During our last Christmas expedition into literature we examined a carol. Today we will examine the “source document” for that song. Luke 2:10-12 King James Version (KJV)
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Please excuse a little artistic license as we name the angel, Harold. From other verses about interactions between men and angels we are aware that these are not benign encounters. The angels are not threatening, nor terrible, but their demeanor of unsullied purity, coupled with the authority given them from their Maker sent nearly every human subject to the prone position. Even John, when he saw the Risen Jesus about six decades after their last tete-a-tete, fell face down. John was the “beloved disciple.”
So our shepherd friends were very wary, to say the least, when they saw this magnificent apparition in the sky. “Don’t be afraid.” (That encouragement occurs over 350 times in the Bible.) Did you ever notice that when the angels said this, that the recipients were no longer fearful? Something to think about.)
Harold continues, “Look, I am bringing you notice of great joy which will be to everyone on earth.” This is not to some little, cloistered sect in Judea, but he announced this to the entire world. “Good news. Joy.”
And now, one of the shortest, yet most information filled phrases anywhere. “Today is born, in Bethlehem a Saviour (sic KJV) which is Christ the Lord.”
“Saviour.” The world is lost and heading for perdition–and worse. Literally volumes have been written about the Savior. And we have not scratched the surface. A quick summary of our need is in the Ten Commandments. They do not point us to the path to please God. They are an indictment that we have missed the path at least ten times. We failed every one. Right after Moses explained the law to the Jews in Exodus 20, God revealed the sacrificial process by which the Children of Israel could confess their sins and express their faith in Him
We needed a Savior and He had come. But the Savior was also Christ, Messiah. The promised one, that Moses referred to in Deuteronomy 18:15, would be the One Who would lead them. He was the Messiah. And He is the One Coming for us. (John 14:3; and Revelation 22:20) Revelation repeats the promise, “I am coming,” eight times, and the final verse in the Bible 22:20 confirms it one last time. “I am coming.” The Messiah of Deuteronomy has promised to return. Great news!
But that is not all. He is Savior: He is Christ, Messiah: and He is Lord. That is Jehovah, Yahweh, the I AM. God. All of the previous ideas pale in light of the One Who is Savior, Who is Messiah, for He is Lord.
I imagine that the shepherds were up and running. But in circles. “Where, where, where?” They already knew Bethlehem, but where? So the angel, who might have been Gabriel, told them the child would be swaddled. This is not too unusual, as many babies are “swaddled” today.
Aside: Some think that Mary brought the clothes in preparation as she knew that it was “about time.” Others equate the “swaddling clothes” with grave clothes, but this seems to be a weak association, at best. He was wrapped up.
But the real tell-tale was that the babe was in a manger, a feeding trough. Ever watch a cow eat? Slobber (saliva, but not as picturesque) drools out of their mouth as they munch the feed. Not an ideal place for a newborn.
“Find a stable. Any babies inside? If so, let us know.” This was probably their shouted instructions to each other as they ran to town.
“Thanks for letting us know, Harold, Gabriel, or whoever.” It did not matter who had told them. In this instance, Marshall McLuhan was wrong. The medium was not the message. Angels are irrelevant. The Savior, Christ the Lord is here.
What a Savior. What a message. Tell it.
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
A Doctrinal Dissection
Luke 2: 13 “And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,” 14 ‘Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.’”
We often are exposed to a criticism of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” because one translation specifically says “Hark the Herald Angels SAY.” So do we need to recast the words? “Hey, listen up dude, them flyboys are fixing to vocalize about some kingy guy.” No, the other may be a little better. Let’s check that out.
And if that word choice is the deepest level of understanding that we bring to this and other carols, then I would SAY that we are missing a lot. Read the text of the carol:
Hark! The herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise, Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim, “Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
(Refrain) Hark! the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
Now if we just take the first phrase, “Glory to the newborn king..,” it is not much encouragement for the average shepherd or any resident of Bethlehem or of the nation of Israel. If this “newborn” king is just another Herod or Caesar, it is just more of the same old stuff. (SOS) He will be either more cruel or a little less, but they are all the same.
But then the angels, and our song, go farther. “Peace on earth.” Here is a cosmic shift. The newborn one is not another of the same kind. Peace is the farthest thing from the mind or ability of any earthly king, and the angels’ audience knew it from hard, bitter experience. And, “mercy?”
“Mercy me,” is a common phrase, but is most often not used in an understanding manner. Comparing the translations of Psalm 23 gives us a hint. “Surely goodness and MERCY will follow me....” (KJV) NASB uses “loving kindness,” and Holman uses “faithful love.” The mercy of this newborn King must involve love. Something that was and is foreign to any contemporary rulers.
The explanation and fuller understanding comes from the rest of the sentence. “...God and sinners reconciled.” Man, meaning you and I, has been at war with God since the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:15; Romans 5:10) The separation has been healed. We sinners are reconciled to the Holy God. Mercy is extended, through the Baby, to undeserving sinners.
The rest of the first verse is praise for the “medium” of the reconciliation and the source of peace. All nations and the heavens join in the rejoicing over the Christ, the Messiah, coming to earth. He is the triumphal Substitute alluded to in Genesis 3:15. Hark the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
The next verse describes this One Who has come.
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored; Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come, Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus our Emmanuel.
Heaven loves Him. He is the eternal Lord. (See previous posts on Isaiah.) “Late in time,” does not necessarily mean at the last second, but “in the last days.” (Isaiah 2:2; Jeremiah 23:20, 49:39; Ezekiel 38:16; Hosea 3:5; Amos 4:2; and Micah 4:1) The hymn is looking forward to the second coming as described by Jesus as the end times. (Matthew 28:20 and others)
Then the carol goes into His unique identity: virgin born, the image of God in flesh, incarnate God, Emmanuel–God with us, and most astounding of all, this Visitor from Heaven lives in a body like ours. He is “pleased” to have such an existence. He is not here grudgingly nor under duress. He chose it. Makes you want to shout with the angels: “Glory to the newborn King!”
There is more. (The version I learned was “heaven born” instead of heav’nly, but it is the same.)
Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings, Ris’n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by, Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth, Born to give them second birth.
If we were to look up all the Old Testament references, we would be here a long time. Grab a good concordance or go to BibleGateway and check them out. Prince of Peace. How does He bring peace? The Sun of Righteousness brings reconciliation between our sin and God’s righteousness. Light of the world is He and he brings life and healing (spiritual and physical) in His wings. (Gotta reference this: Matthew 23:37)
He meekly laid aside the glory of heaven, except for a “peek” on the mountain of transfiguration and once in Gethsemane. (Matthew 17, Mark 9 and Luke 9; and John 18) The glory flashed out for a second and they had a glimpse of what He had “laid aside.”
He was “born that man might no longer die. (John 3:16) We were dead in trespasses and sins. We had to be raised from spiritual death. (Ephesians 2:1) And He provided a second birth. (John 3:3) Hark the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King.”
There is a pretty complete lesson on theology there. (And there are two other verses in some hymnals.) And all this from a “poor word choice.” Not to mention the skill and beauty of the words themselves. The writer was a true craftsman and wordsmith. “Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see...incarnate Deity. Pleased...in flesh to dwell.”
Also notice the rhyming pattern and the beats per line. No cramming in a bunch of extra 1/8th or 16th notes to complete a phrase. Or no whole notes to let the music catch up with the words. It rhymes, it flows, it communicates. Flawlessly. Hark! The herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
And we can sing (or say) with them.
Here are some links to hear a rendition. I could not choose, so you can. 1) The first is an adult choir with audience.
2) The text with Chris Tomlin and adult choir are here.
3) Text and kids choir sing for us here it is pretty good.
4) Gaither Men’s trio–no explanation required.
Added two verses.
Come, Desire of nations, come, Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed, Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display Thy saving power, Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join Thine to ours, and ours to Thine.
Refrain
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface, Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above, Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain, Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart, Formed in each believing heart.
Refrain
A Doctrinal Dissection
Luke 2: 13 “And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,” 14 ‘Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.’”
We often are exposed to a criticism of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” because one translation specifically says “Hark the Herald Angels SAY.” So do we need to recast the words? “Hey, listen up dude, them flyboys are fixing to vocalize about some kingy guy.” No, the other may be a little better. Let’s check that out.
And if that word choice is the deepest level of understanding that we bring to this and other carols, then I would SAY that we are missing a lot. Read the text of the carol:
Hark! The herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise, Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim, “Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
(Refrain) Hark! the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
Now if we just take the first phrase, “Glory to the newborn king..,” it is not much encouragement for the average shepherd or any resident of Bethlehem or of the nation of Israel. If this “newborn” king is just another Herod or Caesar, it is just more of the same old stuff. (SOS) He will be either more cruel or a little less, but they are all the same.
But then the angels, and our song, go farther. “Peace on earth.” Here is a cosmic shift. The newborn one is not another of the same kind. Peace is the farthest thing from the mind or ability of any earthly king, and the angels’ audience knew it from hard, bitter experience. And, “mercy?”
“Mercy me,” is a common phrase, but is most often not used in an understanding manner. Comparing the translations of Psalm 23 gives us a hint. “Surely goodness and MERCY will follow me....” (KJV) NASB uses “loving kindness,” and Holman uses “faithful love.” The mercy of this newborn King must involve love. Something that was and is foreign to any contemporary rulers.
The explanation and fuller understanding comes from the rest of the sentence. “...God and sinners reconciled.” Man, meaning you and I, has been at war with God since the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:15; Romans 5:10) The separation has been healed. We sinners are reconciled to the Holy God. Mercy is extended, through the Baby, to undeserving sinners.
The rest of the first verse is praise for the “medium” of the reconciliation and the source of peace. All nations and the heavens join in the rejoicing over the Christ, the Messiah, coming to earth. He is the triumphal Substitute alluded to in Genesis 3:15. Hark the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
The next verse describes this One Who has come.
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored; Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come, Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus our Emmanuel.
Heaven loves Him. He is the eternal Lord. (See previous posts on Isaiah.) “Late in time,” does not necessarily mean at the last second, but “in the last days.” (Isaiah 2:2; Jeremiah 23:20, 49:39; Ezekiel 38:16; Hosea 3:5; Amos 4:2; and Micah 4:1) The hymn is looking forward to the second coming as described by Jesus as the end times. (Matthew 28:20 and others)
Then the carol goes into His unique identity: virgin born, the image of God in flesh, incarnate God, Emmanuel–God with us, and most astounding of all, this Visitor from Heaven lives in a body like ours. He is “pleased” to have such an existence. He is not here grudgingly nor under duress. He chose it. Makes you want to shout with the angels: “Glory to the newborn King!”
There is more. (The version I learned was “heaven born” instead of heav’nly, but it is the same.)
Hail the heav’nly Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings, Ris’n with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by, Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth, Born to give them second birth.
If we were to look up all the Old Testament references, we would be here a long time. Grab a good concordance or go to BibleGateway and check them out. Prince of Peace. How does He bring peace? The Sun of Righteousness brings reconciliation between our sin and God’s righteousness. Light of the world is He and he brings life and healing (spiritual and physical) in His wings. (Gotta reference this: Matthew 23:37)
He meekly laid aside the glory of heaven, except for a “peek” on the mountain of transfiguration and once in Gethsemane. (Matthew 17, Mark 9 and Luke 9; and John 18) The glory flashed out for a second and they had a glimpse of what He had “laid aside.”
He was “born that man might no longer die. (John 3:16) We were dead in trespasses and sins. We had to be raised from spiritual death. (Ephesians 2:1) And He provided a second birth. (John 3:3) Hark the herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King.”
There is a pretty complete lesson on theology there. (And there are two other verses in some hymnals.) And all this from a “poor word choice.” Not to mention the skill and beauty of the words themselves. The writer was a true craftsman and wordsmith. “Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see...incarnate Deity. Pleased...in flesh to dwell.”
Also notice the rhyming pattern and the beats per line. No cramming in a bunch of extra 1/8th or 16th notes to complete a phrase. Or no whole notes to let the music catch up with the words. It rhymes, it flows, it communicates. Flawlessly. Hark! The herald angels sing, “Glory to the newborn King!”
And we can sing (or say) with them.
Here are some links to hear a rendition. I could not choose, so you can. 1) The first is an adult choir with audience.
2) The text with Chris Tomlin and adult choir are here.
3) Text and kids choir sing for us here it is pretty good.
4) Gaither Men’s trio–no explanation required.
Added two verses.
Come, Desire of nations, come, Fix in us Thy humble home;
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring Seed, Bruise in us the serpent’s head.
Now display Thy saving power, Ruined nature now restore;
Now in mystic union join Thine to ours, and ours to Thine.
Refrain
Adam’s likeness, Lord, efface, Stamp Thine image in its place:
Second Adam from above, Reinstate us in Thy love.
Let us Thee, though lost, regain, Thee, the Life, the inner man:
O, to all Thyself impart, Formed in each believing heart.
Refrain
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Train Up a Child
We have all heard the verse in Proverbs 22:6 and probably heard many sermons about it.
“Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
We will not rehash all of those sermons and interpretations, but David Jeremiah had a new take on it that made me think. The word “train” is not pedagogic, but therapeutic. When a new born is reluctant to suckle, a midwife would take a date and rub it inside the baby’s mouth. This would stimulate the sucking reflex.
Essentially, the sweet flavor created a desire for more and the response led to the baby getting nourishment. David Jeremiah’s application was that as parents, or midwives of our children, we are to “train” them by stimulating a desire and hunger for “the way he should go.” In other words we should create a desire to know and follow God.
This is good news and bad news. The good news is that it is never too late, even when the children are grown and gone. Our lives can still stimulate a hunger for God and to know Him better. Personally, I know my parents’ love for and dedication to the Bible has rubbed off on me. I want to know more. I read a “yearly Bible” that takes me through the entire Scripture once a year. But often I cannot wait, and get ahead.
Our responsibility to our kids is not exhausted when they leave. So it is never “too late” to implement the proverb. That is the good news. It is never too late.
The bad news is that this is a life time commitment. Think the kids are grown and gone and now we can let down the guard? Better think again. They are still watching. They are still available to have some “date therapy” applied to increase their hunger.
The more I learn about my family tree, the more I see this played out in our at-large family. Parents, uncles and aunts, grandparents, great uncles and great aunts all have coalesced into a “training” academy to elicit hunger. And as I connect with more and more of my “clan” I am delighted to find more and more of them are Christ followers. This goes back several generations. Praise the Lord for such a heritage.
Their “training up” continues to the present. I, and we, must commit ourselves to be one more link in the “date stimulators,” or midwives of this and other families. We don’t stimulate the date, we use the date to stimulate the child. And the child is anyone in whom we can stimulate a hunger for God.
What an exalted calling. “Train up a child....”
“Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
We will not rehash all of those sermons and interpretations, but David Jeremiah had a new take on it that made me think. The word “train” is not pedagogic, but therapeutic. When a new born is reluctant to suckle, a midwife would take a date and rub it inside the baby’s mouth. This would stimulate the sucking reflex.
Essentially, the sweet flavor created a desire for more and the response led to the baby getting nourishment. David Jeremiah’s application was that as parents, or midwives of our children, we are to “train” them by stimulating a desire and hunger for “the way he should go.” In other words we should create a desire to know and follow God.
This is good news and bad news. The good news is that it is never too late, even when the children are grown and gone. Our lives can still stimulate a hunger for God and to know Him better. Personally, I know my parents’ love for and dedication to the Bible has rubbed off on me. I want to know more. I read a “yearly Bible” that takes me through the entire Scripture once a year. But often I cannot wait, and get ahead.
Our responsibility to our kids is not exhausted when they leave. So it is never “too late” to implement the proverb. That is the good news. It is never too late.
The bad news is that this is a life time commitment. Think the kids are grown and gone and now we can let down the guard? Better think again. They are still watching. They are still available to have some “date therapy” applied to increase their hunger.
The more I learn about my family tree, the more I see this played out in our at-large family. Parents, uncles and aunts, grandparents, great uncles and great aunts all have coalesced into a “training” academy to elicit hunger. And as I connect with more and more of my “clan” I am delighted to find more and more of them are Christ followers. This goes back several generations. Praise the Lord for such a heritage.
Their “training up” continues to the present. I, and we, must commit ourselves to be one more link in the “date stimulators,” or midwives of this and other families. We don’t stimulate the date, we use the date to stimulate the child. And the child is anyone in whom we can stimulate a hunger for God.
What an exalted calling. “Train up a child....”
Monday, December 12, 2016
Devotions in Isaiah Part 1 Jehovah's Witness Isaiah 43:10-13
Devotions in Isaiah Part 1. Jehovah’s Witness
Isaiah 43:10-15 (NASB)
10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me.
11 “I, even I, am the Lord, And there is no savior besides Me.
12 “It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you;
So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And I am God.
13 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
I guess I have to confess. I am Jehovah’s witness. Look right here in Isaiah 43:10
“You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord,
The Lord, by the way, is Yahweh, also translated in some versions as, Jehovah. And as His witnesses, we have a job. Read on.
“And” (you are) “My servant whom I have chosen,”
We are chosen to be His witnesses and His servant. Now, recall that this was written to Israel, but here, it “spills over” to us Gentiles and the rest of the church. And what are we to be witnesses about? This is where is gets great.
10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord, And there is no savior besides Me."
We are to be witnesses to the fact that He chose us. (And He chose Israel also and we must not forget or ignore that.) He chose us to be his servants.
Right now, the President-elect is choosing his aides, confidants, and advisors. They are not called, “servants” but they literally serve the President. We are called to a much higher position. We are servants of the.., well let’s see Who we are called to serve.
First it is the “He.” (We will examine the “preemptive” name in the next consideration.) But “He” introduces Himself. There was no God before Him and there will be none after Him. There have been Presidents before our new one and there will be Presidents after him. But God is the eternal, I AM. He. The is also the Lord. In English that means the ruler, the one deserving service and obeisance. Jesus is Lord of lords. I feel a Hallelujah coming on. “King of kings, and....”
We are chosen servants. This was not a random, or haphazard appointment. It was a deliberate choice. He chose you. He chose me. Whew! Hang your hat on that for a while. Paul claimed this in Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1; and Titus 1:1. Paul also used a particular term, “bond servant.” This is more than an accidental slave, it is a deliberate, self-committed indenture to the master. And Paul also notes others who are bond slaves.
Other writes repeat the refrain. James, the Lord’s brother does in James 1:1. Peter in 2 Peter 1:1. Jude in Jude 1:1. Jude is also thought to be a brother of Jesus. John includes himself and all to whom the Book of Revelation is written in Revelation 1:1. That’s us folks. Jesus reaffirms that several times later in the book. Revelation 15:3 also identifies Moses as a bond servant. And all, throughout the book are summarized as “bond servants of God.” I rest my case.
But we bond servants are not just chosen to do. We are to know.
“So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He.”
Know, believe, and understand Who He is. He is described in the “Hallelujah” paragraph above. And notice the interesting juxtaposition of words. Know, then believe, followed by understanding. God works like that a lot of times. We are told what to do without necessarily having received understanding–yet.
Abraham, went out, not knowing where he went. (Hebrews 11:8.) We see that pattern a lot in the Scripture. We even use it in our daily lives. We can warn our kids not to touch the stove, because it is hot. The little toddlers do not always understand what that means and often have to “touch and see” to really understand. As we grow older, we hope to become better “believers” before understanders.
And we have just begun. We know, believe, and understand, what? He is the Lord, but if He stopped there, it would be a terrifying declaration. He is Lord. We are servants. But we are flawed and deficient servants. His next description is lifesaving. Literally.
And there is no savior besides Me.
HE IS THE SAVIOR! HE IS MY SAVIOR! And that is why I witness, why I proclaim, why I testify. This, HE, the I AM, has saved me. I am out from under the onus of my own flaws and failures. My sins are gone. As an old song goes, “Buried in the depths of the deepest sea.” Actually farther. Gone. Period.
Handel “Hallelujah’ed” about Who Jesus, God, was and is. We “hallelujah” about what He has done. He has saved us. Verse 12
“It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you;"
Sermon outline there. (It will be a short one, don’t worry. We will get out in time to make lunch.) He 1) declared, He 2) saved, and He 3) proclaimed. What did He declare? Back to the text.
Verse 10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen,"
He has declared us to be His witnesses and that He chose us. We love the Declaration of Independence and celebrate it every 4th of July. This is the declaration of selection, and we declare it. “HE chose me.”
Point two, He saved me. No sense in having a defective, read sinning, servant. So He purified, or to use a good doctrinal word, justified, us. We are made as pure as Christ. When He sees me, He sees the righteousness of Christ. (Romans 3:21, 22) Philippians 3:9 gives us an explanation. We have a righteousness as a gift through faith in Christ. That is the ultimate salvation. Ultimate and irreversible. (See the next post. Preememptive Name)
Point three, He proclaimed. The last part of verse 12 is the proclamation:
"And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And I am God."
No “strange” or other god did this. No one can do this. It was the One of Whom we witness. He is God. Be a witness.
(To be continued.)
Isaiah 43:10-15 (NASB)
10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me.
11 “I, even I, am the Lord, And there is no savior besides Me.
12 “It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you;
So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And I am God.
13 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
I guess I have to confess. I am Jehovah’s witness. Look right here in Isaiah 43:10
“You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord,
The Lord, by the way, is Yahweh, also translated in some versions as, Jehovah. And as His witnesses, we have a job. Read on.
“And” (you are) “My servant whom I have chosen,”
We are chosen to be His witnesses and His servant. Now, recall that this was written to Israel, but here, it “spills over” to us Gentiles and the rest of the church. And what are we to be witnesses about? This is where is gets great.
10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord, And there is no savior besides Me."
We are to be witnesses to the fact that He chose us. (And He chose Israel also and we must not forget or ignore that.) He chose us to be his servants.
Right now, the President-elect is choosing his aides, confidants, and advisors. They are not called, “servants” but they literally serve the President. We are called to a much higher position. We are servants of the.., well let’s see Who we are called to serve.
First it is the “He.” (We will examine the “preemptive” name in the next consideration.) But “He” introduces Himself. There was no God before Him and there will be none after Him. There have been Presidents before our new one and there will be Presidents after him. But God is the eternal, I AM. He. The is also the Lord. In English that means the ruler, the one deserving service and obeisance. Jesus is Lord of lords. I feel a Hallelujah coming on. “King of kings, and....”
We are chosen servants. This was not a random, or haphazard appointment. It was a deliberate choice. He chose you. He chose me. Whew! Hang your hat on that for a while. Paul claimed this in Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1; and Titus 1:1. Paul also used a particular term, “bond servant.” This is more than an accidental slave, it is a deliberate, self-committed indenture to the master. And Paul also notes others who are bond slaves.
Other writes repeat the refrain. James, the Lord’s brother does in James 1:1. Peter in 2 Peter 1:1. Jude in Jude 1:1. Jude is also thought to be a brother of Jesus. John includes himself and all to whom the Book of Revelation is written in Revelation 1:1. That’s us folks. Jesus reaffirms that several times later in the book. Revelation 15:3 also identifies Moses as a bond servant. And all, throughout the book are summarized as “bond servants of God.” I rest my case.
But we bond servants are not just chosen to do. We are to know.
“So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He.”
Know, believe, and understand Who He is. He is described in the “Hallelujah” paragraph above. And notice the interesting juxtaposition of words. Know, then believe, followed by understanding. God works like that a lot of times. We are told what to do without necessarily having received understanding–yet.
Abraham, went out, not knowing where he went. (Hebrews 11:8.) We see that pattern a lot in the Scripture. We even use it in our daily lives. We can warn our kids not to touch the stove, because it is hot. The little toddlers do not always understand what that means and often have to “touch and see” to really understand. As we grow older, we hope to become better “believers” before understanders.
And we have just begun. We know, believe, and understand, what? He is the Lord, but if He stopped there, it would be a terrifying declaration. He is Lord. We are servants. But we are flawed and deficient servants. His next description is lifesaving. Literally.
And there is no savior besides Me.
HE IS THE SAVIOR! HE IS MY SAVIOR! And that is why I witness, why I proclaim, why I testify. This, HE, the I AM, has saved me. I am out from under the onus of my own flaws and failures. My sins are gone. As an old song goes, “Buried in the depths of the deepest sea.” Actually farther. Gone. Period.
Handel “Hallelujah’ed” about Who Jesus, God, was and is. We “hallelujah” about what He has done. He has saved us. Verse 12
“It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you;"
Sermon outline there. (It will be a short one, don’t worry. We will get out in time to make lunch.) He 1) declared, He 2) saved, and He 3) proclaimed. What did He declare? Back to the text.
Verse 10 “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen,"
He has declared us to be His witnesses and that He chose us. We love the Declaration of Independence and celebrate it every 4th of July. This is the declaration of selection, and we declare it. “HE chose me.”
Point two, He saved me. No sense in having a defective, read sinning, servant. So He purified, or to use a good doctrinal word, justified, us. We are made as pure as Christ. When He sees me, He sees the righteousness of Christ. (Romans 3:21, 22) Philippians 3:9 gives us an explanation. We have a righteousness as a gift through faith in Christ. That is the ultimate salvation. Ultimate and irreversible. (See the next post. Preememptive Name)
Point three, He proclaimed. The last part of verse 12 is the proclamation:
"And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And I am God."
No “strange” or other god did this. No one can do this. It was the One of Whom we witness. He is God. Be a witness.
(To be continued.)
Devotions in Isaiah Part 2 Preemptive Name
Preemptive Name (Isaiah 43:12, 13)
Do you know any preemptive names? Some of us older dudes probably know of the Babe, Babe Ruth. No one else has ever been called “the Babe,” although some have been named “Babe.” How about Pele? (Soccer fans know him.) He was a great soccer player and no one, to my knowledge has called himself by that name. The preemptive name has been popular among celebrities recently. Anyone remember Fabian? One I get a kick out of was Prince. Later, he became “the artist formerly known as Prince.” Then he went back. Was he “Prince the artist formerly known as the artist formerly known as Prince?”
Did you notice that we “forgot” something in our first meditation? We have considered all He did for us, but slightly ignored the “He.” Now let’s focus on the Who of our witnessing
Historically there have been some preemptive names. Pharaoh was the ruler of Egypt. Even though there were several individuals who took the role and name, they were successive. Only one was Pharaoh at a time. Another name like that was Caesar. Again there were several Caesars, first being of the same family, then later, just assuming the title. But again, only one at a time.
Look at our verse for today. Isaiah 43:12
“And I am God.”
He did not call Himself, a god. That would be heresy and blasphemy. There is only one GOD, but He did not even use that. No, “The God,” or “The One God.” Just “God.”
That is as preemptive as you can get. Other places He says, “There is no other,” but that is to keep us from being confused. He does not need it. And looking at verse 13 we see more explanation. “Even from eternity, I am He.” There will be no predecessor or successor, like with the Pharaohs or Caesars. He is eternal, never beginning and never ending. Just God. Notice the present tense. For Him there is no past or future. He is.
But what He says next is comforting, to those of us who are included in the chosen ones.
“And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
That sounds like John 10, doesn’t it? Jesus is talking about His sheep.
27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand."
“Deliver out of,” or “snatch them out of.” That sounds like the same thing, right? “Deliver” is not the deliver of escaping harm or danger, but control. What is in God’s hand is there. Nothing can take it out or, to continue the verse in Isaiah, “reverse it.” The sheep in Jesus’ hand are secure. They have life, will never perish, and will not be separated. Pretty good stuff. It also pronounces the omnipotence of God. There is no power equal to Him, and thus nothing can challenge or change what He does. We are in His hand. Irreversibly so.
Did you think that Jesus made it up on the spot? Nope, He was quoting Isaiah. Look at the rest of Jesus’ comment.
29 “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” (Omnipotence. Ed.)
Right out of Isaiah 43. And then He went on to explain that He and the Father are one. That was not great revelation to those who had been around Him. They could witness to that fact. And so can, and do, I. The ramifications are staggering. God chose me. He has declared or announced that, just as a Roman father announced his son when the boy reached the age of responsibility. God, and Jesus, can do that because they have saved me. Jesus actually died for my sins. God accepted that sacrifice and to prove it raised Jesus from the dead. (Romans 4:25)
And finally, He proclaimed me. Just to make sure that there is no doubt He used the Old and New Testament to affirm (proclaim) that I am His and His forever. “No one can take them (Jim, and you if you are ‘saved’) out of My, or the Father’s hand.”
What a promise. No, not just a promise, an affirmation of fact. And the One who made it is God. He is the great preemptive One. We talk of security: web security, identity security, property security, all kinds of security. But this security is undoubted, unchanging, and unchallengeable.
He is preemptive in His identity. He is omnipotent; He is sovereign; He is eternal; He is compassionate (calls sheep); He is faithful; He is the only One; and He has made Himself known. He is preemptive and He is preemptive in His announcements. There can be no doubt. God said it. We can only fall in wonder and worship.
Do you know any preemptive names? Some of us older dudes probably know of the Babe, Babe Ruth. No one else has ever been called “the Babe,” although some have been named “Babe.” How about Pele? (Soccer fans know him.) He was a great soccer player and no one, to my knowledge has called himself by that name. The preemptive name has been popular among celebrities recently. Anyone remember Fabian? One I get a kick out of was Prince. Later, he became “the artist formerly known as Prince.” Then he went back. Was he “Prince the artist formerly known as the artist formerly known as Prince?”
Did you notice that we “forgot” something in our first meditation? We have considered all He did for us, but slightly ignored the “He.” Now let’s focus on the Who of our witnessing
Historically there have been some preemptive names. Pharaoh was the ruler of Egypt. Even though there were several individuals who took the role and name, they were successive. Only one was Pharaoh at a time. Another name like that was Caesar. Again there were several Caesars, first being of the same family, then later, just assuming the title. But again, only one at a time.
Look at our verse for today. Isaiah 43:12
“And I am God.”
He did not call Himself, a god. That would be heresy and blasphemy. There is only one GOD, but He did not even use that. No, “The God,” or “The One God.” Just “God.”
That is as preemptive as you can get. Other places He says, “There is no other,” but that is to keep us from being confused. He does not need it. And looking at verse 13 we see more explanation. “Even from eternity, I am He.” There will be no predecessor or successor, like with the Pharaohs or Caesars. He is eternal, never beginning and never ending. Just God. Notice the present tense. For Him there is no past or future. He is.
But what He says next is comforting, to those of us who are included in the chosen ones.
“And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
That sounds like John 10, doesn’t it? Jesus is talking about His sheep.
27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand."
“Deliver out of,” or “snatch them out of.” That sounds like the same thing, right? “Deliver” is not the deliver of escaping harm or danger, but control. What is in God’s hand is there. Nothing can take it out or, to continue the verse in Isaiah, “reverse it.” The sheep in Jesus’ hand are secure. They have life, will never perish, and will not be separated. Pretty good stuff. It also pronounces the omnipotence of God. There is no power equal to Him, and thus nothing can challenge or change what He does. We are in His hand. Irreversibly so.
Did you think that Jesus made it up on the spot? Nope, He was quoting Isaiah. Look at the rest of Jesus’ comment.
29 “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” (Omnipotence. Ed.)
Right out of Isaiah 43. And then He went on to explain that He and the Father are one. That was not great revelation to those who had been around Him. They could witness to that fact. And so can, and do, I. The ramifications are staggering. God chose me. He has declared or announced that, just as a Roman father announced his son when the boy reached the age of responsibility. God, and Jesus, can do that because they have saved me. Jesus actually died for my sins. God accepted that sacrifice and to prove it raised Jesus from the dead. (Romans 4:25)
And finally, He proclaimed me. Just to make sure that there is no doubt He used the Old and New Testament to affirm (proclaim) that I am His and His forever. “No one can take them (Jim, and you if you are ‘saved’) out of My, or the Father’s hand.”
What a promise. No, not just a promise, an affirmation of fact. And the One who made it is God. He is the great preemptive One. We talk of security: web security, identity security, property security, all kinds of security. But this security is undoubted, unchanging, and unchallengeable.
He is preemptive in His identity. He is omnipotent; He is sovereign; He is eternal; He is compassionate (calls sheep); He is faithful; He is the only One; and He has made Himself known. He is preemptive and He is preemptive in His announcements. There can be no doubt. God said it. We can only fall in wonder and worship.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
One Night
Devotional from Gordon-Conwell Seminary for Advent
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Monday, December 5, 2016
Pearl Harbor
Seventy-five years ago, December 7, 1941, the “Day that will live in infamy,” was initiated at 7:45 AM, a Sunday morning. Whether the United States would have, or should have entered the war became a moot point. We were in it. And a country that had largely demilitarized itself, suddenly initiated a united (pun intended) effort to defeat an enemy on two fronts. And by September, 1945, that task was completed.
A string of victories from North Africa, to the Mediterranean front and Italy, to the Normandy invasion of Northern Europe was coupled with the campaign in the Pacific. A partial listing of the islands marching from Midway and the Coral Sea, Guadalcanal, the Philippines, Iwo Jima up to Okinawa coupled with other offensives in SE Asia, Burma, borneo, India, and even China were the prelude to the attack on the Japan itself.
The bloody battles for Iwo Jima and Okinawa were portents of the nearly impossible task of taking the main islands. The ultimatum of the Potsdam Conference July 26, 1945, demanded the surrender of Japan or threatened ultimate destruction.
When there was no response, on 6 and 9 August, 1945 said destruction was unleashed. The strategy has been variously debated since, but the clear result was immediate, unconditional surrender and the end of the war. One minor irony is that the Japanese empire feared additional bombing and capitulated, unaware of the fact that there were no more functional bombs available. That would appear to be a coup for our nascent intelligence agencies.
Wednesday commemorates the end of a true “world war.” It was a “hot” or shooting war. Other offensives have been mounted and faced in the intervening years. We hope and pray that another such conflagration will not occur, ever.
The loss in human terms, in economic terms, and in cultural terms is literally incalculable. The United States, its allies, and the world cannot afford another such conflict. Alfred Nobel wished that his invention, dynamite, would be so horrific that no future wars would be fought. He was sadly mistaken and every destructive advancement since has multiplied the “killing efficiency” of arms. Our latest technological advances have not been actually deployed, but potentially are available.
We are technologically superior to our ancient forefathers, but our aggressive tendencies are no less developed or controlled. Much of our human “genius” is applied to improvised killing devices of all types from the relatively primitive conditions in the Mideast confrontation to computer generated electronic attacks to mind boggling technological threats.
Just as the Civil War, WWI, and WWII, and every conflict before, in between, and after have siphoned vital resources from the world, so the continued fascination with destruction efficiencies drains our world of needed resources and solutions to human problems. It is a high price to pay.
On the other hand, failing to defend against those who harbor ulterior motives will result in a world wide domination more catastrophic than that of the barbarians who destroyed the Roman Empire. Hope and prayer are our only hope, and we better pray first.
A string of victories from North Africa, to the Mediterranean front and Italy, to the Normandy invasion of Northern Europe was coupled with the campaign in the Pacific. A partial listing of the islands marching from Midway and the Coral Sea, Guadalcanal, the Philippines, Iwo Jima up to Okinawa coupled with other offensives in SE Asia, Burma, borneo, India, and even China were the prelude to the attack on the Japan itself.
The bloody battles for Iwo Jima and Okinawa were portents of the nearly impossible task of taking the main islands. The ultimatum of the Potsdam Conference July 26, 1945, demanded the surrender of Japan or threatened ultimate destruction.
When there was no response, on 6 and 9 August, 1945 said destruction was unleashed. The strategy has been variously debated since, but the clear result was immediate, unconditional surrender and the end of the war. One minor irony is that the Japanese empire feared additional bombing and capitulated, unaware of the fact that there were no more functional bombs available. That would appear to be a coup for our nascent intelligence agencies.
Wednesday commemorates the end of a true “world war.” It was a “hot” or shooting war. Other offensives have been mounted and faced in the intervening years. We hope and pray that another such conflagration will not occur, ever.
The loss in human terms, in economic terms, and in cultural terms is literally incalculable. The United States, its allies, and the world cannot afford another such conflict. Alfred Nobel wished that his invention, dynamite, would be so horrific that no future wars would be fought. He was sadly mistaken and every destructive advancement since has multiplied the “killing efficiency” of arms. Our latest technological advances have not been actually deployed, but potentially are available.
We are technologically superior to our ancient forefathers, but our aggressive tendencies are no less developed or controlled. Much of our human “genius” is applied to improvised killing devices of all types from the relatively primitive conditions in the Mideast confrontation to computer generated electronic attacks to mind boggling technological threats.
Just as the Civil War, WWI, and WWII, and every conflict before, in between, and after have siphoned vital resources from the world, so the continued fascination with destruction efficiencies drains our world of needed resources and solutions to human problems. It is a high price to pay.
On the other hand, failing to defend against those who harbor ulterior motives will result in a world wide domination more catastrophic than that of the barbarians who destroyed the Roman Empire. Hope and prayer are our only hope, and we better pray first.
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