and attempt to get rid of the messenger.
• Their eyes would be shut to the truth that Babylon would conquer them and take them into captivity.
• Most of the people in Judah would not believe the message to be true, so their cities would be desolate.

Isaiah asked how long he had to preach desolation and uninhabitation. Until all was done. They would remain 70 years in captivity, we know.

Verses 9 and 10 are quoted 6 times in the New Testament. Does God blind people and condemn them? No, it is the Word of God that has a hardening and blinding effect on sinners who will not listen and yield.
John 12 explains that those would not believe (v. 37); could not believe (v. 39; and should not believe (v. 40) because they had sealed their own doom. (Wiersbe)

Didn't it take a great deal of faith on Isaiah's part to obey and keep on preaching with tragic results?
His purpose was to be faithful in his commission until God finished His judgment on the land. (1:7-9; 2:12-22)

Will we keep on keeping on, faithful to our calling? Will we go and tell this people the good news that Jesus has provided salvation so we don't have to pay for our sins? Some will be save because of our faithfulness.

LET IT GO

Here am I, send me, Jesus.