Isaiah

The Father’s Palette

“Indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why have you made me like this? Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honour and another for dishonour?’” Romans 9:20, 21

As we read through the Bible we read of many father – son relationships and wonder why they turned out the way they did. It started in the Garden of Eden with Cain and Abel. Both sons had the same parents and virtually the same environment yet one heeded the word of God through his father and the other did not. Quite often there are indicators as to why sons turned out the way they did but frequently there is no observable reason.

Isaiah writes, “We are the clay, and You our potter; and we are the work of Your hand” (64:8). The Lord spoke to Israel through Jeremiah saying, “as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand” (18:6). Paul wrote that any complaint on our part is as clay complaining about the potter. That is quite absurd. That I should be a vessel in His house is grace enough but that He should also add His beauty is beyond comprehension without gazing at the cross of Jesus.

In our household we have many vessels although these days few are made of clay. There are vessels in my shed that contain used screws, bolts and other reusable things that I may need one day. They have no value until needed. The container itself is not pretty. It is just to contain used, dirty and sometimes rusty items year after year. Even so, the vessel is necessary even if not a visual delight.

In the house and on display we do have items that have no useful function except to be admired for their looks. They have been made for that purpose and even if something was placed in them that would not change their purpose.

The more common containers in our house have useful purposes as well as sometimes being reasonably pleasing to the eye. Sometimes the beauty comes from the occasion in which it was purchased or because it was a love gift from someone special. On other occasions the maker’s palette has added beauty to what would otherwise be a plain item.

Speaking spiritually, there are times that I feel like one of these items. There are times I feel like the ugly container on the back shelf holding the rusting screws that may never be used. On other occasions I feel more like the coffee mug that is used quite often but not of great value or beauty.

However, there are times that I feel treasured. I am made of ordinary clay of the earth that has little value or beauty in itself but God in grace has chosen to take out His palette and paint me into a thing of beauty that is treasured by my children and grandchildren. Had the Lord not intervened in my life when He did the picture I was painting on this clay vessel would have been quite different.

In His wonderful grace through Jesus Christ, God has given me a beautiful wife who loves me, two children and their spouses who love us and through them He has given us five grandchildren who delight in our company. This is the Father’s palette of grace. I am but the clay who watches in awe as the Potter skilfully applies from His palette the beauty of His grace as He chooses for His own glory.

Selective Hearing

“The word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation” (1 Samuel 3:1)

Have you ever been speaking to someone and found that they have been distracted and are not listening to what you are saying? In such a situation do you continue speaking hoping for a return of interest or do you cease speaking? The Bible reveals that God will sometimes keep speaking waiting for someone to hear but at other times He simply stops speaking. There are also times when He stops listening.

When we read that Isaiah responded to the call of the Lord it was because he had a heart to hear and was listening. If God was speaking only to Isaiah He would have said something more personal. By asking a general question, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” (Isaiah 6:8) it appears that this is a question being asked of all men. Only one who has a heart to hear and is listening will hear the call as Isaiah did. This is why Jesus often said something to the effect of “He who has an ear, let Him hear …” as He does to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3.

The problem for Israel immediately prior to Samuel’s emergence as a prophet of God was that the men were spiritually deaf or had a very limited range of selective hearing.

Why should God speak to people who have turned a deaf ear to Him? Why should He speak to people who only want to hear what pleases them? Why should He speak at all if everyone is distracted by the pleasures of this world? “The word from the Lord was rare in those days” because no one was willing to hear what He had to say. It is no different today. People who only want their ears “tickled” to make them feel good while being bad will not hear what God has to say. They will listen only to those who say what they want to hear but will not hear those who say what they need to hear. They will not hear from the prophets of God who say, “Thus says the Lord …”

Because Israel was resolute in its deafness we read, “And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not hear you in that day” (1 Samuel 8:18). Israel wanted a king like the other nations; we want medical healing, prosperity and a life of comfort and ease for everyone. Jesus only promised tribulation and trouble that will, if He tarries, end in bodily death.

Our prayers reveal that we are often telling Jesus how He should run His kingdom (James 4:3) and yet at the same time we are slow to listen to His instructions for living in His kingdom. Why should He hear us when we do not pay Him any attention? Paying attention is more than mental assent; it is doing as He instructs and commands.

Let us pray with all our hearts, “Lord, in grace for the sake of Jesus, grant us ears to hear what you are saying and do it.” This will mean closing our mouths while He speaks.

The Pragmatic Approach

“Do not let all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai. Do not weary all the people there, for the people of Ai are few.” Joshua 7:3

This is the counsel that Joshua received from the spies he sent to assess the strength of Ai. This is the pragmatic approach to serving the Lord. It ended with the deaths of thirty six men and the humiliation of the nation. How is it that from the glorious triumph over Jericho Israel slumps rapidly complaining that God should not have brought them across the river Jordan?

Unlike his approach to Jericho Joshua did not wait before the Lord. It is possible in both our personal life and the communal life of our church that we follow Joshua’s example and wonder why we have the same result that he did. Unfortunately we nearly always end up blaming someone else. We find our “Achan” by the same means we evaluated our “Ai.” Instead we should take to look inward at our own motives and actions.

We probably have no idea how many times we have made decisions and choices and acted on them without having a thought of consulting the Lord. When we do think to consult Him we are prone to hurry on without waiting for His answer. Instead of waiting for the Lord’s response we act pragmatically. We act according to our own logic based on previous experience and hope the Lord will bless the choice made. That would not have worked against Jericho, it didn’t work against Ai and it won’t work in our walk with Jesus either.

The pragmatists in Israel complained when they were trapped between the sea and the army; they complained when they had little food and water; they refused to enter “the rest of God” because the men of Canaan were too big and the walls of the cities too strong. They could argue their case with evidence but Moses could not argue a case for looking at a bronze serpent on a staff as a remedy for a poisonous snake bite. The pragmatic person would have thought it ridiculous, not heeded the remedy and died. The woman who gave her last meal to Elijah was not a pragmatist and neither was the woman who gave her last two coins into the temple’s treasury.

The Christian who thinks in a pragmatic way will follow the examples we observe in Israel during their wilderness wanderings. They successfully debate the spiritual person because they can argue their point of view with human logic. The spiritual person thinks and acts on the plain of obedience to God derived from a close and intimate relationship. Generally there is no logical argument that will persuade the pragmatic Christian to agree with them. There is a gulf between the two and confusion in “language” comparable to that at Babel.

The reason for Israel’s defeat at Ai was not lack of numbers or wisdom in battle. Neither of these had helped against Jericho and neither would help as Israel entered the Promised Land and the “rest of God.” The pragmatic approach to Christian living and service will not succeed but will result in failure and complaint.

 “’For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thought.’” (Isaiah 55:9).

The Road Ahead

“Whether it was two days, a month, or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would remain encamped and not journey; but when it was taken up, they would journey” Numbers 9:22

It would be a rare person who had no interest in what lay ahead in their lives. It would be so rare that we might consider that person not sound of mind. Historically people have tried and tested many methods of discovering their future for both short term and long term. Our daily papers and other media pamper to this desire in people. Even though they all fail the test of 100% accuracy many people still turn to them in a vain attempt to quieten their anxiety. The opposite seems to be the case. They become more anxious.

God says to us through the Apostle Paul, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). The fact is that we can either remain anxious or pray and trust the Lord.

The Lord told Abraham what He was about to do in Sodom (Genesis 18:17, 18) because he was His friend (Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23). The Lord tells believers future events for their comfort (1 Thessalonians 4:18) and not be anxious. This is one of the reasons God has told us things before they happen. He also tells us things ahead so that we can discern that it is truly Him speaking (Deuteronomy 18:15-22). The test of a true prophet of God given in this passage is 100% accuracy. All other future tellers are false.

A new generation of Israel that did not know slavery in Egypt was growing and, like all of us, had a tendency to be anxious about the future. This generation had not seen the signs and miracles in Egypt or the Red Sea crossing but they would have to learn to trust and obey the Lord. People will only voluntarily obey one whom they trust. To build this trust and obedience the Lord led Israel through the wilderness areas for forty years. They did not know from day to day whether they would remain camped or be on the move. What they learned through this was trust and obedience. They were warned to stay away from others who claimed to tell the future because that would have destroyed their trust in the Lord and their obedience to Him. This did happen in later generations in varying degrees.

We can either trust Him or be anxious. We can either come to Him in prayer or go to the soothsayers of our day. Which we do will decide our enjoyment in life. The one who trusts the Lord will find great joy, peace and pleasure in obeying Him and they will love life. If that is true of us then we should expect that our faces will reflect that.

Each evening when we go to bed thank the Lord for His gracious leading and presence for that day and in the morning wake up expectantly for His gift of a new day. We may think we know what is going to happen today but in reality we only have plans that can be changed or destroyed in a moment. The Lord knows every detail ahead and if we believe Him to be trustworthy then we will trust Him and enjoy the journey no matter what surprises enter our day.

Israel was essentially forced to obey. Where the pillar of cloud or fire was, that was where the manna would be next morning. Each individual’s enjoyment of the night and day was dependent upon their level of trust in the Lord. It is the same for us.

Compassion of a Mother

“We were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children.” 1 Thessalonians 2:7

There are a number of comparisons in relationships to that of a mother to her child in the Bible. The Lord Himself compares His compassion for Israel with that of a mother for her nursing child, “Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will never forget you” (Isaiah 49:15). It is most unlikely that a mother would ever cease to have compassion for the child she has nursed. The Lord states that He will never cease to have that kind of compassion for Israel. The Lord used a mother’s love and compassion for her child because it is the nearest earthly evidence available that compares to His own kind of love and compassion for Israel. Had there been a better illustration available he would have used it.

The other side of the coin is that the love and compassion a mother has for her child is evidence that she is created in the image of God. That a mother might forget is a consequence of the fall which has corrupted the image of God in mankind but that was never a part of the original creation.

Paul also uses a mother’s love and compassion for her nursing child for comparison (1 Thessalonians 2:7, 8). In an attempt to remind the Christians in Thessalonica of his own love and compassion for them he speaks of the great affection that a nursing mother has for her child and the pain she suffers upon separation or rejection. He, too, could find no greater example of tender compassion than that of a mother for her nursing child. Clearly, the context reveals that he would be broken hearted if they turned away from him and the teaching he had given them.

The greater the love one has for another, the greater the pain when the object of love suffers. A woman suffers pain in child-birth but it doesn’t end there. “A foolish man despises his mother” (Proverbs 15:20), “a foolish son is the grief of his mother” (Proverbs 10:1) and, “a child left to himself brings shame to his mother” (Proverbs 29:15).

Not all pain for a mother comes from the foolish behaviour of her child. Mothers feel more acutely than others the suffering of the child they have given birth to and nursed when they suffer injury, are ill or suffer abuse at the hands of others. Mary knew this kind of suffering. Simeon told her before it happened that “a sword will pierce through your own soul also” (Luke 2:35). The context is Simeon’s prophecy of the opposition and persecution that Jesus would endure. Mary’s pain no doubt was at its worst when Jesus was on the cross and the spear pierced His body. It would be as though a sword had pierced her own soul. Her pain turned to joy when she saw Jesus risen from the dead (Acts 1:14).

“God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:27). Without the witness of mothers our comprehension of our God and His Divine Nature would be the poorer.

No Neutral Position

“His name will be called … Prince of Peace …” Isaiah 9:6

Among the many names given to this Child in Isaiah 9 is “Prince of Peace.” The other names identify this Child as both deity and man. At this time of year many cards, placards and signs include the word “peace” but without the Prince of Peace there can be no peace with God or among people.

In spite of decades of searching for world peace we are arguably further from it than ever before. Man’s inhumanity toward man takes on many guises and his ingenuity seems to know no bounds when it comes to harming others. Greed, selfishness, hatred and indifference (all elements of pride) ensure that there will never be peace on earth until the Prince of Peace reigns in the hearts of people and in the world in His kingdom as He has promised He will do.

Isaiah records the words of God who said, “There is no peace for the wicked” (Isaiah 48:22; 57:21). Of course he is speaking primarily of peace with God but without peace with God there can never be peace among men and we should not expect it. Leaders in the world espouse peace without God but their efforts are futile even if genuine.

There is no neutral position in a person’s relationship with God. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matthew 12:30). If we are not at peace with God then we are hostile toward Him. The claim that many make to neutrality is like a morning mist.

This Child came bearing the title Prince of Peace because He alone is able to reconcile people to God and bring peace with God. People who are at peace with God will be at peace with one another. If they are not at peace with one another then at least one of them is not at peace with God.

Through this Child who bore the sin of the world in His own shed blood we can be reconciled to God and be at peace with Him and with one another. Isaiah writes, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3). It is God who keeps peace in a person’s heart through the Prince of Peace.

“And she (Mary) will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

The times are in His hands and at the right time He will again invade the earthly realm and assume His rightful place as KING of kings and LORD of Lords. Then there will be: Peace on earth and goodwill toward men

Mission of Privilege

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the Gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set al liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord”
(Luke 4:18-19; Isaiah 61:1, 2a)

At the commencement of His earthly ministry Jesus was given the opportunity to read from the Scriptures in the synagogue in Nazareth. He was handed the book of Isaiah and He began reading from what we know as chapter 61. This was no accident or coincidence. It was deliberate. What caused all eyes to be fixed on Him when He stopped (v20) was that he stopped reading mid sentence and clearly identified Himself with the passage.

The portion that He read relates to His first advent and the portion that He did not read (Isaiah 61:2b, 3) relates to His second advent.

There are a lot of reasons for the “Christmas season” given by people but this passage gives one expression of the reason for Jesus’ first advent.

First and foremost He came to preach the gospel, the good news. The “poor” in this context are not necessarily materially poor. They are spiritually poor or spiritually bankrupt as in Matthew 5:3: “Blessed are the poor.”

Those who know they are spiritually bankrupt, are broken-hearted over sin, are held captive by false religion, blind to the truth and downtrodden by wickedness are those for whom Jesus came. A baby in a manger may make a great story but it does not tell us why He came.

Jesus ascribes this reason in Isaiah as the reason for His earthly mission. Jesus later said, “As You (the Father) sent Me into the world, I (the Son) also have sent them into the world” (John 17:18). Therefore since we are sent on His mission, in His name and under His authority, then it is also our mission until such time as He says enough by calling us home.

Meditating on this passage will help us refocus on His mission shared with us and the reason for Jesus first advent.

On one occasion I heard a non-Christian say that the only people in the world who have any joy at Christmas are Christians. For everyone else it has become a materialistic nightmare of shopping, eating, drinking and debt. For those who have to arrange all the parties and family get-togethers it is an administrative nightmare as well. Families who cannot get on together all year are thrust together for a miserable day. No wonder they hate it. They have left Christ, and all that He brings, out of their Christmas.

Please do not leave Christ out of your Christmas or neglect the mission of privilege He has given you in the coming year.

A Soul in Anguish

“… that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord, You alone.” (Isaiah 37:20)

“If I were mayor of Perth I would legalise prostitution; I would keep the pubs open all night; I would make beer cheaper; I would get rid of all the weak people;” so said the man sitting behind me late at night on the bus.

Apparently this comment had its background in the death of his wife some two years previous. He had asked God to save the life of his wife but still she died. The conclusion he came to was that God is not a God of love. It isn’t that he had ever listened to God or obeyed God but he believed that a merciful God would have saved his wife’s life. It would seem that he was still suffering great pain at his loss and that he was blaming God for that pain. The conclusion that he came to was that God is not merciful. In unwitting retribution he had turned to every form of evil to find solace but it only aggravated the pain and added guilt.

He did not want to entertain any view of God that was not in accord with his view. In order to do so he would have to admit he had been wrong for the past two years. That would take humility for a very proud and arrogant man. He had unwittingly surrendered his belief to the lies of Satan and was now trapped in them.

Even though he had made a search for the truth about God his anger and bitterness had been Satan’s aid in hiding the truth from him. His association with the “Christian” church seems to have been through an orthodox view of the Bible as well as from history books and philosophers rather than the Bible and genuine believers.

There was no sense of abatement in his anger and vitriol against the notion of a merciful God as we spoke. In fact it seemed to rise with each mention of the name of Jesus. It seemed to me that it was reminiscent of those who crucified the Lord Jesus on Calvary’s cross. Satan did not want to lose his power over this man because he extolled hatred of God and Jesus Christ.

It might be comfortable for us to just sigh and turn away having no more than pity for such a man but what did Jesus say of those who did the same to Him as they nailed Him to the cross?

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34)

This man shouts his hatred of God out of a heart of pain. The very God who can relieve the pain is the One he falsely accuses. In this he is just like those who nailed Jesus to the cross and who mocked His claim to deity. Even so, if he will humble himself and pray, trusting in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, he shall be saved.

O the wonder and greatness of the mercy, grace and love of God revealed to us through Jesus Christ on the cross.

We pray that this man will respond to the Saviour’s pleading with his anguished soul and then all those around him will know that Jesus is Lord and no other.

Egyptians Against Egyptians

“I will set Egyptians against Egyptians.” Isaiah 19:2

Written well over two thousand years ago this chapter in Isaiah reads partly like current day news. The parts not yet being fulfilled seem entirely possible in the near future. What was a long time in the future for Isaiah appears to be at our door. Almost every day the media reports unrest in Egypt as well as in other Middle East countries.

Another key event mentioned in this chapter is the fact of the river Nile drying up from its mouth (v 5). Rivers usually dry up from their source under natural conditions but that can change when a river is dammed. In Australia we have seen the effects of that with the River Murray and in Egypt the Nile is suffering the same consequences from being dammed.

Isaiah foretells other events in Egypt in this passage that have not yet begun to be fulfilled. That is because what we are seeing today is not the actual fulfilment of his prophecy. However, it is quite possible that we are seeing the final preparations for that fulfilment.

In isolation it may appear that we could be making too much of the prophecy in regard to current events but the events in Egypt are not the only ones that have a strong resemblance to prophecies concerning the days leading up to the Lord’s return. The Old Testament prophets refer to it as “The Day of the Lord.” The troubles in other Middle East countries, especially in their relation to Israel, also bear a strong resemblance to Biblical prophecy. Add to this the other troubles in and between many nations of the world that appear to conform to what the Bible describes in the last days and it doesn’t seem at all far fetched to believe the Lord’s coming may not be too far off.

As with His first advent, Jesus will return at God’s appointed time. Of necessity we need to be flexible in our plans and programs but not so with the Lord. Paul wrote, “When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son …” (Galatians 4:4). The context makes it clear that this is a reference to the birth of Christ but just as Christ’s first advent was on God’s appointed day, and in His appointed way, so shall His second advent.

He will return on the God appointed day and will not be hurried or impeded. Not men or Satan and all his hoards could prevent His coming then (they all tried) and neither will they even slightly impede His coming again.

The farmer knows the signs of the coming season change because he has gained certain knowledge relating to seasons. People who know and believe what God has written in the Bible will also recognise the “signs” or “seasons” that reveal that we may well be in the preparation period leading up to the events prophesied for Israel, Egypt, the Middle East and the whole world as revealed in the Bible.

“‘Surely I am coming quickly [suddenly].’ Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20)

The Voice of the Lord

“I heard the voice of the Lord saying …” Isaiah 6:8

There have been a number of occasions in the life of this writer when someone has claimed to have a word from the Lord for me or the church I have been attending. In each case they were exposed as false by the Word of God but to whom does the Lord speak?

By giving us a specific example Isaiah also gives us general revelation of the conditions and the kind of person to whom the Lord speaks. The specific details of each communication will be different in each case but we are able to discern details that are common in each.

As we read chapter six of Isaiah we notice first that it was the Lord who initiated contact. It was not Isaiah. In that initial contact the Lord introduced Himself by seraphim and revealed His glory and holiness (v 3). We are unable to see the glory and the holiness of God unless He reveals Himself to us. Fallen and unredeemed people can never see God in His glory and holiness and neither can the carnal or worldly Christian.

The reaction of Isaiah is the reaction of any person who sees the glory and holiness of God. In the light of God’s holiness we will more accurately see our exceeding sinfulness. Isaiah was fully aware of his exceeding sinfulness in the light of God’s glorious and holy presence (v 5).

Before the Lord would speak there was still one more vital requirement. The man must be cleansed of all sin (v 7). Only then could Isaiah hear the heart of the Lord (v 8).

When he responded by surrendering his life to the Lord, the Lord gave him a message to preach. On hearing the message he may have wondered what he had gotten into because he knew it would not be a popular message. It may have been concern over the reception of the message that provoked him to ask how long the message would need to be preached (v 11). The response would have done nothing to ease his concern. The message would be preached until Israel has been all but erased and only a remnant remained (vv 11-13; cf. 11:20-23; Ch. 11).

We have a message to proclaim until Jesus Christ returns. It is a message that most do not want to hear but for the sake of those who do want to hear it we proclaim it.

Why did the Lord choose Isaiah? Of course there are a number of considerations regarding God’s sovereignty and purposes in history but an important one that is relevant to us is that Isaiah had a history of positive response to the Lord and an acute awareness of his own sinfulness. This is a picture of the person the Lord is pleased to speak with and use in His mission.