Greetings to all and thanks for studying with us! This week’s lesson from our Pastor teacher Landis Fisher takes us into considering a thought of the most wrong thing anyone can do since God has clearly displayed His love and commitment to sinful mankind by the offering of His Only Begotten Son, Jesus so as to settle the sin debt of all who trust in His Name and believe in Him because of His resurrection from the dead. This lesson highlights the one thing the adversaries of God want everyone to do; that is to live your life: “Misunderstanding Jesus” which is the topic on which Pastor Fisher speaks today. Please listen in!
Old Testament Scripture Reading: Isaiah 64:1 – 8 (NASB)
Isa 64:1 Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, That the mountains might quake at Your presence–
Isa 64:2 As fire kindles the brushwood, as fire causes water to boil– To make Your name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence!
Isa 64:3 When You did awesome things which we did not expect, You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence.
Isa 64:4 For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear, Nor has the eye seen a God besides You, Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him.
Isa 64:5 You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. Behold, You were angry, for we sinned, We continued in them a long time; And shall we be saved?
Isa 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
Isa 64:7 There is no one who calls on Your name, Who arouses himself to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us And have delivered us into the power of our iniquities.
Isa 64:8 But now, O LORD, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand.
New Testament Scripture Reading: Romans 8:26 – 28 (KJV)
Rom 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Rom 8:27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Transforming Power Statements:
1) The Prophet Isaiah writes this passage crying out to God, after living during the rapid decline of the southern kingdom, just before 586 B.C. as he analyzed the true condition of not only the godless, but even the so called “Righteous / Israel” and his conclusion from seeing that there really were none who by any possible means could ever make themselves acceptable to God; because everyone was imperfect and even the so called righteous’ works were as unclean as filthy rags.
2) Because of the enormous depth of the impact of our fallen nature without the intervention of the Holy Spirit we can never intentionally embrace a completely Righteous and Perfect God, Who alone is thrice Holy, because we each and even all together as human beings are never able to do anything at all nor even individually to meet the perfect standard of God; in other words, without God’s grace we are hopeless!
3) In New Testament teaching, we learn that the Holy Spirit, (Who is the third person of the Godhead) remained at a distance prior to the sacrifice of Jesus the Messiah, (Who alone came into the flesh in order to completely satisfy God on behalf of every individual believer) but now He indwells each believer to comfort, educate in the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, carryout the gracious work of sanctification custom tailored to fit each recipient, and to intercede in prayers for the things needed; but not known by the carnal mind in order to perfectly apply the gifts of salvation to facilitate specific functions within the mystical Body of Christ; of which every member is a vital part. (i.e. the Church)
