Isaiah

Advent Day 5 The Great Light

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Isaiah 8:18-22
Isaiah 9:1-7
Philippians 2:5-8
Hebrews 2:14-15
Hebrews 7:23-28

Advent, Day 5

As the lights went out, and the house plunged into darkness, I was unprepared for the fear that gripped me. I was used to the city where “darkness” wasn’t really dark, but now, out in the country, in an unfamiliar house, this was a darkness deeper than I’d ever experienced. I began desperately searching for even a tiny glimmer of light.

As our study of Advent continues, we travel backwards to learn how the ministry of the prophet Isaiah foreshadowed Christ’s eventual arrival. In today’s reading from Isaiah, the Israelites also found themselves stumbling along in deep darkness, though theirs wasn’t a physical darkness, but a spiritual one.

Isaiah 9 is a common reading in Christmas services, and its promise of a great light is well-known, but to really understand the impact and significance of that Great Light, we must first consider the darkness in which the Israelites found themselves.

Isaiah was a prophet to the nation of Judah around 700 years before Jesus’ birth. The nation was far from God and under constant threat from the brutal Assyrians. In 2 Kings 15:29, we read that some Israelites had already been deported to Assyria, and Isaiah warns the worst is still to come. Assyria is poised to sweep into Israel and Judah like a flood and overwhelm it (Isaiah 8:6-8) because of the people’s rejection of God.

Isaiah vividly describes the darkness of rebelling against God as turning to one place then to another, always seeking satisfaction but never finding it. Israel felt alone, abandoned, and in despair. (Isaiah 8:18-22)

A time of humbling and hardship is coming for the people of Judah, but God gives Isaiah eyes to look beyond the chaos of the immediate future to bring a message of hope.
The darkness and despair will not last forever; a light is coming.

The Great Light will bring restoration and rejoicing, freedom and peace; a victory so decisive there will be no need for boots of battle and garments of war. These will become so unnecessary, they will be burned as fuel for the fire. (Isaiah 9:5)

Not only is this Hope and Light on the horizon, but it’s coming is utterly independent of the people’s action or lack thereof. The Great Light is all down to God. Just as the Midianites were defeated by God without Gideon and his men fighting the initial battle (Judges 7:19-22), so this victory will be won by God, and it will happen in an unexpected way.

“For a child will be born for us [. . .]” (Isaiah 9:6)

Isaiah speaks of One who will rule and bring peace, One who will reign on the throne of His ancestor David forever, but this was not, as the Israelites expected, simply a human king.

He would be human. Hebrews 2:14-15 makes it clear the Savior must be human in order to defeat the power of death. Paul’s description of Jesus’ willingness to humble Himself to be born as a human (Philippians 2:5-8) shows the amazing love He has for us. He willingly chose to enter the mess of human existence that He might redeem us from it!

But He would not be just a human king.

Over the years, the people of Israel and Judah had been ruled by a series of human kings, many of them appalling. Even the few godly kings such as David, Joash, and Amaziah had ruled imperfectly.

He was not to be merely another human king, but a Messianic King.
“[. . .] a son will be given to us.” (Isaiah 9:6)

A Son given by God himself; He would be Immanuel, God with us.
(Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:21-23)

He would be “Mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6) come to live among His people to bring salvation, and this was something only He could do.

For hundreds of years, priests had represented the Israelites before God, bringing sacrifices to atone for their sins, but both the sacrifices and the priests themselves were imperfect. The repetition of sacrifice was necessary; their sacrifices could only provide temporary relief.

Hebrews 7:23-28 outlines why Jesus was different, pointing to His eternal nature and His perfect sinlessness. He never needed to make sacrifices for His own sins. Because of this, His sacrifice on the cross could atone for our sins forever, once for all time.

I don’t know what darkness you’re facing now, but I do know we live in a broken world where all of us experience darkness and despair.

Just as the promise of the Great Light Mighty God dwelling on earth brought hope to the Israelites, so it can bring hope to us in our darkness.

Jesus has come!
He has done all that is necessary for our salvation, and, by His Spirit, He is with us in whatever darkness we face when we surrender ourselves to Him!
That’s a present reality we can embrace now.

We also have great hope for the future, as we hold to His promise that He will come again to set all things right. Those who trust in Him will be welcomed into an eternity devoid of pain or darkness.

The Light has come,
and the Light is coming.

His promise is certain because it does not depend on us.

“The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:7)

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Questions 2 Day 14 More Than A Bargain: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out More Than A Bargain!

The Questions

1) Who was Isaiah?

2) How do water, milk, and wine connect with this prophecy? (verses 1-3)

3) Can God really forgive wicked and sinful people? (verses 7-9)

Isaiah 55:1-13

“Come, everyone who is thirsty,
come to the water;
and you without silver,
come, buy, and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without silver and without cost!
2 Why do you spend silver on what is not food,
and your wages on what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and you will enjoy the choicest of foods.
3 Pay attention and come to me;
listen, so that you will live.
I will make a permanent covenant with you
on the basis of the faithful kindnesses of David.
4 Since I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander for the peoples,
5 so you will summon a nation you do not know,
and nations who do not know you will run to you.
For the Lord your God,
even the Holy One of Israel,
has glorified you.”

6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call to him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked one abandon his way
and the sinful one his thoughts;
let him return to the Lord,
so he may have compassion on him,
and to our God, for he will freely forgive.

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not my ways.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
9 “For as heaven is higher than earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from heaven
and do not return there
without saturating the earth
and making it germinate and sprout,
and providing seed to sow
and food to eat,
11 so my word that comes from my mouth
will not return to me empty,
but it will accomplish what I please
and will prosper in what I send it to do.”

12 You will indeed go out with joy
and be peacefully guided;
the mountains and the hills will break into singing before you,
and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thornbush, a cypress will come up,
and instead of the brier, a myrtle will come up;
this will stand as a monument for the Lord,
an everlasting sign that will not be destroyed.

Original Intent

1) Who was Isaiah?
Isaiah is considered one of the major prophets in Scripture, not because he was among the most important or because his message was better, but simply because he had the most to say. Bible students categorize Old Testament prophets into 2 sections, Major and Minor, based on length of their prophetic books. Isaiah’s book contains the longest recorded prophecies in Scripture. As prophet, Isaiah was God’s mouthpiece. The Holy Spirit spoke God’s messages to prophets, in this case, Isaiah, then the prophet would speak God’s word aloud verbally, and often in writing, to Israel. Isaiah was the main prophet of God for 60 years though he was a contemporary of other prophets, Amos, Hosea, and Micah, who championed social justice.  Isaiah served four kings and survived multiple sieges by invading armies. Like most prophets, he endured intense persecution, which necessitated him living underground in tunnels and caves for a time. As one of God’s prophets, Isaiah knew in advance what God was doing as He revealed certain events, but he could neither prevent nor stop them. He gave warnings or encouragement to God’s people, but their decision to either repent or rebel was up to them. It’s also interesting to note, Isaiah is the most quoted prophet of New Testament writers. 

2) How do water, milk, and wine connect with this prophecy? (verses 1-3)
At the time of Isaiah’s writing, the once unified nation of Israel had long been divided into two nations, Judah (where Jerusalem was) in the south, and Israel in the north. The nation of Judah was usually the one following, or making some attempt to follow, Jehovah. This time, however, they had turned away from God as they persistently ignored Him so they could continue pursuing their own sinful lifestyles. These verses are an invitation for Israel to repent and receive restoration from the Lord’s own hand. By turning back to Jehovah, they would find all the fullness and satisfaction they so desperately sought in lesser loves. God was telling His people they had been wasting their money on things that brought momentary pleasure. Then, finding themselves still lacking, they repeated their chase of counterfeit indulgences over and over again. God had other nourishment to give His people, sustenance that would endure. He was offering them complete satisfaction for their souls. Water is absolutely necessary for life, and Jesus came to bring “living water” where life would be found to the fullest and most abundant in Him alone. In ancient times, water was kept in cisterns, but it turned flat. Though still hydrating, it wasn’t as fresh as free-flowing water. Jesus came to give the very best of life in sustenance and satisfaction. By offering wine, God was expressing He would bring His people joy and encouragement that would satisfy forever. Milk, a first food for infants to sustain life, is rich in nutrients and is life-giving. God included milk in His invitation of return to His people to demonstrate the richness of His word and His blessing as a gift for nourishing life to its fullest.

3) Can God really forgive wicked and sinful people? (verses 7-9)
The people of Judah got into trouble because they stopped listening to Jehovah. They saw their neighbors, and other nations who seemed more prosperous and powerful, and they wanted to run their nation their way instead of God’s. They listened to those who came into their city either as visitors or as captives and slaves from a battle victory and decided full surrender to God was less appealing than following the ways of their lusts. They allowed other voices besides Jehovah’s (and His prophets) to speak to them because they wanted to stop hearing about repentance. They took up lifestyles of those who weren’t following Jehovah because they seemed to offer more pleasure and more fun, at least that’s how it appeared. But it wasn’t life giving, or life sustaining. Sin never is. The wise author of Proverbs says it like this, “But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they don’t know what makes them stumble.” (Proverbs 4:19) The New Testament author, and half-brother of Jesus, James, later wrote, “each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.” (James 1:14-15) God repeatedly warned His beloved people through Isaiah (and other prophets) to turn back, repent of their sinful, wicked ways; always coupled with the promise of forgiveness and restoration. He is reminding His people in these verses that, contrary to their thinking, He does know what He’s doing, He is a God of second chances, and rich redemption. He is repeating His plea from verse one, “Come to Me. Be forgiven!” (Isaiah 44:22)

Everyday Application

1) Who was Isaiah?
Have you ever thought to yourself, “I wish I had seen this coming!”? While this sounds appealing at first, I’m not sure I personally would want to know all that was ahead in life. I think if it were negative, the weight and anxiety would be too heavy to bear. Although, I’m sure in my younger years I probably thought otherwise! In life, we occasionally, or sometimes frequently, encounter situations we wished we could be removed from, because they’re painful, sorrowful, or extremely difficult. Sometimes the struggle is a result of our own making, when other times, it simply happens to us. Perhaps you’ve wished for the ability to turn the clock back and prevent whatever your struggle is, or at least see into the future to find out how long it will last. Isaiah knew specific armies would overthrow his nation, and he knew times would come when neither he, nor other prophets of God, would be safe. Prophets, in general, were not well-loved and weren’t winning any popularity contests because God’s messages spoken through them were usually of impending doom as a consequence for rebellion. Most kings Isaiah served under did not appreciate his downloads from Jehovah. Even though Isaiah had a heads’ up from God as to what was coming, he still had to trust He would do as He said He would, and that He would preserve Isaiah through it. God asks us to do the same, even though we can’t see the future. We are invited to cast all our cares on the Lord because He cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7) We are told countless times in Scripture to trust Him over ourselves (Proverbs 3:5), and to know that our strength and help certainly come from the Lord God, maker of Heaven and earth. (Psalm 121) Where can you start choosing trust over fear starting today?

2) How do water, milk, and wine connect with this prophecy? (verses 1-3)
Have you ever felt like you were just spinning your wheels in life; continually looking for something? Chasing something? Day to day going around in circles with nothing accomplished or little to show for it? God is offering nourishment for spiritual hunger and thirst, and encouragement to strengthen you. He is actively calling you, in this moment, into a life that is deeper, fuller, and more satisfying. No matter how long you have walked with Jesus or even if you have never crossed the line of faith, there is more fullness to discover about God. Isaiah wrote, “Come, everyone who is thirsty…”. (verse 1). All. This invitation was not just for the Jew, but also for the Gentile. Jesus picks up the theme of “all welcome” throughout His ministry on earth. His heart is for all to know Him, repent, and be given fullness of life. (John 4, 1 Timothy 2:3-4) This includes you and me! Isaiah’s prophetic invitation is a timeless one calling through the millennia that we too can have restoration in God! Jesus came, and sacrificed Himself for us, that we might not perish apart from Him as a result of our sin. (2 Peter 3:9) We labor for things that will only temporarily satisfy us. We are always thirsting for more, but if we continue seeking pleasures that will fade, we will forever want for more. In sharp contrast, Jesus says He alone is the source of abundant fulfillment. (John 10:10) Jesus, who calls Himself Living Water, offers a continuously fresh, life giving, always flowing supply of satisfaction like nothing else can. The life Jesus offers drenches and soaks deep into your spirit, never running dry. (John 7:37-39,  Revelation 21:6) As we lean into more of God and seek after Him, we will experience His love and mercy towards us in ever-deepening ways. Come! Seek Him while He may be found and find the fullness of life! (Isaiah 55:6)

3) Can God really forgive wicked and sinful people? (verses 7-9)
Scripture is clear God wants no one to perish! (2 Peter 3:9) It can be tempting to think Isaiah’s words, written thousands of years ago, just aren’t relevant to us today. But they are. God’s message of repentance and welcome for all people and His promises of forgiveness and redemption are available in this very moment to all of us. (2 Corinthians 1:20, Joshua 21:45) Because of Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection for all people, forgiveness and redemption are available to all sinners. We can take these Old Testament promises for us today because of Christ. Jesus calls us back to repentance, back to Him, back to a full life with Him. He invites us to turn from our sinful ways. “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:32) Our sinful patterns may not be a result from listening to captives from a pagan land, but perhaps we are listening to a friend or influencer who isn’t following the Lord God. These temptations often catch us in moments of weakness, we quickly take up that appealing but sinful, life-sucking (if we are honest) desire. Take comfort, oh sinner just like me, God’s promises of compassion are timeless! It is challenging, even if you are a Christ-follower, to genuinely trust that He knows all, and His ways are better than ours. In His loving kindness and grace, He lovingly guides us in our everyday moments, giving us many opportunities to return to Him as we learn to trust Him in complete surrender. Even knowing we will get bruised and maybe fall flat on our face, He is faithful to pick us up, calling us His own. His mercies are new every morning and His love is boundless. (Lamentations 3:22-23) We have this assurance because of Christ and His ultimate sacrifice as He surrendered His life so ours can be spared, forgiven, redeemed, and welcomed into life everlasting! Have you given Him your everything?! (John 15:13, John 3:16, John 10:27-28)

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with More Than A Bargain!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Questions 2 Week Three!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Worship VII Day 4 The Wonderful Cross: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out The Wonderful Cross!

The Questions

1) Who is Isaiah describing in these verses and what event is he foretelling?

2) Why is there a comparison to a sheep in verse 7?

3) What is the beautiful promise made in verse 11?

Isaiah 53

Who has believed what we have heard?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a young plant
and like a root out of dry ground.
He didn’t have an impressive form
or majesty that we should look at him,
no appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of suffering who knew what sickness was.
He was like someone people turned away from;
he was despised, and we didn’t value him.

4 Yet he himself bore our sicknesses,
and he carried our pains;
but we in turn regarded him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion,
crushed because of our iniquities;
punishment for our peace was on him,
and we are healed by his wounds.
6 We all went astray like sheep;
we all have turned to our own way;
and the Lord has punished him
for the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth.
Like a lamb led to the slaughter
and like a sheep silent before her shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
8 He was taken away because of oppression and judgment,
and who considered his fate?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
he was struck because of my people’s rebellion.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
but he was with a rich man at his death,
because he had done no violence
and had not spoken deceitfully.

10 Yet the Lord was pleased to crush him severely.
When you make him a guilt offering,
he will see his seed, he will prolong his days,
and by his hand, the Lord’s pleasure will be accomplished.
11 After his anguish,
he will see light and be satisfied.
By his knowledge,
my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will carry their iniquities.
12 Therefore, I will give him the many as a portion,
and he will receive the mighty as spoil,
because he willingly submitted to death,
and was counted among the rebels;
yet he bore the sin of many
and interceded for the rebels.

Original Intent

1) Who is Isaiah describing in these verses and what event is he foretelling?
It is important to note this section of Scripture actually begins in Isaiah 52:13-15 and continues in Isaiah 53. Isaiah, through divine inspiration from God’s Holy Spirit, provides an incredible picture of the promised Savior, Jesus Christ. Isaiah paints a picture unlike anywhere else in Scripture of what Christ would endure as He took upon the sins of the world in all of His innocence. These verses describe the mission Jesus came to accomplish in dying sinless in order to offer rescue to sinners.

2) Why is there a comparison to a sheep in verse 7?

The reference to a sheep, or lamb, would have been a familiar one for Isaiah’s Israelite audience. From the first sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, God has required the shedding of innocent blood for atonement. Genesis 3:21 describes how God made garments of skins to clothe Adam and Eve. He sacrificed the first animal and innocent blood was shed, as He made clothing to cover their shame. Later, God called Abraham to sacrifice His son, Isaac, and at the last moment God provided a ram for the sacrifice instead. (Genesis 22) During the plagues in Egypt, the final plague required an innocent lamb’s blood to be shed. This blood was to be painted on the doorposts, allowing the angel of death to pass over their homes sparing the life of the eldest son. (Exodus 11-12) During the days of the temple, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement, and presented blood from an animal sacrifice to atone for the sins of the Israelites, a practice established in Leviticus 16:11-14. Isaiah uses language familiar to his audience to tell of a day coming when animal sacrifices would no longer be needed. There would be a day when the perfect, final sacrifice would come in the form of the promised Messiah. He would take the place of the innocent animal sacrifice; He would be led to slaughter for all sins.

3) What is the beautiful promise made in verse 11?
These verses are filled with an incredible promise. The Israelites likely didn’t grasp the entirety of this promise as they lived centuries before its fulfillment. However, Isaiah tells of a time that would indeed come when the promised Messiah would fulfill what God had put into action in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:15) Isaiah tells of a coming time when Jesus would take the sins of  the world upon Himself and exchange them for glorious salvation and restoration for His people through the work only He could accomplish. Isaiah tells of the Suffering Servant who would “justify many” (verse 11); this is the hope-filled promise Isaiah describes! Through Isaiah, God promises that one day, animal sacrifice would no longer be necessary because the final price would be paid in full. At that time, all who choose to accept His sacrifice would finally be justified before the Holy God because their sin would be paid for in Jesus.

Everyday Application

1) Who is Isaiah describing in these verses and what event is he foretelling?

Isaiah, hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, describes Jesus for us with vivid imagery of all He would endure as He took my sins and yours to the cross where He would die in our place. Because of our sin, we deserve death and eternal separation from God. We are utterly incapable of becoming righteous on our own; our sin is too great, so we are stuck in eternal death. But Jesus, in magnificent love, took the punishment we deserved and offers us His righteousness in place of our sin, if we are willing to trust Him. None of us are deserving of this gift! God chose to lay all our guilt for all of our sin on Jesus as He went to the cross for us. (Isaiah 53:6) Isaiah’s words in these verses lead us to a new understanding of exactly what Jesus did for you, me, our neighbor across the street and across the world, all those years ago. As we read Isaiah’s God-inspired prophecy, we can sense the anguish Christ lovingly chose to endure for all of us so we might be in right relationship with Him.

2) Why is there a comparison to a sheep in verse 7?
Atonement for sin has always required bloodshed. Since Adam and Eve first sinned in the garden, God has required innocent blood for those sins, but He has also faithfully provided a way for sin to be atoned. Even the Old Testament sacrificial system of bloodshed from an innocent animal was given by God as a grace gift. During Passover in Egypt, God provided lamb’s blood to spare lives, painting a clear picture of His provision that would one day come as Jesus poured out His blood in exchange for our eternal souls. We have the privilege of living on the other side of Isaiah’s prophecy foretelling a coming Messiah because Jesus has already fulfilled this promise. We are no longer called to sacrifice an animal to present as atonement for our sins. Jesus became flesh and offered Himself as the perfect Lamb who sacrificed Himself for all sins of all people on the cross. He willingly went to the cross of suffering although He was innocent. We have been given the opportunity to receive the gift of salvation because of the incredible sacrifice of Jesus’ life as He became the final, perfect sacrifice to atone for all sins. (1 John 2:2)

 

3) What is the beautiful promise made in verse 11?
“This verse tells of the enormous family of believers who will become righteous, not by their own works, but by the Messiah’s great work on the cross”. (NLT Study Bible) There is nothing you or I can do to be justified and become righteous on our own, but Christ willingly carried our iniquities to the cross, taking our punishment and, in return, providing us with His righteousness and forgiveness. He did what we could never do on our own account and permanently intercedes for us. This means, in Jesus, every one of our sins, past, present, and future, has already been paid for in full by the perfectly innocent Lamb of God! What an incredibly beautiful promise! When we choose to accept the gift of forgiveness and salvation offered to us in Christ, we agree to turn from our sin and are fully washed by the blood of Christ, becoming a new creation and part of the family of God forever!

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with The Wonderful Cross!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Worship VII Week One!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

The GT Weekend ~ Cross Week 1

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) Isaiah was “stirred” by God’s Spirit as he witnessed injustice and people turning away from God and worshipping idols. He was motivated to action when he experienced God’s glory in a very personal way. When was the last time you encountered God and His glory in a deeply personal manner? Describe what was special about that time. How was your perspective new because of your encounter? If you’ve never experienced God in a deep way, begin with reading Isaiah’s encounter or Abraham’s and ask God to show Himself to you!

2) The life of John the Baptist challenges us to consider how we are using the resources available to us, even the clothes we wear and the food we eat to point others to Jesus. Take the contents of a normal day in your life and empty it onto paper. Star the spaces you are already leveraging for the gospel and celebrate those in prayer, being grateful for how the Spirit is alive and working in your life! Look through the other opportunities listed and prayerfully draw a heart around 2 or 3 you feel drawn towards re-thinking how to use them to point to Christ. Make some actionable steps you can begin this weekend!

3) As you examine your life, its foundation, its structure, and its outpouring in everyday living, how often is the gospel coloring life vs self-made-enough? Judas missed the entirety of the gospel, though he saw it practically lived day in and day out by Jesus and the other 11 disciples. Instead of falling into the completed work of Jesus, Judas couldn’t let go of relying on himself. Even if you’ve trusted Jesus for salvation, it’s easy to revert back to trusting ourselves to live out our faith. Ask the Lord to specifically make you aware of those areas you are leaning on yourself, instead of Jesus!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Mark 14:35-36 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

And going a little farther, He (Jesus) fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what You will.”

Prayer Journal
I will never be able to comprehend the agony of that night in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus. You pled for your life, you pled for unity to be maintained between You and the Father. Your stress was so high you sweat drops of blood. You pled with Your closest friends to pray with You, but they loved sleep more. They vowed their lives for Yours, never to forsake You, but You knew they would run away.

The love You, as holy Father, Son, and Spirit, have for each of us is un-fathomable. A love that intentionally chose to stay, to follow through with the redemptive sacrifice, and be forsaken so we would never need to be….that love is beyond description. Help us see you more clearly and grasp this love a little better in these weeks leading up to Easter. Thank You for the cross, Lord!

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Cross Day 2 Isaiah: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out Isaiah!

The Questions

1) Why did Isaiah say he was “ruined”? (verse 5)

2) Why does God tell Isaiah to “deafen their ears and blind their eyes”? (verse 10)

3) What is meant by “the holy seed is the stump”? (verse 13)

Isaiah 6

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and the hem of his robe filled the temple.
2 Seraphim were standing above him; they each had six wings:
with two they covered their faces,
with two they covered their feet,
and with two they flew.

3 And one called to another:
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Armies;
his glory fills the whole earth.
4 The foundations of the doorways shook at
the sound of their voices, and the
temple was filled with smoke.
5 Then I said:
Woe is me for I am ruined
because I am a man of unclean lips
and live among a people of unclean lips,
and because my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of Armies.

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me,
and in his hand was a glowing coal that
he had taken from the altar with tongs.
7 He touched my mouth with it and said:
Now that this has touched your lips,
your iniquity is removed
and your sin is atoned for.
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord asking:
Who should I send?
Who will go for us?
I said:
Here I am. Send me.

9 And he replied:
Go! Say to these people:
Keep listening, but do not understand;
keep looking, but do not perceive.
10 Make the minds of these people dull;
deafen their ears and blind their eyes;
otherwise they might see with their eyes
and hear with their ears,
understand with their minds,
turn back, and be healed.

11 Then I said, “Until when, Lord?”
And he replied:
Until cities lie in ruins without inhabitants,
houses are without people,
the land is ruined and desolate,
12 and the Lord drives the people far away,
leaving great emptiness in the land.
13 Though a tenth will remain in the land,
it will be burned again.
Like the terebinth or the oak
that leaves a stump when felled,
the holy seed is the stump.

Original Intent

1) Why did Isaiah say he was “ruined”? (verse 5)
Isaiah was the same man, who had done the same things both before His encounter with the glory of the Lord as he was in the moment of the vision. Yet, seeing the Lord’s glory, just the hem of His robe filling the temple, was like looking into a mirror where Isaiah saw the inky, sickening blackness of his own soul. In the presence of pure holiness, Isaiah’s sinful humanity became palpable to him and he cried out, very truly, “I am ruined!” As the psalmist rightly says, “If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?” (Psalm 130:3) Even one sin separates us eternally as we are less than perfectly holy, let alone sins as countless as the sand on the seashore. Isaiah knew he was not blameless, and he knew he didn’t need to go farther than his lips to point to see his sinfulness. A harsh word, a little lie, speech that tears down, not to mention gossip, or deception, or mockery, or hatred.

 2) Why does God tell Isaiah to “deafen their ears and blind their eyes”? (verse 10)
To understand this verse, we need to understand the context, not just this chapter, but the history of the Jewish nation as a whole. To sum up, the Lord pursues and pursues them over generations and generations. They turn back to Him for in short spurts, but the majority of the time, they rebel and turn against the Lord with ever increasing intensity. They reject Him in small amounts at first, like when they told the prophet Samuel they didn’t want to be a theocracy (ruled by God) anymore, but they’d rather have a human king “like all the other nations” instead. (1 Samuel 8:19-20) They more they turned away from God, the greater their degree of total rejection of Him became. The prophet Hosea (a contemporary of Isaiah) was the last prophet to prophesy to the Northern Kingdom before they fell under Assyrian rule, and he described God’s people as “whores” who had forsaken Him to play the adulteress to pagan gods. (Hosea 1:5-6) In verse 9, the Lord instructs Isaiah to keep prophesying, even though they are a people who clearly do not understand the hope God is offering them. Isaiah is to prophesy, despite the fact that they are “looking” at Isaiah and his demonstrative life, but they are not perceiving what God is communicating. The natural result of hearts that persistently turn away from truth is spiritual deafness and blindness. A spiritual “numbing” happens the more one rejects truth again and again and again. God was not blinding eyes that wanted to see Him, He was grieved over their own choice to perpetually choose not to see what He wanted them so desperately to see, that He held their hope!

 3) What is meant by “the holy seed is the stump”? (verse 13)
You’ve probably seen an old tree stump cut down, yet a new green shoot poking out despite the dead exterior. This is the imagery God is giving to Isaiah in this prophecy. God spent several verses painting an exceedingly bleak picture of the Jewish nation. Though Isaiah would preach hope, they would spurn it. Though Isaiah was being sent with an invitation to repent, the Jews would reject it. As a result, God’s righteous consequence would come upon them and they would be decimated and removed. Even So, God would leave a tenth (not necessarily meant to be a specific number, but rather to indicate a very small percentage of the whole) of the Jewish nation, but even those would reject Him as well. Even so again, “Like the terebinth or the oak that leaves a stump when felled, the holy seed is the stump.” (verse 13) The Holy Seed is the Lord Jesus Christ who would one day come, born a Jew to save the Jews as their Promised Messiah. Jesus is the Promised Hope, even in the midst of rejection.

Everyday Application

1) Why did Isaiah say he was “ruined”? (verse 5)
No one can see God’s face and live (Exodus 33:20), yet Isaiah was given a glimpse of the Lord’s glory and his immediate response was woe for sinfulness. Where have you encountered the glory of the Lord? Not just a good praise song set at church, but time where you have felt so impressed around you by the awe-filling glory and majesty of the King of Kings. When have you literally fallen down prostrate before the Lord, confessing your sin because you glimpsed His holiness? Isaiah didn’t live his life inside of a vision at the temple, and we can’t live in these moments of supreme glory either, but the Lord will give them to us if we seek Him. Study the Exodus passage describing Moses and his request to “please show me Your glory!” (Exodus 33:18) and ask the Lord for the same thing. Seek His word, look for His face, pray with a hunger to know Him and see Him, and He will respond!

2) Why does God tell Isaiah to “deafen their ears and blind their eyes”? (verse 10)
How many times have you heard the hope of the gospel and the forgiveness offered through Jesus Christ because of His sacrifice, and still you haven’t surrendered to Him? How many times have you been convicted of a favorite sin, and chosen to keep doing it because you have every rationale in the world memorized to keep on doing it? How many times have you known exactly how you could be serving your local church, or loving that stranger, or making that change in your marriage, yet you ignore it again and again? Be on your guard! Ask God to make your heart soft to His leadings. Ask Him to open your eyes to see His truth. The more your read His Word and engage Him through prayer, the more your ears will be tuned to hearing His voice, your eyes will be looking for Him, and your heart will be ready to be shaped by His Spirit. He longs for you; He is pursuing you! Turn and let His embrace catch you!

 3) What is meant by “the holy seed is the stump”? (verse 13)
The Lord is a God of Hope in the midst of darkness. Isaiah was called to prophesy about such great coming darkness where Jews would increasingly reject Christ, but even then, God promised Hope would still come. Maybe you’ve turned a cold shoulder to God, decided you wanted to run life your own way, and in light of your past and your heart attitude, you’re pretty certain there’s not a chance God would “take you back.” If He only knew what you have done, right? Or maybe you know someone who fits those shoes. A parent, or sibling, a child, or spouse. Either way, the story of Isaiah, the rebellious Jewish nation, and God’s promise of assured hope is for YOU. As long as you are breathing, peace with God is possible because of Christ. His forgiveness is complete. His hope for life is eternal. It’s not too late to find peace and redemption through a relationship with Jesus!

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with Isaiah!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

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Our Current Study Theme!

This is Cross Week One!
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Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

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Cross Day 1 Isaiah

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Isaiah 1:2-15
Revelation 4:5-11
Isaiah 6:1-13
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Revelation 5:9-14

Cross, Day 1

It started with a stirring deep inside, like a gentle breeze playing in the leaves.
I had no intention of becoming a prophet.
No longing to lead God’s people through visions.
Still, He stirred.

He stirred as I witnessed injustice within Jerusalem.
The widow going without.
The orphan neglected.
All while the religious elite carried on with endless sacrifices.

He stirred as I saw Israelites offering sacrifices during pagan New Moon festivals and following other pagan rituals, each one more grotesque and vulgar than the last.
Hadn’t Yahweh intended us as a light to the nations?
Wasn’t His design for us to be holy and set apart?

We are walking farther and farther from the ways of Yahweh, I see it everywhere.
Yahweh is a jealous God; He will not continue permitting our idolatry, but what am I to do?

I lift my head as I walk through Jerusalem’s streets.
I see the dishonest scales in the marketplace paired with greedy gleam in the sellers’ eyes.
I see the orphan’s matted hair as he reaches to steal a piece of fruit.
I see the thin widow struggling to survive, shamed from the market entirely.
Then I catch the scent of roasted flesh as another sacrifice is offered in the temple and I feel my stomach heave.
How far we are from God’s heart!

My feet run, fleeing the scene, swiftly moving beyond the gates of Jerusalem, tears blinding my eyes. “Enough, Yahweh, enough!”, I scream out into the hills of Israel’s sheep begging for mercy from His stirrings. I fall to the ground, broken for the blatant sin of my people.
“What do you want with me, Jehovah?”

All becomes suddenly quiet.
An eerie stillness fills the space around me and fear grips me.
Holiness is here.
I dare lift  my eyes from my prostrate position in the dirt.
The fields of sheep have faded from view, my heart gallops within.
Wind swirls around me tearing at my robes, and the sound of rushing waters tumbling powerfully over one another fills my ears.

There before me, a clearing opens and I see the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne. Terror grips me, but I cannot look away.

The hem of his robe fills the temple!
Seraphim stand above Him; each with six wings, with two they cover their faces, with two they cover their feet, and with two they fly around and above the throne of the Lord.
One calls out and another replies, not with an empty chant, but as one looking upon something so beautiful and stunning, they cannot help but respond again with the same words, as if for the first time,
“Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD of Hosts!
His glory fills the whole earth!”

An earthquake shakes the temple as His Majesty moves in cadence
to the rhythmic dance of the seraphim.
The temple fills with the glorious smoke of the Most High’s Presence.

Gut-wrenching words tumble from my lips, pouring from my heart,
“Woe is me for I am ruined!
I am a man of unclean lips,
I live among a people of unclean lips,
and my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of Armies.”

A seraphim flies to me with a glowing coal taken from the altar with tongs.
He touches my mouth with it saying:
Now that this has touched your lips,
your iniquity is removed
and your sin is atoned for.

Atoned for?
The Lord took my sin upon Himself?
From the altar of burnt offering that burns continuously before Him,
He took a coal and removed my sin?

But this cost me nothing!

I was stunned, but the Lord’s voice asked,
“Who should I send?
Who will go for us?”

My heart burst, for here was the answer I’d been pleading for. The Lord not only removed my sin, but also gave the opportunity to be His mouthpiece to Israel!

My heart responded as my lips moved,
“Here I am! Send me!”

There have been many visions since that incredible day.
Many words entrusted to my ear to speak on behalf of Yahweh, but none as memorable as that first one when the Lord Himself removed my sin without an animal’s lifeblood.
I had given no sacrifice, yet He forgave.

Moses’ law records, “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have appointed it to you to make atonement on the altar for your lives, since it is the lifeblood that makes atonement.”

Lifeblood.
Atonement.
Atonement for our lives.

I’m walking the dusty sheep paths outside Jerusalem again.
The bucolic scene of sheep and shepherd hold a sweet comfort for me.
I’m muttering aloud key words from recent visions as they swirl around me with incessant intensity. It’s as if the message they carry is far more precious than I realize.
There is weightiness here; a holiness.

“My servant Messiah will be successful,” said the Lord.
Raised up, exalted, but strangely, so persecuted He will become disfigured and unrecognizable. He will be despised and rejected, un-wanted and without apparent majesty. My mind flew instantly to my first vision and the awe-filled throne room where the Lord’s majesty was unmistakable.
How do the prophecies fit?

A Messiah without majesty?
He would need to lay aside His rights!

I brush past a thorn bush and its spines remind me of another declaration, “This Messiah will bear our sickness and carry our pains.”

Unbidden, the faces of orphans, widows, and gloating marketplace thieves, swim before my eyes followed by the image of priests with bloody hands while their hearts are sold in idolatry.

He will bear our sickness and carry our pains?
Even these sicknesses? The ones of our inner souls? The ways we have allowed injustice?
The ways we have blatantly sinned? The ways we have cheated Yahweh? Would He carry our idolatry? No, surely not. Unthinkable.

Suddenly, my heart pounds, my breath catches, and I cannot stay the tears from coursing down my cheeks as the sounds of rushing waters fills my ears.
The unmistakable voice of the Lord arrests me,
“But He was pierced because of our rebellion,
crushed because of our iniquities;

Punishment for our peace was on Him,
and we are healed by his wounds.

Yet the Lord was pleased to crush him severely.
When you make Him a guilt offering, …
the Lord’s pleasure will be accomplished.

The holiness of the moment presses upon me on all sides,
making it impossible to even breath.
Messiah.
Redemption.
Atonement.
Pierced, crushed….
He will become the guilt offering!
His sacrifice for our lives!
His lifeblood for ours!

Again, the image of my first vision rises up and I recall with flowing tears how I had given no sacrifice, yet He forgave.

The Messiah would come, forgiveness would be ours,
but He would purchase it with His blood.
The sacrifice would be His own.

The blood rang in my ears as I knelt in the dirt, arms upraised, tears streaming,
while my tongue repeated the song of the seraphim,
“Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts!
His glory fills the whole earth!”

That day of sacrifice is not here yet,
but it is coming!

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A Note About Cross
In this series, we are stepping into the shoes of various characters in Scripture and looked through their eyes as they saw the cross. We do our best to research the culture and times and all biblical support surrounding these individuals to give an accurate representation of their first-person perspectives as they watched the crucifixion, but we can’t be 100% accurate. These first-person stories are our best interpretation of how these characters viewed Jesus as He gave Himself up for us. Our hope is that by looking through their eyes, we will see the Cross differently as well, and be dramatically changed as we encounter the Savior!
Enjoy!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

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Here’s a link to all past studies in Cross!