(Through The Bible) – Book of Isaiah (Pt.2): Zac Poonen (Transcript)

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God is very jealous. He’s a jealous husband who does not want me to rob His bride. A lot of preachers rob the bride of Christ and get married to them themselves.

So, we don’t want to do that. We want you to be united to Christ, your bridegroom, and the Holy Spirit is very jealous that you should have a personal relationship with Him, that you listen to Him, and so my duty is only to give you a little appetizer, and to give you a foretaste, and a little taste rather, of what wonderful riches are in this book, in whichever book you go to, it’s there. And to show you some of the hidden treasures here and there, so that you can go to it more in yourself, and find out a lot more that can thrill your heart in the years to come.

I’m still excited when I study the Scriptures today. We now come to CHAPTER 40. I told you this is like the New Testament portion of Isaiah. A lot of prophecies here about New Covenant life. It begins with CHAPTER 40, verse 3 to 5.

Again, I won’t have time to go into detail, but I can give you these verses, you write them down, and see what I’ve done is given you some of the most important verses in the book of Isaiah, in the last study. Here are some of the most important verses in the New Covenant section.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 40

First of all, verses 3 to 7 speaks about — 3 to 5 speaks about the ministry of John the Baptist. It’s significant that this section of Isaiah begins with how the New Covenant begins — New Testament begins.

‘A voice of one crying in the wilderness, saying “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness, make smooth the desert…,” and the way this applies to us is, Jesus is coming back a second time, like He came the first time, and like there was a John the Baptist who prepared people for the coming of the Lord. Today, you and I are the John the Baptist, the church is John the Baptist, to prepare people for the second coming of the Lord.

So our message is essentially the same as John the Baptist’s: to prepare people for the coming of the Lord. What is that? Verse 4, ‘the valley must be lifted up.’ There’s no place for you to sit down in the valley discouraged, depressed, saying ‘I’m good for nothing; I’m useless.’ Don’t keep saying that forever. You’ve got to be lifted up, be encouraged, God has accepted you. That’s the message we preach. No need to live in the dumps in the valleys. You’re a child of God, you’re a son of the King, you’re a daughter of the King. Be lifted up.

Secondly, verse 4: the mountains must be brought low. All the pride that is in you must be brought down. And the rough ground must become a plain. That means there are a lot of rough areas in your life. They have to be smoothened out and you’ve got to be gracious and gentle.

And then if you read the corresponding passage in LUKE CHAPTER 3, where this is quoted, he says ‘the crooked will become straight.’ So there are crooked things in our life. Lack of righteousness in money matters. All those crooked things must be straight.

These four things are mentioned: Valleys lifted up, mountains brought down, rough places made smooth, and crooked made straight.

AND THEN WHAT WILL HAPPEN? ‘Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed in your flesh.’ (Isa 40:5) In your flesh, people will see the glory of Jesus Christ. And that is the way we prepare people for the coming of the Lord. And that’s the message we proclaim.

‘The mouth of the Lord has spoken it, and all flesh will see the salvation of the Lord in us also.’

And then this verse Isa 40:6-7 is quoted in 1 Peter 1, verse 24 and 25: ‘All flesh is like grass.’ Please remember that. I said earlier that all flesh is like dust, which has got breath in it. Remember also that all flesh is like grass, and all the honor of men is like the flower of the grass. All the honor that you can get in the world from people. It’s only like the small teeny weeny flower that grows on some grass.

‘The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it…’ And Peter says, ‘But the word of the Lord endures forever.’

So those who have lived by the principles of God’s word will remain when all the glory of man one day is wiped out. You must always keep that in mind. Everything I see around me is all going to perish one day. If I live by the word of God, I’ll have something eternal.

Isa 40 Verse 10 and 11 speaks about the coming of the Lord. The Lord will come. His reward is with Him.

And like a shepherd, He will take care of His flock. He will carry the lambs in His bosom. (verse 11) Beautiful verse.

Verse 12 to 17 speaks about the power of God and the control He has over the whole universe. How He created everything from nothing.

And this verse, verse 13, is the verse that’s quoted in 1 Corinthians 2:16: ‘Who has taught the Holy Spirit, or as His counselor has informed Him?’ No. And it goes on to speak about (verse 17) all the nations of the earth, as being nothing before Him. They’re all regarded as less than nothing and meaningless.

We must see something of the sovereignty of God if we are to serve Him. That all the people in the world are like dust. Particularly, you know, when we go to difficult places and there are people who appear to be so powerful because they’ve got all the authority of the state behind them and they oppose us as we seek to serve the Lord. We must remember some of these verses and see the tremendous power of God.

All the people in the earth are like dust. The dust in the balance, nothing at all.

And further, in verse 22, there’s a little expression here which I want you to see. It says, it’s talking about the Lord: (verse 21) Don’t you know? Have you not heard? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth.’

600 years ago, man discovered that the sun is the center of the solar system and gradually discovered that the earth is a circle. But 2,700 years ago, Isaiah wrote it in the Bible that the earth is not flat, the earth is a circle. It’s here. I just thought I’d point out that to you, something very interesting.

And verse 26, it says, look at the one who controls the stars. He’s given them all names. See, Isaiah was given a vision of this tremendous almighty power of God, not only His holiness, but His almighty power. And I believe these are two visions of God that we must always have before us when we serve Him. One, His tremendous holiness and the other, His almighty power.

Verse 29 to 31, if this is the God we worship and serve… He will give us strength when we are weak and if we lack might, He will give us power. He will give us health to serve Him. He will give us strength to serve Him.

Verse 30: Young people will grow weary and tired. Vigorous young men will get exhausted… trying to serve the Lord. But those who wait on the Lord, what a wonderful promise, no matter what their age is, they will gain new strength. And while the young people are collapsing, these older men who wait on the Lord will mount up with eagles. They will run and they won’t get tired. They will walk and they will never become weary.

I want to encourage you from early on in your life, learn to wait upon God. Learn to, it says here, they will gain new strength or some translations say they will exchange their strength. That means, Lord, I give You my strength, You give me yours. Exchange. It’s wonderful to exchange things with the Lord. All that I have is Yours, Lord, and all that You have is mine. Like Jesus said in John 17, verse 10 and 11. So it’s good to have that type of exchange with the Lord.

Exchange our strength. Because in the Lord’s service, you need the Lord’s strength. You need the Lord’s power, even physically, to endure till the end. And sometimes we really need to trust the Lord to give us that supernatural strength from above. Resurrection power, not only in our spirit, but resurrection power in our bodies to serve the Lord so that we never get tired and even in old age, we continue to bear fruit for Him.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 41

Chapter 41 verses 8 to 18 are tremendous verses. These are verses, you know, those of us who serve the Lord. Some of these verses are fantastic, you know.

Isaiah 40 to 66, the second section of 27 chapters, has been a very precious portion of Scripture for me through many, many years.

Isaiah 49 was the chapter through which God called me to His service on the 6th of May, 1964. I remember it very vividly, very precious these passages have been. And I want to encourage all of you who serve the Lord to take these chapters very seriously. There are some tremendous promises here for those who are wholeheartedly seeking to serve God in the footsteps of that first true Servant of Jehovah, our Lord Jesus Christ.

So verses 8 to 18 speak about… I’ve chosen you, and not rejected you. (verse 9)

Verse 10: Don’t be afraid, I’m with you. What are all promises when we are in the midst of difficult situations? ‘Don’t anxiously look about you for help, I’m your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My right hand.’

verse 11: All those who are angry with you, will be ashamed and dishonored. Those who fight with you will become as nothing, they will perish. verse 12: You will look for those who quarrel with you, but you won’t find them. Those who make war with you will become nothing and non-existent one day.

Verse 13: ‘Because I am the Lord your God, I hold your right hand. I say to you, ‘Don’t fear, I will help you.’

Verse 14: ‘You’re a worm, but don’t be afraid, I’ll help you.’

And even though you’re so weak, I’m going to make you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges (verse 15), because the Word of God, the two-edged sword, is in your mouth. And you will thresh these mighty mountains to pieces, pulverize them, you’ll make the hills like chaff.

verse 16: And you will rejoice in the Lord your God.

Take it to heart, dear brothers and sisters who seek to serve the Lord. Apply it to yourself and claim it in Jesus’ name.

Verse 17 and 18: When the afflicted and needy… God is always interested in the poor. Are you poor? Are you needy? God is interested in you. And you’re seeking for water, seeking for the Holy Spirit. When your tongue is parched, say, Oh God, I cannot live without the power of the Holy Spirit… I, the Lord, will answer them.

Verse 18: I will open rivers in their lives, springs in the midst of their lives. I’ll make their life like a pool of water, and the dry life will become like a fountain of water.

I thank God for the tremendous blessing and encouragement verses like this have been to me for nearly 40 years. I pass them on to you.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 42

Chapter 42 speaks about the servant who is anointed by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is one of the main themes of the New Testament, and the Holy Spirit is also one of the main themes of Isaiah 40 to 66. Okay.

Behold, My Servant… is referring to Jesus Christ and applies to us also, whom I uphold. A true servant of God is upheld by God, not by American money or Christian organizations, or by any such thing. It’s by the Lord. He’s the one who should uphold you. You may get your money from any source. That’s not the point, but don’t depend on it.

Uphold means what are you dependent on? We must be dependent on the Lord alone. That’s very important.

And when you come to that place of helplessness, God will put His Spirit upon you. You see, it’s the helpless person who depends on the Lord, who is trusting God, upon whom the Spirit comes.

And look at this lovely verse, which refers to Jesus. Verse 3: a bruised reed. First of all, verse 2, He will not cry out or raise His voice in the streets. Beautiful verse. It’s quoted in Matthew chapter 12, verse 19, I think. He will not make His voice heard in the streets.

A bruised reed He will not break. That means a discouraged person He will not discourage him further. He’ll encourage him and heal that broken reed and that wick of a candle will just about to die out, He won’t just put it away. He’ll blow it and make it into a flame.

So God is interested in weak believers. God is interested in those who are discouraged and depressed. He wants to lift up their spirits. And if you’re a true servant of the Lord, wherever you go, you’ll have a ministry of encouragement, lifting up the spirits of people who are depressed and people who feel, well, I can’t do anything for the Lord. You’ll stir them up and say, God’s not going to break a bruised reed. He’s not going to blow out that burning wick. Please seek for such a ministry because everywhere in our churches, people need it.

Verses 5 to 8, the Lord who created the heavens says, I have called You in righteousness, verse 6.

Verse 7: I have called You to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon.

And one thing, please remember all your life, very, very, very important verse, verse 8, the Lord says, I will never give My glory to another person. Don’t ever take glory to yourself. That is like stealing. It’s like going into somebody’s room and stealing his property. It’s like taking somebody’s purse and taking out money from his purse. To take glory to yourself, which belongs to God, is a very, very serious crime. God will use you, He’ll bless you, He’ll do many things for you, but He’ll never give His glory to you. Once you start touching the glory of God, you will destroy yourself. Once you start taking honor to yourself, once you start promoting yourself before people, drawing people to yourself instead of to the Lord, once you start claiming credit for what you did instead of what God did, you’re on very dangerous ground. This is how many people have lost the anointing.

Verse 19 and 20, I want to interpret this for you, perhaps in a different way than usually accepted. You could take it a sarcasm, saying ‘Who’s blind but My servant,’ but it appears as though it’s referring to Jesus. And if that is the case, My servant in verse 1 is definitely Jesus.

And when it says ‘Who is blind but My servant,’ What does that mean? Was Jesus blind? Who is deaf like My messenger? Who is so blind as the one who is at peace with Me totally? So blind as the servant of the Lord?

This is not sarcasm. A true servant of God must be blind and deaf to many things. That means, verse 20, you see many things but you don’t observe them. You don’t go looking for sin in people. You don’t go looking for things to judge. You don’t go listening to catch somebody on some word that he said.

You know the Pharisees were like that, always listening to catch Jesus in some word. And there are some people who like that, always waiting to catch somebody in some word, because they are jealous of his ministry. Don’t be like that. Be deaf. Be blind to a lot of things in the world. That means you heard that somebody said a bad story about you. Supposing you were deaf and I come and tell you this is what somebody is telling about you. You can’t hear a thing. Be like that.

Isn’t it good for a servant of God to be blind when he’s tempted by pretty women? Who is blind like My servant? Who is deaf like My messenger? A tremendous challenge. You have eyes which you don’t look. You have ears which you don’t want to hear all that. Because you don’t want to judge by your eyes what your eyes tell you or what your ears tell you. It’s got a connection with what we saw in ISAIAH 11.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 43

Okay, we go to chapter 43 verses 1 to 5. Tremendous promise again. ‘Don’t fear, I have redeemed you.’

Verse 2: When you pass through the waters, I’ll be with you. When you pass through difficult situations, rivers, they won’t overflow you. When you walk through the fire, it will not hurt you. Nor will the flame burn you. Another tremendous promise.

For I am the Lord your God, you are precious in My sight.

It says in verse 3, the last part, I gave Egypt for your ransom. To us, He says, I gave the blood of My Son for your ransom. Therefore, you are precious in My eyes.

Verse 5, Don’t be afraid. Do you know the number of times in Isaiah this word comes? Fear not, fear not, fear not. The word that Jesus frequently spoke to His disciples. Fear not, fear not, fear not, fear not, fear not. A word I tell you in the days to come in India, the word that God’s servants need to hear is this: Fear not; I am with you, says the Lord.

That’s why I would encourage all of you to really seriously take these 27 chapters of Isaiah. I believe it has a word, a prophetic word for the times in which we are living in India today.

Verses 10 to 12, ‘You are My witnesses,’ says the Lord.

I am the Lord, there is no savior beside Me.

Verse 12: you are My witnesses.

Verse 18 and 19, Don’t think about your past life. Forget it. Forgetting the things that are behind. Put it behind you, I will do something new. I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Look ahead, don’t worry about your past failures. Isaiah is tremendously encouraging, these are prophecies of comfort. Like the previous, first section was prophecies of judgment from the throne of the Lord. Here are prophecies of comfort from the Lamb who was slain.

And verse 25, I am the one who wipes out your transgressions and I will not remember your sins anymore. A new covenant promise.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 44

Chapter 44, verse 3, a promise for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. It’s all new covenant stuff here. I’ll pour water on the thirsty ground; I’ll pour My Spirit on you and your children and My blessing on your descendants.

You know, these are promises of God, 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, all the promises of God are Yes and Amen in Christ. So we can claim these promises in Jesus’ name. This is a new covenant book for us today.

Okay, and we come to chapter 44 and verse 8, ‘don’t tremble, don’t be afraid.’ Again that, don’t be afraid. You are My witnesses. Is there any God beside Me? Why are you worried about these people who worship idols?

And then it speaks about the folly of idolatry in the remaining verses.

And then in verse 21, it says, you are My servant, I have formed you, you will never be forgotten by Me. Sometime when you’re serving the Lord in some lonely place and everybody’s forsaken you because you are true to the Lord, remember this promise, you will not be forgotten by Me. Sometimes when you think your prayers are not heard and it looks as if God has forgotten all about you, take this promise to heart: you will not be forgotten by Me.

CHAPTER 45

And further, in verse 26 to chapter 45, verse 6, is a prophecy about King Cyrus 150 years before Cyrus came on the scene, and took over the leadership of the kingdom of Medo-Persia after the Babylonian empire, Isaiah prophesied about his coming by name.

Verse 1, Thus says the Lord to Cyrus…

Isaiah 44:28: I say to Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd.’ It’s an amazing passage that refers to something that Cyrus would tell the Jews to go back and build the temple. We saw that in the book of Ezra.

Two hundred years before the temple was built, Isaiah before the captivity, before the Babylonian empire was destroyed, speaks of the kingdom that’s going to come after Babylon and names the ruler of that kingdom: Cyrus.

Okay, we go on to 45 and verse 8. Let the heavens drip down, let the clouds pour down righteousness.

And verse 9, Woe unto the man who quarrels with his Maker. Don’t argue with God in the way He deals with you.

Verse 9, an earthenware vessel, that’s what we are. Can the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’ The basic meaning of this verse is, humble yourself in all the dealings God is taking you through. He takes you through difficult situations, humble yourself. He’s molding you into a vessel and don’t criticize Him. And when God is making you, don’t say, what are You doing?

And it speaks here, I think this has got reference to our situation in India where, you know, in many parts of India there are parents who do not like a girl baby. They always want boys. And there are sad cases where girl babies are left at the doorsteps of some orphanage or thrown in the garbage bin and even killed sometimes.

Here’s a verse for such people, verse 10. Woe, there’s a curse on the one who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’ or to a woman, ‘What are you giving birth to?’ Is this a girl? I wanted a boy. And the Lord says there’s a curse on people who speak like that or even if it’s a retarded child. We have no right to kill a retarded child because it’s retarded. A retarded child can make us people of great compassion if the Lord decides to give us a child like that.

Don’t say, what are you begetting? Don’t do an abortion. This is a verse against abortions. Okay, that’s just in passing.

Then verse 17, the last part is a beautiful verse: You will not be put to shame or humiliated to all eternity. That means in an eternal way. Jesus was humiliated and we’ll be humiliated that way. But from the eternal standpoint, we will never be put to shame, we will never be humiliated if we follow the Lord. It’s full of encouragement.

That’s why I tell you when you’re discouraged, go to ISAIAH CHAPTER 40 TO 66. At least you know where to turn in the Bible. Almost any chapter you’ll find something that encourages you.

And verse 22, ‘Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; I’m God, there is none else.’ I’m just giving you the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle. You can put it in place and see the beautiful picture that finally comes out.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 46

Okay, chapter 46 verse 4 is a beautiful verse. As you grow older, and those of you who are older… even to your old age, the Lord says, I will be the same. I don’t grow old, says the Lord. Even when your hairs become gray, I shall carry you. I have done it. Or in other words, I created you, I made you, and I will carry you. I will bear you. I will deliver you.

To whom can you liken Me and make Me equal and compare Me with?

The Lord says, the contrast here is, it’s a very humorous contrast. Idols… people have to carry their gods. You… I carry you. That’s the contrast.

Do you carry your god or does your God carry you? That’s the question. That’s the contrast in this chapter. And the Lord says, even if you’re an old man, I’ll carry you till the very end and keep My anointing upon your life.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 47

Chapter 47 verse 8 refers to Babylon again. It says, I will not sit as a widow, verse 8. This is quoted in Revelation 18, verse 7: I’m a queen. I won’t have any problems. A comfortable Christianity that does not know God, that does not walk in humility.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 48

Chapter 48 verse 10: ‘Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For My own sake, I will act, for how can My name be profaned? And again that word, ‘My glory, I will never give to another person.’ Verse 11. In case you missed it the first time, the Lord reminds you a second time. Don’t touch His glory.

And when you go through affliction, take this verse. I’m refining you better than silver. I’m testing you in the furnace of affliction. I’m testing you to see whether you’re faithful. It’s not going to be forever. You don’t put gold in the fire forever. The gold is put in the fire, purified, and then it hangs around, you know, sits on the crown of some king or hangs around the neck of some queen. It doesn’t stay in the fire forever. And you also, one day, God will take you up and make you part of His crown, but now He has to purify the gold. Okay, and He does it for His own sake. Verse 11.

Then verse 15. I have spoken.

Verse 16. Come near. Listen to this. I have not spoken in secret. From the time it took place, now the Lord has sent Me, and His spirit.

Verse 17: I am the Lord who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way that you should go.

If only you had listened to My commandments, paid attention to them, your well-being would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

And when the Lord leads us, it says in verse 21, they did not thirst even when they went through the deserts, and He made the water to flow from the rock.

verse 22: But for the wicked, there is no peace.

Now these nine chapters… ISAIAH 40 TO 48, are prophecies of deliverance in various situations.

And now we come to CHAPTER 49 TO 57, where we have specific prophecies about the Messiah, about Jesus, and it applies to us also.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 49

Chapter 49 is a wonderful chapter. It’s been a tremendous chapter for me, as I told you earlier for the last 36 years. I don’t have time to go into it all.

Think of verse 2: He has made My mouth like a sharp sword. When we speak God’s word, we speak like a sharp sword. At the same time, we also speak words of comfort. In the shadow of His hand, He has concealed me. He has hidden me in His quiver.

He speaks of discouragement here in verse 4. The servant of God can be discouraged sometimes. Lord, I wasted my life. I have not spent my strength usefully. And the Lord says, don’t worry. I’m going to use you. verse 6: I’m going to make You a light to the nations.

And there’s a beautiful verse here in 14 to 15.

Can a woman forget her nursing child? Verse 15. You say, I have forsaken you. Can a woman forget to have compassion on the son of her womb?

See, when God wants to compare His love with human love, the best example He can get on earth is the example of a mother’s love for a child. That’s why He doesn’t say, can a husband forget his wife? Husbands may forget their wives. Can a wife forget her husband? Wife may definitely forget her husband. But a mother, mother forgetting the child just born? Impossible. He takes that example as the greatest example of love on earth. Can a woman forget her child?

Even they may forget, but I will not forget you. Remember that verse all your life because, verse 16, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands. When Jesus looks at the palms of His hands and He sees the hole there, He thinks of you. That’s a great verse.

And verse 23, the last part has been a tremendous encouragement to me through many, many years: Those who hopefully wait for Me will never be put to shame. Praise God. You come to the Lord and you say, Lord, I’m trusting You for this thing according to Your word. You will never in your life be put to shame.

Isaiah 49 and verse 25, I will feed your enemies with their own flesh. And the last part, sorry, sorry, verse 25, the captives of the mighty will be taken away. And those who fight with you, I will fight with them. And those who fight with your children, I will fight with them and I will save your children.

For those of us who are married, who have got children, who are facing problems, here is a tremendous verse: I will save your sons. Take it before the Lord and claim it.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 50

Okay, we go to chapter 50 and verse 4 to 9 is a very clear promise about prophecy about Jesus. And it says about Jesus that He had a very disciplined tongue. The servant of God must have a disciplined tongue and a tongue by which He can sustain a weary person with a word.

In Chapter 49, we saw that His mouth was like a sharp sword, verse 2.

But here in Isaiah 50:4, it is not only like a sharp sword that cuts people: you serpents, you generation of vipers; it is also a tongue that encourage people: Go in peace, your sins are forgiven. Neither do I condemn you, go in sin no more.

He knew how to sustain a weary person with a word. The tongue of a servant of God must be sharp to denounce sin and comforting to those who are sorrowful for their sin.

verse 4: And Jesus woke up morning by morning to listen. I have been emphasizing listening. He says His ear was awake to listen to what the Father had to say. And when He heard something, He was not disobedient. He did His Father’s will, even if it involved…

verse 5, He was not disobedient. Verse 6, even if it involved other people slapping Him, other people hitting Him on the back, other people spitting on Him, He did not turn back.

Is this disgraceful that people are spitting on you, verse 7? I am not disgraced, because He says the Lord is with me. What does it matter if people spit on me, if My Father is with Me?

Therefore, even if they spit on me, I have set My face like a flint, verse 7, not to take revenge on them, not to threaten them, forgive them, bless them and press on. And I know I will not be ashamed. Verse 7 Very good verses for us to think of in the coming days,

Verse 8: Because the one who vindicates Me is near Me. And who will fight with Me? Let us stand together. Have you got a case against Me? You want to take me to court?

Verse 9: Come. The Lord God will help Me. Who is there, the one trying to accuse Me and condemn Me? They will all wear out like a garment.

Verses 10 and 11 are also important. When you fear the Lord and you obey the voice of His servant, it is possible that sometimes you do not have light. The Lord does not give you light. You have to move in darkness. verse 10. What should you do in times of darkness?

There is a beautiful expression I heard as a young man, which I have never forgotten: Never doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light. Never doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light.

Supposing somebody has given me a 100 rupee note. In the clear light I see it is a 100 rupee note. I put it in my pocket and then it is night. And then at night I say, have I got any money? And I wonder and I pick it out and it is pitch dark. Is this really 100 rupees? I have my doubts because I cannot see at all. You saw it in the light. Why do you have doubts about it now?

Never doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light. There are times when the light is bright, when you are encouraged. God shows you something, believe that. There are other times of pressure, discouragement. Don’t doubt what He showed you in the light. And at that time, don’t try to create your own fire, like Nadab and Abihu in Leviticus 10.

Behold, all you who kindle your own fire and you make your own fire instead of waiting for God. You know the darkness has come and you try to make your own fire. No, no, no. If you do that, you will lie down in torment. Let God in His own time, that means don’t try to defend yourself. God will defend you.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 51

Chapter 50 we saw; now we go to chapter 51. It says here, verse 1: those who seek the Lord, those who pursue righteousness, look to the rock from which you were hewn and the quarry from which you were dug. That means never, never forget what you were before you were converted. What a sinner you were, what a good for nothing person you were. You were out in the quarry, in a pit, don’t ever forget that.

I want to tell all of you till the end of your life, never forget, then you won’t despise other people, you won’t look down on other people. Never forget what you were when the Lord picked you up.

And then verse 7, listen to Me, you who know righteousness, don’t fear the reproach of men, don’t be afraid of their revilings.

And verse 12, I am the one who comforts you. Why are you afraid of man who dies and the son of man who is just like grass?

Verse 16, I have put My words in your mouth, I have covered you with the shadow of My hand. You must go to the church, to Zion and say, You are My people, don’t be afraid. When you are encouraged yourself, you can encourage others.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 52

Chapter 52, verse 7, first of all verse 5, the last part, My name is blasphemed among the heathen the whole day long.’ It is very true of India, the name of Jesus is dishonored in India, not because of the heathen but because of the way Christians are living, the way Christians fight with each other. India has not rejected Christ, India has rejected the Christ they have seen in Christians, which is not the true Christ. That is what I go everywhere saying: India has not rejected Christ, India has rejected the Christ they have seen among Christians, the name of the Lord is blasphemed because of the way we Christians have lived, but now we are called to proclaim a new message.

Verse 7, How lovely on the mountains are the feet — evangelists. This is a message for evangelists. How lovely on the mountains are the feet of those who proclaim the gospel. Good news means gospel… who announce peace, bring the gospel of happiness and say to Zion, ‘Your God is reigning.’

Remember this, the good news is not just that Jesus died, but also that Jesus is reigning. That is the good news spoken here, who say to Zion, Your God is reigning. Jesus Christ is Lord of heaven and earth. That is the gospel we are to proclaim.

And then it says about Jesus on the cross, verse 13 and 14, that when Jesus died on the cross, His face was so marred that it did not look, verse 14, like the face of a human being.

You know, you see these beautiful pictures of Jesus hanging on the cross: He was not like that. It was blood flowing all over, whipped, whipped, whipped. There were stripes and scars and blood flowing everywhere, all over His body. I’ve hardly ever seen a realistic picture of Jesus hanging on the cross. All of them looked so beautiful. He wasn’t beautiful to look at at all, I’ll tell you.

He was the most beautiful person that walked on the earth, but when He hung on the cross, it was so marred that it says, it did not look like the face of a human being.

CHAPTER 53 is the central chapter of this section, right in the middle. It speaks about, it says, Who has believed our message? Who can believe that this is the way the Messiah will come? Not with power, but like a root out of a dry ground.

verse 2: He grew up before His Father… the secret of His life. He didn’t grow up before men. He grew up before His Father. He had no appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was not attractive. The message of the gospel is not attractive. Christ was not accepted by the world in the first century. He’s not accepted by the world in the 20th century. No, the Christ that people accept is a false Christ, not the real one. Not the real one who speaks against sin. Not the real one who speaks against the love of money. Not the real one who says you’ve got to love your enemies. That Christ is not accepted even today.

There is another Christ, a conglomeration of various scriptures put together, and you form a Christ which is not the real one.

Verse 3: The real one, even today, is despised, forsaken, rejected. And if you’re a servant and a follower of this Christ, I tell you in Jesus’ name, you will be rejected. You’ll be rejected by Christendom. You’ll be despised, just like Jesus was. It’s not the Greeks and Romans who despised Him. It’s the Pharisees, the fundamentalists. It’ll be the same today, but who has believed our message? Who wants to listen to such a message?

All these wonderful things you heard till now, you get so excited. And now we come to the way of the cross, but they go together. You cannot follow Jesus and just get comfort. You have to go this way of being rejected, despised by men.

He carried our griefs. And it says here, you know, this is all about the cross. You know it. He took our sins. He was oppressed and afflicted. He did not open His mouth.

Notice it says here three times in verse 7. He did not open His mouth. He was silent. He did not open His mouth. Christians must know how to open their mouth and shout at a time of praise. And how to keep their mouth shut when they are insulted, criticized, slandered. Jesus knew how to praise His Father. He also knew, according to this verse, how to be silent.

Unfortunately, many Christians do not know how to shout and praise the Lord. But they do know how to shout and defend themselves when somebody accuses them. They got it all upside down.

Jesus shouted when He was praising the Lord and He was quiet when people accused Him. That is the right way. Okay?

We read about: the Lord was pleased to crush Him verse 10. And therefore He will see His seed, verse 11. And He was numbered with the transgressors.

verse 10, sorry, He will see His seed and prolong His days. A result will come out of that. Prolong His days means He will be resurrected. And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

Now this is the way for us to go also. He was numbered with the transgressors, verse 12. That means people will misunderstand us and put us in the same category as sinners.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 54

Chapter 54, verse 4, 5 and 6. A word for widows. The Lord is your husband. And don’t be afraid, you will not — you will forget the shame of your youth and the reproach of your widowhood.

And verse 10, My covenant of peace will not move from you, My loving kindness will not be removed.

Verse 13, another wonderful promise for parents. I remember when my wife and I were married, before we had children, we had this promise: All your sons will become disciples of the Lord and the well-being of your sons will be great. She got it independently, I got it independently and I believe it’s a wonderful promise for all parents. This is a promise for parents. In Jesus’ name, take it and say, Lord, I want all my children to be taught by the Lord, discipled by the Lord, made disciples of the Lord. And their spiritual well-being must be great. It doesn’t mean that your children will never get sick. It doesn’t mean that your children will not have the struggles that teenagers and those in their youth go through. But ultimately they’ll come through, have that faith, parents, and cling on to it.

And if anyone fiercely fights with you, they will fall verse 15.

And then this wonderful promise to all servants of the Lord in verse 17: No weapon formed against you will ever prosper. Oh, I have praised the Lord for that promise for more than 35 years. I believe that no weapon formed against me will ever prosper if I walk in humility in serving God.

And every tongue that accuses me will be condemned one day verse 17. Jesus was accused, Paul was accused, Peter was accused. If you follow the Lord, you’ll be accused. People may believe those accusations. Let them believe it. One day God will shut their mouths and vindicate you.

Their vindication is from Me. Don’t try to defend yourself. Follow this principle. I’ve been greatly encouraged to follow that all these years of my life. When people accuse me and say all types of false things, the Lord says, Keep your mouth shut. Let them believe what they like. Let them believe you’re the devil himself. Let them believe you’re a false prophet. Keep your mouth shut. Let them believe you’re teaching wrong things. One day I will vindicate you. I will show the world.

Are you willing to listen to that? If you want to truly serve the Lord, don’t think that you can escape being accused falsely. You go and you’ll hear stories spread about you. Remember this verse at that time. Live before God’s face and leave it to God to defend you.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 55

Chapter 55, an invitation, the preaching of the gospel. Come and listen. Come and buy freely the gospel message.

And verse 8 and 9, the Lord says, My thoughts are not your thoughts; My ways are not your ways. As the heavens are higher, so are My thoughts higher than your thoughts. Teaching us that we have to learn God’s ways.

Verse 11, My word that goes forth out of My mouth, says the Lord, will never return empty. Listen to what God is saying and speak it. That word will never come back empty. Don’t just speak your bright ideas from your head. Speak God’s word.

All my spoken ministry through these years, I’ve always spoken from the Bible. And again and again referred people to the Bible because this word is more important than my word. Be a man of the book. Be a man of the Bible in your preaching.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 56

Chapter 56, and it’s speaking about the Sabbath. And it speaks there about the importance of the Sabbath. And for us, it applies in Hebrews 4. I’ll come to that when we go to Hebrews about coming into rest.

And the Lord, this verse 7 is quoted by Jesus in Mark 11:17: My house should be called a house of prayer for all people. Don’t ever turn the church into a place of business where you make money for yourself. It’s a house of prayer. A lot of people have turned Christian work into a place of making money for themselves. Just like those people in the temple and Jesus is going to turn them out one day.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 57

Chapter 57, verse 1, Godly people are perishing and no one is taking it seriously. Where are the godly people? So difficult to find godly people. Devout men are taken away. Righteous men are taken away. We need to be concerned.

Verse 15, the Lord says, I dwell in two places. I dwell in heaven and I dwell in the heart of a humble person. There are only two places where God lives. One is in heaven and the other is in the heart of a humble lowly person. If you want God dwelling in your heart, you’ve got to be humble and lowly.

And verse 19 to 21, the Lord says, peace, peace to those who are far and near. This is quoted in Ephesians 2:17 as saying that Jew and Gentile are brought together.

But the wicked are like the troubled sea, always bringing up mud from the bottom. Those who keep on bringing up old matters and causing quarrels are wicked people. They never have peace.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 58

Chapter 58 speaks about the true fast. Verse 7: The right type of fast where we share our bread with the hungry, care for the poor and the naked.

verse 9, last part: And where we stop pointing our finger at other people, accusing them.

verse 11: And if we give ourselves to the hungry, the Lord will — first of all, your light will arise in darkness. And the Lord will guide you. And it says He will give strength to your bones. You will be healed and you’ll be like a spring of water whose waters fail not.

If you stop accusing other people, be concerned about the poor and don’t make fasting a ritual.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 59

Chapter 59, verse 1, the reason the Lord doesn’t hear is because of your sins. He can hear, but your sins have separated you, verse 2.

Verse 16, the Lord is astonished that there are no intercessors.

Verse 19, from the east… it says here in one translation, it says, when the enemy comes in like a flood, the King James Version says, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a banner against him.

Verse 21, the Spirit I put upon you will rest upon your children as well.

ISAIAH CHAPTER 60

Chapter 60: Arise, shine, your light has come, the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

And CHAPTER 61 is the chapter that Jesus quoted in the synagogue in Nazareth. We’ll see it again when we come to that chapter. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me to set people free.

I want you to notice one thing, verse 2, the favorable year of the Lord, 365 days, and the day of vengeance, one day. God’s proportion of grace and vengeance is 365 to 1, a year of favor and grace, one day of vengeance. That’s a great encouragement for us to know that.

And CHAPTER 62, verse 3 and 4, speaks about our marriage to the Lord and we will not be forsaken.

And those who are intercessors, it says in verse 6 and 7, don’t rest until the Lord makes Jerusalem, the church, a praise in our land. Don’t ever give up. Keep on seeking the Lord until the Lord makes the church a glorious place, a glorious thing in this land.

CHAPTER 63, verse 8 to 10 says, in all our affliction, He was also afflicted and the angel of His presence saved them verse 9. But in those days, they grieved His Holy Spirit and that’s a warning for us.

CHAPTER 64, a prayer for revival, verse 1.

verse 4 is quoted in 1 Corinthians 2, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, the wonderful things God has prepared for those, here it says, those who wait for Him, 1 Corinthians 2 says, those who love Him. To love Him is to wait for Him. When you compare Scripture with Scripture, you see that those who love Him wait for Him, but 1 Corinthians 2 says, but the Holy Spirit has revealed these things to us.

ISAIAH 64:6, our righteousness, our good deeds are like filthy rags, no use bringing them before the Lord.

ISAIAH 65, verse 5, don’t be like those proud people who look down on others and say, I am holier than you. Such people are a stench in God’s nostrils, like fire going into God’s nose. He detests people who are Pharisaical like this and look down on others.

And verse 24, before they call, I will answer, wonderful promise for prayer. While they are yet speaking, I will hear.

ISAIAH 66, verse 1 and 2, if you want the Lord to come and look at you, it says here, last part of verse 2, be one who is humble and broken and who trembles at the word of God. God looks at those who read His word and tremble at it.

Verse 5, Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at His word. Let your brothers hate you, let your brothers exclude you. The Lord will be glorified in you.

Verse 13, the Lord says, as a mother comforts her children. Again, it is like a mother, not like a husband or wife. You will be comforted.

And finally, verse 19 to 23 says about the day when the Lord will come, there will be, verse 22, new heavens and new earth are there, those who are of Abraham’s spiritual seed will have eternal life forever.

But it speaks about hell in the last verse, about the worm that does not die and the fire that is not quenched.

Wonderful book, a new covenant book. I put a few pieces of the jigsaw puzzle for you. Please put the rest of it and see the glory of the Lord in this book.

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, help us to be encouraged and challenged by the ministry of Your prophet Isaiah, even today. In Jesus’ name we ask. Amen.

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