SERVE THE KING AND INVITE OTHERS INTO HIS KINGDOM! How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!” —Isaiah 52:7 See, my servant will act wisely;  he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.  Just as there were many who were appalled at him— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness— Isaiah 52:13-15 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. …

HE FORMED US, LOVES US AND WILL NOT FORGET US! Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. —Isaiah 49:15-16 Your hands made me and formed me. —Psalm 119:73             Listen, “Your hands made me and formed me.”  You are God’s creation and He does not make any mistakes.  We live in a fallen, sinful and corrupt world and that is why “bad things” happen.  Our bodies are affected by sin as well…

OUR LORD WORKS THROUGH WHOEVER HE DESIRES TO! This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, 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: I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.  I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.  For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my…

ONLY ONE KING, REDEEMER AND SAVIOR… ONLY ONE I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. —Isaiah 43:11 This is what the Lord says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God… Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it… You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me?  No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.” —Isaiah 44:6-8             There is only one Savior and that is Jesus who said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”…

MY LORD GIVES ME STRENGTH! He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. —Isaiah 40:29-31 The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. —Psalm 118:12             Be honest.  From where does your strength come from?  From yourself?  “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, who made…

HE HAS THE POWER OF LIFE AND DEATH! Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ —Isaiah 36:15 “Do not let Hezekiah mislead you when he says, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’ Have the gods of any nations ever delivered their lands from the hand of the king of Assyria? —Isaiah 36:18 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria…

THE FRUIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. —Isaiah 32:17 Those who walk righteously and speak what is right, who reject gain from extortion and keep their hands from accepting bribes, who stop their ears against plots of murder and shut their eyes against contemplating evil— Isaiah 33:15 Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains. —Psalm 116:16             Jesus has freed us from our chains, bondage and imprisonment as we came to our senses, hearing His Word— “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome…

REBELLIOUS POTS You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!  Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, “You did not make me”?  Can the pot say to the potter, “You know nothing”? —Isaiah 29:16              How ridiculous that would be if the potter were thought to be the clay and it was truly believed.  That would be insanity.  But what about those who think what is formed should “say to the one who formed it, “You did not make me”?  What if they said this and truly meant it.  That too would be insanity.              Yet the vast…

KNOWING PEACE WITH GOD AND THE PEACE OF GOD You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. —Isaiah 26:3              Peace… how people desire peace in this world.  May talk about “world peace.”  The fact of the matter is that there will be no lasting peace until the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6) returns.  The nations of the earth will be at odds with each other just as individuals experience conflict with each other as well.              But there are a couple ways we can experience peace now.  People, who are enemies of God in their sinful state (Romans 5:10), can be…

HIS WILL WILL BE DONE! The Lord Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will happen….  For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him?  His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back? —Isaiah 14:24, 27             What our Lord God Almighty has planned will come to pass.  What He has purposed will be accomplished.  Oh, yes, all His desires will be done and there is no one who can hinder what He seeks to accomplish.  No hand can stop Him, no person can halt Him.             What a joy to know that I am on the…