Is. 64

“If only you would tear the heavens open and come down, so that mountains would quake at your presence,” was the desperate request of the prophet. Nothing polite here … an impatient plead to the owner of the universe.

Quite often circumstances need to get desperate before the saints begin crying out like the prophet described. Maybe we “soft” Christians living in the U. S. need some harsher conditions before we will really begin beseeching our Heavenly Father to dramatically intervene upon the spiritual climate of our nation,

Is. 61-63

Andrae Crouch wrote the song “Through It All” many years ago. It has been one of the great songs of encouragement for Christians. Isaiah wrote similar words over 700 years before Christ appeared. Again, a message from God to us that He will assist us in life to get to our destination.

When the Children of Israel peered over the Red Sea in their Exodus from Egypt, no doubt they were terrified at the prospect of crossing this formidable barrier preventing their freedom. Nevertheless, they proceeded at Moses’ command. God brought them though and consumed their enemies in the process.

What’s you process today? Trust God! He will bring you through.

Is. 60

I am one who believes you can replace the words “The Church” where you see Zion in the Old Testament. All that is physical will give way to the eternal and spiritual. God’s plans for Zion and references to it can’t be diminished to merely refer to the southwestern portion of Old Jerusalem. Yes, it was where David lived and maintained his deep, worship relationship with God. But if you go there today, it’s nothing more than an archeological dig exposing giant stones, walls, stairways and water passages. “Glorious things” were not spoken about physical stones … they were spoken of “living stones,” redeemed people … US!

Is. 59

As surely as a ball dropped to the ground exhibits the power or gravity, so will God’s retribution upon evil in the earth. He ordained ONE WAY for man to escape this painful retribution … salvation through belief in His Son, Christ Jesus.

Is. 58

This chapter is the Bible’s standard on fasting. It identifies the benefits of denying yourself food. It also helps the Christian engage is the proper fast with the proper motives that will deserve God’s response.

Spiritual disciplines such as fasting are rarely taught about. It’s not popular to teach about self-denial. It is, however, productive to teach upon and practice fasting.

Is. 55-57

The prophet identifies “willful ways” as one of the characteristics of God’s people that needed a remedy. That remedy was Christ Jesus, One whose cry before His crucifixion was, ‘Nevertheless, not My will be done but Thine.”

Relinquishing our will to do the will of God is a mark of spiritual maturity.

It’s been said, “The cross is where our will meets God’s.”

Is. 54

When God cleans us up, He can take away the memory and reproach of life’s mistakes and stains. The blood of Jesus can penetrate our shame and remove it rather than merely covering it. Like stain in a piece of wood that penetrates into the fibers of the wood is completely removed, so Christ’s blood can remove our sin … even the painful memory of it.

Jesus said “Whom has been forgiven much loves much.” There you have it. Left in the place of the forgiveness is a deep love. Christ’s love displaces the sin.

If Christ has forgiven and forgotten, who are we to keep remembering the blemishes of a person’s life. Let it GO.

Is. 52, 53

“To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

God’s truths are revealed to whomever He chooses. It’s as if a drape covers His truths and He can remove the drape so onlookers can then see what has been concealed.

Knowing this can impact our prayer life. We pray that God in His sovereignty would reveal Himself to whomever we are praying for. He sees their entire circumstance and knows How to proceed.

I find myself praying in more general terms … God sees and understands the complexities of life and just needs our prayer to get to work.

“Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened … ” [Is. 35:5]

Is. 51

Multiple times in this chapter the prophet exhorts God’s people to not fear men. If we fear men we are in effect placing them and their power above that of the Lord. Whomever you fear, you place an emotional focus upon them that requires your energy. God wants us to give our energies to serving him. He will defend us and prepare the highways of opportunity for our obedience.

“He’s got the whole world in His hands.” 🎶

Is. 50

“Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will.” [Is. 50:4 TLB]

When I tell people about my middle-of-the-night routine, I hope they don’t think I’m ultra-disciplined. No, I just wake up. I take that chance to listen to the Word and write this blog. I also try to get through my prayer track/list. It has become a habit.

“In the dark night of the soul, it’s 3:00 a.m. in the morning.”

I can’t think of a better way to begin the day. Then, I go back to bed and sleep until I wake up again … PTL I’m retired.