Participants: John Lomacang (Host), Jill Morikone, Ryan Day, John Dinzey, Shelley Quinn
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP210009S
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00:01 Hello, friends, welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:03 It is always a blessing to have you to join us. 00:06 And if you've been following us through the Book of Isaiah, 00:09 a powerful study, you've seen God transforming our lives 00:13 and I hope He's been also transforming your Life. 00:16 We are on lesson number nine, "The Servant Nation." 00:19 And the title of this week's is "To Serve and to Save." 00:23 And so I'd like you to stay tuned to join us 00:25 through a wonderful excursion 00:27 through the unfolding Book of Isaiah. 00:30 If you don't have a lesson, you can get a copy 00:32 by downloading at ABSG.Adventist.org. 00:35 Or better yet, look for a local Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:39 and join them for an exhilarating study. 00:42 But right now since you've tuned in, 00:44 join us as we once again walk with Isaiah, 00:47 by the side of Christ. 01:21 Hello, friends, welcome 01:23 to our 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 01:25 It is always a blessing on our part to be able to sit here 01:29 and open God's Word and serve a meal 01:31 that God alone has the ingredients for. 01:34 We thank you so much for 01:35 eating freshly from the Word of God, 01:37 that which the Lord prepared beforehand, 01:40 that should be a part of this table of service. 01:43 And today we are going to enjoy lesson number nine, 01:46 "To Serve and to Save." 01:48 And before we go any further though, 01:50 I want to just let you know that we have a panel of people 01:52 who have prayed for God to use them as vessels through 01:55 which His honor will be heard and seen. 01:58 To my immediate left is a young lady who I know... 02:01 approaches God's Word 02:03 with a serious heart and a humble heart. 02:05 Thank you so much for that, Jill. 02:06 I appreciate you so much. 02:07 Good to have you here today. Thank you, Pastor John. 02:09 Privileged to be here and study one of my favorite books. 02:11 That's right. 02:12 And whenever Ryan is on the panel, 02:14 we know we got enthusiasm, 02:15 we might get a song every now and then. 02:17 Ryan, good to have you here. 02:18 It's a blessing to be here as always. 02:20 Yes, the singer in Israel and, pastor, 02:23 one we share the same name, but Pastor John Dinzey, 02:26 the head of 3ABN Latino Good to have you here 02:28 whenever you're with us. 02:29 It's a privilege to be here. 02:31 And even though you may not see it, we are smiling. 02:34 I like that. 02:36 And Sister Shelley, what can I say about Shelley. 02:39 Shelley is always on target, ready to serve the Lord 02:41 with her voice and with her life. 02:43 Good to have you here. 02:44 Well, I'm just privileged to be a part of this. 02:47 I thank God all the time. 02:49 Okay. Amen to that. 02:50 Well, Pastor Dinzey, would you have prayer for us today 02:52 before we get into our lesson? 02:54 Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Okay. 02:57 Our most wonderful, Heavenly Father, 02:59 we pause before You, Lord, 03:01 to ask for that which we have not. 03:04 Because the understanding of the scriptures 03:07 truly comes from You. 03:09 So we pray that Your Holy Spirit 03:10 will be upon us, 03:12 that You will use us according to Your good pleasure. 03:16 And, Lord, we ask also for those that are tuning in 03:19 from whatever ways they can, 03:22 bless them also with an understanding 03:24 of the Holy Scriptures, that as we share, 03:28 You will bring the message Your people need. 03:31 We pray for a blessing upon all. 03:34 And we ask You for these things in the holy 03:36 and blessed name of Jesus. 03:38 Amen. Amen. 03:39 Thank you so much, so much. 03:42 To serve and to save, our memory text is found 03:45 in Isaiah 42:1. 03:48 And I will read that briefly for you says, "Behold! 03:50 My Servant whom I uphold, 03:54 My elect One in whom My soul delights! 03:59 I have put My Spirit upon Him, 04:01 He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles." 04:06 I can't help but to understand, in fact, who that is, 04:09 that's Christ Himself, the Holy One, 04:12 the One in whom God the Father delights. 04:16 You know, when Isaiah speaks about servant, 04:18 we talk about the servant nation, 04:22 but it breaks down servanthood 04:23 not only on the corporate level, 04:26 but it breaks it down on the individual level. 04:28 And then sometimes when it doesn't even mention 04:30 the servant, 04:31 it is making a broader application 04:34 to the fact that whomever receives the Lord 04:38 in his or her life is called to be a servant. 04:41 And the servant is not greater than the Lord. 04:45 So Isaiah in Isaiah 41:8 speaks of Israel, my servant. 04:50 Let's look at that really briefly. 04:51 And then we're going to break down 04:52 the individual components and I have... 04:55 I think, Jill, I have seven points. 04:56 I'm gonna try to fit them in as well as you do it. 04:58 Try to get them in here, but Isaiah 41, 05:02 I just said, what verse did I just say? 05:03 Verse 8. 05:04 Verse 8, "But you, O Israel are my servant, 05:08 Jacob whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham," 05:14 and I love that, "my friend." 05:16 So nice when the Lord can call us His friend. 05:19 But a number of things that I noticed in the passage 05:21 as we begin to break it down. 05:24 Jacob is the immediate servant as referred to in Isaiah. 05:28 Actually, Isaiah 48, 05:30 you find Jacob is referred to there. 05:32 Let's go peek at Isaiah 48:20. 05:35 And I know there are some passages 05:36 that we all go over together at the same time. 05:40 But the immediate servant referred to here is Jacob. 05:43 It says, "Go forth from Babylon! 05:45 Flee from the Chaldeans! 05:47 With a voice of singing, declare, proclaim this, 05:51 utter it to the end of the earth, say, 05:54 'The Lord has redeemed His servant Jacob!' " 06:00 And as we know, Jacob is the pre-victorious name 06:03 that later was now changed to Israel, the overcomer. 06:07 It's important to know that because a lot of times 06:09 when people read the Book of Revelation, 06:11 and they read the sons of Jacob, 06:14 or the tribes of Israel. 06:16 They think of these as literal tribes, when in fact, 06:18 by that time, it has such a symbolic application, 06:21 it's important to understand the trajectory 06:24 of from the literal to the symbolic. 06:26 The word Israel, in fact, 06:28 is a term that's more applicable 06:29 to spiritual Israel than it is to literal Israel. 06:33 As Paul says in Romans 9:6, 06:36 "It is not that the Word of God has not taken effect, 06:38 but they are not all Israel that are of Israel." 06:42 So let's not glory in our national origin, 06:44 but let's glory in our spiritual origin. 06:47 You also find that Israel, Exodus 7:16, 06:50 Israel is the nation that is called to serve God. 06:53 Exodus 7:16, says, "And you shall say to him, 06:57 'The Lord God of the Hebrews has sent me to you, saying, 07:01 'Let My people go, that they may serve Me 07:04 in the wilderness,' 07:06 but indeed, until now you would not hear!' " 07:09 That is the message to Pharaoh. 07:11 He wouldn't let the people of God go. 07:13 But keep that now 07:15 in perspective today paralleling, 07:16 we are living in our wilderness journey. 07:18 And there are forces that refuse to let us go. 07:22 There are habits that refuse to let us go. 07:25 There are things of our past 07:27 that we refuse to disconnect from. 07:29 But the only way that you can serve God 07:31 is just to separate yourself from that thing, 07:34 which has the greatest grip on you. 07:36 Pray that God will not only separate you, 07:39 but pray that you will have the willing mind to let go 07:42 whatever is preventing you from fully serving the Lord. 07:47 And that's what's being emphasized in this passage. 07:50 Let my people go. 07:51 That's what the Lord daily says 07:53 to the forces that are trying to bind us, 07:54 let My people go, that they may serve Me. 07:57 Then Psalm 72:11, 08:00 broadens the picture of service. 08:02 Psalm 72:11, when God's servant is not named, 08:05 it indicates that we should all serve Him. 08:08 Psalm 72:11, it says, "Yes, 08:10 all kings shall fall down before Him, 08:14 all nations shall do" what? 08:17 Serve Him. "All nations shall serve Him." 08:20 The nation of the saved will definitely serve the Lord 08:23 throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. 08:26 And sometimes people wonder, well, 08:27 what that service is going to be comprised of. 08:30 I'll tell you, it's going to be a delightful service, 08:33 a service to God in an atmosphere 08:35 where there's no more sin, no more death, 08:36 no more suffering, no more crying, no more pain 08:38 is going to be a delightful service. 08:40 And then not only serving God, but we're going to get a chance 08:44 a round trip ticket to go to unfallen worlds, 08:47 to tell people how beautiful it is 08:49 to serve God as redeemed sinners. 08:51 Amen to that? Amen to that. 08:53 Serving God as perfect is an easy thing to do. 08:56 But making this decision 08:58 to serve God as redeemed sinners. 09:01 Now, having the title saint is not an easy thing to do. 09:06 It's a continual commitment on a day by day basis. 09:09 But two points before I go to my seven points, Jill, 09:12 is one, let's go to Isaiah 41:9, 09:15 God chooses us. 09:18 That's first and most important, 09:19 God chooses us. 09:21 Isaiah 41:9, " 09:23 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, 09:29 and called forth its farthest regions, 09:32 and said to you, 'You are My servant, 09:35 I have chosen you and have not cast you away." 09:39 God chooses us. 09:41 It's a privilege to choose God 09:42 because we are also told to do that. 09:44 But it's so wonderful for God to choose us. 09:47 And then when He chooses us, 09:49 He says, "Now do you choose Me." 09:50 God chose Peter, but then 09:52 Peter had a difficult time choosing God. 09:55 God chose the disciples 09:56 and there was one that didn't chose, 09:57 choose to be faithful. 09:59 We know about that. 10:00 But that's the first thing God chooses us. 10:02 Second point is God protects us. 10:04 Isaiah 41:10, 10:05 "Fear not, for I am with you, 10:07 be not dismayed, for I am your God." 10:08 Amen. 10:10 Jill, you did a wonderful job on this, praise God for that. 10:13 "I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, 10:15 I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.' " 10:21 Point number one, serve the Lord 10:23 through the service rendered to humanity. 10:26 Colossians 3:23-24, 10:30 serve the Lord with your whole heart 10:32 through service rendered to humanity. 10:35 Don't ever say to people, 10:36 you should be glad I'm serving you. 10:38 No, do whatever you do as though you're doing it 10:41 directly to the Lord. 10:43 Colossians 3:23, 10:45 "And whatever you do, do it heartily," 10:47 that means with all your all your being, 10:50 "as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord 10:54 you will receive the reward of the inheritance, 10:56 for you serve the Lord Christ." 10:58 Serve the Lord through the humanity 11:02 that God is bringing you in contact with. 11:05 Second thing, serve the Lord with the right attitude, 11:08 is an attitude to service. 11:09 Some people have the wrong attitude, 11:11 they say, I am, you know, have the right attitude. 11:14 Psalm 100:2, 11:16 "Serve the Lord with gladness," With what? 11:19 "Gladness, come before his presence with singing." 11:24 And Ryan always is blessed by that. 11:27 Come before his presence with singing. 11:29 Serve the Lord with gladness. 11:31 Whatever you do, 11:32 serve the Lord with the right attitude. 11:35 There's nothing more conflicting 11:38 than having the right message and the wrong attitude. 11:42 Sometimes people are not converted by what we say 11:45 but how we say it. 11:46 That's right. 11:47 Not just by the communication of the truth, 11:49 but communicate the truth as one who is converted 11:52 by the very truth that you communicate 11:54 with the right attitude, serve...Third thing, 11:56 serve the Lord exclusively, serve the Lord exclusively. 12:00 Matthew 4:10. 12:01 Matthew 4:10, "Serve the Lord exclusively." 12:04 Don't allow anything else to hinder your service to God. 12:07 And by the way, this is directed to the devil himself. 12:10 And Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan, 12:13 for it is written, 12:14 you shall worship the Lord your God 12:16 and him only you shall serve." 12:20 Kind of pause and ask the question, 12:22 is that a challenge in your life? 12:24 Is there something challenging your service 12:26 that belongs to God alone? 12:28 When you can get that right, 12:29 it's like trying to go left and go right 12:30 at the same time trying to go north and south. 12:34 A heart divided against itself cannot experience success. 12:39 The fourth one, serve the Lord personally. 12:43 Serve the Lord personally. 12:45 Joshua 24:18, 12:48 "And the Lord drove out from before us all the people, 12:52 including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. 12:57 We also serve the Lord, for He is our God." 13:02 Serve the Lord personally. 13:05 Make it personal. 13:06 Whenever we read certain portions of the Bible, 13:08 sometimes I always say, and I say, instead of saying, 13:12 If you love me, say if I love you, 13:15 keep His commandments. 13:16 Make your service to God personal. 13:19 The other one is serve the Lord without distractions. 13:22 1 Corinthians 7:35, 13:25 serve the Lord without distractions. 13:27 "And this I say for your own profit, 13:30 not that I may put a leash on you, 13:34 but for what is proper, 13:36 and that you may serve the Lord without distraction." 13:39 And there are lot of distractions nowadays, 13:43 but praise. 13:44 I always say to people, don't try to read your Bible 13:46 with the television on, with your iPad in your lap, 13:49 with your phone in your lap. 13:51 Cut all of that off, turn the radio off, 13:54 and allow the voice of God to be heard in solitude, 13:57 of reading His Word. 13:58 Number six, serve the Lord 13:59 with the final reward and focus. 14:01 Serve Him with the final reward and focus. 14:04 Matthew 25:21, 14:06 "The Lord said to him, 'Well done, 14:08 good and faithful servant, 14:10 you were faithful over a few things, 14:11 I will make you ruler over many things. 14:13 Enter into the joy of your Lord." 14:15 Serve the Lord with the final reward and focus. 14:18 What do you want to hear? 14:20 I just simply want to hear God say, 14:21 "Well done thou good and faithful servant." 14:23 Amen. 14:24 So when I serve the Lord, I do take people into consideration, 14:26 but my number one focus is the Lord. 14:29 And finally, choose to serve the Lord. 14:31 You know what text I'm going to use, Joshua 24:15. 14:34 That's right. 14:36 "Choose you this day, whom you will serve." 14:41 Be like Joshua and say, "But as for me and my house, " 14:45 what are we going to do? 14:47 "We will serve the Lord." 14:49 Choose to serve the Lord. 14:52 Amen. 14:54 Thank you so much, Pastor John. 14:56 I love those lists. 15:00 Monday's lesson is "Unnamed Individual Servant." 15:05 So in the Book of Isaiah, especially the second half, 15:08 this book of comfort, Isaiah 40 through Isaiah 66, 15:11 we see two different forms of servant. 15:13 As Pastor John already talked about 15:15 this corporate servant meaning Israel or Jacob. 15:19 Then we have the individual servant, 15:22 which is the focus of my lesson. 15:24 Turn with me to Isaiah 42. 15:26 We're going to read the first seven verses 15:28 of Isaiah Chapter 42. 15:31 We knew, know this servant is none other 15:34 than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. 15:36 This is a messianic prophecy. 15:40 This is the first actually of the four servant 15:44 songs in Isaiah. 15:46 There's one in Isaiah 42, 15:47 talking about Jesus the Messiah. 15:49 There's one in Isaiah 49, 15:51 I think Shelley is gonna cover that. 15:53 We have Isaiah 50 is another one. 15:55 And then, of course, the fourth one 15:56 is at the end of Isaiah 52 into Isaiah Chapter 53. 16:01 Now, Isaiah 61 is also a wonderful messianic prophecy, 16:05 but it does not reference the term servant 16:07 as it refers to Jesus. 16:09 So as we look at Isaiah 42, these first seven verses, 16:12 I want to look at, Pastor John, seven identifying 16:16 characteristics of who the servant is. 16:19 How we identify the servant. 16:21 So characteristic number one, 16:22 the servant is anointed by the Holy Spirit. 16:26 Let's read verse 1, Isaiah 42:1, "Behold! 16:30 My Servant whom I uphold, 16:33 My Elect One in whom My soul delights!" 16:37 What's the next phrase? 16:38 "I have put My Spirit upon Him." 16:43 If you turn back to Isaiah Chapter 11, 16:45 we studied this a few quarters ago. 16:47 Isaiah Chapter 11 is another messianic prophecy. 16:50 And we see Isaiah 11:1, 16:52 "There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, 16:55 and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. 16:58 The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him." 17:00 Do you notice that? 17:02 So this messianic prophecy in Isaiah 11, 17:04 the spirit rests upon Jesus. 17:07 Here in Isaiah 42, the spirit is put upon Him. 17:12 We see also in Acts 10:38. 17:15 This is Peter, of course, speaking to the Gentiles, 17:19 Cornelius's household. 17:21 Acts 10:38, he says, 17:23 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth 17:26 with the Holy Spirit and with power. 17:29 We see that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit 17:31 from birth. 17:33 Identifying characteristic number one 17:35 is that this servant, the Messiah 17:38 is anointed by the Holy Spirit. 17:40 Characteristic number two, 17:41 He brings justice to the nations to the earth. 17:46 We just read the second half of Isaiah 42:1. 17:49 We already read the first half, let's read the second half. 17:51 "He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles." 17:57 If you go back to Isaiah 11, we reference that before. 18:00 But Isaiah 11:4 talks about Jesus, 18:03 this messianic prophecy, bringing justice. 18:06 It says, "But with righteousness 18:08 He shall judge the poor, 18:10 and decide with equity for the meek of the earth, 18:13 He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, 18:16 with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked." 18:20 The Messiah is portrayed as bringing righteousness, 18:23 justice, and equity. 18:25 And we know that Jesus fulfilled that, 18:27 I think of John 12:31-32. 18:30 What's it say? 18:31 Now is the judgment of this earth, 18:33 now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 18:37 And I," Jesus speaking of Himself, 18:39 "if I am lifted up 18:41 from the earth would draw all peoples to Myself. 18:45 Jesus' death brought justice back to the world, 18:49 by casting out Satan who had usurped Jesus' position 18:53 as "ruler of this earth." 18:57 Characteristic number three, he the servant, 19:00 this is the Messiah, brings peace. 19:03 He does not fight back. 19:04 Let's look at verse 2, Isaiah 42:2, 19:07 "He will not cry out, " this is a servant, 19:09 referring to Jesus, "nor raise His voice, 19:13 nor cause His voice to be heard in the street." 19:17 Isaiah 53, that powerful passage, verse 7, 19:20 "He was oppressed and He was afflicted, 19:23 yet He opened not His mouth, 19:25 He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, 19:27 and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, 19:29 He opened not His mouth." 19:32 We know Jesus fulfilled that. 19:34 Matthew 27:13-14, "Pilate said to Him, 19:37 'Don't You hear the testimony 19:39 that they're bringing against You?'" 19:40 But Jesus, He didn't make any reply, 19:43 not even to a single charge 19:45 to the great amazement of the governor. 19:48 Characteristic number four, He saves us from sin, 19:52 while strengthening our light and witness for Him. 19:56 I think this is my favorite characteristic. 19:58 Let's read verses 3 and 4. 20:00 A bruised reed, we're back to Isaiah 42. 20:03 I'm sorry, Isaiah 42:3-4, 20:08 "A bruised reed He will not break, 20:11 and smoking flax He will not quench, 20:15 He will bring forth justice for truth. 20:18 He will not fail nor be discouraged, 20:20 till He has established justice in the earth, 20:22 and the coastlands shall wait for His law." 20:25 Now, I always used to think, Pastor Johnny, 20:27 that this was a parallel metaphor. 20:29 Another word saying is, if you're bruised and breaking, 20:32 he's not going to break you. 20:34 And if you're smoking and about ready to go out, 20:36 that's what I thought it meant. 20:39 But if you look at the original Hebrew, 20:40 it's actually a non parallel metaphor. 20:44 The bruised reed literally means 20:45 bruised to crush. 20:47 The bruised reed has suffered an injury. 20:49 Would you say that's true? 20:51 It has been bruised, 20:53 but it still might be repairable. 20:55 It's not completely crushed yet. 20:58 The word for smoking, 20:59 for the smoking flax means something that's dim. 21:02 That's dull or faint. 21:05 You know, in Old Testament times, 21:07 they would use flax as a wick in an old fashioned oil lamp. 21:11 So what we're looking at is an old fashioned oil lamp 21:14 that's partially lit, and it's smoking. 21:18 It's not fully burning yet. 21:21 So in the reed metaphor, 21:23 the bruised reed has begun a process which, 21:25 if it continues, will result in destruction. 21:29 But by contrast, the flax, 21:31 the smoking flax has begun a process which if continued, 21:35 results in a bright flame, they have two opposite effects. 21:40 One is broken, if it continues, 21:43 the other one goes to a bright flame. 21:46 So the reed metaphor may refer to the beginning of evil 21:49 which may still be averted. 21:51 But the flax metaphor may refer to the beginning of good 21:55 which may still be accomplished. 21:57 Now, what in the world does this have to do with a servant? 22:01 It said in verse 4, "He will not fail." 22:04 That's the same root word for the smoking of the flax. 22:08 "He will not fail or be discouraged." 22:11 That's the same root word as the bruised for the reed. 22:15 So Jesus, the servant of the Lord, 22:17 is not to break the bruised reed, 22:20 and He's not to quench the smoking flax. 22:23 What does that mean? 22:25 He was bruised from my sin. 22:27 Isaiah 53, 22:29 "So I, the bruised reed 22:31 do not become destroyed by my sin." 22:35 None of us are so sinful, 22:37 that He cannot heal and restore. 22:40 He became the light of the world. 22:42 We're referencing the smoking flax now. 22:44 He became the light of the world. 22:46 So I, the smoking flax can turn up the light 22:50 and shine brightly for Him. 22:53 He's fitted for His work 22:54 because He has no share in the evils 22:56 which He would heal, 22:57 and none of the weaknesses which He would strengthen. 23:00 There are no bruises in this reed, 23:02 which is Jesus Christ because He's without sin. 23:05 And there is no smokiness and no dimness in His light 23:09 because He is the light of the world. 23:12 Nothing will cause Him to fail or be discouraged 23:15 until His work is complete. 23:17 Moving on characteristic number five, 23:19 He is called in righteousness. 23:22 Verse 6, Isaiah 42:6, 23:25 "I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, 23:29 and will hold Your hand." 23:31 God, our Creator, called this servant, 23:34 that's Jesus the Messiah in righteousness. 23:38 He was the perfect substitute, sacrifice and savior. 23:42 Characteristic number six, 23:44 He became a covenant to the people 23:46 and a light to the Gentiles. 23:49 Isaiah 42:6, 23:51 "I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, 23:55 as a light to the Gentiles." 23:57 It reminds me of Daniel 9:27, "He confirm, He the Messiah, 24:02 confirm the covenant with many for one week." 24:06 And then in the midst of the week He's cut off. 24:08 It also reminds me of Hebrews 9:15, 24:10 "For this reason He, Jesus, 24:12 is the Mediator of the new covenant, 24:15 by means of death, for the redemption 24:17 of the transgressions under the first covenant." 24:19 He is the mediator of the new covenant. 24:21 Finally, characteristic number seven, 24:23 He set people free, physically and spiritually. 24:28 Isaiah 42:7, His role is to open the blind eyes, 24:33 to bring out prisoners from the prison, 24:35 from those who sit in darkness from the prison house. 24:39 He came to heal people not just from physical issues, 24:42 but from spiritual issues and to set us free. 24:45 So this servant, the Messiah, 24:47 introduced here in Isaiah 42 24:50 was anointed by the Holy Spirit and came to set you and I free. 24:55 Thank you so much, Jill. Thank you so much. 24:56 And as you know, if you've been following us, 24:59 we're just getting started. 25:00 And what a wonderful start, praise the Lord for that. 25:02 But don't go away, we have three more days, 25:04 we'll be right back. 25:10 Ever wish you could watch a 3ABN 25:12 Sabbath School Panel again, 25:14 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter? 25:17 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com. 25:22 A clean design makes it easy 25:24 to find the program you're looking for. 25:26 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:30 so you can follow along. 25:31 Sharing is easy. 25:33 Just click share and choose your favorite social media. 25:36 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 25:41 Welcome back to our Sabbath School Panel. 25:43 I'm going to go ahead and port it over to Ryan. 25:46 He's going to be covering Tuesday, Persian Messiah. 25:50 I can't wait to hear about this from you. 25:53 All right. All right. 25:54 That's right, lesson number nine, 25:56 "Persian Messiah." 25:57 And, you know, of course, we're talking about Cyrus 26:00 the Great as we're talking about 26:01 the king of the Medes and the Persians. 26:04 And, you know, this is one of those lessons 26:07 that somebody may say, you know, 26:08 it's not really that important that we talk about Cyrus, 26:10 but Cyrus is mentioned in more than one book of the Bible. 26:13 He plays a major role 26:15 in the deliverance of the children of Israel 26:17 coming out of that seven years of Babylonian captivity. 26:21 But we're going to be focusing in on who was Cyrus, 26:24 what did he do, what is the significance 26:26 of God choosing this man? 26:28 And what does it mean? 26:29 What does lesson nine mean by Persian Messiah? 26:32 Is there only one Messiah? Okay. 26:35 So I want to start reading in Isaiah 44:26, 26:39 we're going to read the last couple of verses 26:41 of Isaiah Chapter 44. 26:43 And then we're going to bleed that over into Isaiah 45:1-6. 26:48 Of course, these verses are referring to God 26:51 calling Cyrus the king of the Medes and the Persians. 26:55 So Isaiah Chapter 44, beginning with verse 26. 26:59 Notice what the Bible says, 27:01 "Who confirms the word of His servant, 27:05 and performs the counsel of His messengers, 27:08 who says to Jerusalem, 'You shall be inhabited, 27:12 ' to the cities of Judah, 'You shall be built, 27:15 ' and I will raise up her waste places, 27:19 and who says to the deep, 'Be dry! 27:23 And I will dry up your rivers.' " 27:26 And here come Cyrus in, "Who says of Cyrus, 27:30 'He is My shepherd, 27:32 and he shall perform all My pleasure, 27:35 saying to Jerusalem, 'You shall be built,' 27:38 and to the temple, 27:39 'Your foundation shall be laid.' " 27:42 Now we go on to 45:1, 27:45 "Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, 27:50 whose right hand I have held, 27:52 to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings, 27:57 to open before him the double doors, 28:01 so that the gates will not be shut: 28:04 'I will go before you and make the crooked places straight, 28:09 I will break in pieces the gates of bronze 28:12 and cut the bars of iron. 28:15 I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches 28:19 of secret places, 28:21 that you may know that I, the Lord, 28:24 Who call you by your name, am the God of Israel. 28:30 For Jacob My servant's sake, and Israel My elect, 28:34 I have even called you by your name, I have named you, 28:38 though you have not known Me. 28:41 I am the Lord, and there is no other.' " 28:45 And there cannot be a more true statement. 28:47 Because there's no other gods out there, false gods, 28:51 we know them to be false gods, manmade gods, 28:53 the devil has created that has the intelligence 28:58 and the power to be able to name someone 29:02 many, many, many years before they're even born. 29:05 And this is what's powerful about when you consider 29:08 the Ministry of Isaiah because, of course, 29:10 Isaiah is writing this, 29:12 and Isaiah's ministry lasted about 60 years. 29:16 And so that would have been between, 29:18 you know, 745 BC to about 685 BC. 29:22 But it wasn't until 146 years later. 29:26 So about a century and a half later 29:28 that God would raise up Cyrus, 29:30 this Cyrus that he's speaking of, to call him to do 29:33 what it is that he's speaking of in this chapter. 29:35 So this is powerful, just to recognize the fact that, 29:38 you know, God mentions more than once in this passage 29:40 that we just read, you know, I've called you by your name. 29:42 Who is it that calls you by your name? 29:43 I called, I called you by your name 29:46 because I am the God 29:48 who, and there is no other like me, right? 29:50 And so God is establishing the validity of the fact 29:53 that you can trust in His Word 29:54 and we'll come back to that point in just a moment. 29:57 But I want to just kind of go back 29:58 and highlight a few things here, 30:00 to emphasize the fact that this is the Cyrus 30:02 that God chose and why He chose him 30:04 and to validify through the Scripture 30:10 and history as we will see that Cyrus would come 30:13 and he would do this mighty work 30:14 just as the Lord had said that he would do. 30:16 So let's go back to Isaiah Chapter 45. 30:18 We're gonna start with verse 1 here. 30:20 Isaiah 45:1, it says, 30:22 "Thus says the Lord to his anointed..." 30:24 Now we'll come back to that anointed in just a moment, 30:27 because that's where that Messiah word comes in. 30:30 It says, "To Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, 30:34 to subdue nations before him 30:36 and to lose the armor of kings." 30:38 Now, we have to keep in mind, 30:40 again give credit where credit is due, 30:42 not necessarily to the man but to the God who led the man 30:45 and who opened the door for Cyrus 30:47 to be able to do what he done. 30:48 We have to keep in mind there of those four major empires 30:51 that are mentioned there in Daniel Chapter 2, 30:53 the worldly empires, you have Babylon, 30:56 Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. 30:58 You know, we know that Rome obviously went on to reign 31:01 for the longest period of time. 31:02 But, you know, you have to keep in mind, 31:05 Cyrus would go on during his time 31:07 that God would raise him up to do this mighty work 31:10 of redemption for the children of Israel. 31:13 Cyrus would go on to defeat nations like the Medes. 31:16 And, of course, he would create an alliance with the Medes, 31:17 but he overcome the Medes, Lydia, and most of Asia Minor, 31:21 Babylon, Syria, all of the kingdoms of Palestine, 31:25 and even parts of the Iranian Peninsula, 31:28 and even parts of India. 31:29 This guy had a very powerful, powerful empire. 31:33 And it was all because the Lord had called him 31:35 and the Lord had set it in place, 31:36 that this was going to be the man 31:38 that he was going to raise up 31:39 to do this redemptive work for Israel 31:41 and getting them out of Babylon, 31:43 out of that oppressive time. 31:45 And so, you just have to mention that 31:47 because that's a powerful point. 31:49 Also Isaiah 45:1, it goes on to say, 31:52 "To open before him the double doors, 31:56 so that the gates will not be shut." 31:58 Now I like to reference this because it's powerful. 32:00 Not only did God say, look, this is my man, Cyrus, 32:03 this is the guy that I'm calling. 32:04 Cyrus is my man. 32:06 I'm calling him 150 years before he even shows up 32:08 on the scene. 32:10 But not only did he say 32:11 his name and identify who it is, 32:12 He's going to use when He told him 32:14 exactly how He's going to do it. 32:15 That's right. 32:17 It's powerful when you consider the story of what transpired 32:19 on and history actually gives us a date, 32:21 October 13, 539 BC, 32:24 and you can read it in Daniel Chapter 5. 32:26 You've read the story of the handwriting on the wall, 32:29 when God delivers the message through Daniel 32:31 the prophet to the kingdom of Babylon. 32:34 Belshazzar is having a horrible apostate feast 32:37 where he's just shaking his fist 32:38 in the face of the Lord. 32:40 And the Lord says, "YOU know what, I had enough. 32:41 This very night, you will be found wanted, 32:43 you have been weighed in the balances, 32:45 you have been called out and right now you don't know, 32:47 but right outside these walls, these powerful massive walls, 32:51 I have called a man by the name Cyrus, 32:53 the Medes and the Persians are at your gate, 32:55 and not only this, 32:56 but it's how it happened history records, 32:59 then of course, they diverted the River Euphrates. 33:01 So it actually goes back to what we read 33:03 in the latter verses of Isaiah 44, 33:05 where it talks about who says the deep be dry, 33:08 and I'll dry up your rivers. 33:10 That's exactly what He did to the River Euphrates. 33:13 They ran right through Babylon. 33:14 Using Cyrus' army, 33:16 they diverted the River Euphrates, 33:18 and they went right through those two gates 33:20 that were underneath the wall, 33:21 so that they could go in and take Babylon that night. 33:24 Why is that important to emphasize? 33:26 Because God said it, and it happened. 33:28 That's right. Amen. 33:29 Hundred and fifty years before it happened, 33:32 God had already declared it. 33:35 I think of also Isaiah 44:28. 33:37 Look up here in Isaiah 44:28. 33:40 It says, "Who says to Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, 33:42 he shall perform all My pleasure, 33:44 saying to Jerusalem, 'You shall be built,' 33:46 and to the temple, 33:48 'Your foundation shall be laid.'" 33:49 If you go back to Ezra Chapter 1. 33:52 Again, it was through Cyrus 33:54 coming out of that Babylonian captivity of 70 years, 33:57 God used Cyrus to tell the people look, 34:00 go home, build your temple. 34:02 In fact, he gave an official decree, 34:03 I release you, I let you go, go home. 34:06 And God has told me. 34:07 And you can read right there in Ezra 1, 34:09 God has told me to tell you to start building, 34:12 rebuilding your temple. 34:13 So again, prophecy is sure in declaring this. 34:16 With the closing moments I have, 34:18 I want to address this anointed. 34:20 Because the word here in the original Hebrew 34:22 is the word mashach, which means the anointed one, 34:25 it's where we get Messiah. 34:27 And so we have to make this clear, 34:29 he's not Messiah in the sense of Jesus as the Messiah. 34:33 Okay, Messiah, of course, being anointed one, 34:36 the chosen one, Jesus, of course, 34:38 was the ultimate number one Messiah, 34:41 that God would choose to deliver His people from sin. 34:44 So he would do some of the things 34:45 that the Messiah would do such as defeat God's enemies 34:48 and release His captive people, 34:51 but he would not be the same as the Davidic Messiah, 34:55 because he is not Jewish 34:56 and does not come from the line of David. 35:00 And it's powerful to even consider 35:02 all of this because history records 35:05 and confirms all of this. 35:06 You have the Bible, Pastor, you mentioned 35:07 in one of the previous lessons, we have the Bible, 35:09 the Bible is sure but even the secular pages of history 35:13 confirm every bit of this and what it is saying. 35:15 And I'm thinking hereof, there's actually something 35:17 called this Cyrus Cylinder, 35:19 you can find it over in a museum in London, 35:21 that actually confirms that on the night, 35:23 or in the year that he took Babylon that is Cyrus, 35:25 he created a cylinder. 35:27 He wrote all of this stuff down, 35:28 and it's confirmed that indeed God called this man. 35:31 He did the work that God called him to do. 35:33 And you know what? 35:35 The lesson we can learn from this 35:36 is we can trust in God. 35:38 We can trust in His Word. 35:39 When God speaks, things happen, and praise the Lord 35:42 for His work and for His prophets. 35:43 Amen. Amen and Amen. 35:46 You know, it's very interesting that the fact that 35:50 the Bible accurately presents 35:53 what will happen before it happens 35:55 disturbs some people. 35:57 This is why we take the time for Wednesday's lesson 36:00 to bring about some things that have happened among people 36:05 that are studying the Book of Isaiah. 36:07 The fact that it is so accurate that the Lord saw it before, 36:12 named Cyrus by name, 36:13 and exactly what God said will happen happened. 36:17 It's disturbing to people, 36:18 they don't know what to do with it. 36:19 So they come up with theories to try to explain away 36:24 what the Bible says. 36:26 God is powerful. 36:28 He sees the end from the beginning. 36:32 And because He does this, people began to come up 36:35 with theories like, oh, it must have been somebody 36:38 that was living during the time of Cyrus 36:40 that wrote Isaiah Chapter 42 to Chapter 66. 36:45 It had to be somebody else because 36:46 it is just too accurate. 36:49 And people have come up with ideas. 36:52 And there are scholars 36:54 even today that are saying, well, 36:57 maybe there's, there are three divisions, 36:59 some are even calling three divisions, 37:00 which I'll mention in a moment. 37:03 But consider, people say that there's a second Isaiah 37:10 that wrote Chapter 40 through Chapter 66. 37:14 But there is no historical records, 37:16 no biblical records, 37:18 no historical records that identifies a second Isaiah. 37:22 This is the... 37:24 There's only one Isaiah in the Bible. 37:26 And that is something that we're going to read 37:28 in a moment. 37:31 I want to point out that, interestingly enough, 37:34 when they discovered the Dead Sea Scrolls, 37:38 one of the better preserved scrolls 37:41 was the scroll of Isaiah. 37:43 And there is no division 37:46 from Chapter 39 through Chapter 40. 37:49 And it just continues. 37:51 And so their devil has tried to destroy 37:55 the credibility of the Bible, and the prophecies of the Bible 38:00 so that people will lose faith and hope in the Bible. 38:03 I want to tell you that what God says happen. 38:06 There are individuals that say, "Well, no, 38:08 there had to be three different times." 38:11 From Isaiah Chapter 1 to 39, they say, "Well, 38:14 this is the Proto-Isaiah, 38:16 containing the words of the original Isaiah. 38:18 Chapter 42 to 45, this is the Deutero-Isaiah, 38:21 the work of an anonymous exilic author. 38:24 Then there's somebody comes along, said, 38:26 "Well, Chapter 56 through 66 is the Trito-Isaiah, 38:31 which is they consider it an anthology 38:33 of about 12 passages. 38:35 All of this is to divert attention 38:38 from the reliability of what the Bible says, 38:42 focus on the message of Isaiah, and you will be blessed. 38:47 Now notice how the Book of Isaiah begins. 38:49 Isaiah 1:1 says, 38:52 "The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem 38:56 that Isaiah the son of Amoz 38:58 saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, 39:02 and Hezekiah, kings of Judah." 39:04 This is what the Bible says, we can trust in that. 39:08 And so, now let's go over to the New Testament, 39:11 so that we can get a testimony from Peter, 39:14 2 Peter 1:19-21 helps us to understand 39:21 that we can trust in the Holy Scriptures. 39:24 And so, we have this, and so, 39:26 we have the prophetic word confirmed. 39:29 I like the way the King James says, 39:30 "We have a more sure word of prophecy, 39:34 which you do well to heed as a light that shines 39:37 in a dark place, until the day dawns, 39:40 and the morning star rises in your hearts: 39:43 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture 39:47 is of any private interpretation. 39:50 For prophecy never came by the will of man: 39:54 but holy men of God spoke 39:58 as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." 40:01 The Book of Isaiah Chapter 1 through Chapter 66 40:04 is the work of the Holy Spirit of God. 40:08 We can trust in the Book of Isaiah 40:10 as a book divinely inspired. 40:14 Now, I want to also bring about 40:17 this interesting thing that Jesus says, 40:19 why are these prophecies there? Why are they? 40:22 Why are they there in Isaiah? 40:23 Why are they there in the other books of the Bible, 40:26 in Daniel and Revelation? 40:27 Why are they there? 40:29 The same thing Jesus said in John 14:28-29, 40:33 concerning things that would happen to him, 40:35 the principle is there. 40:37 Notice what Jesus said, "You have heard Me say to you, 40:41 'I am going away and coming back to you.' 40:45 If you loved Me, you would rejoice 40:47 because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' 40:49 for My Father is greater than I." 40:51 And now notice what Jesus says, 40:53 "And now I have told you before it comes, 40:57 that when it does come to pass, you may believe." 41:02 So I say to you the Bible prophecies are there, 41:06 so that when God's children see the prophecies 41:09 and see the fulfillment of the prophecies, 41:12 their faith can be increased, 41:14 and believed that the things that have not yet come to pass 41:17 will come to pass. 41:20 And this is also brought out in Isaiah. 41:22 So let's go to Isaiah Chapter 42. 41:24 And we're going to go to verses 8 and 9. 41:27 Isaiah 42:8-9. 41:30 Notice what the Bible says, "I am the Lord, " 41:34 actually it says Jehovah, 41:36 "I am the Lord, that is My name, 41:38 and My glory I will not give to another, 41:41 nor My praise to carved images. 41:45 Behold, the former things have come to pass, 41:49 and new things I declare, 41:51 before they spring forth I tell you of them.' " 41:55 So, friends, brothers and sisters, 41:58 you can trust the prophecies. 42:00 When you look at Revelation, 42:02 and it talks about that there say, 42:04 a mark of the beast coming, 42:06 the mark of the beast is coming and will be here soon. 42:10 When you look at the prophecies of Revelation, 42:12 Daniel and Revelation, 42:13 that things that have not yet come to pass will come to pass. 42:17 You can trust in God's Word. 42:19 Now, the basic message of Isaiah 42:22 is consistent throughout the whole book. 42:25 Trust God with all of your heart, 42:27 including His messianic deliverer. 42:30 This is what the lesson brings out, 42:31 rather than other powers and people that come up 42:33 with theories to explain away what the Bible says. 42:37 Trust in the power. 42:38 Yes, you can read the Book of Isaiah 42:40 and you will notice there seems to be a shift in focus 42:44 when you get to Chapter 39 and enter into Chapter 40 42:47 and onward, because Chapter 1 through 39 emphasize judgment, 42:52 because of the sin of the people of Israel. 42:55 And then Isaiah 42 through 66 emphasize 42:58 the consolation that you can expect to come from the Lord. 43:03 But if you read from Isaiah Chapter 1, 43:06 you will notice that there are messages chapter after chapter 43:10 where God is comforting His people, 43:13 helping His people to understand 43:15 that His mercy is great. 43:17 And notice, I want to point out a few, 43:19 a few places where this is brought out. 43:23 There are at least five places where God is telling you, 43:27 this is the judgment I am bringing out 43:29 because of your sin. 43:31 But then it says while He's sending out the judgment, 43:33 the punishment, His hand is stretched out still. 43:36 Notice, I will go to Isaiah 5:24-25, 43:40 "Therefore, 43:42 as the fire devours the stubble, 43:45 and the flame consumes the chaff, 43:47 so their root will be as rottenness, 43:50 and their blossom will ascend like dust, 43:53 because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, 43:57 and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel." 44:00 Notice, verse 25, 44:02 "Therefore the anger of the Lord is aroused 44:05 against His people, He has stretched out His hand 44:07 against them and stricken them, and the hills trembled. 44:12 Their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets." 44:17 Notice, "For all this His anger is not turned away, 44:21 but His hand is stretched out still." 44:25 His hand of mercies stretched out still. 44:28 Notice Isaiah 9:12, 44:31 "The Syrians before and the Philistines behind, 44:35 and they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. 44:39 For all this His anger is not turned away, 44:43 but His hand is stretched out still." 44:46 So you see, while God is sending out this judgment, 44:49 these are judgment or punishments, 44:51 so that they will understand that they need to repent. 44:55 And if they repent, 44:56 God promises to have mercy upon them. 44:59 You can read Isaiah 9:17, Isaiah 9:21, Isaiah 10:4, 45:04 and you will see again God speaking of the judgment 45:07 that they will have to go through. 45:09 And again it says, 45:10 "For all this His anger is not turned away, 45:12 but His hand is stretched out still." 45:15 So why are these things there? 45:18 These things were written for our admonition. 45:22 You can learn by reading the Book of Isaiah, 45:23 how God deals with His people, how He is merciful, 45:27 and brings them hope. 45:29 There's hope for us in the future. 45:31 So I encourage you to take heed to the words of Isaiah. 45:35 The Book of Isaiah is delightful. 45:37 You can see a God of love and a God of mercy. 45:40 And I encourage you to read it, 45:42 asking the Lord to help you understand it. 45:45 Amen and amen. 45:47 Thank you so much, my brother, get this off. 45:50 Okay, I'm excited. 45:52 I have Thursday's lesson, 45:54 "A Feeling and Suffering Servant." 45:59 And this is the second, 46:01 Jill read the first of the four servant songs 46:04 that are in Isaiah, this is the second one, 46:07 and it tells of the Messiah's mission 46:12 and His spiritual success. 46:14 You know, we're going to see 46:16 as we're reading through verses 1 through 7, 46:18 it is clear that this is speaking of an individual 46:22 that is distinct from this nation servant 46:26 as John was talking about earlier. 46:28 So this servant is none other than the Lord Jesus. 46:33 Isaiah 49:1, "Listen, O coastlands, to Me, 46:37 and take heed, you peoples from afar! 46:40 The Lord has called Me from the womb, 46:43 from the matrix of My mother 46:46 He has made mention of My name." 46:50 The Messiah servant was to be 46:54 a human being born of a virgin woman. 46:58 And He was chosen, the Bible tells us 47:01 from the foundation of the world. 47:03 Before the foundations of the world, 47:05 He was the Lamb slain 47:08 from the foundation of the world 47:09 is what Revelation 13:8 says. 47:14 In the New Testament, we see 47:17 that the angel told Joseph and Mary, 47:20 that His name was to be Jesus. 47:24 So He was named while in the womb. 47:27 Verse 2. 47:29 And the reason He was supposed to be named Jesus 47:31 is because He would save the people 47:33 from their sins, 47:35 not in their sins, from their sins. 47:37 Verse 2, Isaiah 49:2, 47:41 "He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, 47:45 in the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me, 47:49 and made Me a polished shaft, 47:53 in His quiver He has hidden Me." 47:57 I love this. 47:58 He has given power to this servant, 48:02 to speak the words of a life 48:05 that would pierce hardened hearts 48:08 with a good news of the gospel that would wage war 48:12 against the chaos in this world and conquer his enemies. 48:16 I think of Him in Revelation 48:19 when it's first introducing Him in Revelation, 48:22 that He had this two edged sword, 48:24 and then also in Revelation 19, 48:27 where it talks about he has a mouth 48:30 and it's like a two edged sword. 48:32 And, you know, it is precious to me that when He returns, 48:39 it's His words that are really gonna be the judge. 48:43 Now, when it says that He has hidden me, what did that say? 48:48 Let me see. He has hidden me. 48:51 That's, we know that the Bible says, 48:54 until the fullness of time, 48:56 and when it was the fullness of time, 48:58 this is the time prophecy from Daniel. 49:02 So now let's look at Isaiah 49:3, 49:05 "He said to me, 'You are My servant, 49:07 O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.' " 49:11 Well, wait a minute, is this the Messiah 49:13 or is this the nation Israel? 49:15 Why would he call the servant Israel 49:19 if he's referring to the Messiah? 49:21 Well, there's plenty of overlap 49:23 between this and the one in Isaiah 42. 49:27 We've already identified him as the Messiah. 49:32 But the interesting thing is, in Exodus 4:22, 49:37 God said, 49:39 when He's sending Moses, he said, "Go to your Pharaoh. 49:43 Thus says Lord, 49:45 Israel is My Son, my firstborn." 49:50 Both the word son and firstborn are covenant terms. 49:57 And so then Jesus... 50:00 became the covenant Son of God. 50:04 God came down, became a man 50:06 and became the covenant Son of God. 50:11 And He embodies all that Israel 50:15 was meant to be as God's firstborn son. 50:20 So verse 4, this is now the servant speaking, 50:25 this is interesting. 50:27 "Then I said, 'I have labored in vain, 50:29 I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain, 50:32 yet surely my just reward is with the Lord, 50:36 and my work with my God.' " 50:38 You know, Jesus met with rejection 50:43 by national Israel, 50:45 but He still had a strong assurance 50:49 that His work was going to be rewarded with success. 50:53 And I love this quote, it's in our quarterly. 50:56 It's from the book, a prophecy of Isaiah by J. Alec Motyer. 51:02 And it says, "Isaiah foresaw a servant 51:05 with the real human nature, tested like we are, 51:09 proving himself to be the author and perfecter 51:12 of the way of faith, 51:13 a real personal faith that can still say, My God, 51:20 when nothing any longer seems worthwhile." 51:25 So Jesus was made in all ways like we are, 51:29 it was, it's about the truth. 51:31 Isaiah 49:5, continuing on in this servant song. 51:37 It says, "Now says the Lord, 51:40 who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, 51:43 to bring Jacob back to Him." 51:46 Now, that is referring to the nation of Israel. 51:49 "So that Israel is gathered to Him, 51:54 for I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, 51:56 My God shall be My strength.' " 51:59 The servant, 52:01 this individual servant is the agent 52:04 of national Israel's restoration. 52:07 So there's no question here. 52:10 And you know, the restoration of the nation of Israel 52:13 was the first priority. 52:16 Remember, when Jesus came, 52:18 that was the first priority of His mission. 52:20 He said, I've come for the children of God, 52:23 but wasn't limited to the tribes of Jacob. 52:27 Look what he says in verse 6, "Indeed He says, 52:31 'It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant 52:36 to raise up the tribes of Jacob, 52:38 and to restore the preserved ones of Israel, 52:42 I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, 52:47 that You should be My servant to the ends of the earth.' " 52:51 Hallelujah! 52:52 You go on in verses 5, I mean here in verses 5 and 6. 52:56 We see He is a single individual 52:58 that gathers Israel back. 53:00 But He is God in the person of Jesus Christ, 53:04 and He wants all men to be saved. 53:06 He came not merely as a savior for the nation of Israel, 53:12 that would be too small a thing. 53:14 God ordained that all would come, 53:18 all would come to know Him. 53:21 This is fulfilling, you know, actually, ah, 53:24 I think I'm running out of time. 53:26 But when you think about this, God's covenant, 53:29 we see throughout the Bible, 53:32 a progressive unveiling of God's covenant, 53:36 it's introduced in Genesis 3:15. 53:39 Then God makes this covenant with Abraham. 53:44 And then He does it with Jacob, or Isaac and Jacob, 53:49 and it just keeps going on. 53:51 But God intends for all to be blessed. 53:58 With justification by faith, Abraham believed God 54:02 it was credited to him as righteousness. 54:05 Our righteousness is nothing but filthy rags before Him, 54:08 but He credits us with Christ's righteousness. 54:11 Verse 7, Isaiah 49, "Thus says the Lord, 54:14 the Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One, 54:17 to Him whom man despises." 54:20 He was despised and abhorred. 54:22 They treated him with humiliating treatment, 54:26 Jesus Christ. 54:28 "To the Servant of rulers: 'Kings shall see and arise, 54:32 princes also shall worship, 54:34 because of the Lord who is faithful, 54:36 the Holy One of Israel, He has chosen You.' " 54:40 So there will be a reversal. 54:42 Every knee will bow before him. 54:45 And verse 8, "Thus says the Lord" Isaiah 49:8, 54:50 "In an acceptable time I have heard You, 54:52 and in the day of salvation I have helped You, 54:55 I will preserve You and give You as a covenant 54:58 to the people, to restore the earth, 55:02 to cause them to inherit 55:05 the desolate heritages. 55:09 Jesus is the everlasting covenant. 55:11 Hebrews 13:20 talks about His blood 55:15 is the blood of the everlasting covenant. 55:18 So He is God's surety of God's promises to us 55:25 and He is from us to God, 55:27 the surety that we'll walk in obedience. 55:29 Amen. 55:31 Well, thank you, Shelley. 55:32 Thank you, Johnny. 55:34 Ryan and Jill, I'm gonna give each of you a chance 55:35 to summarize the day you covered 55:37 before we invite our audience to join us. 55:41 So I had Monday's lesson "Unnamed Individual Servant, " 55:44 which would be the first of the servant songs 55:47 there in Isaiah. 55:48 And to me what's so powerful as we study, 55:51 we see the Messiah 55:53 through the gospel prophet Isaiah there. 55:55 But what's so important is that we make a choice 55:58 to make Him Lord and Savior of our live. 56:01 We can study it and we can know it, 56:02 but I just invite you right now to make a choice 56:05 and ask this servant Messiah into your heart and life. 56:10 Amen. Ryan? 56:12 God chose Cyrus 56:14 as His anointed messiah for that time. 56:19 What I want to glean from that 56:20 and what I want to appeal to you today is, 56:22 you know, are you allowing Jesus, 56:24 the true Anointed Messiah 56:26 to anoint you with the oil of the Holy Spirit. 56:27 That's what I want today. 56:29 I want to be led and guided by the Lord. 56:30 We've been chosen to live in this time, 56:33 not just by coincidence, but God has chosen us, 56:36 and He wants to anoint us with His Holy Spirit. 56:38 So pray that the Lord will anoint you 56:40 with the leading, guiding power of His Spirit. 56:42 Amen. Amen. 56:45 Well, in... 56:47 Okay, in 2 Chronicles Chapter 20, 56:51 I'm just going to read the last part. 56:53 "Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established, 56:56 believe His prophets, and you shall prosper." 57:00 I encourage you to trust in God's Word. 57:02 It is a guide unto our feet, unto the end of time. 57:06 Thank you. 57:08 We look at Jesus' ministry, 57:09 He had plenty of reasons to be discouraged. 57:12 You know, remember, 57:14 He was perfectly human and He walked in humanity. 57:17 I mean, He was perfectly God, 57:19 but He walked in this human flesh, 57:22 but He stayed faithful. 57:24 And here's what I just want to remind you of 57:26 what Jesus knew is that 57:28 when God's people get in desperate situation, 57:30 God delivers them. Amen. 57:32 Amen. Thank you, everyone. 57:34 We've been talking about "To Serve and to Save" 57:36 this quarter and actually this week, 57:38 and we thank you for taking the time to tune into us. 57:41 I'll leave you with these words in Revelation 22:3, 57:45 "And there shall be no more curse, 57:48 but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, 57:52 and His servants shall serve Him." 57:55 I pray that you are desiring to be His servant here, 57:58 so you can be a servant there. 57:59 Join us for the next lesson number 10 entitled 58:02 "Do the Unthinkable." 58:04 God bless you. Amen. |
Revised 2021-02-25