PSA Bible Reading Challenge 2023-2024

We could address a few topics within the Matthew reading. That means that for Isaiah I don’t have too much to say. But let’s look at Matthew. I’m going to focus on Jesus and his family. We see in both of these chapters references to brothers and in one even sisters. Look at Matthew 12:46-50 where we see that Jesus’ family is trying to get to him to speak to him. We read in other places that they look to take him home because they think he may have lost his mind. That makes sense, except for Mary who should have known who Jesus would be and what his future would be like.

We also see in Matthew 13:54ff the people of his home town, Nazareth, ask who Jesus actually is because they know his mom and his dad and his brothers and sisters and they are listed. Since we know them we should know who Jesus is as well. But he seems to be more than they understand him to be. The reason I wanted to focus on his family is that because there is a doctrine in some churches that Mary had no other children besides Jesus. That is simply not true. We see in these Scriptures alone, and there are others, where we see that Jesus has siblings and they are even named.

We once again find in the Isaiah Scriptures some of the best known and most used Scriptures. Let’s look at a few of them. Turn your attention to 40:28-31 which is used consistently in funerals to remind us that with the power of the Lord even those whom society and culture have discounted: the elderly, the weak, the feeble, God can transform them for his purposes and give them their strength back. It is a great reminder of both the resurrection and the way in which God is able to transform our present if we would just let Him.

I guess that is good enough for Isaiah. In Matthew we find Jesus who has solidified his disciple core and then immediately sends them out two by two. He has some really nice words to say about John the Baptist as well. Don’t forge that they are relatives and so it makes sense that the one who came announcing the arrival of the son of man is then praised by the son of man himself.

The story of Hezekiah is fascinating for me. He is considered the foremost reformer in the Old Testament. He turned the people away from the foreign gods, he reconstructed the temple and forbade worship of other gods in it. He also was responsible for constructing a tunnel that would bring fresh water into the city of Jerusalem. It is a tunnel that you can walk through even to this day. When we go to Israel we always walk Hezekiah’s tunnel. The Scripture that we read has both him talking to Isaiah and getting advice, and also going directly before the Lord to get advice without the mediation of Isaiah. To me that signifies someone who walked with the Lord.

In the New Testament we have a whole series of healings in which Jesus is involved. Let me just list them to you and then some of the teachings that are interspersed through these chapters. The leper, Centurion’s servant, Peter’s mother in law, many who were gathered, the demoniac with legion, paralytic, synagogue leader’s daughter, the woman with the issue of blood, the two blind men, the mute man. This is all within two chapters. There are many more but I remain convinced that as Jesus healed, so are we able to heal.

Isaiah speaks out strongly against the other nations and warns them that God will bring down his strong arm of judgment. Even though the power of God is highlighted it does seem to be less geared to the surrounding nations and more for an opportunity for Isaiah to encourage and lift up the drooping spirits of the people of God. As they see the inevitable decline and fall of all that they once held dear a good prophecy of how God will swoop in and empty out the enemies with a vengeance never hurts to lift the spirits. Chapter 35 does provide us with some verses that we have seen before and which should sound familiar. It provides a hope for the future that will be built upon the presence of the Lord in our midst. It is Emmanuel without actually saying the word.

These are Jesus’ ten commandments in Matthew 5-7. The Beatitudes, named as such because each verse in chapter 5:2-11 begins with the obligatory: “Blessed are you…” The “Blessed are you…” is the term beatitude, which means blessed in an English that we rarely use today. But the entire three chapters we find Jesus on a mountain and so it is called the sermon on the mount. I love going to this place in Israel, not so much for the church that is located marking a hypothetical spot where Jesus may have preached, but right next to it there is a field where I like to take the group and we spread out and imagine what it may have been like to hear Jesus’ words directed to us. These words in this sermon are really directives on how to live our lives.

You can’t miss the importance of the commandments that Jesus gives in these chapters. As we focus on them we see that we are able to live lives of righteousness if we would just follow what Jesus says in these three chapters. It should be an emphasis on how we live and an emphasis on how we make our decisions on who to elect into office, and it should be an emphasis on who we decide to hire. So many things in our lives, all things really, ought to be directed by these three chapters and the words that Jesus speaks in these chapters.

Once again we see a prophecy against Israel that they will be facing the worst of the worst. This is a time in the life of Israel where they are about to go into exile with the Assyrians taking them away from Israel as slaves into Assyria. But there is a group of Israelites who say that the nation should team up with Egypt and the people as a whole should flee to Egypt for safety and refuge. While they are not able to stay in the land, at least if they go to Egypt, they say, they will be protected and safe. Isaiah says no, don’t do it, you can’t rely upon Egypt and their army. In fact, we know that in history there is a group of God’s people who go down into Egypt to escape the Assyrians, and they are made slaves just like they were in the days of Moses. But the vast majority of the Israelites stayed behind and were taken away into captivity by the Assyrians.

This prophecy of destruction against the people of Israel is always a result of the disobedience of the people of Israel. They do not listen, they do not obey, they do not do justice, and they oppress the weak and the marginalized. Boy, that does sound a lot like modern day people of faith, all of us included in that condemnation. It is a sober reminder that no matter who we are and no matter what status we think we have in the eyes of God, we are always called to righteousness, the doing of God’s will in our lives.

Speaking of righteousness we find ourselves in the Gospel of Matthew with Jesus’ temptation. Jesus is tempted by the devil and passes all the tests. Of course he does, what would you expect? He then begins his ministry in the region of Galilee. We see Isaiah quoted where Jesus is portrayed as the light of the world that has come in the darkness. He then calls his disciples into ministry and he is ready to roll. Jesus begins his ministry here in this section, so we are ready for the Gospel of righteousness to begin.

We find ourselves in the thick of things with Isaiah. I do have to admit that it is that portion of Isaiah which just might be considered the most difficult read in all of Isaiah. The basic take from these sections is that God is promising a couple of things: 1) that victory is ahead of us, but it is not imminent. There are difficult roads that still need to be taken and those roads will lead to hardship and persecution and even death for the community. But victory is out there and it will take place, of that you can be assured. The second, 2) When victory comes it will be final and complete. There will be no such thing as a partial temporary victory, but a complete one where God will reign and God will demonstrate that all of the other gods that the people have worshipped are flaccid compared to the God of Israel.

A sidenote that might be interesting which we find briefly, and mentioned again in other places, is the mention of this Leviathan in chapter 27. The people of Israel were terrified of the ocean. Now, the Sea of Galilee is a big lake and certainly not the ocean, even if it was able to have some scary moments with some waves that could scare you into thinking that your boat might not make it. We know there are those stories of Jesus on the water with his disciples on the Sea of Galilee and they make it out. But the ocean, well that is something completely different and foreign to the people of Israel. Not foreign in the sense that they knew nothing about it, because there is a long coastline in Israel, but foreign in the sense that they were not an ocean going population and the ocean was the sight of scary creatures who would do battle and have a go at their very God. Leviathan is one of those mentioned who was a scary creature who needed to be defeated, a sea monster, similar to the dragons of yore. It was probably the whales that were the Leviathans, but they were considered mythical, deadly creatures.

I didn’t mention anything about Matthew. Appropriate that we have the Christmas story in Matthew for Christmas Day. Oh, Merry Christmas! There is so much to be said about the birth of Jesus and the ensuing escape from Herod and he and his family settling in Nazareth. Interesting that the location of where Jesus is born is Bethlehem. Matthew gives us a sense that Bethlehem may have been the hometown of Mary and Joseph because they seem to only settle in Nazareth when they get back from Egypt. That is not the case in Luke, so it makes it a bit interesting.

We continue along with our oracles and saying against the surrounding nations and how they will be brought low. The oracle against Tyre is interesting because bemoans the falling of a locality that was well known and was famous for its commerce, but it has been conquered. But like so many of these other oracles, certainly the ones that speak about the fall of Israel and Judah, there is hope in the final verses. Look at vs.17-18 where Tyre will once again be in the game. Even though it is described as a prostitute, it is meant to mean that she, Tyre, will be in the game again.

There are a number of verses here that remind me of the statement that haters are going to hate. Look at chapter 24 where we find a reversal of fortunes from the top to the bottom. There is also a reminder that the earth which was gifted to us back in Genesis in order for us to care for it, in chapter 24 we find that it is laid to waste. I would see this chapter as a very strong message to be careful with how we use the earth because it is the only one that the Lord has given us. When it “lies polluted under its inhabitants” (24:5) then we are at the stage that we might be at the point of no return. Just a word to the wise, like all of Scripture is.

Psalm 144 sets the stage for what we read in Isaiah. The prophet speaks about what will happen to the nations surrounding Israel and Judah (Remember, Israel was the northern kingdom and Judah was the southern kingdom, all of whom were the people of God, they were just divided after Solomon). I find it interesting that these prophecies do not hesitate to give insight into what pagan nations will experience and how those nations ought to act and react. It is not just a word for the people of God, but also for those who may not even believe in God.

Chapter 20 gives us an unfortunate object lesson of Isaiah being commanded to walk around naked for three years, as a symbol of what will happen to Egypt and Ethiopia at the hands of the Assyrians. Meaning, they will be taken out of their land after they are stripped of any significant possessions that they may have, including their clothes off their back. These verses serve as a warning to those who might rely solely upon their ability in warfare, as Psalm 144 states, because even in those skills, or maybe especially in those skills, the plans of God will still overtake you and could mean that you will be found defeated in battle. Better to trust in the Lord with all of your heart and mind and strength, than in your own strength.

Isaiah is filled with warnings to the people of Judah, promises of restoration, praise to God for his steadfast love, and warnings to the surrounding nations who have conquered Judah. These chapters are a combination of all of that. Chapter 11 gives us the vision of a peaceful kingdom that will come about once all of this foolishness is over. Once the nations have finished warring, then peace will come and God will establish his throne. But that day has not come yet. Chapter 12 is a series of praises for God’s steadfast love, even in the midst of the slavery of his people. Chapter 13 gives a warning to those invading countries, Babylon specifically, that their hegemony will not last. Chapter 14 promises the restoration of Judah and another warning against Babylon and 15 finishes with a similar warning to Moab.

These are typical chapters in Isaiah which don’t necessarily catch our attention, but are important to put within the context of what is happening during the life of Isaiah. It is a not a great time in the nation and certainly it is not enjoying its prominent status which it once enjoyed. We can see it as a warning.

There are so many chapters to be read in this section that contain super important verses for this time of year that we call Advent. There are two in particular that I want to lift up which you have already heard and which we have to apply to Advent. Look at 7:10-14 where we see the promise of the coming of Emmanuel. Remember, this promise is given within the context of the people of Judah being so stubborn to not ask God for a sign that will show them how God will overcome their enemies that God decides to give them a sign anyway. Also notice that the term for young woman in Hebrew, which this Scripture gives us, is not the same term as virgin. Matthew gives us the translation virgin which is not from Isaiah.

We also see in Isaiah 9 the Scripture that I read when I light the Christ candle on Christmas Eve. Look at verses 2-7 which reminds us that the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. This light coming into the world is, of course, Jesus who is God in made flesh. But there is one more Scripture here that is super important and which we should know because one of our favorite hymns comes from it. Look at 6:8 where God asks the rhetorical question of: “Whom shall I send?” and Isaiah answers: “Here I am Lord.” I’m going to leave you with two songs to sing this morning.