THE STANDARD AND THE STAND

Part One

So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west,

And His glory from the rising of the sun;

When the enemy comes in like a flood,

the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.

The Redeemer will come to Zion,

And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob. 

Isaiah 59:19,20 NKJV

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.

Let all you do be done with love. 1 Corinthians 16:13,14 NKJV

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you

may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having 

done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:10,13 NKJV.

The book of the prophet Isaiah, in the Old Testament was written at about 700 BC. It is a book declaring God's displeasure with and judgment upon sin in Judah, Israel and the surrounding nations. Almost all the 

Hebrew words for sin are employed by the prophet. It is also a book that seeks to lay a foundation of hope and promise to the faithful remnant of God's people.It is a book full of God's promises of restoration and redemption, of the certain coming of the Messiah, of salvation for all the nations, and of the triumph of God's purposes in spite of intervals of suffering. (Adapted from the introduction to the book of Isaiah in the New Spirit Filled Life Bible).

The Book Of Isaiah is probably my favourite of the Old Testament prophets, as it is so full of Messianic prophecies - those that speak of the coming Messiah, whom we know as the Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, the eternal Son of God, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit, make up the Trinity, the eternal Godhead. How exciting for the follower of Jesus Christ to be able to read "tomorrow's news", as it were, in the Old Testament prophets and to be living today in a personal relationship with the Messiah, the Hope of the Ages, the eternal Son of the Living God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

In Isaiah 7:14, the prophet says: "Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (meaning God with us....") clearly foretelling the birth of Jesus to the virgin Mary, as well as God's participation in the more immediate deliverance from the Syrian and Israelite coalition.
In Isaiah 9:6,7 it says: 
For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His Shoulder.
And His name will be called 
Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government
and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over
His kingdom, 
To order it and establish it with
judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will
perform this.

Another year has almost gone, and Christmas (at the time of writing this), is just ten days away. As we plan to celebrate Christmas with family and friends, let us not forget the true meaning of Christmas. To quote from the song by Randy Stonehill, "Christmas Song for All Year Round":
"I wonder if this Christmas they'll begin to understand
The Jesus that they celebrate was much more than a man
'Cause the way the world is I don't see how people can deny
The only way to save us was for Jesus Christ to die
And I know that if St. Nicholas was here he would agree
That Jesus gave the greatest gift of all to you and me
They led him to the slaughter on a hill called Calvary
And mankind was forgiven when they nailed Him to the tree
But most of all the children they''re the ones I hope will learn
That Jesus is our savior and He's going to return
And Christmas isn't just a day and all days aren't the same
Perhaps they'll think about the word and see it spells His name
And I know that if St. Nicholas was here he would agree
That Jesus gave the greatest of all to you and me
They led Him to the slaughter on a hill called Calvary
And mankind was forgiven, mankind was forgiven
We were all forgiven when they nailed Him to the tree
So Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas
Hoo-hoo. Oooh-ooh
I wonder if this Christmas they'll begin to understand?
(Song featured on Randy Stonehill's album "Welcome To Paradise.")

If you would like to know more about how to become a Christian, go to www.vision.org.au - the home of Vision Christian Media in Australia. Click on the "Grow your faith" tab then "Looking for God."
End of Part 1

IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME

In Philippians 2:5-8, the Apostle Paul speaking to all who identify as Christians, true followers of Christ: Let this mind be in you all, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
But He emptied Himself,
taking upon Himself the form of a servant,
and was made in the likeness of men.
And being found in the form of a man,
He humbled Himself
and became obedient to death,
even death on a cross.

The Christmas season is here once again, where we remember with great joy the birth of the baby Jesus in a dirty stable in the little town of Bethlehem, not far from Jerusalem - where He was laid in a manger, an animal feeding trough filled with hay.

Jesus Christ, the Eternal Son of God, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit together make up the Trinity, the one true God, who has always existed- this same Jesus willingly became one of us, born into this world, taking on a human body, and in so doing, emptied Himself of some of His divine attributes and privileges while confined in time and space during His thirty three years living amongst us in bodily form.

The Greek word kenosis describing the self-emptying
in the above passage in Philippians 2 makes it clear that Jesus as the God-man could not be omnipresent, omniscient or omnipotent in Himself. The Bible says that He fully relied on the power of the Holy Spirit within Him, and only did those things told to Him by the Father.

Of Jesus, the apostle Paul says in Colossians 1:
By Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they are thrones or dominions, or principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things and by Him, all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the Church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all fullness should dwell, and to reconcile all things to Himself by Him, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him, I say - whether they are things on earth or things in heaven.
And you, who were formerly alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and blameless, and above reproach in His sight.

Isaiah says: All our righteousnesses before God are as filthy rags.
Romans 3:23 states: All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
The Greek word for sin means "to miss the mark." One way of picturing this is that of someone shooting arrows at a target. No matter how hard one tries to hit the target, the arrows all fall short. 

Once, the Bible says, we were without God, and without hope in the world.
Once we were not a people, but are now the people of God (speaking of those who have committed their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ).

Speaking of Jesus, the Word of God says that: He became sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21.
We, who were far away from the covenants and promises of God have been brought near by the blood of Jesus.

That's why Jesus instituted what what is known as the Lord's Supper or Communion the night He was betrayed - as recorded in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke - and restated by Paul in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
I have received of the Lord that which I delivered unto you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night that He was betrayed, took bread. When He had given thanks, He broke it and said: "Take and eat. This is My body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." In the same manner, He took the cup after He had supper, saying: "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, Do this, as often as you drink it in remembrance of Me." As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.

THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT JESUS IS COMING BACK. LET US MAKE SURE WE ARE READY FOR HIS RETURN.