Spirit-filled Church Life

Ephesians 5:19-21 "speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20 always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; 21 and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ."

Introduction:

Ephesians 5:18 functions as the heading for what follows from its command: "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit." Inasmuch as the Spirit-filled life is expected of individual Christians (see Galatians 5:16,22,25), we see the command here in Ephesians 5:18 issued to the entire church. Unless the individual church membership is committed to being Spirit-filled in their individual Christian walks, the overall climate of church-life will not be a Spirit-led fellowship. Spirit-filled churches are necessary if the focal-point of activities are going to center around the Exalted Son - Jesus Christ and His Scriptures. Ephesians 5:19-21 lays out further instructions for how a Spirit-filled fellowship must operate whenever Christians come together. The question is: does the remainder of the New Testament give actual examples of churches that functioned under the filling and leading ministry of the Holy Spirit? Let's discover....

1. Spirit-filled churches will have extraordinary unity around the Lord Acts 2:42-47 

Acts 2:42-47 reads - "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. 44 And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; 45 and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. 46 Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved." The more we as Christians and churches emphasize the Spirit-filled, Jesus-saturated Christian life, the more our churches will begin to resemble the template here in Acts 2:42-47.

2. Spirit-filled church ought to expect salvations. Acts 4:4

When an entire congregation has given itself over to the will of God and His presence in the scriptures, expectation of what He will do will result. Acts 4:4 records - "But many of those who had heard the message believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand." Should churches that are dedicated to bringing pleasure to God expect to see salvations? I think they should. One of the marks of Spirit-filled living is an increased pre-occupation of telling others about Jesus. Notice what we read of the church at Philippi in Philippians 1:3-5  "I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, 5 in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now." The church of Colossae is described in similar manner in Colossians 1:5-6 "because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previouslyheard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit andincreasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth."

3. Spirit-filled churches will be characterized as praying churches. Acts 4:31-32; 12:12-14

Then we see later on in the same chapter the description of a prayer meeting in Acts 4:31-32 "And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. 32 And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them." Notice how the church was unified together as one soul. They came together to pray. The result? They had positioned themselves to be filled further with the Spirit's influencing power; they spoke God's Word with boldness and they had the proper perspective on their possessions. 

Later on in Acts 12 we read of the Apostle Peter being incarcerated for sharing His faith. The church had been praying for his release. The text records how an angel released Peter and he arrived at the place where the church members were interceding for the Apostle. We pick up the narrative in Acts 12:12-14 "And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.13 When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate." The church saw God move on their behalf. So we have seen the marks of a Spirit-filled church in terms of its unity; its increased experienced of seeing salvations and powerful times of prayer. Notice a couple of more traits that marks the Spirit-filled church...

4. Spirit-filled churches will see the spiritual gifts in increased operation. 1 Corinthians 12

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 reads - "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spiritfor the common good." It is important to underscore that when we say "Spirit-filled churches", we're not talking about perfect churches. Every church mentioned in this post today had its issues. The church at Philippi had two prominent ladies in conflict with one another (Philippians 4:3); Colossae was battling heresy and Corinth had church members guilty of immoral living (1 Corinthians 5). With that said, the majority of people in these fellowships seemed to desire Jesus more than their own agendas. The more the local church is characterized as a Spirit-filled fellowship, the greater degree of experience there will be of the power and Person of the exalted Jesus in that fellowship. All Christians have spiritual gifts. As a church body gives itself to the Lord's leading, the desire to serve will result and the increased manifestation of spiritual gifts there will be. The Apostle Peter writes in 1 Peter 4:10 "As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as goodstewards of the manifold grace of God."

5. Spirit-filled churches will be all about the Word of God. 1 Thessalonians 1:5-9

Spirit-filled church life will be characterized by increased extraordinary fellowship; soul-winning; power of prayer and increased manifestations of the use of spiritual gifts. But now what about the place of the scriptures? Certainly many, many churches today aim to be Biblical. I suppose in this last point, the Spirit-filled church will be marked by its attitude toward scripture. Notice the church of Thessalonica in 1 Thessalonians 1:5-8   "for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 You also became imitators of us and of the Lord,having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit,7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 Forthe word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia andAchaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything." 

It is possible to be all about the words of scripture without considering the God Who inspired them. It is impossible of course to be Spirit-filled apart from the Bible. Both conditions sadly characterize so-much of church life in the 21st century: namely some who are legalists in their approach to the Bible - having a right head but no heart. Still others are duped into thinking that they can carry-on a relationship with God apart from the Bible - i.e all so-called heart and no head. I have found myself in both camps. The point here is that the Spirit-filled Christian and church family will have both their head and heart in the proper place. 

Scripture will be water and food for the people of God. Wherever the Word is held in highest esteem, Jesus will be held in highest esteem. To the degree we lift upon high the name of Jesus and His Word, the Spirit will further saturate a church fellowship with His influence and leading. 

Would it be that every single one of us as Christians and every single church in America be those who are Spirit-filled and Jesus-centered. 

God's faithfulness to preserve His people

1 Peter 2:9-12 "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observethem, glorify God in the day of visitation."

The visions of Ezekiel 38-39 are connected to the visions we saw in yesterday's post on Ezekiel 36-37. Although the timing of the visions are difficult to discern, their purpose is clear: God is going to restore the nation of Israel, save her and defend her against her enemies. Ezekiel 36 begins the sequence with God promising to pour out His Spirit upon Israel, resulting in a large number of Jewish people turning to Him, believing on their Messiah and being saved. Israel is God's chosen people, and His reasons for choosing her stems not from her as it does God standing by His character and love for her. Ezekiel 37 depicts then how God will prepare Israel for this massive time of her salvation, with the valley of dry bones predicting the nation being brought back to life from the brink of death, followed by her conversion to faith in her Messiah. Many have pointed out that the first stage of seeing Israel become a nation occurred in 1948 with Israel and her language being brought back from extinction - an event unheard of for any other nation or people. If we take these events to occur at the time of events leading up to Christ's second coming during the end of the Great Tribulation, then the suggested timing of Ezekiel 38-39 can be set in that same general vicinity. Ezekiel 38-39 depicts a confederation of Arab nations and perhaps Russia to the North arraying themselves against Israel, only to be defeated by the Lord. God protects His people and will not allow them to be destroyed. 

Whenever you arrive at 1 Peter 4, twice we are reminded of Christ's second coming and the judgment upon this world. Why? 1 Peter 4:1-11 is urging Christians to live their lives in the world but not of it. As Christians, we are to serve the Lord and love one another with fervent love, for time is getting shorter. Then in 1 Peter 4:12-19 we see once again a reminder that judgment's beginning starts at the threshold of the church proclaiming the Gospel. We warn sinners to flee from the wrath to come. Suffering will be the inevitable outcome for Christians who remain faithful to their Savior, however we know we can rely upon Him to see us through up to the time He returns. Like Israel, we can say that God will protect the faith of His people and that they will persevere to the end.

Why the New Covenant is relevant to what it means to be a Christian

Hebrews 9:15 "For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance."

1 Peter 3:8-9 To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic,brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; 9 not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving ablessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.

Introduction

As you read Ezekiel 36-37, you are getting into the section of Ezekiel where the focus is becoming more and more on what God is going to do for His people - the nation of Israel. God is speaking forth what the Bible calls "The New Covenant".  Whenever God enters into agreement with His people, we call that God making Covenant with them.  Covenants involve parties, exchanging of words and vows and the all important part of who will fulfill what obligation sin the covenant.  Whenever you see God using the statement "I will", that means the covenant's blessings and fulfillment will be completely His doing.  Bible teachers call such a covenant an "unconditional covenant", meaning that there are no strings attached and that God is making a covenant with His people not for their sake, but for His own sake.  Whenever God made similar covenants with Abraham and David, the promises and fulfillment depended not on them, but God.  Roughly 35 times do we find God saying "I will" in Ezekiel 36-37.  God's promise to Israel to restore and save her did not depend on her performance.  If anything, she was unwilling and had done nothing to deserve such grace from God.  God did it for His own namesake.  God chose Israel (Ezekiel 36:21) and promises to  call her out from among the nations  (36:24), bring about her conversion whereby she will believe on the Messiah and be saved (Ezekiel 37:11-14) and cleanse or sanctify her (37:28). God will do all these things for Israel at His second coming when He initiates His 1,000 year reign or what is also called "the millennium."   Does all this activity from God mean Israel can act anyway she wants in the future. No. Because God's "I will" leads to "you will".  God's willingness to select, save, and sanctify sinners includes the purpose for them becoming willing participants in His Covenant.  Their participation depends upon God making the first move.  

1 Peter 3 echoes these New Covenant promises which we as Christians in this present age are getting a spiritual foretaste of the New Covenant.  Jesus Christ, the Mediator of the New Covenant, paid for such promises with His blood.  In 1 Peter 3:8 we are told to be kindhearted toward one another, being that Christians are those people who are called by God to Himself to inherit a blessing. God's will contains our will.  He accomplishes the work of our salvation from beginning to end, with the understanding that our level of enjoyment of His Relationship with us hinges on our faithfulness and obedience.  The lengths to which God went through in securing the believer's redemption ought to be the grounds for motivation to obedience in the Christian walk. We are saved by grace through faith alone, with the saved life proceeding onward in faith that is never alone.

The unity of scripture around Jesus the Good Shepherd

1 Peter 2:25 - "For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls."

Introduction

It is amazing how much scripture relates to other scripture. Ezekiel 34-35 and 1 Peter 2 are a prime examples of the Divine Authorship that makes such unity possible. Ezekiel 34 is a prophecy of how God is going to restore His lost sheep - Israel, to be united under One Great Shepherd, the Messiah, who in the text is named David in Ezekiel 34:25. Whenever you read of how this Great Shepherd will judge between the sheep and the goats and bring back the scattered sheep to their land in Ezekiel 34:11-19, you discover that Jesus described Himself doing this very act at His return when He sets up His kingdom in Matthew 25. Jesus Christ is the Great Shepherd of Ezekiel's prophecy. 

The Apostle Peter under divine inspiration wrote these words in 1 Peter 2:25 - "For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls." Ezekiel 34:1-10 gives some great principles for pastors or undershepherds who serve Christ's church, as well as instructions and characteristics that believers need to have, and attitudes that must be avoided to remain healthy under Christ's Lordship. 

1 Peter 2:1-12 instructs believers on their true identity in Jesus Christ as living stones and a royal priesthood that was chosen and called to be examples of Christ's love and character to a watching world. 

Ezekiel 35 is a prophecy against the descendants of Esau, the Edomites, who had a long history of abandoning Israel throughout her history whenever enemies came to attack. Like the animosity that existed between Jacob and Esau in Genesis, their respective descendants (Israel and Edom) never had friendly associations. God's judgment on Edom is a reminder that as the Great Shepherd, he protects His flock from the attacks of the enemy. 

In 1 Peter 2:13-25 we see Peter stating how much Christ loved His flock in dying for it with His life and raising from the dead to provide abundant life. Jesus Christ is our Emperor of Salvation and Example to follow in sanctification. Truly He is the Shepherd, we are the sheep and thus let us follow Him today!

Two lenses through which we understand biblical salvation

1 Peter 1:1-2 "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure."

2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."

Ezekiel 33:11 "Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord God, ‘I takeno pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?"

Ezekiel 32-33 and 1 Peter 1 are prime examples of two important truths presented in scripture concerning our salvation: God's Sovereignty to save and mankind's responsibility to believe in order to be saved. Whenever you read Ezekiel 32-33, the question to ask is: who is at fault for rejecting the Gospel? God or man? Answer: Man. 

God's judgment on the Egyptians and other nations in the land of Canaan, as well as His pronouncement of judgment on Jerusalem is due to her free and willing decision to reject Him. God plainly says in Ezekiel 33:11 that He does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked, but actually urges them to turn from their choice of rejecting Him. God does not send anyone to hell, that is man's choice. This insight matches with what we read in 2 Peter 3:9, namely that God is not desiring or willing that anyone would perish, but all come to repentance. 

Whenever you turn to 1 Peter 1, you are still looking at the same Biblical salvation, however through a second lens - the lens of Sovereignty. If we were to ask the question: "who is to be credited for anyone believing the Gospel freely and willingly?" Answer: God. Peter opens His epistle by noting how his readers were those who, being scattered throughout the Roman world, were "chosen according to the foreknowledge of God". (1 Peter 1:1-2) 1 Peter 1 views our salvation through the lens of Sovereignty by the appearance of such words as "foreknowledge", "chosen" and "caused". (1 Peter 1:2,3) However Peter also presents this same salvation through a second lens - the lens of human response to salvation by such words as "to obtain" (1:4) and "faith" (1:5, 7 and 9). 

Peter reminds us that our salvation from beginning to end is bounded by God's Sovereign purposes of grace (1:2, 20) and is received by the gifting of faith and lived out by believers who obey the truths of scripture. (1 Peter 1:10-17) The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 notes concerning Sovereignty and human responsibility in salvation - "Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. It is consistent with the free agency of man, and comprehends all the means in connection with the end. It is the glorious display of God's sovereign goodness, and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable. It excludes boasting and promotes humility."

Only God could design a salvation wherein there is no conflict between God's Sovereign intention to save and whosoever believes as being saved. As the late pastor of the First Baptist Church in Dallas, Dr. W.A Criswell stated about these truths, one cannot look upon the mountain of truth and comprehend how God Sovereignly elects sinners and yet it is those sinners who truly believe and are saved. We cannot see all the sides all at once. However we do know that God's Word and the eye of faith affirms both truths, and thus we must go to all men with the Gospel with the confidence that salvation comes not from man, but from the Lord. (Jonah 2:9-10)

Distinguishing between chastening and judgment

Hebrew 12:5-8 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him; 6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

Introduction

Ezekiel's prophecy in Ezekiel 24 begins with God likening the judgment of Jerusalem to a boiling pot of meat being spilt out on the ground and then the pot returned to sit on the fire to be consumed in the flames. As Ezekiel was writing these words, the Bible says it was in the same year that Jerusalem itself was taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. To think things could not get worse, God tells Ezekiel one of the saddest and traumatic things recorded in the prophetic books - that Ezekiel's wife was going to die. As the prophecy comes true, Ezekiel is told to go and preach to the people another message of judgment. 

We ask ourselves - why such extreme measures? Should not every instance of straying away from the Lord be treated as sad and traumatic? Should we not hate sin so much that the thought of doing it brings us grief? Only the Lord can sustain and protect us. Only He is faithful. As you read the other prophecies against the nations and enemies of Jerusalem's past, we are reminded of the fact that God alone can deal effectively with our past. There is a distinction to be made between the Lord's chastening of His people and judgment.

God's chastening of His people for wrongdoing is different from the judgment He puts upon unbelievers. Chastening means God is purifying His sons and daughters with the prospect of restoring them, whereas God's judgment of the wicked is giving them what they truly wanted - life and eternity without Him. 

James in James 3:13-15 writes about the wisdom from above and the wisdom from below. The wisdom from above is referring to salvation and the life of faith that follows from the miracle of the new birth. The wisdom from below speaks of the life of unbelief that draws its direction from the world, the flesh and the devil. Only one will get you to God, whereas the other will lead you away from God. Thankfully scripture clearly lays out for us that Jesus Christ alone is the Wisdom from God in Whom we are to by grace through faith believe in and trust for salvation, life and eternity. (1 Corinthians 1:30)

God's Sovereignty, Providence and the Eternal Glory of Jesus Christ

Daniel 2:20-21 “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him. 21 “It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men And knowledge to men of understanding." 

Introduction:

In the above two verses we see two key concepts: God's Sovereignty or right to reign in 2:20 and then God's Providence or ruling reign in 2:21. As the Lord prophesies through Jeremiah, we discover that not only was Jeremiah a prophet to the Southern Kingdom of Judah, but to the nations. God's Providential and Sovereign control over nations and history is uncontested in these chapters. The Ammonites were the descendants of the vile union between Lot and one of his daughters in Genesis 19:38 and had caused much trouble for Israel in her history. Clearly God was going to judge them, as well as the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, Jacob's brother, for their failure to help Israel at key points in her journeys. The prophecy of Jeremiah and the older book of Obadiah share this judgment against Edom. 

As other nations are mentioned, we come to the Elamites, whom God will use in the Book of Daniel to take over the Babylonians, the empire that he pronounces judgment upon in Jeremiah 50. Jeremiah's prophecy against Babylon is remarkable not only because of its accuracy of prediction, but also in Revelation 16-19 we see the predicted the fall of another Babylonian-like empire prior to Christ's return. 

History's repeated patterns are one of the many ways we see God's Providence at work. Concerning His program for the nations, all of His efforts are focused upon Israel, His chosen people whom He promises to save and restore upon His return and Millennial reign. (Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:25-26; Revelation 19-20) 

The Sovereign and Providential control of the Father as Almighty God is shared by the Son in equal measure. According to Hebrews 5:1-6, the Person of the Son is the "only Begotten" of the Father, meaning He shares the same qualities and One eternal nature with the Father. Touching His Deity, Jesus Christ is the Son of the Father. Then in Hebrews 5:7-10 we see a second truth about the Son, namely that He came to take on a human nature through which He learned obedience and achieved our salvation, being deemed the Mediator or Priest according to the order of Melchizedek. Third and finally, Hebrews 5:11-14 tells the reader that understanding Christ's Undiminished Deity and real humanity may be hard but necessary for spiritual maturity. As God, the Lord Jesus Christ is the Eternal source of salvation and as man, He is able to administer such salvation to all who by faith truth in Him.   

Portraits of Jesus Christ from Isaiah

Isaiah 1:1 "The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz concerning Judah and Jerusalem, which he saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah."

Luke 4:18 "And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written."

Introduction:

The four Gospel writers record Jesus referencing Isaiah's prophecies nearly fifteen times throughout the course of His earthly ministry. With the exception of Moses, no prophet influenced Jesus more than Isaiah. Isaiah has been called by past preachers "the prince of the prophets". Undoubtedly his writing style is the most eloquent and most sublime among the writing prophets. Yet that is not what makes Isaiah so precious to students of the Bible. Rather, it has to do with how many prophecies are included in Isaiah's writing that point to the Lord Jesus Christ. Today's post is called: "Portraits of Jesus from Isaiah". I want to alert readers to some of the more significant prophecies about the Messiah contained in Isaiah's book. Afterall, can we ever get too much of Jesus? I think not. Notice....

1. Prophecies of Jesus' earthly reign. Isaiah 2 

When Jesus returns, He will bring into visible sight the Kingly reign with which He inaugurated spiritually following His ascension into heaven (Acts 1:11; 2:33-36). This earthly, visible aspect of Jesus' reign will usher in an age of peace and fulfillment of God's promises to Israel (Romans 11:25). Revelation 20 states on six occassions that Jesus' earthly reign will last a millennium or 1,000 years. Oftentimes Bible teachers call this Jesus' millennial reign on this earth. Throughout Isaiah prophecies we see reference to Jesus' earthly or millennial reign (Isaiah 25,32,35,60-66). Some reputable Bible teachers see these prophecies as giving an earthly description of what will be the eternal state of Jesus' and His people Israel and the redeemed nations. However, the repeated imagery of an earth-based headquarters for Jesus' throne cannot be ignored. Thus Isaiah gives us a glimpse into what will be Jesus' reign on this earth for 1,000 years. 

2. Prophecies Jesus' earthly life. 

Isaiah 7:14 and 9:6-7 both predict the virgin birth/conception of Jesus' in His humanity. Undeniably Isaiah 9:6-7 reminds us of the fact that the Son has been and always will be eternal God. Yet, Isaiah 7:14 predicts what would be the Son's assumption of human flesh in the virgin's womb. New Testament passages such as Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:35 and John 1:14 all testify to the beginning of Jesus' earthly life as the virgin born Son of God.

Isaiah 40:1-3 predicts the forerunner of the Lord Jesus Christ - namely John the Baptist. As the Holy Ghost predicted Jesus' beginning of human life through Isaiah, it is in passages such as Isaiah 40:3 that we see the beginning of Jesus' public ministry as a result of John the Baptist's forerunning ministry (compare Matthew 3:3; Mark 1:3; Luke 3:4-6; John 1:23). 

Then of course remarkable physical descriptions of Jesus are given in Isaiah 49:3; 50:6; 53:2. Isaiah 61:1-2a predicts what would be Jesus' earthly ministry as referenced by Jesus Himself in Luke 4:18. So Isaiah predicts Jesus' future earthly reign and the beginnings of His life, as well as his full life and ministry here on earth.

3. Prophecies of Jesus' death and resurrection

Perhaps no chapter in Isaiah stands out more than Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53:1-8 predicts the crucifixion of Jesus. Isaiah 53:9 predicts the burial of Jesus. Then Isaiah 53:10-12 predicts what would be the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Notice how this corresponds with the definition of the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." It's like Jesus said to His disciples on the road to Emmaus following His resurrection in Luke 24:44, that is, how the law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms testify concerning Him. 

Your source of strength in difficult times

Hebrews 4:11 "Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience." 

In order to get our attention, God will often times cut off the ungodly things or relationships that we have mistakenly come to view as sources of comfort. Such Fatherly discipline by God is designed to teach the believer that He alone is the believer's source of strength. Additionally, the process of God's discipline communicates that His word, as well as godly counsel and the people of God are resources he provides for Godly living, strength and comfort. 

As God speaks words of judgment to Egypt, Philistia and Moab through Jeremiah, He is judging nations that had at first plagued Judah throughout her history. As one reads the Old Testament's portrayal of the history of God's people, they eventually came to view these former enemies as spiritual and political allies in times of desperation. God's prediction of defeat on these nations served to remove any confidence that the Jewish people had in anyone of these nations. 

So why would God do this? So as to provide space for Jeremiah's message of comfort to Jerusalem and her inhabitants that God alone was her Savior. Though God would be disciplining His people, their destiny would entail restoration after it was all over. (Jeremiah 46:27-28) 

In the New Testament, the writer of Hebrews 4 urges us to fix our eyes on the Lord and keep them there. As we think about the outcomes of God's people in the Old Testament, Christians today need to ask: where or in whom is found ultimate spiritual, emotional and physical refreshment? Is it in this world or in the Lord? Does the Creator and Savior bring us our greatest thrill or do we have more confidence in created things? Do you and I rely upon the opinions of men to put band aids on our heart or do we rely upon God's word which alone can cut, wound and heal the heart, making it anew? Only at the throne of grace in Jesus Christ can we find unending comfort and strength.

The Prescription for Strong Christian Faith

Hebrews 3:1 "Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of aheavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession."

What is the prescription for strong faith? As we begin today's post in Hebrews 3, we discover three important things to consider for having a strong faith: 

1. Consider the Lord (Hebrews 3:1-6) 
2. Consider His Word (3:7-11) 
3. Consider your heart (3:12-19). 

The writer of Hebrews is warning his readers of a powerful virus that is already in the heart of unbelievers and threatens the spiritual lives of God's saints: namely the disease of unbelief. In citing a historical example from the days of the first generation of Israelites coming out of Egypt under Moses, the writer of Hebrews demonstrates the results of not taking the prescription for strong faith. 

The first stage of the disease of unbelief begins to set in: hardness of heart (Hebrews 3:12-15). The second stage following hardness of heart is spiritual blindness (3:16-17) with the final stage that demonstrates the lack of true saving faith, namely inability to enter into God's rest of salvation (3:18-19). The frightening reality of these warnings about unbelief is that true believers can experience for seasons at a time the first two stages of hardness of heart and spiritual blindness. Only the grace of God in God's Fatherly discipline can prevent them from falling away from salvation. (compare Hebrews 12:5-8) 

To illustrate this from the Old Testament, whenever you read Jeremiah 43-44 you see God the Father attempting yet again to convince the left over people of Judah to repent and turn to Him. However the people refuse and in perhaps one of the most blatant acts of rebellion recorded in God's Word, actually tell Jeremiah that they will not listen to God. They refuse Jeremiah's God-given prescription for strong faith. The result? God does to them as described in Romans 1 - He hands them over to the depravity of their desires and mindset. 

The worse form of judgment is whenever God gives us what we want. The people's refusal to receive the remedy demonstrated their lost condition. Because of their refusal, God passed over them in judgment, even though He desired to show mercy. Jeremiah 45 is another prophecy written prior to the events of Jeremiah 43-44 that demonstrates how much God has issued repeated warnings and given space for repentance. May you and I receive God's prescription for strong faith: consider the Lord, His word and your heart.