Saturday, November 19, 2022

December 4, 2022 – From Chaos - Peace

From Chaos - Peace

Isaiah 11:1-10 - New International Version (NIV)

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
    from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
    the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and of might,
    the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord
and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.

He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
    or decide by what he hears with his ears;
but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
    with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
    with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
Righteousness will be his belt
    and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

The wolf will live with the lamb,
    the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
    and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear,
    their young will lie down together,
    and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
The infant will play near the cobra’s den,
    and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.
They will neither harm nor destroy
    on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious. 

What will the Branch bear (verse 1)?

Who will rest on the Branch (verse 2)?

What will the Branch delight in (verse 3)?

In your opinion, what is the difference between judging “by what he sees with his eyes” and judging “with righteousness” (verses 3 and 4)?

How will the wicked be slayed (verse 4)?

What will live with the lamb (verse 6)?

Who will eat straw (verse 7)?

What will the young child do (verse 8)?

Why will “they neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain” (verse 9)?

Who will “stand as a banner for the peoples” (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the source of peace?

Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 - New International Version (NIV)

Endow the king with your justice, O God,
    the royal son with your righteousness.
May he judge your people in righteousness,
    your afflicted ones with justice.

May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
    the hills the fruit of righteousness.
May he defend the afflicted among the people
    and save the children of the needy;
    may he crush the oppressor.
May he endure as long as the sun,
    as long as the moon, through all generations.
May he be like rain falling on a mown field,
    like showers watering the earth.
In his days may the righteous flourish
    and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.

18 Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
    who alone does marvelous deeds.
19 Praise be to his glorious name forever;
    may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.

What does the Psalmist pray for the king to be endowed with (verse 1)?

How does the Psalmist pray that the people will be judged (verse 2)?

What does the Psalmist pray that the hill will bring to the people (verse 3)?

Who does the Psalmist pray that the king will save (verse 4)?

How long does the Psalmist pray that the king will endure (verse 5)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that the king may “be like rain falling on a mown field” (verse 6)?

Who does the Psalmist pray will flourish (verse 7)?

Who “alone does marvelous deeds” (verse 18)?

What does the Psalmist pray will be filled with the king’s glory (verse 19)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the source of peace?

In your opinion, how is the prayer of the Psalmist in Psalms 72:1-7, 18-19 a fitting prayer for the shoot that comes up from the stump of Jesse in Isaiah 11:1-10?

Romans 15:4-13 – New International Version (NIV)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
    I will sing the praises of your name.”

10 Again, it says,

“Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people.”

11 And again,

“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;
    let all the peoples extol him.”

12 And again, Isaiah says,

“The Root of Jesse will spring up,
    one who will arise to rule over the nations;
    in him the Gentiles will hope.”

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

What do “the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide” help Christians have (verse 4)?

What can “the God who gives endurance and encouragement” also give us “toward each other” (verse 5)?

Who should Christians with “one mind and one voice” glorify (verse 6)?

How should Christians accept other Christians (verse 7)?

Why has Christ “become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth” (verse 8)?

What is the other reason that Christ has “become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth” (verse 9)?

Who might “glorify God for his mercy” (verse 9)?

Who are the Gentiles to rejoice with (verse 10)?

What are “all the peoples” to do (verse 11)?

Who says “the Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope” (verse 12)?

What does Paul pray for Christians to be filled with “so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the source of peace?

In your opinion, which prophesies of peace found in Isaiah 11:1-10 are shown by Paul to have been fulfilled by Jesus in Romans 15:4-13?  What prophesies remain to be fulfilled?

In your opinion, how is the prayer of the Psalmist in Psalms 72:1-7, 18-19 appropriate for Jesus as He is proclaimed by Paul in Romans 15:4-13?

Matthew 3:1-12 – New International Version (NIV)

1 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
    make straight paths for him.’”

John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

Where did John the Baptist preach (verse 1)?

What did he say (verse 2)?

What message does Matthew say Isaiah predicted John the Baptist would have (verse 3)?

How was John distinctive (verse 4)?

Where did people come from to see him (verse 5)?

What did people do before they were baptized by John (verse 6)?

Who did John call a “brood of vipers” (verse 7)?

What did John tell them to produce (verse 8)?

In your opinion, why did John tell them not to say to themselves “we have Abraham as our father” (verse 9)?

What trees will be “cut down and thrown into the fire” (verse 10)?

How would the One who comes after John baptize (verse 11)?

Where will the One with the winnowing fork gather the wheat in to (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the source of peace?

In your opinion, why is the prayer for a king who judges with righteousness in Isaiah 11:1-10 significant for the One that John the Baptist said was coming after him in Matthew 3:1-12?

In your opinion, how are the prayers and praises of Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 especially appropriate for the One that John the Baptist said was coming after him in Matthew 3:1-12? 

In your opinion, how does the baptism for repentance followed by the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire that John the Baptist talks about in Matthew 3:1-12 prepare us for the transformation of “attitude of mind toward each other” and filling “with all joy and peace as you trust in him” that Paul prays for in Romans 15:4-13?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Isaiah, Psalms, Romans, and Matthew teach us about how the world will be transformed and filled with peace?

In your opinion, how do the passages help us have peace in the world that we live in now?

 

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

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