MORE IN ISAIAH

Today is Sunday!!  Yeah!  I love Sundays!!  I'm so looking forward to seeing what God has in store for us at Church this morning.  I'm confident that God has some very good things for us to enjoy.  I know I will enjoy the fellowship with God's people and singing God's praises.  Today, I am in Isaiah again.  Since I am going ten chapters a day this year instead of the normal twenty I have done for years, it will take six days to get through Isaiah with sixty-six chapters.  Here are some of the special things I marked up this morning that spoke to my heart: 1) WHO SHALL DWELL ON HIGH?  Isaiah 33:16 says:  "He shall dwell on high:..."  Now this is taking about the person described in verse 15.  Isaiah 33:15  "He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;"  This sounds just like what David told us in Psalms 15. Psalms 15:1-5  "A Psalm of David. LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?  2  He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart.  3   He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.  4  In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD.  He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.  5   He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved."  You see, since the Bible is inspired, and written by God, then it only makes sense that God's men see things the same way over and over.  One truth is seen many times in Scripture, because truth endureth to all generations.  2) SEEK AND READ- Isaiah 34:16 says:  "Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read:"  We need to get a hold of God's Word, the KJV  Bible, and read it!  Let the words of the LORD dwell in you richly!.  Colossians 3:16  "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."  And realize that we are to study to show ourselves approved unto God.  Read it over and over and over again! 3) USING GOD AGAINST YOU- In Isaiah 36:10, Rab-shakeh, the general of the armies of Assyria, was speaking to the men of Israel and said:  "the LORD said unto me, God up against this land, and destroy it."  Here is an example of when people who do not know God use God against you!  Like:  "I don't think God wants you to be unhappy."  Now God is for marriage, but the world thinks that you should jump ship if you are unhappy in your marriage.  "God loves everyone, and we are all God's children."  This is used to back up a lifestyle like homosexuality that God is definitely against, but this is the reasoning that the world gives.  It is amazing how people who do not know God, want to use God against you by telling you how God would feel about things..... even though they do not know him!!  Wow!  How brazen, and yet we see this all around us.  We had better be people of the Book, lest we fall prey to what people "think" God "thinks", instead of what we KNOW God has said! 4) OUR GENERATION'S RESPONSE- Here came the judgment upon Hezekiah's kingdom when he showed all of his wealth to the King of Babylon:  Isaiah 39:6-7  "Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.  7  And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon."  Wow, God spoke of this judgment coming down upon the kingdom and upon the sons of Hezekiah.  Now, listen to his response:  Isaiah 39:8  "Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days." Good?  Good???  Your sons shall be slaves in Babylon and that is good???  You see Hezekiah thought it was good, because it wasn't going to happen in HIS day.  But, in his CHILDREN's day.  Now, friend, that is our generation's response to the national debt, and so many other problems we face today.  Let our children and grand children deal with it, but don't make it tough on me.  Don't touch my Social Security, but let my children suffer the effects of another great depression.  Wow!  How calloused have we become??  Let us face the issues of life so that our children might have a better life.  That's my vote! Well, I've got to go for now.  May God richly bless you my friend!  Enjoy this Sunday.  Pastor Mike Mutchler