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November 12, 2024; Day 3 of Week 33
- 2024/11/12
- 再生時間： 6 分
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あらすじ・解説
Daily Dose of Hope November 12, 2024 Day 3 of Week 33 Scripture: Isaiah 4-6; Matthew 23 Welcome back, friends, the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional/podcast that goes along with New Hope Church’s Bible reading plan. Before moving into our Scripture from Isaiah, I thought it might be helpful to talk more about the prophet himself. The name Isaiah actually means “the Lord saves” which is essentially what his message was to Judah and Israel. Isaiah’s prophecy moves from judgement to restoration, continually reminding us of the severity of humanity’s sin, the judgement that is deserved, and God’s incredibe grace for having the desire to save sinners. Isaiah lived and prophesied during the 8th century BC. As we mentioned yesterday, he was a prophet to both Israel and Judah, at a time in which the Southern Kingdom had great prosperity. Remember, it isn’t easy being a prophet when things are going well – no one wants to hear your warning at all; they like the way things are. But Isaiah continued to trust God and be his mouthpiece. Chapter 4 is quite short but interesting. As you were reading it, did you sense the messianic prophecy. Isaiah, in the previous chapter, had just gotten through describing the Lord’s judgement on the people for their sin and rejection of the things of God. Then, in this chapter, there is a shift. We are now looking into the future at a time when the Messiah is among the people. They are cleansed and holy. In chapter 5, we find a parable in the form of a song. Israel is the vineyard and God’s intention was always for them to produce good fruit. But that has not happened. There is oppression and bloodshed. As a result, there will be a series of woes. One that made an impression to me was the woe to those who intentionally sin because they think God will not do anything. The people will go into exile and they have no idea. In chapter 6, we read about a vision that Isaiah had. In this vision, he saw the Lord in his glory and holiness surrounded by an angelic being. Isaiah was deeply moved and said, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5). But God appointed him as a prophet. He received a strange commission, “Go, and say to this people, Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive. Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:9-10). Basically, the people’s hearts have been heartened. It seems that God might not even be interested in the people waking up anymore. Things may be too far gone. Our New Testament passage is Matthew 23. Throughout most of this chapter, we see Jesus strongly denounce the Pharisees. Their system of rules and regulations was originally designed to help people seek godliness but their extremism only harmed people. The rules had become an end in themselves and the teachers of the law were much more concerned with following the letter of the law than they were about the people themselves. This gives the appearance of godliness but it is all a facade. The heart is still far from God. Jesus’ final words in this chapter about Jerusalem are quite sad. Jesus loves Jerusalem and had longed for the people to love him back. He wanted to gather the people under his protective wings and offer them true solace and hope. Remember, this was the holy city where the temple of God resided. And yet, over and over again, the people of Jerusalem had rejected God’s efforts to care for them. It was no different with Jesus. Jesus’ words were also prophetic. When he says...”Look, your house is left to you desolate,” we understand from history that it isn’t long before the Romans totally destroy the city in AD 70. But besides the physical desolation of the city, there is this tone in the text that suggests God had forsaken it as well. And, of course, when Jesus states that they will not see him again, we know that he is indeed heading to the cross. His earthly ministry has come to a close until God does a new thing. Let’s chat again tomorrow. Blessings, Pastor Vicki