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Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted Isa 53:4 |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Sunday, December 8, 2024
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :The Year of God’s Favor Bible Verse:Isaiah 61:1-4, 11 "The Year of God’s Favor The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,because the Lord has anointed meto bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,to proclaim liberty to the captives,and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,and the day of vengeance of our God;to comfort all who mourn; * * * That they may be called oaks of righteousness,the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.They shall build up the ancient ruins;they shall raise up the former devastations;they shall repair the ruined cities,the devastations of many generations. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praiseto sprout up before all the nations." Message:
As we come into the heart of Christmas season, we celebrate the promise of new life amidst the dark death of winter. The star of Bethlehem is like a little sun, a promise of a sun that will certainly rise and overcome the sleeping world around us. Isaiah was led to see this promise many centuries before it rose; he was a prophet of Christ 750 years before Christ was born.
Star of Bethlehem
If you have read much of Isaiah, it seems to be filled with predictions of wrath and destruction, God’s wrath against those who would deny Him. But really, this is not how the book ends. Isaiah’s final message is one of hope that can be found in even the worst of times; and Israel was to know times that were more terrible than most of us can imagine, when all of Israel was devastated, killed by swords, or taken into captivity as slaves.
These times, especially the invasion of Israel by Babylon, were still in the future during Isaiah’s life; they are why so much of his prophecy is grim and frightening. But always, he holds out the promise of a rising star in the distant future. In the passage today, he tells us his ultimate purpose. Yes, he was sent to warn Israel of the devastation it would suffer from its idolatry; but even more, he was sent to bring God’s promise of a savior from the suffering.
His final message is one of comfort to all who suffer. Christ, and those who follow Him, will repair the ruined cities. Like plants growing back in a ruined garden, they will be the source of “righteousness and praise to sprout up before all nations.”
We must never forget the ultimate salvation that comforts us in time of difficulty, no matter how terrible it may be; for remember, Isaiah was telling people to have hope, in a time worse than anything we will ever have to face, when an entire nation would be murdered by men with swords or taken into slavery in a foreign land. Nor should we ever forget the last paragraph today; God’s purpose for us is that we stand at the heart of rebuilding His earth and that we be the source of righteousness and praise before all nations.
Meditation : Prayer : Now, to God the Father, who first loved us, and made us accepted in the Beloved; to God the Son, who loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood; to God the Holy Ghost, who sheds the love of God abroad in our hearts, be all love and all glory in time and to all eternity.........Amen |
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