Pray Watch and Remember

“O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble. At the tumultuous noise peoples flee; when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered, and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers; as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.” (Isaiah 33:2–4, ESV)Continue reading “Pray Watch and Remember”

The Day of Righteous Governance

“Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice.” (Isaiah 32:1, ESV) Some years ago, a Gallup poll rated various professions concerning honesty and ethics. The results should come as no surprise. People rated our elected officials at the bottom of the list in the area of honesty and ethics. Governors,Continue reading “The Day of Righteous Governance”

Repetitive Precepts

“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord!” (Isaiah 31:1, ESV) As we work through the book of Isaiah,Continue reading “Repetitive Precepts”

Seek God for Direction

1 “Ah, stubborn children,” declares the Lord, “who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin; 2 who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh andContinue reading “Seek God for Direction”

True Worshippers Needed

“And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,” (Isaiah 29:13, ESV) In my years as a Christian, I have observed church folk from both the pulpit andContinue reading “True Worshippers Needed”

A Living Hope

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3, ESV) For today’s post, I thought to change things up. I have had a lotContinue reading “A Living Hope”

Our Victory Guaranteed

“In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea.” (Isaiah 27:1, ESV) Isaiah, in this verse, uses an interesting metaphor. Here he states that in “that day,” the Lord willContinue reading “Our Victory Guaranteed”

In God We Must Trust

“In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: ‘We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks. Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in. You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts inContinue reading “In God We Must Trust”

Some Will Listen

“In that day the Lord God of hosts called for weeping and mourning, for baldness and wearing sackcloth; and behold, joy and gladness, killing oxen and slaughtering sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine. ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.‘” (Isaiah 22:12–13, ESV) Jerusalem was under siege. Biblical historians believe that this wasContinue reading “Some Will Listen”

Observe, Discern, and Teach

“For thus the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman; let him announce what he sees.” (Isaiah 21:6, ESV) One of the great practices of elementary school days was that of the “Show and Tell.” The student would bring something from home and tell the story about it. Similar to this is the nextContinue reading “Observe, Discern, and Teach”