“You may go through difficulty, hardship, or trial—but as long as you are anchored to Him, you will have hope.”
Charles F. Stanley
Passage
1Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
2The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
4But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
5Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.
Isaiah 11:1–5 (NASB95)
Background
Quote-Charles Frazier Stanley (born 1932) is Pastor Emeritus of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, after serving as senior pastor for 49 years. He is the founder and president of In Touch Ministries, which widely broadcasts his sermons through television and radio. He also served two one-year terms as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, from 1984 to 1986.
With regard to theology, Stanley is an evangelical, and in terms of eschatology, has been described as a dispensationalist. Over the course of his ministry, Stanley developed "30 Life Principles", that have guided his life and helped him grow in his knowledge, service, and love of God, principles that he shares these often, including in books, Bibles and study guides.
Passage- The book of Isaiah is Narrative History, Prophetic Oracle, and even a Parable (chapter 5). The prophet Isaiah wrote it at approximately 700 B.C. Isaiah is the first book in the Major Prophets. They are called Major Prophets for the large amount of material they wrote not because their message was more important than any other prophet’s was. Key personalities are Isaiah, his two sons, Shearjashub and Maher-shalal-jash-baz.
Isaiah contains some of the most incredible prophecies of any book. It contains foreknowledge, in incredible details about the Messiah, and the future reign of Jesus Christ. The purpose of the book of Isaiah was to call God’s nation, the nation of Judah, back to faithfulness and to declare the coming Messiah “Immanuel”. God calls and commissions His prophet to declare to Judah and Israel condemnation, conviction, and ultimately great hope.
Lesson Notes
Opening Statement
Wisdom, fairness, righteousness, and faithfulness all sound wonderful but we don’t see that in life all the time. How do we correct that? The answer lies in another question. Who do you follow and why?
Ask: Are we in charge of the universe?
Point: No. God is in charge of His creation. Please read the following:
1Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said,
2“Who is this that darkens counsel By words without knowledge?
3“Now gird up your loins like a man, And I will ask you, and you instruct Me!
4“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding,
Job 38:1–4 (NASB95)
Ask: If God is in charge, then where do we fit in, in His ordered universe?
Point: We are a created being in service to His plan, we don’t know everything, and God does. Please read the following:
1Then Job answered the Lord and said,
2“I know that You can do all things, And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.
3‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ “Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”
4‘Hear, now, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You instruct me.’
5“I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You;
6Therefore I retract, And I repent in dust and ashes.”
Job 42:1–6 (NASB95)
Ask: What does understanding our position in God’s creation tell us about hardship and hope?
Point: That those who follow God’s ways have a path laid out by Him.
Ask: How do we know that God is pleased when we humble ourselves by admitting and taking on our subservient station to God?
Point: Because God was pleased with Job when he admitted he understood and was willing to serve the Lord. Please read the following:
7It came about after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has.
8“Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to My servant Job, and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you. For I will accept him so that I may not do with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.”
Job 42:7–8 (NASB95)
Ask: How does God’s conversation with Job connect to us and Jesus?
Point: Re-read verse 1 from today’s passage then Please read the following:
11And again, “Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, And let all the peoples praise Him.”
12Again Isaiah says, “There shall come the root of Jesse, And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles, In Him shall the Gentiles hope.”
13Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:11–13 (NASB95)
Isaiah 11:10Ask: That’s Paul talking. How does that connect to Jesus?
Point: Because Jesus said it Himself to Paul in Revelation. Please read the following:
10And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.
11“Let the one who does wrong, still do wrong; and the one who is filthy, still be filthy; and let the one who is righteous, still practice righteousness; and the one who is holy, still keep himself holy.”
12“Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.
13“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
14Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.
15Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.
16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
Revelation 22:10–16 (NASB95)
Ask: Verse fourteen says, “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right o the tree of life….” How do we “wash our robes?”
Point: Please read the following:
16“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds,”
17he also adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”
18Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.
19Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,
20by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh),
21and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
22let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
Hebrews 10:16–22 (NRSV)
Ask: How do we get “…washed with pure water?”
Point: Pleae read the following:
36Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
37Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
38Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.”
Acts 2:36–39 (NRSV)
Ask: So, just getting baptised is all we need and we are “washed clean?”
Point: No. It is through faith that Jesus Christ died for our sins. Pleaes read the following:
3For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, despicable, hating one another.
4But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,
5he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.
6This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Titus 3:3–7 (NRSV)
Ask: “The gift of the Holy Spirit” and “…renewal by the Holy Spirit” sounds good but what does that mean? What should we do to get it?
Point: Have faith in Jesus that He is the prophsied Christ and follow His example. Please read the following:
5This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.
6If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true;
7but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:5–7 (NRSV)
Closing Statement
Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the light. No one comes to the Father but through the Son (John 14:6 paraphrased slightly.) The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit care about our hearts and our motivations for what we do, not necessarily our actions. Yes, we are called to works but not as a means to salvation. Our works are meant to say “thank you” to God for what He did for us as well as reflect His ways to the world around us.
Questions for the Week
Question 1 Read through Job Chapters 38-42 to understand our place as the created being in God’s ordered universe.
Question 2 Read Revelation 22.
Question 3 Do not do Question 3 wtihout also proceeding to complete Question 4 which follows. Consider the idea of wearing all white in the Kingdom of God and what spot or blemish the way you currently live might put on that garment.
Question 4 Read all of John 14
Question 5 Write as much or as little as you are led to write in your journal concerning Jesus washing you clean and your robes of white heading into the Kingdom of God.
Definitions
wash
wosh, wawsh
verb (used with object)
1. to apply water or some other liquid to (something or someone) for the purpose of cleansing; cleanse by dipping, rubbing, or scrubbing in water or some other liquid.
2. to remove (dirt, stains, paint, or any matter) by or as by the action of water (usually followed by out, off, etc.):to wash grime out of clothing.
3. to free from spiritual defilement or from sin, guilt, etc.:to be washed whiter than the snow.
4. to bathe, wet, or moisten with water or other liquid:a meadow newly washed with morning dew.
5. to flow through, over, or against:a shore or cliff washed by waves.
6. to carry, bring, remove, or deposit (something) by means of water or any liquid, or as the water or liquid does (often followed by up, down, or along):The storm washed the boat up on the shore. A sailor was washed overboard.
7. to wear or diminish, as water does by flowing over or against a surface (often followed by out or away):The rain had washed away the lettering on the stone.
8. (of water) to form by flowing over and eroding a surface:The flood had washed a new channel through the bottom lands.
9. Mining.
a. to subject (earth or ore) to the action or force of water in order to separate valuable material.
b. to separate (valuable material) in this way.
10. to purify (a gas or gaseous mixture) by passage through or over a liquid.
11. to cover with a watery or thin coat of color.
12. to overlay with a thin coat or deposit of metal:to wash brass with gold.
13. Slang. launder (def. 3).