THE WORD FOR THIS WEEK IS: “Holy”.
The thought for this week is: Holy, Holy God.
When you were young, what were some of the issues of the day that prompted you to “rebel” against your parents or teachers in school? What punishments, if any, were handed out? In considering these, think about the issues now in your life that prompt you to be rebellious in spirit toward God? When God corrects you, and you know he does, how do you typically respond?
Isaiah is one of the most revered prophets in the Bible. He had a long and faithful ministry to the people of Judah. However, when God called him to be his spokesman, Isaiah was overwhelmed with a sense of his own sinfulness. In beginning his ministry, he started where we all should start and that is in repentance to God. Upon receipt of cleansing and forgiveness from God’s holy hand, Isaiah is able to begin his ministry of confronting God’s people with their sin and dispensing God’s comfort as they faced the consequences of their failures.
Begin by reading Isaiah 1:1-20. Observing this passage as a court scene, who are the witnesses and who is the judge? Who is being prosecuted and what are the charges? While it is easy to summarize the spiritual condition of the people of Isaiah’s day, do you see any parallels to our present-day culture? Do you think God could say similar things about us today? Notice the significance of God’s promises of forgiveness and cleansing in verses 18 & 19. As you read Isaiah, you will note that he uses the title “the Holy One of Israel (v 4) 29 times in his book. Knowing God’s Holy character, can we now evaluate our own lives in such a way that we are prompted to holy living.
Isaiah links personal holiness with the pursuit of justice. What issues of justice and morality in our culture can we become invested in. Commit to becoming more deeply involved in one of those issues and to better informing your family and friends about it. Our journey toward God begins with one step, that being repentance. And, as we put one step in front of the other we get that much closer to a Holy, Holy God.
Pray through the following Scripture and strive to memorize Isaiah 1:18b,
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
Prayer: O Father in heaven, you are a Holy, Holy God. We pray that you will continue to build your holy character in our life. Continue to sustain us as we have need and forgive us of our shortcomings. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
By Rory Barneche