September 7, 2015
Instruction
Scripture: Isaiah50:4-10
This is one of the sections of Isaiah in which the words
that are spoken by the Lord’s Servant, a recurring character who points ahead
to Jesus, and to some degree the Church as Jesus’ followers. In this reading
following the Lord’s Word leads the Servant into persecution and mistreatment.
His response to this treatment is to “set his face like flint” and to put his
confidence in the Lord as the one who will vindicate him as he lives by faith.
The passage points us ahead to Jesus and we see aspects of His ministry in it.
It also encourages us as servants of the Lord to keep our faith and hope in Him
when we suffer for the faith.
Teaching
This passage teaches us that it is God who makes Himself and
His will known to us. He is the one who gives us His Word to speak that others
may be instructed as well. The life of faith, from first to last, is a gift which
God gives and sustains, and our relationship with Him is rooted in how He has
reached out to us.
However, hearing God’s Word, believing it, being instructed
by it, and living according to it brings God’s people into conflict with those
who are rebellious against Him. The people of God should expect to experience
persecution when they live according to God’s teaching. We need not be daunted
or feel disgraced, though. God helps us bear those burdens and overcome them as
we live by faith.
Life
Have you ever considered that Jesus knew, spoke, and lived
God’s Word, but the reception He received from the people of His time was
ultimately crucifixion? It is not every ear that hears God’s Word to be taught
and sustained by Him. It is only by faith that we receive such blessings,
living as one who walks in darkness, not knowing what will come next, but
trusting God to lead us through.
What a blessing it is to know that the Lord God helps us and
defends us. There may be those who accuse and try to disgrace us in different
ways, but God has urged us to set our face like flint – to not be turned away
or distracted from what He has done for us; particularly what Jesus has done
for us by His death and resurrection!
Prayer
This prayer is written
in the themes of Petition, Instruction, and Thanksgiving.
O Father in heaven, please open our ears, hearts, and minds
to be instructed by You that we may know how to sustain the weary with Your
word. Defend us against our enemies, and lead us in the darkness of this life
as we follow Jesus by faith.
It is You who has given us your instruction so that we may
speak Your Word. It is You who opened our ears and gave us faith. It is You who
helps us when we face oppression and resistance to Your Word.
We thank You for all You have done. Thank You for giving us
Your Word in our ears and our mouths that we may both hear and speak it. Thank
You for standing up for us when we suffer for the faith. Thank You for leading
us in the darkness and for being the one we can trust in for all things. Amen.
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