my burg

"I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God." (Revelation 3:1b-2 ESV)  "Deliver us Lord, from the formalities that do not have reality. We pray that we may truly have the kind of spiritual reality that we confess in our faith in Jesus Christ." (S. Lewis Johnson, prayer) A group of us are studying through Jesus' words to the seven churches of Revelation (Rev chaps 2-3). We have found the messages given by Dr. Lewis Johnson back in the late-1980s at Believers Chapel (Dallas, TX) to be especially helpful. Following are some excerpts from his message regarding the church at Sardis:  "One of the things that the Christian church must contend with is the fact that it is offensive to the world when it is being true to the word of God. And really, as one of my old teachers used to like to say, 'It is a terrib...

Bible reading for weekend Oct 22 -- 24 Oct 22 -- Daniel 7 and Psalms 114-115 Oct 23 -- Daniel 8 and Psalm 116 Oct 24 -- Daniel 9 and Psalm 117-118 ================   "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed." (Daniel 7:13-14) THE BEASTS (ch 7). The four beasts are four empires in succession -- Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek (Alexandrian), and Roman. Some liberal scholars date the writing of the book of Daniel after these events because they cannot believe a Jewish prophet could possibly predict world empires so accurately, including the breakup of Alexander's empire into four smaller, regional empires. These four beasts a...

  Bible reading for weekend Aug 13 -- 15 Aug 13 -- Jeremiah 41 and Psalm 17 Aug 14 -- Jeremiah 42 and Psalm 18 Aug 15 -- Jeremiah 43 and Psalm 19 ================    "Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Do not fear him, declares the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in your own land."  (Jeremiah 42:11-12) YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE (ch 41-43) . These chapters are an historical postlude to the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. The newly-appointed governor, Gedaliah, is murdered by Ishmael and his companions, incited by the Ammonites. Captives are taken. Johanan, a Jewish leader, intervenes and defeats Ishmael, frees the captives, but they now face the problem of what the Babylonian authorities may do. The people ask Jeremiah to pray for them, which he does, and the Lord gives promise of safety for them in the land and calls them to trust in...

Bible reading for weekend June 18--20 Jun 18 -- Isaiah 50 and Revelation 20 Jun 19 -- Isaiah 51 and Revelation 21 Jun 20 -- Isaiah 52 and Revelation 22 ================    "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, 'Your God reigns.'" (Isaiah 52:7) THE REJECTED SERVANT (ch 50) . "The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.  The Lord GOD has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious; I turned not backward.  I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting" (vv 4-6). Perhaps this referred to Isaiah's ministry to the Jews, but more likely in light of chapter 53 this is another foreshadowing of ...

  Bible reading for June 16-- 17 Jun 16 -- Isaiah 48 and Revelation 18 Jun 17 -- Isaiah 49 and Revelation 19 ================    "It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth." (Isaiah 49:6) PEACE LIKE A RIVER (ch 48). We continue to read of Israel's hypocrisy, obstinacy, and idolatry (vv 1-8). God sends the prophets who reveal his words and what is to come (vv 5-8). The Lord for his own sake, and for the sake of his name, restrains and withholds judgment (vv 9-11). Bible expositors hold various opinions as to whether verse 16 is an allusion to God's triune nature or not. God's desire is that his people be trusting, joyful, and obedient (cf Titus 2:11-14). There is no peace for the wicked (v 22), but for those who pay attention to his commandments, "Then your peace would have been ...

Bible reading for June 14 -- 15 Jun 14 -- Isaiah 46 and Revelation 16 Jun 15 -- Isaiah 47 and Revelation 17 ================    "...remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,'"... (Isaiah 46:9-10) GOD'S PURPOSE (ch 46). Idols are useless. Bel and Nebo, Babylonian gods, are themselves only heavy idols carried off into captivity. Idols are burdens which must be picked up and carried about, but it is God who carries Israel (vv 3-4). Only God can save. Only God can bring his righteousness to us. It is only God who speaks eternal truth and unfailingly brings his plans to pass. "I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it" (v 11). The Scriptures reveal to us again and again that history unfolds "according t...

  Bible reading for weekend June 11-- 13 Jun 11 -- Isaiah 43 and Revelation 13 Jun 12 -- Isaiah 44 and Revelation 14 Jun 13 -- Isaiah 45 and Revelation 15 ================    "...that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other." (Isaiah 45:6) MAGNIFICENT MONOTHEISM (ch 43). These chapters in Isaiah are breath-taking. He is the only God (cf Deut 6:4). "I am he" (vv 10, 13, 25) reflects the divine name, "I am who I am" (Exod 3:14). "There is none besides me" (45:6, 21). There is no other god. Therefore, those who trust and obey him need fear no thing, nothing (vv 1, 5; 44:2). God's people are created for his glory (vv 7, 21). Israel shall return from exile, and here specifically, the return from Babylonian captivity is in view (v 14). Because he is the only God he also is the only one who can deal with our sins and forgive us (v 25; cf 44:22). WHO IS LIKE G...

Bible reading for June 9 -- 10 Jun 9 -- Isaiah 41 and Revelation 11 Jun 10 -- Isaiah 42 and Revelation 12 ================    "Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations."  (Isaiah 42:1) "DO NOT FEAR" (ch 41). A recurring theme is that there is no other God, and he is sovereign over history. He is the one who determines the future, "calling the generations from the beginning" (v 4). He is the First and Last (Rev 1:17; 22:13). Idols, and other gods, are no gods at all. They cannot tell the future nor determine the future. Idolatry is any wrong concept of God, or anything we deem of ultimate value which takes the place of God as the center of our lives. Usually, it is something we can see (or manufacture) that becomes our main security and source of pleasure -- it may be actual idols, or it may be false hopes of deliverance, whether in money or possessions (...

Bible reading for weekend June 4 -- 6 Jun 4 -- Isaiah 36 and Revelation 6 Jun 5 -- Isaiah 37 and Revelation 7 Jun 6 -- Isaiah 38 and Revelation 8 ================    "So now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the LORD." (Isaiah 37:20) HISTORICAL INTERLUDE (ch 36). Chapters 36 and 37 demonstrate that what Isaiah prophesied actually came to pass. The pre-siege negotiations begin. The Rabshakeh, referring to the chief representative of the Assyrian army, dissuades the people of Jerusalem from trusting in Egypt for deliverance (good advice), and also not to trust the Lord, the God of Israel, to rescue them (bad advice). The Assyrians are mocking the God of Israel as just another regional god who would fall at the hands of their mighty men. "Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their lands out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?" (v 20). Hezekiah's trus...

  Bible reading for June 2 -- 3 Jun 2 -- Isaiah 34 and Rev 4 Jun 3 -- Isaiah 35 and Rev 5 ================    "And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." (Isaiah 35:10) RECAP. We are coming to the end of what some call the first "book" of Isaiah, which focuses primarily on God's judgment upon Israel and Judah in the late eighth century BC. There will be an historical interlude in chapters 36 to 39, recording how the Lord delivered Jerusalem (under King Hezekiah) from the Assyrian siege in 701 BC. In chapter 40 we will begin what is called the "book of comfort". More on that later. These last two chapters (34 and 35) poetically describe the judgment upon the nations and the restoration of Israel. In both of these chapters we are viewing the "mountain peaks" of prophecy, where the near events (As...

  Bible reading for May 31 -- June 1 May 31 -- Isaiah 32 and Rev 2 Jun 1 -- Isaiah 33 and Rev 3 Take some time today to pause, remember, and thank God for the many soldiers who died in military service for our country. Here's the USAF band performing Dvorak's "Going Home" at the National Cemetery in Culpeper, Virginia. ================    "Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice. Each will be like a hiding place from the wind, a shelter from the storm, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shade of a great rock in a weary land." (Isaiah 32:1-2) LOOKING FOR FEW GOOD MEN (ch 32). Don't we all long for good leadership? Good leadership in homes, in businesses, in the church, in communities, and in the nation? How much suffering and misery comes from corruption, bribery, conflicts of interest, immoral decisions, unjust laws, bribery, and favoritism.  Whether leadership is weak or overbearing, all of the people s...

  Bible reading for weekend May 28 -- 30 May 28 -- Isaiah 29 and 3 John 1 May 29 -- Isaiah 30 and Jude May 30 -- Isaiah 31 and Rev 1 ================    "For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, 'In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.' But you were unwilling..." (Isaiah 30:15) ARIEL, ARIEL (ch 29). The Lord addresses the city of Jerusalem (Ariel likely means the "lion of God"). Like the northern kingdom (Israel) the people in Judah lack discernment and are very fearful of the coming siege by Sennacherib of Assyria (c. 701 BC). Isaiah says the people will be humbled but the city would not be captured. Deliverance would come suddenly from the Lord (see Isa 37; 2 Kgs 19).  Overnight, many thousands of Assyrian soldiers would die mysteriously, perhaps by a plague sent from God. Though the remnant of God's people would glorify the Lord (v 23) many in the city were proud and unteachable. But afte...