{"id":25674,"date":"2023-03-28T22:00:21","date_gmt":"2023-03-29T05:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/isaiah-44_6-22-copy\/"},"modified":"2023-03-14T18:33:18","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T01:33:18","slug":"isaiah-44_23-45_13","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/isaiah-44_23-45_13\/","title":{"rendered":"The God Who Calls You By Name"},"content":{"rendered":"

Isaiah 44:23-45:13 \u00a0 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Isaiah 44:23-45:13.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:23-27 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n23\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Sing for joy, O heavens, for the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.
\n24\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“This is what the\u00a0LORD\u00a0says– your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the\u00a0LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself,
\n25\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense,
\n26\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0who carries out the words of his servants and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem,\u00a0‘It shall be inhabited<\/strong>,’ of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be built,’ and of their ruins,\u00a0‘I will restore them<\/strong>,’
\n27\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your streams,’<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 23-27:\u00a0 These verses speak of how God will speak into existence the return of the Jewish exiles from Babylon back to Jerusalem and have them rebuild their ruined city.\u00a0 God will do this to the chagrin of false prophets, diviners and so-called experts who claimed this would never happen (v25).\u00a0 As verse 23 suggests, it would be a glorious day when God would redeem His people by allowing the Jewish exiles to be set free.\u00a0 In verse 27, God seems to compare this miracle to His earlier miracles in Exodus when He would allow His people to cross the Red Sea and the Jordan River on dry land.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:28 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n28\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0who says of\u00a0Cyrus<\/strong>, ‘He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.”‘<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 28: Here Isaiah writes that God will choose a leader called Cyrus who will somehow be responsible for ordering the rebuilding of Jerusalem and its temple.\u00a0 Keep in mind that Isaiah is writing all this down about 100 years before Babylon would conquer Jerusalem and take the Jewish people as exiles, and over 150 years before King Cyrus of Persia would defeat Babylon and order the return of the Jewish exiles to their homeland.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 45:1-3 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n1\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“This is what the\u00a0LORD\u00a0says to his anointed,\u00a0to Cyrus<\/strong>, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.
\n3\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places,\u00a0so that<\/strong>\u00a0you may know that I am the\u00a0LORD, the God of Israel, who\u00a0summons you by name<\/u><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 1-3:\u00a0 Imagine that you\u2019re Cyrus and you\u2019re reading this 150 year old scroll from Isaiah that contains a message personally from God to you, saying that God will enable you to conquer nations and amass great wealth (v1-2).\u00a0 History suggests that Cyrus took this message seriously.\u00a0 And notice God\u2019s reason for doing this: it is so that Cyrus, who grew up worshiping many gods, would know the LORD (v3), who calls him by name.<\/p>\n

Whenever God blesses you, it is ultimately not for your comfort or prosperity alone, but so that you would know God personally, who calls you by name.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>It reminds me of Jeremiah 9:23-24:\u00a0 \u201cLet not the rich person boast of their riches, or the wise person boast of their wisdom, or the strong person boast of their strength.\u00a0 But let the one who boasts boast about this: that they know Me and understand Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Isaiah 45:4-6 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen,\u00a0I summon you by name<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me.
\n5\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I am the\u00a0LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God.<\/strong>\u00a0I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me,
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me.\u00a0I am the\u00a0LORD, and there is no other<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 4-6:\u00a0 For the sake of His chosen people, God chooses to use Cyrus, even though he does not acknowledge the LORD.\u00a0 God can use whomever He likes.\u00a0 He is sovereign.\u00a0 So\u00a0whenever God uses you to make a difference in someone else\u2019s life, stay humble and don\u2019t give yourself too much credit.\u00a0 God could easily have chosen to use someone else if He wanted to.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wait, JB, here God says that Cyrus does not acknowledge the LORD, and yet you say that Isaiah 41:25 is also talking about Cyrus as \u201cthe one from the rising sun who calls on my name\u201d.\u00a0 How can Cyrus call on God\u2019s name and also not acknowledge the LORD?\u00a0 That\u2019s exactly it.\u00a0 Cyrus had the habit of calling on the gods of the nations he conquered, but did he really know and acknowledge who the LORD is?\u00a0 No.\u00a0 God does not want you simply to call on His name out of ritual or superstition.\u00a0 God wants you to acknowledge Him, to know Him personally.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:7 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n7\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the\u00a0LORD, do all these things.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 7:\u00a0 Cyrus had most likely grown up believing that there are many gods, and that some gods are responsible for good whereas some gods are responsible for destruction.\u00a0 God clarifies that He is the one true God and that everything is in His hands.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:8 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“You heavens above, rain down righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the\u00a0LORD, have created it.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 8:\u00a0 When verse 8 says, \u201clet salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it\u201d, there is a lesson we can learn here:\u00a0 In God\u2019s kingdom, you can\u2019t have salvation without righteousness.\u00a0 You and I cannot be saved without being righteous (i.e. pure and holy in God\u2019s sight).\u00a0 The problem is that none of us is righteous, not even one.\u00a0 That is why God would send a Saviour, a Messiah, Jesus Christ, to be our righteousness and also to die for our sins.\u00a0\u00a0Through Jesus Christ, we can be righteous in God\u2019s sight and saved from our sins.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:9-12 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘He has no hands’?
\n10\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Woe to him who says to his father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to his mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’
\n11\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“This is what the\u00a0LORD\u00a0says– the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands?
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0It is I who made the earth and created mankind upon it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 9-12:\u00a0\u00a0God is our potter, our maker.\u00a0 We are His clay.\u00a0 At the end of the day we have no right to criticize God for what He does or think that we know better than Him.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0To say that He is on another level compared to us is an understatement.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:13 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n13\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the\u00a0LORD\u00a0Almighty.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Father, You are sovereign and You can choose to do whatever You please.\u00a0 You are also good and trustworthy.\u00a0 Thank You that every blessing You pour into my life is not only for my own happiness or convenience; even more, it\u2019s so that I can know You personally.\u00a0 In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Isaiah 44:23-45:13.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Isaiah 44:23-27 (NIV)
\n23\u00a0\u00a0Sing for joy, O heavens, for the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.
\n24\u00a0\u00a0“This is what the\u00a0LORD\u00a0says– your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the\u00a0LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself,
\n25\u00a0\u00a0who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense,
\n26\u00a0\u00a0who carries out the words of his servants and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem,\u00a0‘It shall be inhabited,’ of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be built,’ and of their ruins,\u00a0‘I will restore them,’
\n27\u00a0\u00a0who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your streams,’<\/p>\n

On verses 23-27:\u00a0 These verses speak of how God will speak into existence the return of the Jewish exiles from Babylon back to Jerusalem and have them rebuild their ruined city.\u00a0 God will do this to the chagrin of false prophets, diviners and so-called experts who claimed this would never happen (v25).\u00a0 As verse 23 suggests, it would be a glorious day when God would redeem His people by allowing the Jewish exiles to be set free.\u00a0 In verse 27, God seems to compare this miracle to His earlier miracles in Exodus when He would allow His people to cross the Red Sea and the Jordan River on dry land.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25676,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25674"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25674\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25677,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25674\/revisions\/25677"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}