THE LORD SPOKE (September 24)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Isaiah 14-16

Isaiah 14:12-15

This passage does not speak of Satan. Though that has been a common interpretation, there is no basis for it in the text itself. Consider the following:

1. The passage is addressed directly to Babylon (12:1 & 14:3) and is part of a larger unit in the prophecy of Isaiah which includes judgments of Babylon (13:1-14:23), Assyria (14:24-27), Philistia (14:28-32), Moab (15:1 - 16:13), Damascus (17:1-14)...and so forth. It is clearly in the context of God’s judgment upon the nations surrounding Israel.
2. Satan is nowhere mentioned in the text. Some would argue with that and point to “Lucifer” in vs. 12. But Lucifer isn’t in vs. 12! The Hebrew for “O morning star, son of the dawn” is hillel ben shahar, which was translated lucifer in Jerome’s Latin Vulgate in the early 5th century AD. Thus a Roman Catholic doctrine was born and found its way into the King James Version of 1611, thus twisting our theology ever since. Simply put, “Lucifer” is not a biblical name for Satan and Satan is not in Isaiah 14 except by circular reasoning.
3. Satan has not yet been cast out of heaven. It is true that the fall of Satan and other angels took place already but the Devil has not been banned from heaven. He still has access to the throne of God (Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7) and accuses the saints. In fact, the Hebrew term satan means “accuser” and from that it came to be a proper name for the Devil. He will only be cast out (banned) after the final war in heaven in Revelation 12:7-9.

No, this passage is about the wicked king of Babylon, pure and simple. Do make this comparison though...his self-exaltation stands in stark contrast to the Lord Jesus as described in Philippians 2:6-9.

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name....

The king who tried to be higher than God was “brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit” (Is. 14:15) but the King who humbled himself was exalted by the Father in Heaven. The result will be

...that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10-11)

Psalm 15-16

Priests got to “dwell in His sanctuary” and “live on His holy hill”. But could anyone else? Or is this psalm about something less physical? Might it be speaking of a personal walk with God that is so close that it may be defined as dwelling with Him? Who has that?

Certainly by application, at least, that is true. Psalm 15 employs beautiful Hebraic parallelism to give six answers to the question of who may dwell with the Lord.

1. BLAMELESS WALK - “he whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous” (vs. 2a) - David has just told us that “there is none righteous, no not one” (Ps. 14:3) but by God’s grace we are to pursue a “walk that is blameless” (c.f. Ps. 84:11; 101:2). New Testament truth tells us of a “righteousness not our own” (Phil. 3:9; c.f. Eph. 1:4; Rom. 10:5-6).
2. TRUTHFUL TALK - “who speaks the truth from his heart and has no slander on his tongue” (vs. 2b-3a) - Literally, it says “speaks the truth in his heart”. Apart from having truth embedded in your heart, keeping slander off the tongue will be a hard task (Jas. 3:7-8 says no man can do it perfectly). When truth is found at the source, the tributaries will reflect that.
3. GOOD NEIGHBOR - “who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellow man” (vs. 3b) - All those around him recognize it because they’ve been the beneficiaries of his good deeds and they’ve heard him talk. They know he guards his tongue and can be trusted. His life and lip match up.
4. STRAIGHT-SHOOTER - “who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the Lord” (vs. 4a) - He doesn’t call evil, good, and is more concerned with truth and justice than with PC and CW. Those who order their lives in accordance with God’s will are his closest associates and he has nothing to do with those given over to sin.
5. PROMISE-KEEPER - “who keeps his oath even when it hurts” (vs. 4b) - He is a man of his word who can be counted on. He doesn’t just disappear when things get tough. Furthermore, he’s one who will give his word in the first place - not the kind you can never pin down, unwilling to commit to anything.
6. WISE WALLET - “who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent” (vs. 5a) - He’s not a tight-wad and he can’t be bought. Money matters are in proper balance with him. He’s both generous and above reproach in the area of finances.

Now, there’s a man who reflects God in the way he lives. He dwells with God. Latch on to him!

THE LORD SPOKE (September 7)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: Proverbs 14-16

“Temper, temper, temper!” Remember when Mom used to say that to you in an attempt to help you with an attitude check?

“Temper, temper, temper!” Remember the last time the Holy Spirit whispered those words to you as he prodded you to slow down, back off, and think before speaking? Don’t need to think back too far, do you? That’s because our temper is usually not far below the surface and often needs to be checked.

Proverbs has a lot to say about our temper:

• 14:17a - A quick-tempered man does foolish things.
• 14:29b - A quick-tempered man displays folly.
• 15:18a - A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension.
• 26:21 - As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.
• 29:11 - A fool gives full vent to his anger but a wise man keeps himself under control.
• 29:22 - An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.

When we come to the New Testament, one of the qualifications of the man whom God uses is that he “must be blameless - not over-bearing, not quick-tempered” (Titus 1:7).

Do you remember the character Nabal in the story of David? He was “surly and mean in his dealings” (I Samuel 25:3). He was a quick-tempered man that most people tried to stay away from. Though David helped him with his harvest during a busy time, though David’s men provided very valuable protection from local bandits, and though Nabal’s wife Abigail gave him very wise counsel, still he only hardened in his hot temper and got worse instead of better. Finally, “his heart failed him and he became like a stone” (25:37) and a few days later he was in a pine box. When he died, people said, “Praise the Lord!”

Now is that the kind of legacy you want? Is your surliness and quick temper really that valuable to you that you just can’t give it up? Life is complicated but all spiritual problems have a very simple, straight-forward solution:

1. Give it to the Lord. Ask for His help.
2. Read the Scriptures. Just like you can’t get well physically if you don’t eat good food, so you can’t get well spiritually if you don’t feed yourself regularly from God’s Word.
3. Confess your sin (I John 1:9). Do it every time you sin.
4. Ask forgiveness of those you’ve offended. Do it every time you offend. After awhile you’ll tire of going back again and again to ask forgiveness for the same thing. Eventually it will be easier to just not do it again.
5. When you fail, and you will, repeat the process.

Simple? Yes! Easy? Not one bit! Right? Without a doubt! Worth it? Why not find out?


New Testament: Revelation 13

It’s a trinity of evil. In a vile duplication and thinly camouflaged replica of the holy Trinity, this diabolic three-some sets out to multiply its power and authority over the earth. The two words, “power and “authority”, occur a combined total of ten times in this little chapter.

The dragon, exalting himself to the position of God the Father, is Satan. This is something he’s been trying to do since the beginning of his existence. In this, his final attempt to overthrow the Kingdom of Righteousness, he gives his power and authority to the first beast (Rev. 13:1-10) who rises out of the sea. The imagery of Revelation 13 matches that of Daniel 7:2-7 and represents the Antichrist, that evil secular authority that blasphemes God and makes war against the saints.

He is supported by “another beast, coming out of the earth” who has a religious authority and performs “great and miraculous signs” by which he deceives the inhabitants of the earth. This false prophet causes them to worship the Antichrist, even to the point of energizing an idol that can kill any who refuse to do so. The people seem more than willing to go a step further. They will submit to being physically branded with the mark of the beast. They will pledge their allegiance to the very epitome of evil and everything that stands contrary to God.

These three - Satan, the Beast or Antichrist, and the False Prophet - unleash their full fury upon the earth for the remainder of the Tribulation. At the end they are captured. The Beast and the False Prophet are “thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur” (Rev. 19:20) and Satan is bound in prison for 1000 years (Rev. 20:2-3,7).

If only that were the end of it. But remember, they had many willing followers. Those multitudes are still in rebellion and the judgments that follow will fall upon them with the fullness of God’s fury (read ahead to Rev. 14:9-11).

In stark contrast are those who resist the trinity of evil. The 144,000 are God’s faithful band who’s job it will be to proclaim “the eternal Gospel...to those who live on the earth - to every nation, tribe, language and people” (Rev. 14:6). And they will be effective witnesses to His glory. That multitude will sing the Song of Moses and the Song of the Lamb (Rev. 15:3-4).

Ready to tune up?

THE LORD SPOKE (September 6)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: Proverbs 11-13

Scrooge. The very word immediately brings up mental images and not just Dickens’ character by that name. We’ve all known a stingy person somewhere and the memories leave a sour taste in the mouth like a bad burp.

“Scrooge” has become the personification of a stingy, self-centered person. The Bible has a lot to say about stinginess and even more to say about being generous. Both Testaments commend repeatedly the practice of generosity:

• Proverbs 11:25 - A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
• Proverbs 22:9 - A generous man will himself be blessed.
• Ecclesiastes 11:1-2 - Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.
• I Timothy 6:18 - Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.

Our generosity should begin with generosity to the Lord. How does that thought strike you? How can we be generous to the Lord? The Bible tells us:

• Proverbs 3:9-10 - Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing.
• Malachi 3:10 - “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

While “storehouse tithing” is not a NT principle for the Church, we do certainly find faithful, proportional, and generous giving commanded for today. The Lord’s promise of blessing upon the man who is generous to Him is a promise for all time. There it is again - generous to Him? How absurd. First of all, what could he ever need from us? Secondly, everything we have originates in Him so how could we possibly “give” Him anything? And yet, He desires our generosity and promises to bless us for it.

Can you believe that? God tells us to put Him to the test in this area! Again, can you believe that? Do you believe it? Prove it.


New Testament: Revelation 12

“A great and wondrous sign.” That’s how this chapter begins, in a book full of wondrous signs! We’re not left to wonder who or what this dragon represents for he is identified for us in verse nine as Satan. There are actually quite a number of names or descriptions for him in this short chapter:

• enormous red dragon (vs. 3a) - a mythological picture also used in Scripture to depict the enemies of God and Israel (Ps. 74:14; Isa. 27:1; Ezek. 29:3)
• with seven heads and ten horns (vs. 3b) - which symbolize advanced knowledge and great strength
• with seven crowns on his heads (vs. 3c) - having all the political power to go with his knowledge and strength, he constitutes a formidable enemy!
• with a following of one-third of the stars of heaven (vs. 4)
• at war with Michael and his angels (vs. 7) - this is not the first time (see Dan. 12:1; Jude 9)
• “that ancient serpent” (vs. 9a) - a direct link back to Satan in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1)
• called the devil (vs. 9b) - from the Greek, diabolos, meaning “accuser”, mentioned again in vs. 10
• called Satan (vs. 9b) - the equivalent term from Hebrew; the picture is that of the book of Job where Satan accuses us night and day before God
• leads the whole world astray (vs. 9c) - he’s had lots of practice and has a well-developed army around him

It’s a cosmic conflict but, praise be to God, “he was not strong enough” (Rev. 12:8). Our enemy is a defeated foe. The dragon is really just a lizard. He will still pursue his evil designs but ultimately he will be blocked at every turn.

Our victory is secured by none other than the Lamb. As Isaac Watts worded verse 11...

I ask them whence their victory came,
They, with united breath,
Ascribe their conquers to the Lamb;
Their triumph to His death.