AWAKE, ARISE, AND TRIUMPH
Monday – February 20, 2023, Sh’vat 29, 5783
THE VOICE OF HIM THAT CRIETH
Greeting dear and precious saints and welcome back to our empowering Bible Study of the wonderful Bible Book of Isaiah. How good is our God? He is nothing but good, the other guy, the other kingdom not so. As we are moving forward, please take a moment and share this teaching as widely as possible by every means available to you to expand our reach with the Truth. Thank you so much for sharing, you have a vital role with others in this Ministry, in furthering the Kingdom of God. The featured picture today is the Statehouse in Idaho and it is to remind us to pray for those in authority, all those in authority. We, the Church, must not only pray for, in a positive way, all in authority but repent for the wicked we (the Church) have helped in one way or another put in authority. If we think just showing up and voting for the candidate most closely aligned with Biblical values is the start and finish, we are sadly mistaken. Who has authority in the earth and Who backs up our authority?
1 Timothy 2:1-4 (New Jerusalem Bible)
1 I urge then, first of all that petitions, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving should be offered for everyone,
2 for kings and others in authority, so that we may be able to live peaceful and quiet lives with all devotion and propriety.
3 To do this is right, and acceptable to God our Saviour:
4 he wants everyone to be saved and reach full knowledge of the truth.
Now, let’s turn our attention to our primary Bible text in the Book of Isaiah continuing to read out loud. Have you forgotten why you read out loud? Faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17) and it is impossible to please God without faith (Hebrew 11:6). Since everything in the Kingdom of God has to be done by faith, faith in God, and I’m assuming that all my readers want to please God, so we are reading out loud.
Isaiah 40:3-8 (KJV)
3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
6 The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:
7 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.
8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
As we read this text, we are quickly reminded of John the Baptist and his work to prepare the way for Jesus. As we read the whole text presented it strikes me in some way as if we are listening in on a private conversation between God and John the Baptist. As we move forward in our teaching, I want to remind us all that this applied to them then, later in the coming of the Christ, and now to us. The Lord will help me to weave this together and help us to see at least a part of the Truth presented. Listen to the coming Messiah speak through the Prophet Malachi about the coming of John the Baptist.
Malachi 3:1 (KJV)
1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
John come preaching repentance. Repentance is always step one. It is not one and done, there must be genuine inward and outward change. Before I end for today, I want to add a little context. We have just discussed King Hezekiah, his sin (pride), and his repentance, but we soon saw it was short-lived. He apparently genuinely repented at the moment but did not take the necessary steps to guard against sliding back into pride. We know this is the Messiah, Jesus, in Malachi 3:1, by the phrase “saith the LORD of hosts” to end the preceding verse. The Lord of Hosts is the soon returning King, Jesus, the Christ. Let’s start to look at this in the New Testament.
Matthew 3:1-6 (KJV)
1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
4 And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.
5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,
6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
By: Dr. David R. Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice – Lord willing I will pick up right here tomorrow.
2 Chronicles 20:20 b (KJV)
20 … Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.
Receive the blessing in Jesus’ name!
Numbers 6:24-26 (MSG)
24 GOD bless you and keep you,
25 GOD smile on you and gift you,
26 GOD look you full in the face and make you prosper.
PRAYERS AND QUESTIONS – please contact us and we will respond. Our goal is to build a solid foundation upon which children of God can become sons of God, stand and do exploits in Jesus’ name.
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