Isaiah 56:7
“For My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
Isaiah foresaw a day when people from all nations would be adopted into the family of God. He saw salvation reaching beyond the borders of Israel to the uttermost parts of the earth. Seven hundred years later Jesus entered into the temple and saw the outer courts turned into a marketplace. Instead of people being encouraged to to come to God they were being hindered. The religious leaders for the sake of financial gain and status among the people were actually keeping people from the Lord. At some point a sign was placed on the entrance of the temple warning Gentiles not to enter under the threat of death. When Jesus saw the actions of the leaders He was outraged. He began to overturn the tables and drive out those who were buying and selling. It was at that point that He quoted from this passage,
“My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
It is worth noting that Jesus was enraged when people stood in the way of others coming to God. We know it is the desire of God for all men everywhere to be saved. We know that a person is saved when they put trust in Christ as their savior and we know that people come to trust Christ through the witness of others. We should be seeking to live lives that properly represent Christ so that others will be drawn to Him rather than repelled from Him.
Jim
In this Psalm, we find David enduring the consequences of sin. Like all of us, he was drawn into something forbidden and chose to trespass, because sin always makes promises it cannot keep. He was, no doubt, hoping to find some level of pleasure by disobeying the law of God. Whatever enjoyment he derived from his sin, was soon eclipsed by the pain and sorrow sin always brings. Here we find David in travail of soul and under severe attack from his enemies. He describes himself as being pierced by arrows of conviction, being under the heavy weight of guilt, and even undergoing attack from others who think that he deserves the sufferings he is facing.
A heifer is a cow. One that is entirely red in color would be extremely rare, and as a result quite valuable. As part of Israel’s purification process they were to take a red heifer and offer it outside the city. Once it’s blood was symbolically sprinkled on behalf of the people, the priests were to wash with water and stay away from things that would defile them, making them unfit for service. Anyone who became defiled would need to go through a purification process that required both cleansing and a period of time. It is not difficult to see the symbolism here, or to relate this to the work of Christ and the walk of the believer.
There are times in life when there is nothing so refreshing as a shower. Standing under the flow seems to refresh and invigorate, and at times, helps me even to forget whatever things are pressing in upon me. Sometimes the only reason I step away is the hot water has run cold. As refreshing as that might be, it cannot compare to how refreshing it is to stand under the flow where our sins are being cleansed. David wrote about how blessed the man is whose transgressions are forgiven and whose sin has been covered (Psalm 32:1).
It seems like salespeople will make the most preposterous claims, just to make a sale. We hear of miracle products that have the ability to get stains out of anything. The problem is, when we use the product, it rarely meets their claims or our expectations. No matter how hard we work, the kool-aid stain remains imbedded in the carpet, and the grease is still on the collar of your favorite shirt.
God has chosen to reveal the plan of salvation through the foolishness of preaching. Nowhere, is that better illustrated than in the story of Jonah. This reluctant preacher delivered a message that turned a nation toward the Lord. As the king heard this message, his heart was stirred to turn from his wicked ways and begin to follow Jehovah. In his desperation, he asked a deeply profound question. Is it possible to know for sure that our sins have been forgiven and we have been set free from the judgment of God?
As John begins to describe the fall of Babylon the Great, he hears a cry from heaven calling the people of God to come out, and no longer share in its sins. Babylon here is referring to more than a city in modern Iraq, it refers to the world system that is opposed to the ways of God. The call then is for the people of God to leave the ways of the world, to live in step with the ways of God. This is not a one time call, but is repeated time and again within the pages of your Bible. We were saved, not to continue in a destructive lifestyle, practicing the things that Jesus died to free us from, but to live a new life on a higher plain, where we seek in every area of life to bring pleasure to God.
Ezekiel has gone to great lengths to explain the judgment Judah is under, because they had forsaken God and followed after their own desires. He compared them to the city of Sodom that had received divine judgment for their sinful behaviors. He even went a step further, explaining they were worse than Sodom, because their sin was committed despite the fact that they had been chosen by God, and given His word as their guide. In the midst of declaring the penalty for their sins, Ezekiel brings up the mercy of God by reminding them of His everlasting covenant. That covenant was made with their father Abraham, before they were ever born, and is even stronger than the sins they have committed.
Light is used to illustrate holiness. John is declaring that God is perfectly holy and without sin. This creates a problem, since we are all sinners. In this text, John explains how sinful people can have a relationship with a holy God. In the opening verses of the chapter, he refers to Christ becoming a man and making fellowship with God possible. That was accomplished through the cross, where Jesus died as a substitute for us. The sinless, in place of the sinner, so we might be saved. John is now writing to the one who recognizes his sin, and begins to follow Christ.
A few years ago, I was in northern Ghana with a group of people from our church. Our purpose was to bring the Gospel to remote villages that had yet to be reached for Christ. Just as Paul developed a custom of going first to the synagogue, then to the market squares, we too, had developed our own custom. Because of the practices of their culture, it is customary, when a traveler arrives at their home, to gather the family, offer the traveler a drink and ask “What brings you here and do you have a message for us?” As you can imagine, this provides a wide open door to share Christ.
Jim Gallagher 