Feasting on God's Word (One Year Bible)

Isaiah 6:1-13  Serving the Lord arises out of worshipping Him.  * We proclaim His holiness: "Holy, holy, holy... " (Isaiah 6:3).    * We confess our sin: "Woe is me" (Isaiah 6:5) - a personal confession. Before we can speak the words, "Here am I. Send me" (Isaiah 6:8), we must hear the words, "Your sin has been forgiven" (Isaiah 6:7). We are to be faithful in speaking God's Word. This involves our lips (Isaiah 6:7). It also involves our lives. Serving the Lord means more than paying lip-service to Him. We are to serve Him with our lives. Is there any guarantee that we will bear much fruit? The parable of the sower says that our fruit may be 100, 60 or 30 times what was sown (Matthew 13:23). The parable of the talents says that one talent could become two; two could become four; five could become ten (Matthew 21:14-30). What does Isaiah 6 say to us about bearing fruit for the Lord? There is a word of realism. Many pe...

Isaiah 40:12-31 The greatness of God  * He is great in Himself. Before the world was created, God is great: “In the beginning, God....” (Genesis 1:1).  * He is great for us. This is the great message that comes to us from Isaiah 40:28-31. God is great in love. God is great in power. God is great in holiness. God is great in faithfulness. God is great in glory.  * Love - “God is love” (1 John 4:16); “God so loved the world...” (John 3:16); “God showed His love for us...” (Romans 5:8).  * Power - the power of God’s love - “kept by the power of God” (1 Peter 1:5); “He is able to keep us from falling” (Jude 24).  * Holiness - God is holy. Through his love and His power, He is working to make us holy. As well as the command - “Be holy”, there is the promise - “You shall be holy.”  * Faithfulness - “Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22). God is faithful. He will accomplish His purpose in us (1 Thessalonians 5:24).  * Glory - Jude...

"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you" (Isaiah 60:1). * Let the light of Christ shine. * Let the words of Scripture lead to thoughts of the Saviour. * In Christ, we are called to salvation, sanctification and service. * Be wise – worship the Saviour. Is 60:1-6; Ps 72:1-7,10-14; Eph 3:1-12; Mt 2:1-12

This sermon was preached on the first Sunday of 2015. Comfort (Isaiah 40:1) - This comes from God's great faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23).  In our past, present and future, we see the faithfulness of God- "His mercies never end. They are new every morning" (Lamentations 3:22-23).  Think of God's faithfulness, and "count your blessings." Think of this, that and the other blessing (good things in your life) - and don't forget to thank Him for the greatest blessing of all: Jesus.  - The faithfulness if God is summed up in this: "The Word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8).      - There's a New Testament way of saying this: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). As we move from one year to another year, let's think about the old and the new. On His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus speaks about the old and the new.  - He tells us that He didn't come to de...

What a transformation there is when “the Spirit is poured upon us from on high” ( Isaiah 32:14-15 ). The blessings which God pours upon us are well summed up in 2 Corinthians 13:14 - “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” How are these ongoing blessings communicated to us? - These blessings come to us through “true and reliable words” ( Proverbs 22:21 ). These blessings come to us from the God of perfect wisdom. His teaching is both present and personal - “I teach you today, even you” ( Proverbs 22:19 ).

“In repentance and rest is your salvation” ( Isaiah 30:15 ). Repentance is an ongoing part of our Christian experience - 2 Corinthians 12:21 emphasizes the need for continuing repentance. We have been saved. We continue to sin. We must seek, by God’s grace, to maintain our repentance. Rest is part of our redemption in Christ. To be “redeemed from the hand of the foe” ( Psalm 107:2 ) means the beginning of rest, the beginning of deliverance from the oppressor. This does not mean that the perfect state has been reached. Still, there is “wandering in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle” ( Psalm 107:4 ). In Christ, we have entered into our rest. Still, however, there is restlessness - a God-given restlessness - as we continue to hunger and thirst ( Psalm 107:5 ) for “a city where they could settle” ( Psalm 107:7 ), a heavenly city that is permanent, and not merely transient.  In His faithful love, God assures us that...

Isaiah 28:29 contains a great description of God - “The Lord Almighty, wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom.” Paul speaks, in 2 Corinthians 12:7 , of “surpassingly great revelations.”  Whenever God reveals an increased measure of His wonderful counsel and magnificent wisdom, He wants us to remain humble, resting only in His grace and power ( 2 Corinthians 12:9 ) and not in any supposed achievement or attainment of our own. He wants us always to say, from the heart, “Praise be to the Lord” ( Psalm 106:48 ).

“Lord, ... all that we have accomplished You have done for us” ( Isaiah 26:12 ). “I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised for ever ... “ ( 2 Corinthians 11:30-31 ). The way of pleasing God is the God-centred way of living. The way of angering the Lord ( Psalm 106:32 ) is the way of self-centredness. The words of Psalm 106:32-39 are full of self - “they ... they ... they.” It’s all about them. The only references to God  are descriptions of their refusal to do God’s will ( Psalm 106:32-34 ).

The people of God live in a situation of conflict. We are at war with the enemy. Nevertheless, we need not be afraid. The enemies of the Lord will be brought to nothing: “ Babylon has fallen, has fallen! All the images of its gods lie shattered on the ground!” ( Isaiah 21:9 ). “Look at the land of the Babylonians, this people that is of no account!” ( Isaiah 23:13 ). There will be “false apostles”, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ” ( 2 Corinthians 11:13 ). We must not become discouraged. We must not say, “There is a lion outside!” or “I will be murdered in the streets!” ( Proverbs 22:13 ). We must remember that “the Lord ... frustrates the work of the unfaithful” ( Proverbs 22:12 ).

Much of the “oracle concerning Egypt ” ( Isaiah 19:1 ) speaks of the negative aspects which are associated with the nation of Egypt . Nevertheless, there is a Word of hope at the end of this oracle ( Isaiah 19:18-25 ). In 2 Corinthians 10:15-16 , Paul expresses the hope that “our area of activity among you will greatly expand, so that we can preach the Gospel in the regions beyond you.” It is so important that we do not write people off, that we do not give up hope, that we continue to believe that God can turn things around for His glory and for the salvation of men and women. The story which is told in Psalm 106:16-29 is one which makes us wonder, ‘Can this situation be turned around? Is there any hope?’ In Psalm 106:30-31 , we catch a glimpse of hope, it is hope “for endless generations to come.”

Christ came to destroy the evil one, Satan - to bring him “down to the grave, to the depths of the pit” ( Isaiah 14:12-14 ). Satan seeks to impoverish our lives. God, however, is very different. He gives us His “surpassing grace.” This is given to us in His Son, our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s “indescribable gift!” ( 2 Corinthians 9:14-15 ). God’s gift of grace is so great that it surpasses our capacity for praising Him - “Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare His praises?” ( Psalm 106:12 ).

Jesus Christ was filled with “the Spirit of the Lord” ( Isaiah 11:2 ). It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we are to live for Christ. As we give ourselves to the Lord in service, our first priority is “to honour the Lord Himself.” We do this as we “show our eagerness to help” ( 2 Corinthians 8:19 ). We, who have been so richly blessed by the Lord, are to live in obedience to Him out of joyful gratitude to Him, our Saviour ( Psalm 105:42-45 ).

Who is Jesus Christ? What has He done for us? God’s answer to these questions is found in Isaiah 9:6 - “He will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” and 2 Corinthians 8:9 - “our Lord Jesus Christ was rich, yet for your sakes, He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.” We have true riches when we know God: “Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all” ( Proverbs 22:2 ).

“The holy seed will be the stump in the land” ( Isaiah 6:13 ). God preserves the faithful remnant, the remnant of faith. “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all”( Isaiah 7:9 ). What or who can keep us firm in the faith? - “Immanuel (God with us)” ( Isaiah 7:14 ). In the face of much opposition, we could easily become discouraged, “But God ... comforts the downcast” ( 2 Corinthians 7:6 ). To those who turn to Him, God brings His comfort. To those who turn from Him, He sends His judgment ( Psalm 105:28-36 ).

“Those who are left ... will be called holy” ( Isaiah 4:3 ). “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers” ( 2 Corinthians 6:14 ). The Lord is calling His people to holiness. They are not to be in bondage to the world and its way of living. Even though the Lord’s people are “few in number”, they have this encouragement - they are protected by the Lord: “Do not touch My anointed ones, do My prophets no harm” ( Psalm 105:15 ).

The ministry of Isaiah calls for reality, for transformed lives. This renewal of our lives can only be achieved through the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. We don’t have the power to change ourselves. It is in Christ that we become “a new creation” ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 ). This great Gospel blessing gives us much reason for praising the Lord and giving thanks to Him ( Psalm 105:1-2 ).

God’s Word for hard times: “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31).

Isaiah 54:1-17 Singing with joy (Isaiah 54:1) - Our song comes from the Lord. Our joy comes from the Lord. From ourselves, there is sin. From the Lord, there is salvation. “Through the love of God our Saviour, all will be well ... All is well ... All must be well.” So much blessing is ours, because Jesus is crucified, risen and exalted. On the Cross, Jesus was forsaken by God so that we might be forgiven by God. At the Cross, He was brought low so that we might be lifted up. From the Cross, Jesus calls out to us. In love, He speaks to us. His love is the greatest love of all. His love is “everlasting love” (Isaiah 54:8). This is where our song of joy comes from. It comes from His everlasting love. In the Old Testament, we see the rainbow (Isaiah 54:9). It’s a reminder of God’s great love for us. In the New Testament, we have bread and wine - God’s way of reminding us that He loves us so much that He gave his Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for us. Through Jes...

Isaiah 40:1-11   Comfort (Isaiah 40:1) – This comes from God’s great faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23). In our past, present and future, we see the faithfulness of God- “His mercies never end. They are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22-23). Think of God’s faithfulness, and “count your blessings.” Think of this, that and the other blessing (good things in your life) – and don’t forget to thank Him for the greatest blessing of all: Jesus. – The faithfulness if God is summed up in this: “The Word of our God stands forever” (Isaiah 40:8). – There’s a New Testament way of saying this: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). As we move from one year to another year, let’s think about the old and the new. On His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus speaks about the old and the new. – He tells us that He didn’t come to destroy the Law and Prophets. He came to fulfil them (Matthew 5:17-20). He wasn’t setting aside the Old Testa...

Isaiah 42:1-9 Through Jesus Christ, God’s Servant, God’s Son, our Saviour, God calls us to be saved by Him and to become His servants. We’re to be “a light to the nations” (Isaiah 42:6). All the glory belongs to Him (Isaiah 42:8). He will lead us forward into great blessing: “new events” (Isaiah 42:9). This directs our attention to Jesus. We now look back to Jesus - but we also look forward from Him to the glorious future He is preparing for us. Here, on earth, we have “a foretaste of glory divine.” In heaven, it will be the real thing.