Online Journals

Rhema:

Isaiah 59: 1 Listen! The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save you,
nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.
2 It’s your sins that have cut you off from God.
Because of your sins, he has turned away
and will not listen anymore.

Inspect:

What a sobering thought! So often I think the Lord’s not paying attention to me. Or even, that He’s not able or willing to help me out of this situation. Wrong! The Lord does hear us. There is nothing the Lord cannot do save us, there is no weakness in Him.

However, God may not be willing to save us, because we separate ourselves from Him by our sin. I believe that if we don’t turn away from sin and toward God, He won’t save us. Why? I believe it is because He wants us looking at Him and not the sin. We may not be able to break the hold of sin in our lives because of our weakness, but I believe we always have the ability to turn away from it and look at God. We might say that sin is too powerful, too tempting, it has been so long that we cannot imagine life without it. That may be true, the addiction that chains to the sin might be so strong that we can’t break it, but I believe we all have what it takes, no matter how little it is to begin to turn away from it, even though its holding onto us, but turn and start looking at God.

I believe that as soon as we do that. We turn away from our sin, and start looking at God, start trying to struggle away from the sin, things will change. We may not be able to move an inch closer to God, but the minute God sees us looking at Him instead of the sin, He’ll come running, He’ll listen to us, His arm will reach out to us.

Let’s keep looking at God.

Commit:

I need to stop looking at sin. It may be tempting, enticing and satisfying, but I need to turn away and look at God. It is He that listens. It is He that saves.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this reminder on where to keep my eyeballs. Help me to realize that if I start wondering why you’re not listening, why you’re not helping, it is because I’m not looking at you. Help me to realize that I’m staring at sin, and that I need to turn away and look at you!

In the name of the one who will listen, who’s arms are able to save me from everything, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Isaiah 53: 1 Who has believed our message?
To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?
2 My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot,
like a root in dry ground.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
3 He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.
7 He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
8 Unjustly condemned,
he was led away.[b]
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.[c]
But he was struck down
for the rebellion of my people.
9 He had done no wrong
and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal;
he was put in a rich man’s grave.
10 But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him
and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life,
and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
11 When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous,
for he will bear all their sins.
12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.

Inspect:

This prophecy by Isaiah points to the Lord Jesus. It describes the life sacrifice that He led so that we would be redeemed for our sins. I am not sure about my theology, but I believe that this prophecy applies to us as well. In the New Testament, there are many scripture that tell us that if we are followers of Christ, then we are to endure the same things that He has. If that is true, and I believe it is, then we need to understand what we can expect from this life of following Christ.

- There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
o Jesus was not beautiful or majestic in the eyes of the world. He was born in a manger, He had a common profession. We too need to expect the same. Many of us are not beautiful or majestic in the eyes of the world. We shouldn’t expect to be recognized more than Jesus was.
- He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
o Jesus went through rejection that causes sorrows and deep grief, we need to expect the same. We must realize that many will turn their backs on us and reject us.

This passage goes on and on about how Jesus suffered, and I believe that it indicates that how too we will suffer. Why?

- Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
o It is all for others. We suffer because we care. We suffer because we work to save. We suffer because we struggle that others would not suffer.

Is it worth it? Absolutely! Is the worth of a soul worth the suffering that we need to endure? I think so. At the end, God will recognize what we’ve done.

- He will enjoy a long life,
and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
11 When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous,
for he will bear all their sins.
12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.

Our Heavenly Father will see all the sacrifices we have made. He will see the good we have accomplished. He will honor us. There is no greater honor than the honor of our Heavenly Father, there is none more generous, none more satisfying.

Commit:

I must endure the difficulties I go through. I need to realize that it is worth it, if just for one soul. I may not see the results, but the Lord does, and that is what counts.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you that I can suffer as the Lord Jesus did. Please equip me to handle this life successfully. You know the limits of my strength, my courage and my spirit. I pray that you send your Holy Spirit to give me what I need to get through this in a way that pleases you.

In the name of the one who has gone through all of this and so much more, the one who will help me succeed at following Him, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

2 Peter 1: 5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.
8 The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Inspect:

Can’t stop at faith. We are commanded here to build on faith.

- Moral Excellence – we need to be excellence in morality. Our motives must be pure in everything we do.
- Knowledge – we need to continually build our knowledge. We need more knowledge in order to be more effective at obeying the Lord.
- Self-Control – we need to be sure that we are in control of ourselves. We must not react rashly, instinctively, instead we must be thoughtful and be controlled by love.
- Patient Endurance – we need to endure patiently trials that come our way, understanding complexities and awaiting validation.
- Godliness – we need to grow in maturity in the spirit. We need to grow in purity and understanding of our spiritual lives.
- Brotherly Affection – we need to learn to like everyone. We need to realize that God values every individual that He has created, and so must we.
- Love – we need to sacrifice ourselves so that others may grow. Jesus gave His life to save and model for others, and so must we.

If we are to be productive and useful in saving and helping people to grow and save others, we need to not stop at faith.

Commit:

This is like working out. I must not stop at pushup. I need to train every part of my body so that my strength is balanced and in harmony. The same must be in my service for the Lord. I must not just do faith, I must build myself up by adding all of these, so that I can become strong, balanced and in harmony in the service of the Lord.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me how to train to become productive for you. Please help me to train every part of my ministry. Just as my fitness center trainer varies my workout to insure that I am building strength equally, please send your Holy Spirit to so that I can become strong in each of these areas as well.

In the name of the one who trains me to serve, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Isaiah 49: 1 Listen to me, all you in distant lands!
Pay attention, you who are far away!
The Lord called me before my birth;
from within the womb he called me by name.
2 He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword.
He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.
I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel,
and you will bring me glory.”
4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless!
I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose.
Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand;
I will trust God for my reward.”
5 And now the Lord speaks—
the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant,
who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him.
The Lord has honored me,
and my God has given me strength.
6 He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.
I will make you a light to the Gentiles,
and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”

Inspect:

This prophecy points to our Lord Jesus Christ, about his mission on earth to save us. However, I also believe that It points to us. We are given the same mission as our Lord Jesus, and I believe we are given the same spirit and direction as our Lord was.

- We are called before we were born, while we were still in our mother’s womb. Just as Jesus had a unique place in history to save mankind, I believe that God will use our uniqueness our individuality to perform a mission that we are the most suited for.
- You are my servant and you will bring me glory. What an amazing promise. We are called to be His servant, and it is us who will bring glory to the Lord. This is amazing. The Lord could bring glory to himself, but He chooses to use us.
- The reality is that we will face setbacks, times when all of efforts seem futile. But the promise here is that we need to just leave it to the Lord. We won’t be able to see all the results of what we do. We need to just trust that the Lord and He will honor us for us. The Lord is not stingy, He does not gain anything by withholding the blessing, He loves us, He wants to reward us.
- We don’t need to rely on our own strength, because the Lord promises to give us His strength. What more do we need. We’re worried that we’re not strong enough, we need to begin to trust in God’s strength. And why not, right here He promised it to us.

Just as God is without limits and His strength is without limits so our mission doesn’t have limits as well. The prophecy over Jesus and over us is that our ministry will go to the ends of the earth. God loves everyone and wants to save everyone, everywhere so He will use His Son and He will use us.

Commit:

I am willing to accept this prophecy, this calling. I believe that God will use my uniqueness to do something that I am uniquely suited at. I believe that God will give me all the strength I need to be successful at carrying out the mission that He has given me.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for showing me what my mission is and how you help me to achieve it. Please help me to see your strength at work in my life. Help me to know that it is your strength and not mine which will bring the win. Help me to not look at results for encouragement, but to trust that you will see everything and that you will reward every good thing. Help me to know that my mission is without limits, that you will extend my borders to the end of the earth. Thank you for allowing me to serve you and to bring you honor.

In the name of the one who has chosen me and will give me strength, Jesus!

Amen.

Rhema:

Isaiah 43: 1 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.
O Israel, the one who formed you says,
“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
I have called you by name; you are mine.
2 When you go through deep waters,
I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
you will not be burned up;
the flames will not consume you.
3 For I am the Lord, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I gave Egypt as a ransom for your freedom;
I gave Ethiopia[a] and Seba in your place.
4 Others were given in exchange for you.
I traded their lives for yours
because you are precious to me.
You are honored, and I love you.

Inspect:

If this isn’t love, nothing is. God has made us. He knows every aspect of us. He created us solely for the reason of having a relationship with us. God doesn’t want anything else from us then to bless us and have a relationship with us. God has not only created us, but when we messed up and sinned, it was He who paid the price to ransom us. He has made us, he has ransomed us. We are not just one of the faceless masses to Him, we are an individual, He loves us as an individual.

So here God promises that He will be with us through all of our difficulties. He doesn’t promise to prevent us from having difficulties. It doesn’t matter if trouble threatens to overwhelm, or if trouble threatens to destroy us, God will be the one to make sure we go through it. God didn’t ransom us to lose us.

Commit:

I must trust the Lord. I must know that God made me, came after me and bought me back. God will never let me be overwhelmed or destroyed.

Exalt:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for reminding me again how precious I am to you. Please help me to hold on to the truth that you love me as an individual. Help me to know that you bought me back, even though you didn’t need to. Help me to remember that there is no trouble too deep for you to get me through. Help me to remember that there is no trouble too destructive for you to get me through.

In the name of my creator, my redeemer and my protector, Jesus!

Amen.