Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - The Trajectory of The World | Christmas | Isaiah 9:4-5

Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life in the time it takes to get to work. I'm Keith Simon. I'm Tanya Wilm. And I'm Patrick Miller. Right now, we are in our Christmas series. We're exploring the stories around Jesus's birth and the prophecies pointing forward to it. What trajectory do you think the world is on right now? Growing up, I remember hearing someone announce, the world's going to hell in a handbasket.

Starting point is 00:00:31 It's a weird phrase. I hear it all the time. I actually want to know. where that came from, but I literally remember someone yelling that. And to be honest, even though I don't quite know what it means, I get the point. That person was saying, the arc of history, it bends downward. Things aren't getting better in the world. Things are in fact getting worse. Humanity is in decline. Israel, they had to feel like this in the days of Isaiah. Most of their ancestral land, it had been conquered by Assyria, a foreign superpower. And Assyria,

Starting point is 00:01:04 was closing in on what remained of Israel. They were going to conquer everything. The king at the time, King Hezekiah, he ruled over the southern portion of Israel. It was called the kingdom of Judah. And when the king of Assyria comes, he literally conquers all of the cities around Jerusalem where Hezekiah was at. And he penned up Hezekiah like a bird and a cage. And so Hezekiah thought that maybe he could just outlast a serious siege. But what he had left, just a single city, Was it even worth the effort? Was it even worth the effort to try to resist the Assyrians who had conquered everything else? What hope did Hezekiah have in this kind of situation, a world power against him? Only one city left. What hope did what remain of Israel? Did the people have? Everything is conquered. Just one city left.

Starting point is 00:01:52 What hope did Isaiah the prophet have? Everything is conquered. Everything has been lost. The superpower is here at our doorstep. What hope did they have? the answer to that question it ultimately lay on the lips of Isaiah the prophet he looked backwards and he looked at Israel's history and he remembered that there was a day when Yahweh conquered a different superpower when Yahweh conquered Egypt and Pharaoh and he brought the people of Israel from slavery out of Egypt to the promised land but once they got to the promised land life wasn't always easy. In fact, other foreign oppressors came along. There was the nation of Midian, for example, that oppressed Israel during the time of Gideon, and Yahweh had to essentially send Gideon to set them free, to rescue them from their oppressors. So Isaiah, looking backwards towards the Exodus,

Starting point is 00:02:46 looking backwards towards the time that God had rescued Israel from the Midianites. He's looking now at what's happening with Assyria, and he says, God, can't you do the same thing here? If you've saved us from Egypt, and you saved us from Midian. Isn't there a day coming that you could even save us from Assyria? Maybe one day in the future where you could save the world from all evil, from all injustice, from all of these superpowers that want to destroy your good in the world. And this is what he wrote in Isaiah 9, prophesying that future day. He said, for as in the day of Midian's defeat.

Starting point is 00:03:18 So he's saying, remember that time God beat Midian? As in that day, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of the oppressor. Yahweh, he breaks all of those things, according to Isaiah. He goes on, he says, every warrior's boots used in battle, and every garment rolled in blood, will be destined for burning.

Starting point is 00:03:40 It will be fuel for the fire. You see, in our world, in our life, we're always tempted to believe that the Egypt, the Midians, the Assyrians of the world, that they're the true superpowers. But they're not. Yahweh is, and under his hand,

Starting point is 00:03:56 The Ark of History, it's not going to hell in a handbasket. The Ark of History isn't bending downward. The Ark of History bends upward. Not only will God set people free from oppression, he will also unravel the very fabric of evil and injustice and violence holding the world hostage. Isaiah says that he'll take all of those things, the violence, the war, everything that's wrong. He'll roll them up like a garment soaked in blood and he will throw them into the fire and they will be no more. In these verses, Isaiah is boldly proclaiming that when Yahweh's future king comes, people will unlearn war.

Starting point is 00:04:33 They'll put up their weapons. They'll burn what remains of them. And as Isaiah puts it elsewhere, they will turn their swords into plowshares. The machinery of war will become the machinery of life. How is this possible? Isaiah says it's only possible because Yahweh is sending a king. King Jesus establishes a kingdom, a new empire. But it's unlike all other empires and history.

Starting point is 00:04:59 He establishes it not by spilling the blood of his enemies, but by spilling his own blood for his enemies. And he builds his kingdom by challenging his followers to do the exact same thing, build my kingdom through self-sacrifice, through generosity, through love, love of your neighbor, love of your enemy, love of everyone. If you look at our politics today, you'll see that they don't reflect the values of Jesus. they don't look like his kingdom. They look like the old kingdoms of Assyria and Egypt, the ones that said, we destroy our enemies, we spill their blood. So don't let politics steal your hope. Don't let politics claim your hope. Don't put your hope in politics. They don't have anything to do with the way of Jesus. Remember instead that there is only one king with his hand on the rudder of history. And he will guide us. Jesus will guide us through this storm to a day when war, when He hatred, when death, when evil and injustice, are just a distant memory. I want you to pause,

Starting point is 00:06:02 and I want you to reflect and think about Jesus' return when he makes everything right. What's the thing that most excites you about that return? What do you look forward to when Jesus finally establishes his kingdom on earth? What do you hope will disappear, and what do you hope will be brought to life? What's the beauty that you long for in the world? Because Jesus is the only king who can bring it. Thanks for listening. If you've enjoyed this content, please subscribe and give us a rating. That helps other people find this podcast more easily.

Starting point is 00:06:36 Also, ask yourself, who could you share this podcast with? Texting an episode to a friend or a family member is a great way to help them grow spiritually. If you want to go deeper, check out our show notes for book recommendations.

Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - The Trajectory of The World | Christmas | Isaiah 9:4-5

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