Day By Day - Isaiah 44
By John Horsburgh
Opening Thoughts:
This chapter has three distinct sections: encouragement for God’s people (vv. 1 - 8), a discourse on the futility of idols (vv. 9 - 20) and a call to honour and trust in the Lord (vv. 21 - 28).
Key Points:
1. Verse 3: “I will pour water on him who is thirsty, I will flood the dry ground, I will pour out my spirit and blessing on your children.”
There has been much debate about the significance of water in the language of Scripture but however we look at it, water is an essential nutrient for life. Anyone who has ever been thirsty will appreciate the relief that comes with a simple glass of cold water and many of us will have seen the transformation when rain brings drought to an end. Christ spoke a blessing on those who would hunger and thirst for righteousness, and Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus speaks of the washing of water by the word of God.
If we are thirsting after Godliness, the Father’s promise is that we will be cleansed and sustained by the water of His word.
2. Who can argue with the logic of vv. 16 - 17?
Here we have described for us the uses that the idol maker has for a block of wood. Fire for warmth, heat for cooking and with the remains of the wood he carves himself a deaf and blind idol. He worships the work of his own hands. It seems silly when we see it in that light but for many in the world today the same idolatry exists only the 'god' is not a carving but whatever it is we place above God.
Money, power, work and even good things like family can become idols that we use to remove God from the throne of our lives. While those things can be wonderful servants and nice to have, giving them pre-eminence in our lives and supplanting God from the throne of our heart will always bring emptiness and futility.
3. The better alternative is to remember God and His forgiveness, to embrace the redemption that He offers to us... free of charge. The heavens and the earth are both exhorted to sing for what the Lord has achieved with our redemption. We are told that the heavens rejoice and the angels sing at the repentance of one sinner; and our own joy at being freed from the power of sin and death should also bring a song of praise to our own lips.
Closing Thoughts:
There are only two choices available to us - either we serve God or we serve the enemy.
Satan is defeated and Christ is the one who is the Captain of the winning team. In the early parts of the Word, God speaks and says, “choose you this day whom you will serve” and “I have set before you blessing and cursing, life and death… choose life.”
We still have that choice before us and as God told his people to choose life, He is still giving the same good advice… CHOOSE LIFE… CHOOSE LIFE…
Opening Thoughts:
This chapter has three distinct sections: encouragement for God’s people (vv. 1 - 8), a discourse on the futility of idols (vv. 9 - 20) and a call to honour and trust in the Lord (vv. 21 - 28).
Key Points:
1. Verse 3: “I will pour water on him who is thirsty, I will flood the dry ground, I will pour out my spirit and blessing on your children.”
There has been much debate about the significance of water in the language of Scripture but however we look at it, water is an essential nutrient for life. Anyone who has ever been thirsty will appreciate the relief that comes with a simple glass of cold water and many of us will have seen the transformation when rain brings drought to an end. Christ spoke a blessing on those who would hunger and thirst for righteousness, and Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus speaks of the washing of water by the word of God.
If we are thirsting after Godliness, the Father’s promise is that we will be cleansed and sustained by the water of His word.
2. Who can argue with the logic of vv. 16 - 17?
Here we have described for us the uses that the idol maker has for a block of wood. Fire for warmth, heat for cooking and with the remains of the wood he carves himself a deaf and blind idol. He worships the work of his own hands. It seems silly when we see it in that light but for many in the world today the same idolatry exists only the 'god' is not a carving but whatever it is we place above God.
Money, power, work and even good things like family can become idols that we use to remove God from the throne of our lives. While those things can be wonderful servants and nice to have, giving them pre-eminence in our lives and supplanting God from the throne of our heart will always bring emptiness and futility.
3. The better alternative is to remember God and His forgiveness, to embrace the redemption that He offers to us... free of charge. The heavens and the earth are both exhorted to sing for what the Lord has achieved with our redemption. We are told that the heavens rejoice and the angels sing at the repentance of one sinner; and our own joy at being freed from the power of sin and death should also bring a song of praise to our own lips.
Closing Thoughts:
There are only two choices available to us - either we serve God or we serve the enemy.
Satan is defeated and Christ is the one who is the Captain of the winning team. In the early parts of the Word, God speaks and says, “choose you this day whom you will serve” and “I have set before you blessing and cursing, life and death… choose life.”
We still have that choice before us and as God told his people to choose life, He is still giving the same good advice… CHOOSE LIFE… CHOOSE LIFE…
Posted in Isaiah