SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/26/2013
9:13 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
Immanuel: A Message of Hope PT-3
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Isaiah 7:17-25
Message of the
verses: We will look at the third
and last part of this first main section in today’s SD.
A Warning to Judah (Isaiah 7:17-25): “17 "The LORD will bring on you, on your
people, and on your father’s house such days as have never come since the day
that Ephraim separated from Judah, the king of Assyria." 18 In that day
the LORD will whistle for the fly that is in the remotest part of the rivers of
Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. 19 They will all come and
settle on the steep ravines, on the ledges of the cliffs, on all the thorn
bushes and on all the watering places. 20 In that day the Lord will shave with
a razor, hired from regions beyond the Euphrates (that is, with the king of
Assyria), the head and the hair of the legs; and it will also remove the beard.
21 Now in that day a man may keep alive a heifer and a pair of sheep; 22 and
because of the abundance of the milk produced he will eat curds, for everyone
that is left within the land will eat curds and honey. 23 And it will come
about in that day, that every place where there used to be a thousand vines,
valued at a thousand shekels of silver, will become briars and thorns. 24
People will come there with bows and arrows because all the land will be briars
and thorns. 25 As for all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe,
you will not go there for fear of briars and thorns; but they will become a
place for pasturing oxen and for sheep to trample.”
I believe that we can sum up this short section of Isaiah
by understanding that the problem with Ahaz is that he was putting his trust in
the Assyrians and the Assyrians would eventually attack Judah and when they got
done with their ravish of the land that the only thing lift for food would be
the milk from the cows and sheep as there would be no more agriculture in the
land. This happened later on in Judah’s
history, and when the Assyrians got to Jerusalem God would then kill 180,000 of
them in one night thus sparing the city of Jerusalem for a while until the
Babylonians would come in and destroy it in 586 B. C.
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: There are times
when if we look at what the world around would say if we trust the Lord that we
are crazy. Ahaz must have felt that he
could trust the Assyrians instead of trusting the Lord, and it would prove to
be a very bad decision. Trusting the
Lord is difficult at times, for we as people want to decide to do things on our
own, and when we do that then we get ourselves in a lot of trouble.
Here is an example of trusting the Lord when it does not
seem to make sense to do so. In the very
last chapter of John’s gospel Jesus is restoring Peter from denying Him three
times and after this is done Jesus informs Peter of how he was going to die,
and the following is how John describes this:
“18 "Truly, truly, I say to
you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you
wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else
will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go." 19 Now this He said, signifying by
what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He
*said to him, "Follow Me!"” Jesus is saying that Peter’s death would
glorify God, and I don’t think that the “world” would ever understand a
statement like that. This is at the
opposite end of what Ahaz was doing, for he was not trusting the Lord, but
trusting the Assyrians. We have to make a
choice as to whether or not to trust the Lord even if by doing so will cost us
our very lives as it did Peter.
My Steps of Faith for Today:
Proverbs 3:5-6.
Memory verses for the
week: Psalm 46:1-7
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in
trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though
the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the
sea; 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its
swelling pride. Selah. 4 There is a river whose streams make glade
the city of God, the holy dwelling place of the most high. 5 God is in the midst of her, she will not be
moved, God will help her when morning dawns.
6 The nations make an uproar, the kingdoms tottered; He
raised His voice, the earth melted. 7
The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
Question: “Numbers.”
Today’s Bible
Question: “Who encouraged Ahab to go and
fight against Ramoth-Gilead?”
Answer in tomorrow’s SD.
7/26/2013 9:51 AM
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