Meditation

08/25/2020

“This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem: In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Many peoples will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of he Lord, to the house of he God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.’ The law will go out from Zion, the word of he Lord from Jerusalem. He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.” (Isaiah 2:1-4)

The prophetic vision of a future time when Jerusalem and it Temple would be central, the place to which the peoples of the earth come to learn the ways of God. When the word of the Lord gets into the fabric of he nations, the implements of war are turned into the instruments of peace.

Some look for a literal fulfillment in a future millennial period with Jerusalem made the political and religious center of he world; some believe Zion refers to a literal kingdom but leave its location open; others see a poetic expectation of the messianic age when the Prince of peace makes harmony possible between persons and nations.

PRAYER FOR THE DAY:

Precious Abba, this lesson from Isaiah is one of hope, that a day was coming, whereby we would turn our weapons of war in tools of peace. Abba, never lets us lose hope that this will come into fruition, that one day we will surely move into the direction of peace, lasting peace, and that we come to the day where we can live together in this world with all people. Today, we pray in Jesus’ precious Name, that today we dream of peace, but tomorrow we will live out that dream. Amen

THOUGHT OF THE DAY:

“If you want to cast a big shadow—-stand in God’s light!”

KNOWING GOD:

“As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostate, ‘Son of man,’ he said to me, ‘understand that the vision concerns the time of he end.’ While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet. He said: ‘I am going to tell you what will happen late in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns the appointed time of the end. The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future.’” (Daniel 8:17-19, 26)

Prophecy often had an immediate (near history) and a distant fulfillment, thus applying to the situation the prophet faced and also to a future time.

The multiple fulfillment theory is one way of explaining how historical events can anticipate eschatological (end times) ones. The time of “the end” will be a “time of wrath.” It was so in the immediate history of the time (verses 20-22); it will be so in the ultimate level of fulfillment, called in verse 26 “the distant future.”

I AM:

“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.” (1^st Timothy 4:1-3)

The last days preceding the return of Christ and the judgment of the wicked are to be marked by signs. Among these are an abandonment of he faith or departure from revealed truth; the influence of deceiving and demonic spirits; the presence of false teachers who in hypocrisy and untruth forbid marriage and seek to impose food restrictions. Beloved, false teachers trouble the church with false rules. God’s rules are good for us and bring joy and thanksgiving into our lives. A key to determining if an action is right is its ability to make us praise and thank God.

Second Thought of the Day:

“After he said this, he went on to tell t hem, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.’ His disciples replied, ‘Lord, if he sleeps he will get better.’ Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.” (John 11:11-13)

Although the physical death of Lazarus was clearly validated, Jesus spoke of it as sleep, which was not uncommon for Him. For believers, death is no more sinister than sleep.

It is in fact true rest. For the power of God, resurrection from the dead is no more difficult than rousing persons from sleep.