Daily Bible Study

Tweet

Day 39 Isaiah 44 44:1 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen: 2 Thus says the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: 4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses. 5 One shall say, I am the LORD’S; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel. 6 Thus says the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. 7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? And the things that are coming, and shall come, let them show unto them. 8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? Ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? Yea, there is no God; I know not any. 9 They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed. 10 Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing? 11 Behold, all his fellows shall be ashamed: and the workmen, they are of men: let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, and they shall be ashamed together. 12 The smith with the tongs both works in the coals, and fashions it with hammers, and works it with the strength of his arms: yea, he is hungry, and his strength fails: he drinks no water, and is faint. 13 The carpenter stretches out his rule; he marks it out with a line; he fits it with planes, and he marks it out with the compass, and makes it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man; that it may remain in the house. 14 He hews him down cedars, and takes the cypress and the oak, which he strengthens for himself among the trees of the forest: he plants an ash, and the rain doth nourish it. 15 Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindles it, and bakes bread; yea, he makes a god, and worships it; he makes it a graven image, and falls down thereto. 16 He burns part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eats flesh; he roasts roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warms himself, and says, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire: 17 And the residue thereof he makes a god, even his graven image: he falls down unto it, and worships it, and prays unto it, and says, Deliver me; for thou art my god. 18 They have not known nor understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand. 19 And none considers in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? Shall I fall down to the stock of a tree? 20 He feeds on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand? 21 Remember these, O Jacob and Israel; for thou art my servant: I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. 22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. 23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel. 24 Thus says the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that makes all things; that stretches forth the heavens alone; that spreads abroad the earth by myself; 25 That frustrates the tokens of the liars, and makes diviners mad; that turns wise men backward, and makes their knowledge foolish; 26 That confirms the word of his servant, and performs the counsel of his messengers; that says to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof: 27 That says to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers: 28 That says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. What gods do you worship? What are your first thoughts in the day and the last at night? What do you run after during the day? For many people, their gods are money, job, recreation, sometimes it’s even family, and most often, self. God’s aren’t just wood and stone we can see as idols people worship. Those are gods also. Whatever takes your attention away from God, is your god. God illustrated how ineffective people’s gods are. He showed how a tree is used to make a fire and cook meals, and how the same tree is then used to make a god to worship and bow down to. However, that god cannot see, hear, or move. It cannot do anything to help the person’s plight, except cook his dinner and keep him warm. The only thing remaining by morning light is ashes. God told Israel, he was their God, their Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. He also told them, they were his witnesses. They had seen his power. They knew his strength, and what he could do for them. They knew he didn’t sleep, but that he had eyes that see everything, even the inmost thoughts of the heart. They knew he led them into battle and defeated their enemies. They were his witnesses of his glory and power in their lives. With all God can do for a person, why would anyone want to bow down to anything else, or give their strength to anything that will not last? As Christians, you know what God did for you. Your testimony of how God brought you out of a sinful life, moves others to see the hand of God in their lives as well, and give him glory. Your testimony points to the cross of Jesus Christ, and what he did for your salvation. You are his witnesses. You might not have crossed the Red Sea, or wandered in the wilderness for forty years, but you had your own battles, your own wilderness that God brought you through. You attained your Promised Land as soon as you admitted your sin and failure. Your life might not be glittering in the eyes of the world, but it shines bright for God. If you have not accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord, let him redeem you today. Let him change you so you give him the glory and praise. For he alone is worthy, not what you have been chasing through your life. Set aside everything that is meaningless, and run after what will last for eternity. Run after God. Let’s pray: Father, thank you for being my God, for fighting my battles, for leading me where you want me to go. Help me let you lead me through life and not run ahead, trying to attain glory for myself. Let me always be your witness of all you have done for me. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen. Copyright © 28 September 2017 by Valerie Routhieaux Image courtesy of Pixabay