Unfortunately, schedules were too conflicting last week and we weren't able to meet. However, anybody who's been following along in Isaiah knows that the last two weeks of chapters were pretty much judgment after judgment on regions all around (and including) Judah. Conveniently, this Tuesday's reading (Isaiah 24) was somewhat of a finale to this theme, as it talked about God's final judgment on the entire planet.
One piece of scripture that gave all of us quite a bit of trouble, and even sent people in search of concordances, was verse 21. It describes God punishing powers both in heaven and on earth. So what are these powers in heaven? Satan and his angels? And what does the word heaven mean? Will Satan still be in heaven in the end times? Or does 'heaven' just refer to a spiritual world? It may be kind of fun to ponder, but I'm sure the writer of Ecclesiastes would call it meaningless. From other scripture, we do have confidence in God's victory over Satan regardless of when or where he is before his final judgment.
Something I liked about the last two weeks of chapters in Isaiah is that pretty much all the nations that are decimated or whittled down are described as revering and worshiping God afterward. Even in the end times prophecy there is a remnant who shout the name of the Lord and glorify Him. I hope God doesn't have to destroy our nation to make us glorify Him, but I can see how it would be easier to worship Him without all the distractions that our culture imposes on us. I would challenge us to set time aside every day for glorifying God and ignoring everything else.
Next week is our 'fun' meeting, but we will be working on preparing a package for the Fords. More details to come on this in the calendar.
God Bless!
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