SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/23/2013
7:49 AM
My Worship Time Focus: The Beginning of a New Life
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Isaiah
61:1-11
Message of verses: We will try to look at the two sub-points
that are under this second main point in Dr. Wiersbe’s outline.
The Lord Speaks (Isaiah 61:1-9): “1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has
sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And
freedom to prisoners; 2 To proclaim the
favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all
who mourn, 3 To grant those who mourn in
Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of
mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be
called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be
glorified.
“4 Then
they will rebuild the ancient ruins, They will raise up the former
devastations; And they will repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many
generations. 5 Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks, And foreigners
will be your farmers and your vinedressers. 6 But you will be called the
priests of the LORD; You will be spoken of as ministers of our God. You will
eat the wealth of nations, And in their riches you will boast. 7 Instead of
your shame you will have a double portion, And instead of humiliation they will
shout for joy over their portion. Therefore they will possess a double portion
in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs. 8 For I, the LORD, love justice,
I hate robbery in the burnt offering; And I will faithfully give them their
recompense And make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 Then their offspring
will be known among the nations, And their descendants in the midst of the
peoples. All who see them will recognize them Because they are the offspring
whom the LORD has blessed.”
Our Lord quoted verse one a part of verse two in the
synagogue in His home town of Nazareth, to which He applied this Scripture to
Himself. All three persons of the
trinity are mentioned in this verse.
Jesus did not quote “and the day of vengeance of our God” because that
will not take place until later on.
Jesus’ first visit to planet earth was to die for the sins of those who
would accept His forgiveness. When He
comes again it will be to separate that sheep from the goats and to establish
His kingdom on earth headed up from Jerusalem which will last for one thousand
years.
In his commentary on this section Dr. Wiersbe writes that
this section is speaking of “The Year of Jubilee, which is described in Leviticus
25:7 and following. The Year of Jubilee
took place every fifty years as there would be seven Sabbatical years, which
totals 49 years and then the 50th year is the Year of Jubilee. It was in that year that all the lands would
go back to the original owner and all debts would be set free. God did this in order to give everyone a
chance at a new beginning.
Dr. Wiersbe writes “If you have trusted Christ as your
Savior, you are living today in a spiritual ‘Year of Jubilee.’ You have been set free from bondage; your
spiritual debt to the Lord has been paid; you are living in ‘the acceptable year
of the Lord.’ Instead of the ashes of
mourning, you have a crown on your head, for He has made you a king (Rev.
1:6). You have been anointed with the
oil of the Holy Spirit, and you wear a garment of righteousness (Isa. 61:3; 10).”
This section speaks of Israel returning to rebuild their
ancient ruins (v.4) and this is speaking of the millennial kingdom, which I
believe is pictured when the Jews went back to Israel to rebuild their city and
temple. It will be during this time of
the millennial kingdom that Israel will be living in “The Year of Jubilee,” for
they will have a new beginning and will continue to flourish during those 1000
years. The Gentiles will be tending
their flocks and herds for Israel will be priests and ministers during this
time. Exodus 4:22 speaks of Israel being
God’s firstborn and so they will be during this kingdom age.
In Jeremiah 31:31-37 the new covenant is written about,
this is also repeated in the book of Hebrews, and Isaiah speaks of it in verse
eight of our text. In verse nine Isaiah
speaks of the Jews “descendants” which are the children given to the those who
came out of the Great Tribulation and were brought into the Kingdom age. There is no mention of death during this time
for believers so we can assume that all those coming out of the tribulation
will live for 1000 years longer.
The prophet speaks (Isaiah 61:10-11): “10 I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, My
soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He
has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with
a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, So the Lord GOD will
cause righteousness and praise To spring up before all the nations.”
Dr. Wiersbe writes:
“Isaiah is speaking on behalf of the remnant who are praising God for
all He has done. They rejoice that He
has cleansed them and clothed them and turned their desert into a fruitful
garden (55:10). They have gone from a
funeral to a wedding!”
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: A quote that Dr.
Wiersbe uses in many of his commentaries comes from an old Scottish preacher
who said “The successful Christian life is a series of new beginnings,” and
that is exactly what the Year of Jubilee is all about, and that is also what
salvation is all about, a new beginning in Christ who died for my sins, who
paid the penalty for my sins and given me a new life in Him.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Showing thanks for the new birth that was
given to me through Christ.
Memory verses for the
week: 1 Cor. 6: 19-20 “Or do you not
know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and
that you are not your own?
20 For you have been bought
with a price: therefore
glorify God in your body.”
Answer to our last Bible
Question: “Balaam” (Numbers 22:28-30).
Today’s Bible
Question: “The Lord assured Paul that
his thorn would not be removed, but that what would be sufficient for him?”
Answer in our next SD.
12/23/2013 9:01 AM
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