UNFOLDING THE WORD
The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple
(Psalm 119: 130)
In chs. 28–35, God shows that He is able to fulfil all the saving purposes He had promised in chs. 1–27. But the prophets. priests and rulers of Israel do not trust in the Lord. Where does your trust lie? Is it built on a secure foundation? Here in our passage, we see: a) The fading crown of pride. b) The offer of rest in God’s word. c) The sure foundation God has laid.
Isaiah saw a bright future of God’s people entering the strong city, singing songs of salvation (vv. 1-12). Meanwhile, God’s people are praying in distress as they wait for these promises to become a reality. Even as Christians, life is not smooth sailing. There is distress in trials and sufferings, and also in our own failures, as we wait for God’s future deliverance. So in our passage, we see: a) The distress of failure. b) The promise of resurrection. a) The refuge from fury.
Isaiah prophesied during the times of four kings of Judah: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (787–697 BC). And here in ch. 6, Isaiah saw a vision, after King Uziah died. He saw a vision of another King so captivating and glorious. What sight would be more captivating than the sight of God’s glory? So following Isaiah’s vision, here are 3 insights from our passage:- a) Seeing God’s holiness and glory. b) Seeing our sin and atonement. c) Hearing and responding to God’s grace.
What are the marks of a Spirit-filled Church? When Jesus promised to build His church (in Matt. 16: 18), He did not promise to build a church based on our personal preferences. Rather, the church Jesus promised to build, while imperfect, is a Spirit-filled church. So we’re going to see that a Spirit-filled church is marked by: a) Bible teaching and loving fellowship. b) Gospel renewal and generous giving. c) Vibrant worship and gospel sharing.
In v. 1 Luke says that Jesus is “led by the Spirit in the wilderness”—where He faced many temptations from the devil. How can we follow the Spirit instead of giving in to temptations? To answer that, we see:- a) Jesus is tempted with instant gratification. b) Jesus is tempted with power and glory. c) Jesus is tempted with self-serving identity. How does Jesus overcome His temptations?
In this chapter, Paul uses the word ‘Spirit’ twenty-one times. Paul says in v. 26 the Spirit helps us in our weakness and prays for us. How does the Spirit help us? What does He pray for us? From our text, we see that:- a) The Spirit works patience in our groanings. b) The Spirit helps in our weakness and prayer. c) The Spirit shows our future glory with Christ.
What are the marks of a Spirit-filled Church? Every Christian receives the Holy Spirit at the time of conversion. But to be “filled with the Spirit” is a command in v. 18. It’s a daily experience of the Spirit and not a one-time occurrence. So in our text, we see that:- a) Spirit-filled people walk in wisdom. b) Spirit-filled people live in community. c) Spirit-filled people look to Christ.
Can Christians make progress by overcoming sin? In Romans 8, Paul focuses now on the power of the Spirit in bringing us to freedom. Until this point, the Holy Spirit is mentioned only twice (in ch. 1:4 and ch. 5:5). But in this chapter, the word ‘Spirit’ appears twenty-one times. So what does being freed by the Spirit look like? In this passage, we’re going to see that:- a) Freed people are not under condemnation. b) Freed people set their minds on the Spirit. c) Freed people live by the Spirit’s power.
Paul had written this letter to a group of churches in Galatia (present-day Turkey). Some were teaching that Christians must add Jewish circumcision to be accepted by God. But in ch. 5–6 Paul shows that only the grace of Christ leads to freedom. So how does the Spirit help us walk in freedom? From our passage, we see:- a) The desires of the Spirit. b) The works of the flesh. c) The fruit of the Spirit.
The Holy Spirit has been very active since the beginning of creation. He has always been working in the world, and in the church. So who is the Holy Spirit? What does He do? How do we know we have the Holy Spirit? Follow along in your Bibles as we see: a) The Spirit of Truth. b) The Spirit of adoption. c) The Spirit of love and obedience.
Lot had chosen all the green Jordan Valley, not knowing the danger that awaited him. What Lot could not see was that war and destruction was soon coming in those regions! So from our passage, we see:- a) The idolatrous hunger for power. b) The desires that hold us in captivity. c) The king who rescues us from captivity.
What do we do when God’s promises and our circumstances don’t seem to match? God had promised to give the promised land to Abram’s offspring. But when Abram arrived in Canaan, the land was full of Canaanites. Abram’s faith is now going to be tested by a severe trial. In our passage, we see: - a) The faith that is tested by famine. b) The consequences of our unbelief. c) The Lord who comes to our rescue.
As we come to ch. 12, God is going to call Abram and bless the nations. Later, Israel would learn that their nation was founded through Abram who heard God’s call and left for Canaan. So from our passage, we see:- a) The call of God to be a blessing. b) The faith that walks in obedience. c) The offspring who fulfills God’s promise.
After the Lord rescued Sarai from Pharaoh, Abram, Lot and Sarai left Egypt with great riches. But as they came up from Egypt, their possessions began to create conflict in their family. From our passage, we’re going to see:- a) The struggle for power in the family. b) The pursuit of peace in the family. c) The seed of redemption in the family.
Last week, we saw how Noah and his family survived the waters of judgement because God kept His promise. In the garden, God had commanded Adam and Eve to multiply over the whole earth. And He had commanded Noah to do the same. By this time in our passage, the fresh start given to the human race by Noah had already been compromised. Instead of spreading, people began to settle down. So from our passage, we’re going to see:- a) The city that is set against God. b) The Lord who came to the city. c) The city God is building for us.
By now, God’s world had turned into a place of conflict and rage. Even as the human race began to make progress, the world had begun to see increasing corruption and violence. In our passage, we see:- a) The hearts that grieve God’s heart. b) The blameless one who walks with God. c) The door that saves from judgement.
Before the fall, Adam and Eve enjoyed pleasure in God’s presence. But now, even childbearing would become painful. Work, which was without sweat, now had thorns and thistles. So what happened as they were cast out of God’s garden? In our passage, God’s world would become:-- a) A place of conflict and rage. c) A place of counsel and warning. c) A place of violence and grace.
The garden God planted was a perfect place of life and beauty, abundance and human flourishing, freedom and fruitfulness. It was a place where man enjoyed an intimate relationship with God. But what happened when man was put to the test? In our passage, we see that the garden was also:- a) A place of tragedy and shame. c) A place of hiding and blame. c) A place of curse and redemption.
New Year’s day in Japan (last week) is called Ganjitsu or Gantan. Each year, many Japanese travel to shrines and temples to pray for blessings for the year ahead. But the God of the Bible does not live in temples made by human hands. In fact, Genesis is the book of origin. Moses' purpose in writing (1440 b.c or 1260 b.c) was to show Israel their origins. So from our text, we see that:- a) God comes first before everything. b) God’s goodness is seen in all His creation. c) God made us in His image for His glory.
Christmas means a new King is born! But how do people respond when a new King is born? From our passage today, we’re going to look at 3 responses to the newborn King. 1) Those who seek the new King. 2) Those who ignore the new King. 3) Those who worship the true King.
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