September 3, 2023 – Isaiah in the New Testament – From Fear to Faith

From Fear to Faith

Isaiah 8:5-13 - New International Version (NIV)

⁵ The Lord spoke to me again:

⁶ “Because this people has rejected
    the gently flowing waters of Shiloah
and rejoices over Rezin
    and the son of Remaliah,
⁷ therefore the Lord is about to bring against them
    the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates—
    the king of Assyria with all his pomp.
It will overflow all its channels,
    run over all its banks
⁸ and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it,
    passing through it and reaching up to the neck.
Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land,
    Immanuel!”

⁹ Raise the war cry, you nations, and be shattered!
    Listen, all you distant lands.
Prepare for battle, and be shattered!
    Prepare for battle, and be shattered!
¹⁰ Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted;
    propose your plan, but it will not stand,
    for God is with us.

¹¹ This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people:

¹² “Do not call conspiracy
    everything this people calls a conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,
    and do not dread it.
¹³ The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,
    he is the one you are to fear,
    he is the one you are to dread.

Who spoke to Isaiah (verse 5)?

What have the people of Judah rejected (verse 6)?

Who will the Lord bring against the people of Judah (verse 7)?

What will the “mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates” do in Judah (verses 7 and 8)?

What will happen to those who “prepare for battle” (verse 9)?

Why will the proposed plan not stand (verse 10)?

What way did the Lord warn Isaiah not to follow (verse 11)?

What is Isaiah not to call conspiracy (verse 12)?

What is Isaiah not to fear (verse 12)?

Who is holy (verse 13)?

Who should be feared (verse 13)?

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

In your opinion, how does this passage help us stop fearing as the world does?

Matthew 10:24-33 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁴ “The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. ²⁵ It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!

²⁶ “So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. ²⁷ What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. ²⁸ Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. ²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. ³⁰ And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹ So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

³² “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. ³³ But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.

Who is not above the teacher (verse 24)?

What “is enough” (verse 25)?

In your opinion, what does Jesus mean when He says “If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household” (verse 25)?

Why should the followers of Jesus not be afraid of governors and kings (verse 26)?

What should we do with what Jesus tells us in the dark (verse 27)?

Who should we be afraid of (verse 28)?

What cannot fall to the ground outside our Father’s care (verse 29)?

What is numbered (verse 30)?

Why should we not be afraid (verse 31)?

Who will Jesus acknowledge (verse 32)?

Who will Jesus disown (verse 33)?

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

In your opinion, how does this passage help us stop fearing as the world does?

In your opinion, how does understanding that God knows you so completely that he knows the numbers of hairs on your head as Jesus taught in Matthew 10:24-33 help keep you from fearing what the world fears as Isaiah warned in Isaiah 8:5-13?

Romans 10:5-13 – New International Version (NIV)

⁵ Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.” ⁶ But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) ⁷ “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). ⁸ But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: ⁹ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ¹¹ As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” ¹² For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³ for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

What did Moses write about “the righteousness that is by the law” (verse 5)?

What does “who will ascend into heaven” mean (verse 6)?

What does “who will descend into the deep” mean (verse 7)?

What does “the righteousness that is by faith” say (verse 8)?

When will we be saved (verse 9)?

What are you when “with your heart . . . you believe” (verse 10)?

What are you when “with your mouth . . . you profess your faith” (verse 10)?

Who will “never be put to shame” (verse 11)?

Who does the Lord richly bless (verse 12)?

Who will be saved (verse 13)?

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

In your opinion, how does this passage help us stop fearing as the world does?

In your opinion, what does Romans 10:5-13 help us understand about why the tactics’ of raising the war cry, preparing for battle and devising strategy in Isaiah 8:5-13 are doomed to fail?

In your opinion, how does Romans 10:5-13 help us understand the rewards of acknowledging Jesus as discussed in Matthew 10:24-33?

1 Peter 3:13-18 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? ¹⁴ But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.” ¹⁵ But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, ¹⁶ keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. ¹⁷ For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. ¹⁸ For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 

In your opinion, “who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good” (verse 13)?

What happens “if you should suffer for what is right” (verse 14)?

What should Christians not fear (verse 14)?

How should our hearts relate to Christ (verse 15)?

What should we always be prepared to give (verse 15)?

How should we give this (verse 15)?

What should we keep (verse 16)?

What is better than suffering for doing evil (verse 17)?

Why did Christ suffer “once for sins” (verse 18)?

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

In your opinion, how does this passage help us stop fearing as the world does?

In your opinion, how do Isaiah 8:5-13 and 1 Peter 3:13-18 differ in their reaction to the Lord?

In your opinion, how does 1 Peter 3:13-18 show us in the way that we should acknowledge Jesus as commanded in Matthew 10:24-33?

In your opinion, how can the belief that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” in Romana 10:5-13 help us transform from being people who are afraid of the threats that 1 Peter 3:13-18 says we should not fear into a people who revere “Christ Jesus as Lord” in our hearts? 

In your opinion, what do these passages from Isaiah, Matthew, Romans and 1 Peter help us understand about how to move from fear in the world to revering Christ as Lord in our hearts?

In your opinion, how do we move from just acknowledging God before others to being ready to “give an answer to everyone who asks”?

 

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)