Nobody likes discipline, but when it comes to discipline from the Lord it has eternal benefits. Israel is an example for all believers of His love and care.
Isaiah 48: Israel Refined for God's Glory
1 Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and who came from the waters of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD and confess the God of Israel, but not in truth or right.
2 For they call themselves after the holy city, and stay themselves on the God of Israel; the LORD of hosts is his name.
3 "The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.
4 Because I know that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead brass,
5 I declared them to you from of old, before they came to pass I announced them to you, lest you should say, 'My idol did them, my carved image and my metal image commanded them.'
6 "You have heard; now see all this; and will you not declare it? From this time forth I announce to you new things, hidden things that you have not known.
7 They are created now, not long ago; before today you have never heard of them, lest you should say, 'Behold, I knew them.'
8 You have never heard, you have never known, from of old your ear has not been opened. For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously, and that from before birth you were called a rebel.
9 "For my name's sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.
The LORD's Call to Israel
12 "Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I called! I am he; I am the first, and I am the last.
13 My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together.
14 "Assemble, all of you, and listen! Who among them has declared these things? The LORD loves him; he shall perform his purpose on Babylon, and his arm shall be against the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken and called him; I have brought him, and he will prosper in his way.
16 Draw near to me, hear this: from the beginning I have not spoken in secret, from the time it came to be I have been there." And now the Lord GOD has sent me, and his Spirit.
17 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go.
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
19 your offspring would have been like the sand, and your descendants like its grains; their name would never be cut off or destroyed from before me."
20 Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea, declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it, send it out to the end of the earth; say, "The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob!"
21 They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he made water flow for them from the rock; he split the rock and the water gushed out.
22 "There is no peace," says the LORD, "for the wicked."
Things to think about…
Israel and Judah were told what would come to pass regarding the Assyrians, the Babylonians and also the Persians, even naming the Persian leader Cyrus by name. The Lord says why he declared these things beforehand – b” The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.”, Isa 48:3. Why? The answer is found is vs 4& 5 “Because I know that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead brass,I declared them to you from of old, before they came to pass I announced them to you, lest you should say, 'My idol did them, my carved image and my metal image commanded them” God knows Israel are stiff necked and hard hearted. They certainly are. When I was in Israel in 2017 I can tell you they can be quite hard to the gospel and their spiritual arrogance and pride is so thick it can be felt. They followed after idols over 2300 years ago and they still do today. But God spoke what was going to happen in the future through the prophet Isiah, so they couldn’t say that it occurred through their idols, Isa 48:5-7. Some have even questioned the date of Isaiah’s prophecy for this very reason, that it is so accurate that it couldn’t have been written hundreds of years before the event. This of course is the point. The Lord is in complete control and He knows the beginning from the end.
God is not surprised by Israel’s response and rejection of him, Isa 48:8. We are all rebels against the Lord. But thankfully His mercy does not allow us to be cut off, vs 9 and for His own sake, not ours He makes sure His name will not be profaned and that He alone gets all the glory, vs 11. He then affirms the truth we have heard a few times from Isaiah already, that the Lord is the first and the last, vs 12. This is a comfort for all those who are in Christ. Even when things seem to be out of control. He says “My hand laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand forth together. "Assemble, all of you, and listen!”, vss13, 14. Sound advice. Even though Babylon will come he will also bring them down, vss 14. But none of this would have been necessary f they had simply obeyed the Lord from the beginning, vs 18. They would have been blessed and not suffered captivity, vs 19. It is always better to obey and be blessed, than to reject the Lord and be disciplined and suffer loss. If the Lord truly loves you there is no chance He will allow you to keep your sin. His ultimate desire is that you conform to His Son’s image. Sometimes that involves an unpleasant fire to burn away the impurities.
The Lord would again bring Israel back from Babylon after He had achieved all His purposes for them, Isa 48:20. He declares He will do this because of His previous testimony that He led them out of the wilderness after looking after them by making water flow out from a rock, vs 21. As Israel are reminded what happened to them at that time they would also remember that the previous generation in the wilderness did not enter the land of rest – Canaan because of their rebellion and unbelief. As such Isaiah finishes the chapter with the oft quoted passage "There is no peace," says the LORD, "for the wicked.", vs 22. The ultimate truth of this statement is realized in eternity where there is no peace for the wicked who are outside of Christ. This is why it is so important that that we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
Vision Point for cell groups
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
For Cell Groups.
Reading was from Isaiah 35 Title “The best of returns”
1. Israel is described in this chapter as a land that will blossom abundantly, vss 1, 2 and will be a place where there are streams in the desert and will be well watered, vss 6,7. Israel is a dry land at present. Discuss when and how is this abundance is going to occur?
2. Isaiah speaks of the “Way of Holiness”, Isa 35:8 and the unclean will not pass over it. What does Isiah mean here?
3. Isaiah speaks of a time when the ransomed of the Lord shall return, Isa 35:9, 10. The ancient Jews knew what return was by their return from slavery in Egypt. But this would be a different return. What return is meant here? See also Rom 11:26.
4. Pray for each other, our church and the prayer points.
Prayer Points
1. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
2. New families as they settle into church.
4. Church finances to meet our expenses and to put a roof over our café.
5. Our City and Country – Pray for revival over our city and the leadership of our country even through these challenging times.
6. Position:- Youth and Young Adults Coordinator. Recharge started back last week.
7. Sunday’s message “There’s a comforting thought” – Isa 40 – Jay.
Praise Points.
1. Praise the Lord for all the kids going to Sunday School. Thankyou Maddison.
2. More new folk joining CBC – Praise God.
3. First Café roof drawings have been completed.
3. Great start to Kids@church.
4. Unity, peace and grace at CBC.
5. Visitors over the holiday period.
Announcements
1. Members meeting Sunday 28th Feb after the morning service.
2. Seeking Youth and Young Adults Coordinator – 2 days per week.
3. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
