King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Saturday, July 31, 2021
Chapters: Isaiah 58-62
Message: The Lord is Thy Reward
Hello My Friend,
I have come to the conclusion, and have known this for years, but still not so good as executing it all the time, that spending time with God is the only way you go anywhere in this life He gave us. What I mean by that is, that one on one time you have with Him the first thing in the morning or before you go to bed. It is not the same a saying prayers throughout the day, we need to do more with God than just ask Him for the things we need or confess our sins. And by the way, He loves to spend time with us, in fact, He longs for it, and delights in it. And because He delights in it He has instituted something that we call fasting. And let me tell you, fasting that is done in the pursuit of our own glory will get us nowhere, but fasting for the LORD will get us everywhere. In fact, Jesus said this about fasting, [Matthew 6:16-18 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.]
[shall reward thee openly.] What is our reward for fasting for God? His glory shall be upon us. People worship, pray, and fast every day in an attempt to reach God, but let me tell you, He will not hear them because they are not part of His holy nation. Can I tell you that the majority of people who pray and fast in His name do it for the wrong reasons, and God knows this. God knows exactly what we are doing, and why we do the things that we do, and unless it brings glory to Him it He will not reward us with His glory. Through Isaiah, God actually addresses those who fast and cry out to Him, but why He does not hear them.
[Isaiah 58:1-4,6 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God. 3 Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours. 4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high. 6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?]
[in the day of your fast ye find pleasure,] The majority of people who fast do it for the wrong reasons. Those who follow false religion pray and fast at specific times of the year in an attempt to make an atonement for their sins from that year. Extremist will pray and fast in an attempt to see people killed. And we cannot forget about self, many often fast and pray to lose weight or some other cause to bring glory to their own flesh. However, that is not the fasting that God Himself has instituted if we want His attention. While we do not need to fast to get God’s attention, it does bring us to a deeper level of communicating with God. And fasting is not always about abstaining from food, fasting is a way for us to abstain from the things that feed our flesh, period. Through Isaiah, God goes on to explain that fasting is not for our own flesh, but to actually help others.
[Isaiah 58:8-11 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward. 9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; 10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: 11 And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.]
[then shall thy light rise in obscurity,] [Obscurity; darkness; figuratively misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness:] Let me tell you how much life itself can darken even our walk with Christ. This is actually the number one reason to fast, when our hearts, minds, and spirits are filled with so much darkness that we cannot see the light or Christ. Why do you think so many faithful Christians fall into immoral sin? The majority of the time it has to do with the affliction they are facing. In fact, through the pandemic last year there were a lot of Christians who got caught up in sin due to the churches being closed down. As God continues, He reminds His faithful, whom have fallen into sin, that it is their iniquities that have separated them from Him too.
[Isaiah 59:1-2,9,16-17,20 Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: 2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. 9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. 16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. 17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke. 20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD.]
[we wait for light, but behold obscurity;] Even saved, born again Christians can walk in darkness, and while God is ready and waiting for them to come back into the Light, He will not hear their cries without sincere repentance. And here is the thing, we can trip and fall a thousand times a day, and as long as we are sincere in our confession and repent, then He will forgive us and we will see the Light again. However, He will not hear one prayer or acknowledge any fasting if it is not confessed sincerely, [1 John 1:6-8 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.]
As I said before, everything you want to know about Christ and the entire Bible for that matter, can be found in the Book of Isaiah. It is a painful life to live in sin being saved, but God’s mercy endures. We are also reminded of this through Isaiah, and that one day all this will be over, we who are saved and have endured the judgments in this world will join Christ in His Kingdom. This includes both Jews and Gentiles who believe in and accept Christ as their Saviour, a day when all sorrow from sin and even darkness will end. In fact, as you read into the chapter something else is revealed about the birth of Christ.
[Isaiah 60:1-3,5-6 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. 5 Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 6 The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.]
[they shall bring gold and incense;] Kings and wise men from all over the world followed the star that led them straight to Jesus. Many say that they found Him at His actual birth, but this is incorrect, it was the shepherds that saw Him after His birth, [Luke 2:8-11 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. Matthew 2:10-11 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. 11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.]
[and his glory shall be seen upon thee.] This is the amazing revelation that all who receive Christ as their Saviour receive God’s holy, and living Spirit in them, and that they become of seed of God. That means we are His children, and He gives us the power to speak the same Gospel as Jesus did. Through Isaiah, we are given the same assurance that one day, after we have endured the judgments our loving Father we will join Christ in His Kingdom, a day when there the glory of the LORD will shine so bright we will not even need the sun.
[Isaiah 60:15-16,18-20 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. 16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. 18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. 19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. 20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.]
[and shalt suck the breast of kings:] This is referring to the Church, and how the Gentiles, who did not even know the Law of Moses, lived under the Law, and will draw near to Christ as they the sincere milk of the Word, [1 Peter 2:1-3 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.]
Is it required to live in obedience to God for our salvation? No, but if we want to be blessed beyond salvation it would be wise to do so. Why? Simply put, in doing so, we bring others to Christ. When we are obedient to the Law we open the gate for the lost to come in and receive Christ themselves. As much as we think we are ready and prepared for the day that Christ returns, none of us are. And while we may be eager for His return, we must understand that it is going to get a lot worse before He does. Through Isaiah, we get a glimpse of what it will be like when Christ returns and His saint actually reign the earth with Him.
[Isaiah 61:1-2,6,10 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. 10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.]
[But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD:] In the beginning when God addressed believers He intended all to be priests, meaning that they could have direct, one on one communication with God. All that changed during Exodus when God appointed Aaron and his sons as priests, and that remained until Christ’s passion, [Exodus 28:1 And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.]. The priests were the believers middlemen or intercessors to God, they spoke to Him on their behalf and assisted in the offering of the sacrifices. While we still need a middleman to get to God, the only one we need is Christ, He is our intercessor. And because He is our intercessor, we can go directly to God, well, in the name of Jesus, that is. [Romans 8:34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. John 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.]
Those who have this notion that religion, race, or their own righteousness can save them, have a huge awakening upon their death, when they see Jesus and find out that He really was their only way to salvation. All who receive Him will become His bride and forever be joined with Him. Through Isaiah, we see what type of marriage God will have with His bride, [Isaiah 62:1-2,4,11-12 For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. 2 And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name. 4 Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. 11 Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. 12 And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.]
[Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah:] [Hephzibah; My delight is in her. Beulah; to marry, rule over, possess, own.] Beulah is Israel’s future name when she is restored to her divine Husband, the Lord, Jesus Christ Himself. God delights in those who receive His Son, and as much as we deserve for Christ to leave us, He will never forsake us. When we allow Christ to live in our lives, we give Him dominion over our both our soul and body, which He indwells in us through the Holy Spirit. We are going to face suffering, chastening, and affliction, but in doing so, we are the ones who receive the greatest reward ever, Christ Himself. Amen!
[Romans 8:29-30,37-39 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.]
Jesus Christ Magnified: [Isaiah 58:8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward. Isaiah 59:20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD. Isaiah 60:16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. Isaiah 61:8 For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Isaiah 62:12 And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.]
Today’s Prayer: God, I cannot fathom the amazing grace that You gave me and still give me. To take a life that was a complete mess and turn it into one that has meaning is truly a miracle that only You can produce. Thank You God, for seeing something in me that is of good use to you, thank You, for your grace and mercy and for Your promise to never leave nor forsake me. Lord, as I humble myself before You, be merciful to me, lead me and guide me, help me to never lose the Light of Christ in me and keep it shining that I might receive Your glory even before I see You face to face. I love You Lord and ask this in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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