{"id":25952,"date":"2023-04-16T22:00:29","date_gmt":"2023-04-17T05:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/isaiah-58-copy\/"},"modified":"2023-04-04T11:29:45","modified_gmt":"2023-04-04T18:29:45","slug":"isaiah-59_1-15","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/isaiah-59_1-15\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Biggest Problem"},"content":{"rendered":"

Isaiah 59:1-15 \u00a0 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Isaiah 59:1-15.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:1 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n1\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Surely the arm of the\u00a0LORD\u00a0is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 1:\u00a0 Here in Isaiah 59 Isaiah is going to present a problem and then offer a solution.\u00a0 The problem is described in verses 2-15 and the solution is described in verses 16-21.\u00a0 But before explaining the problem, Isaiah needs to make an important clarification:\u00a0 the problem is not with God; the problem is with us.\u00a0 That is why verse 1 says, \u201cSurely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.\u201d In other words, it\u2019s not God\u2019s fault that this problem exists.\u00a0 The fault is ours.\u00a0 Now let\u2019s look at what the problem is.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:2-3 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
\n3\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 2-3:\u00a0 The problem is that humankind has been corrupted by sin.\u00a0 As a result of sin, human beings can have nothing to do with God, whether in this life or for eternity, because God is perfectly holy.\u00a0 As verse 2 describes,\u00a0\u201cBut your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.\u201d\u00a0 Even more than the way our sins hurt others or ourselves, our biggest problem is the way our sins alienate us from a holy God.\u00a0 Here in Isaiah 59 we have one of the clearest, most powerful explanations in the Bible of the dire effects that sin has on our lives.<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:4-8 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.
\n5\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0They hatch the eggs of vipers and spin a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die, and when one is broken, an adder is hatched.
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Their cobwebs are useless for clothing; they cannot cover themselves with what they make. Their deeds are evil deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands.
\n7\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and destruction mark their ways.
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks in them will know peace.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 4-8:\u00a0 Isaiah goes from talking about \u201cyou\u201d to talking about \u201cthey\u201d, but the topic and the message are still the same.\u00a0 Isaiah is saying that no one is just, no one is righteous.\u00a0 Everyone has sinned and every human being is inclined to do evil.\u00a0 Building on one of the ongoing themes of Isaiah (\u201cthere is no peace for the wicked\u201d \u2013 48:22; 57:21), Isaiah says that when we live in sin, we know no peace (v8).<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:9-10 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.
\n10\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it were twilight; among the strong, we are like the dead.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 9-10:\u00a0 Isaiah talks about the blinding effect that sin has on our lives.\u00a0 Because of sin, we can\u2019t see God, ourselves or others correctly.\u00a0 Sin also has a weakening and deadening effect on our lives (\u201camong the strong, we are like the dead\u201d -v10b). Sin sucks the strength and joy out of our lives.<\/p>\n

Notice also that Isaiah has gone from \u201cyou\u201d to \u201cthey\u201d and now to \u201cwe\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0 This is most important.\u00a0 Study the great intercessors in the Bible like Isaiah, Daniel, and Nehemiah and you\u2019ll find that the greatest leaders don\u2019t simply point the condemning finger at others and say, \u201cyou have sinned\u201d or \u201cthey have sinned\u201d.\u00a0 Rather they take ownership and say, \u201cWe have sinned\u201d.\u00a0 If we truly want to help others and lead them to Christ, we need to recognize the ways we ourselves have fallen short and our own propensity to sin as well.\u00a0 We need to realize that we\u2019re all in the same boat.\u00a0 That is why Paul would later write, \u201cChrist died for sinners, of whom I am the worst.\u201d<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:11 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n11\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0We all growl like bears; we moan mournfully like doves. We look for justice, but find none; for deliverance, but it is far away.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 11:\u00a0 Sin also has a dehumanizing effect on us.\u00a0 In other words, when we\u2019re under sin\u2019s control, we treat others as less than fully human, we forget that we are all made in the image of God, and we start seeing ourselves as something other than who we really are.\u00a0 This is why Isaiah likens us in our sin to snakes, spiders (v5-6), growling bears and mourning doves (v11).\u00a0 The idea is that sin turns us into brute beasts (see Psalm 73:21-22).<\/p>\n

Isaiah 59:12-15 (NIV)<\/strong>
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0For our offenses are many in your sight, and our sins testify against us. Our offenses are ever with us, and we acknowledge our iniquities:
\n13\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0rebellion and treachery against the\u00a0LORD, turning our backs on our God, fomenting oppression and revolt, uttering lies our hearts have conceived.
\n14\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter.
\n15\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The\u00a0LORD\u00a0looked and was displeased that there was no justice.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 12-15:\u00a0 No matter how good we try to be, we can never get away from our sins. \u201cOur offenses are ever with us\u201d (v12).\u00a0 That\u2019s why we need God\u2019s help.\u00a0 When sin occupies the life of an individual or a group, justice, righteousness, trust, and honesty are driven back, and the LORD Himself cannot fill that life (v14-15).<\/p>\n

Verses 1-15 describe the problem.\u00a0 Verses 16-21 will describe the solution.<\/p>\n

Thank You Father that as great as our sin problem is, You are greater.\u00a0 Thank You that You provide a solution to our biggest problem.\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 59:1-15.\u00a0 Let\u2019s go!
\n\u00a0
\nIsaiah 59:1 (NIV)
\n1\u00a0\u00a0Surely the arm of the\u00a0LORD\u00a0is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.
\n\u00a0
\nOn verse 1:\u00a0 Here in Isaiah 59 Isaiah is going to present a problem and then offer a solution.\u00a0 The problem is described in verses 2-15 and the solution is described in verses 16-21.\u00a0 But before explaining the problem, Isaiah needs to make an important clarification:\u00a0 the problem is not with God; the problem is with us.\u00a0 That is why verse 1 says, \u201cSurely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.\u201d In other words, it\u2019s not God\u2019s fault that this problem exists.\u00a0 The fault is ours.\u00a0 Now let\u2019s look at what the problem is.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25954,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25952","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\/25952","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=25952"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25952\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25955,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25952\/revisions\/25955"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25954"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25952"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25952"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25952"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}