Isaiah 45 - 59: Black sheep & papooses

Isaiah is a loooonnnggg book! At this point, it seems to be veering away from pronouncements of judgment and instead there is a focus on Messianic prophecy and God's goodness.
- Not always obvious:  It's not always clear what God is doing. Sometimes we'll only understand years down the line. "You are a God who works behind the scenes" (Isaiah 45:15).
- Did you know you're a little papoose?  God said, through Isaiah, "I've been carrying you on my back from the day you were born" (Is. 46:3-4).
- Why was Israel chosen?  "I'm setting you up as a light for the nations so that my salvation becomes global" (Is 49:6). God's plan is for all people, not just the nation of Israel.
- A promise:  "The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard" (NKJV, Is 52:12).
- Love this:  God compared to a nursing mother in Is 49:15-16. A tender image.
- The man of sorrows: Chapter 53 is probably the most well known and powerful of the OT prophecies about the Messiah. In it, Jesus is called "The Servant."
- Black sheep:  Jesus loves sinners. "He took up the cause of all the black sheep" (Is. 53:12).
- Another promise:  "Salvation is just around the corner!" (Is 56)
- For all people:  "My house of worship will be known as a house of prayer for all people" (Is 56:6-8). Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is a beautiful Episcopal church and this verse in inscribed in the doorway.
- What matters to God? Is 58:6-9 spells it out.
- The armor of God:  This idea was not unique to the apostle Paul. Isaiah uses this image here, with Jesus donning the armor (Is 59:15-19). "He dressed in Righteousness, put it on like a suit of armor, with Salvation on his head like a helmet, put on Judgment like an overcoat, and threw a cloak of Passion across his shoulders."

Song of Solomon 5 - Isaiah 12: Romance & a secret garden

- This is romantic:  The Shulammite woman talking about her lover: "His words are kisses, his kisses words" (Song of Solomon 5:16).
- On to the prophets. Eugene Peterson notes that there were 16 writing prophets, and they have two main messages for Israel (and for us):

1. Accept judgment (it's from God, and it's for the best)
2. Open up to hope (a better Day is coming)

- Warning:  Peterson also warns us against accepting the ways of the world, because "it's assumptions, its values, its methods of going about its work--are never on the side of God. Never." The prophets are there to keep us straight.
- Outcasts:  The prophets were not popular, easygoing, or reasonable. They were not celebrities, they didn't fit into the dominant way of life, and they were not always easy to understand.
- A promise:  Someday God will assume "his full stature on the earth" (Isaiah 2).
- The secret garden:  Isaiah 5 describes Israel as God's private garden or vineyard that he tends carefully.
- A peek....inside God's throne room in Isaiah 6. This chapter always blows me away and fills me with awe, and some fear.
- Messianic prophecies:  In Isaiah 7, 9, and 11.
- Isaiah's wife...was a prophetess (chap 8). You go, Girl!
- Out of control fire:  The wicked were leading lives that raged like an out-of-control fire, turning "the people into consuming fires, consuming one another in their lusts" (Isaiah 9:18-21). What a horrendous image.
- I want that water!  On the Day of the Lord, "joyfully you'll pull up buckets of water from the wells of salvation" (Is 12:3-4). Love it!

Elena's verse of the day: "Love cannot be drowned by oceans or floods, it cannot be bought, no matter what is offered" (Song of Solomon 8:7)

Psalm 113 - 143: A free and full life

- Giving back:  A psalmist wrote, "What can I give back to God for the blessings he's poured out on me?"

• "Lift high the cup of salvation--a toast to God"
• "I'll pray in the name of God"
• "I'll complete what I promised God I'd do"...AND
• "I'll do it together with his people" (Psalm 116:9-11)

- Small but mighty.  Loved Psalm 117. It was only 5 lines!
- "A free and full life" -- it only comes from living God's way, but I want it (Psalm 118:21-25).
- The race:  "I'll run the course you lay out for me if you'll just show me how" (Psalm 119:32)
- Workin' your fingers to the bone?  "God enjoys giving reset to those he loves" (Psalm 127:1-2)
- The blessing:  "Children are God's best gift" (Psalm 127:3). Thank you, God, for two of them.
- My goal:  "My life a prayer" (Psalm 130:3)
- You are precious:  We are God's "prized possession" (Psalm 135:4). The Psalmist describes Israel this way, but through Christ we are adopted into God's family and we can enjoy the promises he made to his beloved people of Israel.
- Remember this next time you pray:  "Angels listen as I sing my thanks" (Psalm 138:1-3).
- Why David was a man after God's heart:  "I only have eyes for you," David wrote to God (Psalm 141:8). Pure and simple, David was in love with God.


Elena's verse of the day:  "You are my God. Show me what you want me to do, and let your gentle Spirit lead me in the right path" (Psalm 143:10).