04 September 2016
Two-Minute Features | 11 September 2016

Isaiah 53- God Gave His Son for Us, the Ungodly (TMF:490)

Friday, September 09, 2016
Peace to Live By: Isaiah 53- God Gave His Son for Us, the Ungodly (TMF:490) - Daniel Litton
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       It was not only made known through the New Testament, but as Paul stated, it was also made known to everyone beforehand through the Old Testament—the prophetic writings. This was God’s doing, by his commandment. The Gospel then commands people to come to know Jesus, and that occurs through faith—trusting in him. Our next verse states, ““Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” (Isaiah 53:1, ESV). It is true that it is really hard to believe that God would give his Son for us, on our behalf, considering how evil and sinful we are, as humans. Even the Apostle Paul wandered about this. Remember? He said, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-9, ESV).

Isaiah 52- The Gospel Preached to the World, Part 2 (TMF:489)

Thursday, September 08, 2016
Peace to Live By: Isaiah 52- The Gospel Preached to the World, Part 2 (TMF:489) - Daniel Litton
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       The Gospel hadn’t been preached in the world before, yet Isaiah prophesied that this mystery of God would in fact be preached. People, which included rulers, would understand God’s plan of salvation. If we turn or tap to the next chapter over, in Romans chapter 16, within Paul’s prayer there is also reference to this—that of the Gospel being preached. He told the Romans that God “is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith” (Romans 16:25ex-26, ESV). So, Jesus as the Christ was the revelation the people needed to see. He was the mystery God had hidden from people for ages.

Isaiah 52- The Gospel Preached to the World, Part 1 (TMF:488)

Wednesday, September 07, 2016
Peace to Live By: Isaiah 52- The Gospel Preached to the World, Part 1 (TMF:488) - Daniel Litton
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       Going back to the passage, it states, “As many were astonished at you…kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand” (Isaiah 52:14ex, 15ex, ESV). In order to understand this section of the text, what it means, let’s look at what the Apostle Paul said in Romans chapter 15. He states the following, starting in verse 18: “For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand”” (Romans 15:18-21 ESV). So, here, Paul quoted this passage we are studying.

Isaiah 52- God Put Jesus to Death on the Cross (TMF:487)

Tuesday, September 06, 2016
Peace to Live By: Isaiah 52- God Put Jesus to Death on the Cross (TMF:487) - Daniel Litton
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       You do realize, don’t you, that God was the One who put Christ to death on the cross? He was the One who slew Jesus for our sins. Remember Jesus said, “My God, my God. Why have you forsaken me?” God abandoned him, turning against him, because he saw that the sin of the whole world—the sin of all time—on him. The Jewish God, the only God that there is, demands a payment from people for their sin. Yet, we have nothing to offer for it. So, God executed Jesus on the cross so that we could have a payment for our sin. He was guiltless, sinless, had never done anything wrong. That was why he could pay for our sin. And this was an epic event, when God slew him, for the Scripture even suggests that the Sun—the physical Sun of our solar system—actually stopped shinning. That is, it burnt out for a short time; it was just a rock in space. Trillions upon trillions of combustable energy—gone (see Luke 23:44, 45). There was a great earthquake (see Matt. 27:51). The curtain leading into the Holy of Holies in the Jewish Temple was torn in two (see Matt. 27:51 & Luke 23:45).

Isaiah 52- Jesus' Death Was No Simple Act (TMF:486)

Monday, September 05, 2016
Peace to Live By: Isaiah 52- Jesus' Death Was No Simple Act (TMF:486) - Daniel Litton
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       He will also give us a portion of his kingdom here on the earth, when he establishes it in the future. And the new heaven and new earth will be ours when he creates it. God is a God full of love, and he freely gives his gifts to anyone who will believe in Jesus. The next part of the passage states, “As many were astonished at you—his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—so shall he sprinkle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand” (Isaiah 52:14, 15, ESV). Jesus’ death in paying for our sins was no simple act. For any of you who’ve seen Mel Gibson’s ‘The Passion of the Christ,’ you can get an image, a picture, into what Jesus went through. The punishment for our sin was miserable and painful, to use human words. God spared no mercy in his punishment of Christ. Whether it was the lashings, the nails, the hanging on the cross, and humiliation of it all, whatever you consider, it was grotesque.