A Clear Message

Read Isaiah 1-3, 5 & 32:9-23
 
Isaiah 1:1-3 These are the visions that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. He saw these visions during the years when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. 2 Listen, O heavens! Pay attention, earth! This is what the Lord says: “The children I raised and cared for have rebelled against me. 3 Even an ox knows its owner, and a donkey recognizes its master’s care - but Israel doesn’t know its master. My people don’t recognize my care for them… 18 Come now, let’s settle this," says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.”
 
WHAT do you need to know to decide if you should go to a conference? You learn who is speaking. What are their qualifications? Will they speak on topics you need or desire to learn? You wonder about their personal experiences. Do they have actual life-based information for your circumstances? After all, you are trusting someone with your time and the cost of traveling to and attending the conference.
   Many books of the Bible begin as Isaiah. God informs us who is writing. Then he speaks through them to tell us why we need to “go” and know, and even desire, his messages. We learn Isaiah is the author. He tells who he is and what qualifies him to write: he speaks God’s message. He wanted all in Judah to know that God had given him a vision – a picture – of what will happen in Judah and in the city of Jerusalem during the reigns of four kings. Their rule covered about 70 years, and Isaiah likely lived through 50 years. It is as if Isaiah received a DVD or link to YouTube, so he could see God’s will for the present and the future vividly revealed to him.
   Isaiah’s faith is secure in God’s vision. He is convicted that if people listen – actually hear and do God’s revelation – Judah will repent from sin. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow.”  This is the gospel. The God who knows us will come to us. These scriptures are a preface to and a summary of the reasons why God needs to speak to Judah. They need to be saved!
   This pattern of judgment and salvation is consistently revealed throughout Isaiah, which is often considered a view of the entire Bible.
   If Isaiah were speaking at a conference, would you go? Do you think Isaiah’s words would help you today? From heaven’s throne, the LORD holds a free conference for every one of us each hour of each day. In the Bible, through prayer, true teachings constantly available and within Christian fellowship, I AM tells you his eternal purpose is to teach you what you must know. Listen and learn. The LORD God Almighty has spoken to you.