What God did for Jeremiah, I pray He does for me whenever I open my mouth to preach. Like Jeremiah, I do not feel worthy to be His messenger, yet I know it is His Word alone, not mine, that is worthy of being heard. It is not just in preaching that I pray for God’s Word to shape my speech, but in every word of counsel offered. For human wisdom has no power to save. Be careful of giving out advice without prayer. Ask God to “touch your mouth” before using it to guide others.
Like an olympic runner stretching for the finish line, the apostle Paul “strained forward” towards the future “goal” in Christ. He didn’t let his past predict his future, but focused on the goal of Christ. Some live in the past, living a life of regret or remembering past glories or failures. Others live as dreamers, always searching for the gold at the end of some distant rainbow. But Paul had a singular focus to follow and be with Christ. Have you yet made Jesus the object of your faith, the one you worship and follow, your all in all?
After describing a coming day of the Lord’s judgment, Isaiah prophesied of a “new heaven and a new earth” (Isa.65:17), a time when the predator and the prey will no longer be at enmity. With the new creation, there will be a new order where peace will reign. This prophecy is yet to be fulfilled.
The Scriptural basis for a favorite VBS song is found here: “Rise and shine, and give God the glory, glory…
The prophet Isaiah spoke of the Lord as a heroic redeemer coming clothed for battle, not with iron and steel, but with righteousness, salvation, vengeance and zeal. The apostle Paul must have had this passage in view as the Spirit inspired him to expand upon it to describe the “armor of God” (Eph. 6:10-17). Isaiah’s prophecy spoke anthropomorphically, using the metaphor of ancient armor to describe the attributes of the Lord, who is Spirit. Yet, because of Christ, who has come to abide in those who believe, we have access to this real armor of God for the spiritual warfare waged against us. We put on Christ.
The apostle Paul warned the believers in Ephesus not to go out into the world unprotected from spiritual warfare. He told them to be prepared for trouble by putting on the “whole armor of God.” There are six components to this armor, five defensive and one offensive:
1) Belt of Truth
2) Breastplate of Righteousness
3) Gospel of Peace shoes
4) Shield of Faith
5) Helmet of Salvation
6) Sword of the Spirit – which is the Word of God. Our only offensive weapon.
Have you armored up today?
Isaiah prophesied 700 years before the Messiah’s coming of the rejection and hatred that the He would endure. Isaiah described in incredible detail the circumstances surrounding Christ’s crucifixion and even His burial (“with a rich man” v.9), yet as his prophecy predicted, He was “rejected by men.” Christ Jesus took on our sin and our sorrow. He suffered great physical pain at our hands, but perhaps His greatest pain was that of our rejection and disdain. As the gospel of John declared, “He came to his own and they did not receive him. Yet, as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:11-12).
When Israel accused the Lord of forsaking them, He replied saying that He could never forget them. He compared Himself to a mother, saying, “Can a woman forget her nursing child?” Then, He said that He had “engraved” them on His hands. The word “engraved” might be translated “inscribed” or “written,” but literally means to “cut in.” He was essentially saying, “How can I forget you when I have a remembrance of you cut into the palms of My hands?” Surely this was an encouraging word to the Israelites, but even more so to those who view it through the lens of the cross. For the scars of the nails still mark our Savior’s hands. As Jesus told Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands” (John 20:27). The One with the nail-scarred hands will never leave, nor forsake us.
Both the goal and the means of our speech are described. The goal is maturity in Christ. The means is twofold: “truth” and “love.” The mission of the Church is to make disciples who are being conformed to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29). The members of the Church are to speak the unvarnished, absolute truth to one another, so that they don’t fall prey to false doctrine and worldly deception. Yet, this truth should not be delivered in a harsh, judgmental way, but in a graceful and loving way. Our speech should have the goal of “building up” the hearer (Eph. 4:29). Some consider themselves truth-tellers and others are people-pleasers, but the Word calls for us to avoid both extremes. Instead, speak the truth in love.
That God is still at work, even in our being “formed” in the womb, is a consistent biblical theme. From God’s point of view, there are no unwanted pregnancies, for He wants that which He has formed. Surely, He made the heavens and the earth, but He also leaned in to make us. And He leaned down to give us Jesus, born of the virgin, crucified, died, buried and raised to be our Redeemer, that we might be born again.