Tag Archives: Isaiah

Ancient Scroll, Secrets Revealed!

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Christopher Columbus’ great, great, great grandfather inscribed a mysterious prophecy, foretelling John Glenn’s footprint on the moon, complete with the “…one small step for a man” line.  The manuscript was buried in Shakespeare’s day and won’t be found or verified for another 500 years.  Not only that, but I can make you a great deal on the Washington Monument.  Of course none of that is true, but what is true is that Isaiah wrote down accurate prophecies of world events – improbable ones – hundreds of years before they came to pass. He named names. 700 years before Jesus was born Isaiah described His birth, where He would grow up, His personality, His purpose, His crucifixion (death by piercing) and Resurrection.  At the time of Jesus’ birth, a manuscript of Isaiah’s writings existed that was about 200 years old.  Sometime during the next 60 or 70 years, this scroll was buried.  It stayed hidden for nearly 2000 years; it was not found until 1947.  Whereas most of the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in fragments, Isaiah was almost completely intact.  In this scroll, Isaiah details the hints he received from God about how God would accomplish restoring human beings to spiritual life.

English: Photographic reproduction of the Grea...

English: Photographic reproduction of the Great Isaiah Scroll, the best preserved of the biblical scrolls found at Qumran. It contains the entire Book of Isaiah in Hebrew, apart from some small damaged parts. This manuscript was probably written by a scribe of the Jewish sect of the Essenes around the second century BC. It is therefore over a 1000 years older than the oldest Masoretic manuscripts. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The facts surrounding the Isaiah Scroll surpass any of the fictional imaginings of “The DaVinci Code.”

However, if Isaiah had begun his prophecy with the opening words of my last post – “Let’s review” – nobody would have read it!  There is something about those two words that summons dreadful memories from grade school and causes people to immediately back away!  I’m sorry; I won’t do it again.

But I invite you to take a look at it.  I’ve taken out the offending words and provided a link HERE.  The goal is for old Isaiah to blow your mind!

The Riddle and a Hint

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There is something in the Bible that doesn’t seem to make sense.  Consider: We were designed by our Creator, to be connected to Him, by His Spirit, in an interactive way, much like a cell phone is connected to the cell signal. However, because of rebellion and sin, we are disconnected from God’s Spirit. We are spiritually dead; in cell phone lingo, we have no bars (See: Dead Man Walking).  God desires to connect us again, and said He will do so for those who are receptive – the lowly and contrite. He said He will forgive, heal, restore and revive them. But God also said He does not leave the guilty unpunished. This is the riddle of the Bible, set forth in Exodus 34:6-7 and not solved until the New Testament. But God gave Isaiah big hints. Before considering some of those hints, let’s clarify the problem.

Justice demands that the guilty be punished. We know that in our bones. For example, suppose a drunk driver killed your toddler daughter. He’s arrested and goes to trial. During the trial, he breaks down in heartfelt tears of remorse, acknowledging to the judge that he is guilty and that he can never bring your daughter back to life but that he has committed himself to a life of complete sobriety. He is sincere. How would you feel if the judge said, “Because you are sorry, I’m going to let you off and clear your record. Case dismissed!”?   Frustrated?     Angry? Sure, because justice was not served. Justice demands the guilty be punished. Perfect justice demands that the punishment be balanced to the crime. Too light a punishment makes a mockery of justice.

God is just and God is perfect. According to what He showed Moses in Exodus 34:6, He is loving and forgiving but He also will not leave the guilty unpunished. Question: What should be the just punishment for something that causes death? I’m not talking about something that causes physical death, which merely shortens the span of a lifetime, but an act that causes spiritual death, which has eternal consequences?  Death, right?

Jesus said to the most religious people of His day, that, without some significant intervention and change, they would die in their sins.

But he continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.” (John 8:23-24)

Sin, separates us from our spiritual connection to God, and causes death – spiritually, eternally. Justice demands a full punishment.   But Jesus said, “…if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.”    Who did He claim to be?    Why would that make a difference?

Let’s begin with a hint, given by God to Isaiah, 700 years before Jesus:

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. (Isaiah 9:2)

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6 )

The “Child” would be born. The “Son” would be given – literally given over.   He would be called Mighty God.   Jesus said, “… if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will die in your sins.”

Chew on that…

Would God Forgive You?

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The kidnapper in Cleveland and the bomber brothers in Boston raise an important question: Could they ever be forgiven by God?  How about you?  We have been hammering away at the meaning of Isaiah 57:15, about how the Creator of the Universe, Almighty God, Who lives beyond the dimensions of time and space, said He would live in the soul of the lowly and contrite.  If you are just joining us, go to the page listed in the menu above where the posts are listed in order.  But how about it: if the surviving bomber or the kidnapper truly became contrite and lowly, would either of them qualify?  Read what God said next in Isaiah:

I will not accuse forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would grow faint  before me— the breath of man that I have created.   I was enraged by his sinful greed; I punished him, and hid my face in anger, yet he kept on in his willful ways.   I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will guide him and restore comfort to him.  (Isaiah 57:16-18)

God says He sees.  He knows.  But He is also ready to forgive.  To forgive but, even better, to restore and heal, to guide and comfort.  Who?  The lowly and contrite, the person who wakes up to the reality of Who God truly is, and by contrast, how sinful and unable to stop screwing up we humans are.  Ever watch those shows on cable where they restore old antiques?  Amazing!  Ever cut yourself badly and eventually see that it has been healed?  Imagine having the wounds of your soul healed.  Ever try to fix your computer and make it worse?  And yearn for someone who really knows to come and guide you – and restore comfort to your tangled emotions?  Read through that chunk of Isaiah again and consider those promises.

BUT, BUT, BUT!!!   If the bomber and the kidnapper get off, it just wouldn’t be right  – right?

Yes, insofar as justice is concerned.  And justice matters to God (remember: He is perfect!).  So which matters more to God – justice or forgiveness?  That question sets up a riddle about the character of God.  Here’s how God presented the riddle to Moses:

“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,  maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished… (Exodus 34:6-7a)

God is forgiving of wickedness, rebellion and sin but insists that the guilty be punished.  Hmmm…   How can that be?  I will forgive you, but first I have to kill you?  That riddle is solved, later in the Bible.  God gave a big hint to Isaiah.  He gave the Solution, 700 years after that.   Chew on that, and stay tuned…   

Who’s the Best? Who’s the Blessed?

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Which son was the best: the obedient, older son or his wild and reckless brother – the one we call the “Prodigal Son?”   If you haven’t read through that challenging parable of Jesus recently, you can find it at this link:  or in the Gospel of Luke in chapter 15:11-32.  But which kid was the best in his father’s eyes: the one that took his inheritance early and ran off to lose it all in wild living?  Or was it the one who faithfully stayed home and worked hard on the farm?  That sounds like an easy question, unless you’ve ever been a father.

At the end of Jesus’ story, the younger, wilder brother has been reconciled to his father and is enjoying a joyous homecoming celebration.  The older and more responsible brother is outside, sulking  by himself, missing the party.  But notice the attitude of the father.  When he saw the younger brother was coming home, he saw him a long way off and ran to meet him.  When he heard the older boy was refusing to come in  to the party, he went out and pleaded with him to come in.  The father loved both boys and yearned for them both to be in close fellowship with him.  He went out to find both boys.  As far as the father is concerned, they are both loved.

So why is one brother, the one who didn’t deserve it, reunited in close fellowship with his father and why is the good boy estranged?  The difference was the turning point in the attitude of the younger brother.  He realized that he had separated himself from his father and did not deserve to be considered a son.  And then he turned around, with no excuse and nothing to offer, to ask his father to take him on as a hired hand.  If you have been chewing on the “Fresh Bread” from Isaiah 57:15 (See “In a Nutshell”), this was the moment when the younger son became “lowly and contrite.”  God told Isaiah He would live with the person who was lowly and contrite in order to bring that person back to life.  That life, we have shown, is the Spirit of God, living in the soul of a person, connecting him or her to God the Father in an intimate and interactive way.  This was the way God designed us to live.  It is no accident that Jesus ended His parable with the father telling the older son, “…this brother of yours was dead and isalive again; he was lost and is found.” (Luke 15:32b)

God designed us to be fully alive, fully reconciled to Him.  His life is full life and He yearns to give that life, His Spirit, to anyone who will accept it.  Which necessarily means anyone who turns around and comes home to Him “without one plea.”  The trouble is, we humans  want to work to be good enough to be loved by God.  Just like the older brother.  There is no real life standing outside  with the older brother, with your arms crossed and your lower lip sticking out,   There is no reconciliation for those who cling to self-righteous pride.

If your little boy or your young daughter came to you and said, “Daddy (or Mommy), if I clean up my room and make my bed, then will you love me?” how would you respond?   Your child cannot earn your love; it is logically impossible because love is a gift.  It’s that way with parents and also with God.  God is our Loving Father.

Which son is best, which son blessed?   Better yet, which son (or daughter) are you?

PS – There is a reason it feels right to us to try to earn God’s love.  Stay tuned…

Hit the Deck

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Ever bump into someone really famous?  How did you react?   I read a short clip in Reader’s Digest years ago from a lady who had been getting some  ice cream at a place in Santa Fe when  Robert Redford walked in.  She carefully told herself not to act stupid, to just pay for her cone and leave.  But when she got outside she realized she didn’t have it with her.  She went back in and said, “I’m sorry, I think I left my cone in here.”  Robert Redford said, “You put it in your purse!”

Last time (“Why Them?”), we looked at what it was about the lowly and contrite that God said He would come and live with them?  It was that the lowly and contrite understand they really need God, that they can’t achieve righteousness by their own efforts, no matter how hard they try.  But there is more to it than that.  A second quality about the lowly and contrite is that they understand God is God – not them.  When they have an encounter with God, they understand how mighty and holy and amazing He is – and respond accordingly, with absolute humility.  Like what happened when Isaiah caught a glimpse of God:

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.  Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.  And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”  At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.  “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” Isaiah 6:1-5 (NIV)

Isaiah’s experience was unique to him.  We can only imagine how frightening it was.  Imagine walking into your bedroom one day and seeing someone seated in the midst of a blazing nuclear furnace.  The important thing to recognize from this, however, is not so much what he saw but how he responded.  Isaiah he knew he was in the presence of God.  His response was a picture of what it means to be lowly and contrite.  Isaiah hit the deck, cowering and peering out to glimpse the train of God’s robe.  That is because, in the presence of God, he became immediately aware of how sinful he was.  In contrast to God’s amazing glory his own imperfection was devastating.  Isaiah realized, because God is perfect in righteousness and he was not, by rights he was a dead man.  He said, “Woe to me!  I am ruined!”  To be lowly and contrite before God is to be completely humbled by Who He is.  To know you need His Help and to glimpse His power and holiness.

You, right this minute, are also in the presence of Almighty God.  You probably don’t see those strange creatures flying around, you probably don’t see smoke, but He is right there, with you.  And He alone is God, perfect in righteousness.  By contrast, you and I are dead men and women.  We are ruined.  If you can see that, if you sense the truth of that in your bones, that is a good thing.  Because God says (Isaiah 57:15) He will live with those who are lowly and contrite.  That is good news.

Chew on that…

Righteousness Ain’t No Church Lady

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When jazz musicians use the term, righteous, they are describing music that is harmonious, in a groove, following the established principles or rules of music but using those rules to launch a new, delightful and creative line of music that is a real treat to the ear and soul of the listener.  Sadly, when the terms, righteous or righteousness, are applied to a Christian context, too often the associations made are more about the uptight “Church Lady” from Saturday Night Live.

Dana Carvey as The Church Lady

Dana Carvey as The Church Lady (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There is nothing righteous about being a prude.  Religious, frowny-faced, so-called righteousness stems from the impossible attempt to be good enough for God.  As we have  discussed in the previous posts it is impossible for us humans to act in harmonious, righteous ways with God when we are disconnected from His Spirit.  You cannot harmonize with music you can’t hear.

But when God “lives with” a person (Isaiah 57:15), He establishes the connection with His Spirit.  He does so to “revive” him, to bring him to life in a new way, thus enabling him to live with the best and most beautiful kind of righteousness.   Righteousness does not come from human effort; it is a gift from God.  Here is how Paul explained it:

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. Romans 3:21-22a

Paraphrased, this says that the ability and tendency to live in tune with God’s beautiful music comes from Him, the Old Testament (the Law and the Prophets) explained had to happen.  This harmonious and beautiful capacity, righteousness, comes as a gift to those who put their faith in Jesus.  Paul describes it later as “walking in the newness of life.”(Romans 6:5)

See dat?  This is the exact opposite of the commonly held notion of what happens to a person who trusts Jesus.  You don’t become an uptight, holier-than-thou, pinched-face church lady.  That’s not real righteousness.  Instead, you discover a new life from God that emerges from inside, with increasing righteousness – in the jazz sense of the word!

 (To read these posts in a logical order, click on the “New Here?” page above, or on THIS LINK)

You Choose: Rules or Rest?

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Religion may make you feel good, but it doesn’t work.  Religions tell you what you have to do  to be okay with God.  Religions give you the rules to follow so you can make the connection with God happen.  But God says He makes the connection, that He will live in our hearts to bring us to life (Isaiah 57:15 – See “In a Nutshell”).  But He doesn’t do that for the religious; He does it for the “lowly and contrite.”  Religion gives you a score and tells you how well you are doing.  Lowliness puts you in touch with the reality that you can never measure up to God’s standard of righteousness – not even close.  Lowly people hunger for righteousness; religious people tend to think, “I’m not perfect, but I’m doing better than those other guys.”  Jesus comforted and loved the lowly.  He had fits with the religious.

This is not a new problem.  700 years before Jesus, God criticized the religious people because they were making up rules for people to follow to get to God.  He said,

“For it is: Do and do, do and do, rule on rule, rule on rule, a little here, a little there.”  Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people, to whom he said, “This is the resting place, let the weary rest”; and, “This is the place of repose”— but they would not listen.  So then, the word of the Lord to them will become: Do and do, do and do, rule on rule, rule on rule; a little here, a little there— so that they will go and fall backward, be injured and snared and captured. Isaiah 28:10-13

God intended for our relationship with Him to be characterized by rest, not rules.  Coming to  God was intended to be coming to the resting place, the place of repose.  But humans wanted rules, so we could be in control and so we could keep score.  So God said, “Very well then, have it your way.”  And God’s Word for the religious became distorted into “do and do, rule on rule, a little here, a little there.”

But for the lowly, for those who know they can’t measure up by following the rules, God comes and lives with them, reviving their hearts.  Jesus says, “Let Me be in charge; you come find rest in Me.”

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28

You can have it your way.  Which way do you choose: rules or rest?

The “Why?” Question

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Isaiah 57:15 can be seen as the key to the message of the whole Bible.

For this is what the high and lofty One says — he who lives forever, whose name is holy: “I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. Isaiah 57:15

The question we raised last time (see: “In a Nutshell”) was why?  Why would the God of the universe, the One Who “lives forever,” Who exists beyond all time and space “in a high and holy place,” also live “with him who is contrite and lowly”?  Set aside the “who” question – what is it about the contrite and lowly – and focus on the “why?” question.  The idea seems preposterous, that Almighty God would somehow choose to inhabit humans.  Remember the vast size and scope of His Creation, and what a tiny speck our whole solar system is in that universe?  Even our Milky Way Galaxy, at a mere 100,000 light years wide, is only a tiny speck in space.  

English: Artist's conception of the spiral str...

English: Artist’s conception of the spiral structure of the Milky Way with two major stellar arms and a central bar. “Using infrared images from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, scientists have discovered that the Milky Way’s elegant spiral structure is dominated by just two arms wrapping off the ends of a central bar of stars. Previously, our galaxy was thought to possess four major arms.” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Why would God care about a certain life form on earth, much less arrange to live in us?  King David asked that question, roughly 3000 years ago:

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?   Psalm 8:3-4

The answer to the “why?” question is given in  Isaiah above .  It is ” to revive the spirit … and to revive the heart …”  God does it to revive us. The original word translated, revive, means “to bring something back to life!”  It means to take something that is dead and make it alive.

Chew on this: If God lives with someone to bring him or her back to life, it follows that this person must be dead.  But she or he is also “lowly and contrite,” attributes that cannot belong to the dead.  Dead guys don’t have character traits.  So then, in what sense are they (are we) dead?   Stay tuned…

In a Nutshell

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In the last couple of posts, I’ve been ruminating on the majesty and awesome “bigness” of God, of how His position as the Creator of the universe necessarily puts him way beyond anything we are equipped to imagine  (See the posts under “The Majesty of God” category).  When you consider Who God really is, it is astonishing to read the following verse from Isaiah, a verse that I believe is the key to the whole Bible.  It contains the message of the Bible in a nutshell:

For this is what the high and lofty One says — he who lives forever, whose name is holy: “I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. Isaiah 57:15

There is so much in that short verse I’m going to take it in small chunks.  But for now, consider this: Almighty God, Who created the vast universe, says that He lives in a high, holy place – call it Heaven – no surprise about that.  But He also lives, He says, with certain people.  Who?  Not those who are important enough, or rich enough, or smart enough, or famous enough, not even those who are good enough or religious enough; He lives with those who are lowly enough!  Why would God do that?  Why would He want to live with any human being on this tiny planet?  And why lowly people?  Chew on that…