Something Greater

Isaiah 10 (Part 2 of 2): Condemnation of Arrogance === Main Idea #2 === God furiously condemned Assyria's arrogance. The king of Assyria did not in the least consider God to be his commander. He took to himself the glory and fame of conquest and control. Isaiah 10:12 (ESV) When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, he will punish the speech of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the boastful look in his eyes. Assyria was a tool in the hands of God, a tool of judgement and punishment against Israel's idolatry and wickedness. God moved the leaders of Assyria against Israel, "to take spoil and seize plunder, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets." But Assyria went beyond God's intent. Not content with seizing property and commanding tribute, Assyria sought to destroy all of Israel, boasting of his power. Isaiah 10:8-11, 13-14 (ESV) for he says: "Are not my commanders all kings? Is not Calno...

Isaiah 3: Supply and Support God takes away food and water. He intends to allow the government to fester with superstition, immaturity and oppression. All of this because the people have defied the LORD in word and deed. They have flaunted their sin and ignored their doom. God stands in judgement against the leaders, condemning their mistreatment of the poor, and scorning their proud affluence. All of their shallow appearances of beauty will become rottenness; their tinkling songs will fade into mournful lament. GOD TAKES AWAY SUPPORT AND SUPPLY (Verses 1-7) God has determined that the people of Judah suffer severe shortage of food and water. Worse, their political, military, and religious leaders will deteriorate. Infantile rulers will allow insolent oppression to become rampant, and the people desperately look for a savior. But none will be found. Isaiah 3:1 (ESV) For behold, the Lord GOD of hosts is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah support and supply, all suppo...

A Stiff-Necked People After an overview of Jewish history, emphasizing the faith of Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Joseph and Moses, Stephen points an accusing finger at the religious rulers who have arrested him for heresy and blasphemy: "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you." Acts 7:51 (ESV) Moses had delivered their forefathers from oppressive enslavement in Egypt, through powerfully miraculous demonstrations of God's power. They had been guided through the desert by God Almighty Himself, with a representation of His presence in the form of a richly furnished witness tent, the Tabernacle of Meeting . And they had repeatedly resisted God's rule over their life. They had repeatedly rejected Moses as God's appointed judge over them. As they had repeatedly rejected Christ. STIFF-NECKED: sklerotrachelos (hardnaped, obstinate); from skleros (dry, hard or tough; harsh or ...

Rejection of God and Self-Rejoicing Stephen, disciple of Christ, arrested and on trial for heresy and blasphemy, defends himself before self-righteous religious rulers, using the history of his people as an object lesson in religious rejection of God . "This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, - Who made you a ruler and a judge? - this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, - God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers." Acts 7:35-37 (ESV) This is Stephen's grand thesis. This declaration is the climax of his argument defending himself from the false charges of heresy and blasphemy. This careful, sequential overview of his people's history, from faithful Abraham to Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and now Moses, leads inevitably to...