Isaiah Chapters 43-45

43:2 - As I read this, though I know this is salvation imagery that Isaiah is using (pertaining to the suffering they will pass through to be brought back to God), my Christian perspective sees beautiful correlation to baptism. When we pass through the waters...when we are purified from sin by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we can finally be with God. The flames of the Holy Spirit of God, the all-consuming fire that rages within believers, do not burn and destroy...they temper and strengthen.

43:6 - Again, while I know Isaiah is talking about the gathering of the dispersed Jews, through my NT Christians perspective this is an uplifting passage about God's heart for the whole of the world. We know that there is only one God and we know that He has formed us all...we are all, everyone on earth, His sons and daughters...we were all created for His glory, and He is calling us all into His kingdom.

43:11 - There is nothing that can save you apart from God - nothing. You cannot ever be good enough or smart enough or strong enough to save yourself. There is no one else that can save you; do not put your faith in people. There is nothing in this world that can save you; do not live for power or posses ions or success. There is only God...throw yourself on His mercy.

43:14 and 28 - These verses seem to be in total opposition of one another. Is God the redeemer of Israel or the destroyer of Israel - which is it? My answer to that question would be - yes. God knows that it is through the punishment and suffering that He is going to inflict upon the Israelites that they will return to Him for the salvation they so desperately long for. Similar to a parents willingness to discipline their children in the NOW to help them become well-adjusted human beings in the FUTURE.

43:18-19 - It is our obsession with the past - past successes and past failures - that keeps us from seeing the new opportunities that God is putting before us day in and day out. Don't try to relive old glories - God makes all things new...God is doing a new thing in your life today...open your eyes and see what He has in store for you. Don't allow yourself to be crippled by mistakes in your past - God is our redeemer and restorer and He has created a new path for your life if you choose to take it.

43:23-24 - The people should be offering praises and sacrifices to their faithful God but instead they choose to offer something else to God. They have chosen to shame God by offering Him their sinfulness...they live boldly in their sin before God. They have chosen to offer Him their complaints...over and over that arrogantly question whether God knows what He is doing in the world. Make sure that you don't make the same mistake - offer God your heart...offer your life as a living sacrifice, instead of just offering Him your complaints.

44:6 - He is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the beginning and He is the end. Before God there was nothing. There is no such thing as "after God." There are no gods besides our one true Lord. Trust in his truth.

44:16-17 - Here Isaiah does an awesome job of describing the absurdity of idol worship. He says, "People take a tree and they cut it down. They chop up half of the wood and burn it to cook their supper. They carve the other half into and idol of a false god who they then worship. Do you expect the wooden god who is only good for fueling your fire to do something for you. The wood you carved that idol from was made by the one and only God. That is madness!" It is easy for us to look back on ancient idol worship and see the absurdity of it...we think to ourselves, wow, those were some really simple and delusional people. But take a moment and think about the things that current day people in our culture worship. Celebrities! Come on - there are few people on earth that are less worthy of our worship than spoiled, self-indulgent, promiscuous, drug/alcohol addicted celebrities - they don't need our worship they need our prayers that they can find salvation through Jesus. What else do we worship - sports (They are games!), money (Paper made from trees like the idol described above!), material goods (What is that flat screen gonna do for you when your dead!)...our form of idol worship is just as mad as theirs.

44:25 - This passage reminds me of 1 Corinthians 1:20-25. The wisdom of the world is proved foolish over and over when held up to truth of God.

45:1-8 - God calls the future king Cyrus to be His instrument of judgment in the world. Whether or not Cyrus knew that he was called it does not matter - God is in control. How amazing is it that a prophet from a powerless little country like Israel would be able to predict which world powers would crush God's people (Babylon) and which ruler would save His people (Cyrus)? In 45:3 - Isaiah says that Cyrus will come to acknowledge that God has called him and chosen to use him eventually. Check out Daniel 6:25-28...King Darius acknowledges that Daniel's God (The one and only God)is the "living God." Daniel was allowed to prophesy during the reign of Darius and his successor CYRUS, which means that Cyrus understood who God was at least in part and saw himself as an instrument of God. Prophecy fulfilled - YAY!