Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah+61.10-62.3

Scripture

I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God

For he has dressed me in the garments of salvation

and draped me in a robe of righteousness.

Observation

Isaiah is overwhelmed with joy because he is dressed in salvation and righteousness, like a groom or a bride in wedding clothes.

The Lord will show justice to the nations and everyone will praise Him. The nations will see God’s righteousness and glory.

Application

When we see God’s glory we should be overwhelmed with joy. When we think of our relationship with God, joy should fill our soul.

When prayer or Bible study or worship become a chore, a ritual to be endured, then we have lost the plot. Joy is meant to be a centre piece in the christian life.

God has dressed me in the garment of salvation. I once was lost and dead in my sin. Then, miracle of miracles, Jesus reached down to me from the cross and brought cleansing and forgiveness. He walked out of the tomb and brought me resurrection life.

My life has meaning because I am in Christ. I am overwhelmed with joy at what God has done in me.

Joy is different to happiness. Happiness is fleeting- it literally depends on what is happening. Joy is eternal because it is a gift from God. Even in the greatest trial or the saddest moment, joy will be there waiting to bubble up to the surface like a spring of water.

I am saved in Christ, so I will rejoice.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of salvation. All my sins are gone, cleansed by your blood. Help me to remember this when the world overwhelms me. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah+1.1-11

Scripture

He has sent me to tell those who mourn

that the time of the Lord’s favour has come

and with it the say of God’s anger against their enemies.

Observation

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me

to bring good news to the poor

to comfort the broken hearted

to proclaim freedom for the captives

to declare the time of the Lord’s favour

God promises that He will bring joy to those who mourn and His justice will be revealed to all nations.

Application

Those who mourn because of injustice will find joy in the Lord. The time of God’s favour is coming.

There are times when we might feel abandoned by God, maybe because of injustice, opposition or a life or family out of our control.

But God is going to change all that. His favour will come and His blessing will be poured out.

God raises up the humble and brings joy to those who grieve. He is in the business of restoring lives, especially for those who trust in Him.

This is more than good news to the oppressed. He will also bring justice and judgement on those who oppress.

There are systems in the world which seem to lock some people into poverty, violent relationships or social deprivation. But God is going to judge those systems, not by oppressing the oppressors but by renewing the whole of society through the renewal of relationships and the transforming of our minds.

One day love, justice and peace will flow across the land like a mighty river in flood. Jesus’ death on the cross has released a kingdom that will never end, a justice for all that will never be undermined.

Prayer

Lord your desire is not just to forgive sins but to change all things so that those who are pulled down will be restored. Help me to see how I can be a channel for your justice. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+40.1-11

Scripture

“Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God.

Observation

“Comfort Jerusalem, speak tenderly to her,” says the Lord.

He promises someone coming through the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord.

People are short-lived like grass, but God’s word endures for ever. Yes the Lord is coming, and He will rule over His people with power and gentleness.

Application

Hope is a force for life. When we lose hope and feel abandoned, we believe that life has no value.

Today I watched someone crumple before my eyes as a person in authority laid out a bleak future for her. He was laying out the worst case scenario- possible but unlikely. We spent the afternoon speaking to her words of hope and an alternative future,

For the people of Israel, the wrath of God smashed all hope for the future. The prophets painted a picture of hope, because the reality was that God had not abandoned them. Forced to a place of punishment for sin, God continued to love His people.

Christmas is a time of hope for christians as we celebrate the unfailing love of God who loved the world so much that He sent His one and only Son so that whoever trusts in Him should have eternal life (John 3:16)

No matter how bleak life seems, we have a God who refuses to abandon us and guarantees eternity to His followers.

That is great comfort for God’s people.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you for not giving up on me. Your love never fails, and I will celebrate you today. Amen.

Photo by SwapnIl Dwivedi on Unsplash

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+64.1-9

Scripture
And yet, O Lord, you are our Father
We are the clay, and you are the potter.
We are all formed by your hand.

Observation
O Lord, come down. Our hearts are heavy with grief at the sins of our nation.

If only the Lord would come down and sort things out. No one has ever heard or seen a god like the Lord. There is no one like Him, and when He acts nations are shaken.

We are sinners, even the people who say they belong to Him. Sin is in our DNA from when we are conceived.

We are the clay, and He is the potter. We are His people, the work of His hands.

Application
We have all sinned and fallen short of the glorious destiny that God planned for us. And yet the Lord continues to love us. We do the most crass, stubborn and rebellious things, “and yet” God’s love continues to flow to us.

God is the potter and we are the clay. Life goes better for us when we allow God to mould us, when we respond to events, both good and hurtful, with trust and joy in the Lord.

If we remain pliable to His touch then just a little pressure will mould us to the right shape. But when we are rigid and unyielding, determined to do things our own way, then the Lord has to increase the pressure to push us into that beautiful form He designed us to be.

We all sin, but we are all formed by His hand. We all rebel, but He continues to shape us for His purposes.

Prayer
Lord Jesus I thank you that your love never fails. Your love never gives up or runs out. Help me to see that correction and redirection are a part of your love for me. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegatesway.com/search?%s=Isaiah+58.1-12

Scripture

“Is this not the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chain of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke

to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?”

Observation

The Lord calls for a proclamation against His people for their rebellion and sins. They seek the Lord for answers and seem eager for God to come near. They fast and humble themselves but the Lord seems to not notice.

The Lord tells them that even on their fast days, they exploit their workers. Their fasts end in quarrels and fights. The Lord says they can’t expect their prayers to be heard when they fast like that. He isn’t interested in that kind of fast. The fast he honours is the one that results in oppression being lifted and yokes of bondage being removed.

Application

God is opposed to religion. He hates practices which we use in order to avoid Him getting under our skin and changing our hearts. Religion seeks to change God’s mind; true faith is when God changes our heart.

In the passage, the Lord through Isaiah is taking Israel to task for going through religious fasting but still exploiting others and engaging in quarrels. They were claiming to love God, but failed to love their neighbour who is made in the image of God.

We can think that this is a matter for Government. If we vote for the right party , then the right regulations get passed and social justice will reign. This isn’t true of course- daily we hear of employers who rip off their workers even though they know what the mandated pay rates and superannuation requirements are.

The Lord does not want us to contract our consciences out to the political leaders. We are required to love our neighbour where we are. This passage is about my attitude to my neighbour, to the oppressed people in my town.

When I fast, when I pray, when I worship, it is not just me and Jesus. It is allowing the grace of God to fill me, set me free and empower me to pass on that same grace to others.

Prayer

Lord I confess that I am often unaware of the problems and sufferings of the people around me. I too easily accept the way things are as being the natural order. Help me to see my neighbour as you see them and to let your love flow through me to them. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+9.1-4

Scripture

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light-

those who lived in a land of deep darkness on them the light has shone.

Observation

The king is coming who will remove the gloom and anguish from the nation; specifically from those in Galilee and the other side of the Jordan.

People who walked in deep darkness have seen a great light. God is going to multiply the nation and make it great again. Joy will flow like the joy of the harvest or the excitement of a victorious army dividing the plunder.

Application

The darkness over the land is deep. We have turned our backs on God, and the darkness is descending and becoming deeper.

We have people promoting every sexual deviancy as special and worthy of honour. Those who disagree are vilified. Marriages break down as people prefer pleasure and convenience to the hard work of valuing and loving another person. Celebrities are accused of abusing their positions, and politicians from every party seem determined to gain advantage for themselves.

The darkness is here. Even parts of the church prefer the world to the word, the darkness to the light.

As deep as the darkness is, the light is greater. As evil as people are, Jesus is able to overcome.

As a distant headlight seems dim but grows into a blinding intensity as it draws near, so the light of Jesus is drawing closer.

When christians pray and speak out the gospel, the light will overcome the darkness, and people will be set free.

Australia will be set free one person at a time. Revival will come, and the light will bring salvation, joy and transformation.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, as I look at our nation I see so much darkness. You are the light that overcomes the darkness. Shine through me, Lord, and let the people around me see your grace and your unfailing love. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+49.1-7

Scripture

“I will give you as a light to the nations,

that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

Observation

The Servant of the Lord was called before he was born. He was commissioned by the Lord. The servant now feels He has laboured in vain because Israel has rejected his message.

But the Lord who called the Servant now says that the task of restoring the tribes of Jacob is too small a task. He will now be a light to the nations (i.e. the Gentiles) so that the Lord’s salvation will be seen to the ends of the earth.

Application

Jesus never set foot outside of Israel, yet His name brings salvation to the whole world. There are christians in every country of the world witnessing to the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus told His disciples to go to the world making disciples in all the nations. He said we are the “light of the world.”

As followers of Jesus we take from His light and shine it in the dark places as we go. This means we have to be involved with people’s lives, dark and messy as they can be.

The light is spiritual- the possibility of forgiveness and relationship with God. “The people who lived in darkness have seen a great light”- hope for a different life free of sin, guilt and shame.

The light of God repels some while attracting others. Those who are open to the light of the Lord will be attracted to anyone who carries the light. But those who prefer the darkness will flee from the light.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank you that you are the light for the world. Help me to take your light into the dark places today. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+63:7-9

Scripture

It was no messenger or angel but His presence that saved them.

Observation

Isaiah remembers the praiseworthy acts of the Lord for His people Israel. He loved them and showed them His great favour.

The Lord said, “These are my people, my children.” He became their saviour. It wasn’t an angel who saved God’s people; it was the Lord Himself.

Application

No messenger or angel can save us. Only God’s presence can do that. We need no other Saviour, no other Redeemer than the Lord.

At Christmas, we have just celebrated the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ into the world. Emmanuel, God is with us.

This is the greatest miracle the Lord could ever give us. God, our Lord, the Creator of all things entered into His own creation- weak, frail and ready to show the world what a saviour really looks like.

Some christians – and even some non-christians- become fascinated by angels. Angels are awesome creatures, but they are not God.

God did not send an angel into the world to save us because an angel could not do this. No angel could pay the price for our sin on our behalf. Only God can do that.

He didn’t send a preacher or prophet to save us. They are merely human and an only point us to the Saviour.

God has saved us. God has redeemed us. God has killed death and sin.

Now He makes His dwelling place in the hearts of men and women. Emmanuel- God is with us.

God is with me! God’s saving presence is with me!

This is the most amazing Good News.

Prayer

Lord, it is true that no angel or messenger could save me from my sin. It was only your presence in the form of Jesus that saved me.

Thank you for saving me. Thank you for making me a new creation through Jesus your Son. Amen.