Healing For The Broken-Hearted

Jesus was quoting Isaiah 61 when He read from this passage:

Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to > the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and > recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luke 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

It is a very important phrase Christ said, that He was "...sent...to heal the brokenhearted." This is way more than a "my boyfriend/girlfriend left me" kind of brokenheartedness. This is a deep, no way out kind of brokenness that no man/woman can fix. Its an illness that is all over this world, but speaking of America, we have the things mentioned in this article, plus the plague of single-parent homes, alcholic/drug addicted parents and siblings, and a host of worldly things that beckon us, calling us to fulfill ourselves. Not only that, but all these things promise quick fixes, and they may quell our appetite for but a moment. However, only the LORD JESUS CHRIST can satisfy, fill us, but more importantly, heal us. He alone, can take what is broken, and make something new out if it, and that includes our hearts.

The question is, will be believe Him?

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

https://answersingenesis.org/blogs/georgia-purdom/2015/04/28/women-ready-to-embrace-the-hurting-answers-for-women-conference/?utm_source=articlesmedia&utm_medium=email&utm_content=blog2title&utm_campaign=20150502&mc_cid=6b3b21bcb7&mc_eid=0d29df621f

On Daniel, chapter one, fulfilling prophecy

T
his is much longer than I anticipated. Please excuse the abbreviations. I’m not a writer, but I try to get the point across. In so many words! ¹

If you have questions, feel free to ask, I’ll try to answer. Comments always welcome. I know that I make great leaps of logic, that u may not be able to follow. I have always done that, but again, ask if u want. Or, fill in the blanks!

Mary Lou and Stuart hit the nail on the head with their response. In particular, that this is a fulfillment of prophecy given by God, thru Isaiah to Hezekiah. It is an important prophecy.

Many years & a few kings prior to Daniel and his friends being carried away in captivity, King Hezekiah received a visit from Babylonian ambassadors. Hezekiah had shown the Ambassadors all the riches in the kingdom. Isaiah, questioning Hezekiah:

2Kgs 20:15 And he said, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All the things that are in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them.

Then, GOD’s response, thru Isaiah the prophet:

2Kgs 20:16 And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD.
2Kgs 20:17 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
2Kgs 20:18 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
2Kgs 20:19 Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days?

Note verse 18, above. Daniel 1 is the fulfillment.

A Matter Mentioned Three Times

Something is important in the Word Of God (WOG) when it is repeated. Whether its repeated in the same conversation, or spread out in various books of the Bible, as in this case. Since the entire Bible has One ultimate Author, being GOD Himself, this repetition carries some weight. I’ll leave to you to look up the other references, if you would like to see them:

2 Chronicles 32.24-31; Isaiah 39.3-8  

Note the reference in Chronicles is worded much differently, but it certainly refers to Hezekiah and his visit by the Babylonian ambassadors.

A Further Biblical Connection

The last thing to mention, is that in terms of Hezekiah’s line of descendants, there comes a stopping point of those who actually rule on the throne of Judah.

Here is the connection:

Matthew 1, begins with the descendants, from Adam down through the kings. Hezekiah is mentioned, starting in verse 9. The Jews kept excellent genealogical records and there should be king after king, but instead, you find it becoming, king, king, descendant. Because, they were denied a ruling throne.

Nevertheless, GOD still had planned for the true King, to come thru the line of David. Yet, not thru a man, since the line of descendants ended with curse placed upon Jeconiah, and his seed: that none would sit on the throne over Judah, ever.

Jeremiah 22.24-30, esp verse 30  

In order to keep His promise to Abraham, and especially to his great-great grandson, Judah in Genesis 49.10, God had already implemented His plan. That of the virgin-born Messiah. In the New Testament, Messiah is called, Christ. (John 1.41)

That brings us up to the time of the LORD’s birth. The same prophet, Isaiah, who spoke to Hezekiah with the prophecy of His seed being made eunuchs, also spoke several great prophecies regarding Jesus. These are the first two that spring to mind:

Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

The entire chapter of Isaiah 53  

In the case of Joseph and Mary, Joseph was in the royal line, but sometime after the birth of Christ, he is no longer mentioned. So, he never became king. Yet, Joseph was not the father of Jesus, anyway. Mary was to be His mother, but as God told Joseph:

Matt 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

Matt 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.


Matt 1:22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,


Matt 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Verse 20: Jesus is conceived of the Holy Ghost! There it is, big, plain and straight.

Just for final clarification, Luke 3.33 specifies that Mary also, comes from the tribe of Judah, and therefore, by birth, Jesus is still in the royal family line, yet,  born of the seed of the woman. (Gen 3.15)

So, how do I wrap this up? I don’t know if I can keep all this straight!

• Daniel and his friends were of the royal seed - most likely



• Their serving under the chief eunuch most likely means, they were made eunuchs.



• Their being made eunuchs was a fulfillment of prophecy.



• It also begins to show that the line of kings ruling on the throne was about to end. That end came with the end of Zedekiah, the son or relative of cursed Jeconiah.



• GOD still kept His promise in that He has provided a King through the miraculous birth of Jesus in fulfillment of Gen 3.15, Gen 22.8 and a whole bunch of other Scripture.

Since GOD has kept all those promises and those prophecies have completely fulfilled, there is no doubt that He will ultimately do all other prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled.

▬▬

¹ This post was originally written as a Facebook note, November 2014.

Lindsey Stirling’s O Come Emmanuelle

Watch this beautiful video here

I

thought b4 the end of this video, we were going to get the whole gospel call! At the very least, in the text messages that appear during the video, Ms. Stirling acknowledges that God "...has given us the greatest gift of eternity. His Son...who gave the very best in Himself..." for us. {Kevin’s Komment - I know, I may not have quoted that exactly.}  

springboard

Not to take away from this video, but rather, using that last quote as a springboard, I like that phrase, “in Himself.” It’s a phrase that can apply to God, as well as, man. A few Biblical references referring to man are: Isaiah 19.17; Jeremiah 10.23; Jonah 4.8; Matthew 13.21; Luke 24.12; Galatians 6.4

note: if viewing from my blog page, hover your mouse-pointer over these scripture references

Yet, there is a marked difference between what man knows, thinks or feels “in himself,” versus how that phrase applies to Jesus Christ.

In himself

again, just hover over the Scripture reference, unless you want to verify for yourself, that I have the right verses with the correct reference.

Mark 5.30

Mark 5.30

Jesus is aware when the GOOD that is within Him is shared with another.

John 6.61

John 6.61

No one needs to tell God our secret thoughts and our secret conversations. He already knows! Think about that while reading Ecclesiastes 12.13,14.

John 13.31,32

John 13:31; Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him.John 13:32; If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.

Figure that one out!! I underlined those phrases, and they are worth pondering over. Perhaps, you’d like to think of that while reading Hebrews 12.2? How about Revelation 5.9, 12-14. This is the glory of Christ now, and throughout all eternity! ☺

John 5.26

I saved this one for last, and wanted to put this entire verse in here, too. This is what makes God, God! Something we, nor any other earthly or angelic creature has!!

John 5:26; For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;

Before time, before the foundation of the world, there is God. He neither ages, grows weary, nor does He grow old. He alone is completely self-existent. That is why in Exodus 3.13, 14, God names Himself, I AM THAT I AM! Jesus equals that statement in John 8.58.

So, where is the Gospel in this?

If Jesus has life in Himself, and yet died for our sins, giving His life for us, do we not owe Him something?

Yet, there is nothing any one of us can do FOR Him. We owe the debt to Him, completely, utterly unable to pay that debt. Our tiniest evil thought, to our biggest, most outragest sin, keeps us from Him, and eternity in Heaven. But God (Rom 5.8!), who has life in Himself , sent His only begotten Son, who also has life in Himself to us in the form of a baby. He learned obedience, growing as a child, living as an adult until the day of the cross. Jesus lived perfectly, and without sin. Though, without sin, the Bible says He became sin for us, laying down His life that we may have life in Him! (John 10.17,18, 2 Corinthians 5.21)

The solution is

The oft quoted scripture: John 3.16

When we trust Christ, it’s a done deal. We are His for all eternity. Not an eternity that is somewhere-out-there-drift-along-on-a-cloud-playing-your-harp eternity. This is eternity that will last much longer than this vapor-life. Eternity lasts something like, forever. Note that John 3.16 actually says that believers shall have everlasting life. It is always good, with every good gift imaginable, that will never rust, corrode, be stolen, have a lien put against it, kind of gift. (Romans 6.23) All because Jesus gives that life to us!

Just remember that John 3.16 is followed by John 3.17, 18. Those who are condemned already, i.e., those who do not put their trust in Christ, have an eternity as well. In the nasty-now-and-now, we call Hell. At the great white throne of Judgment, Hell is followed by being cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20.12-15)

God, thru the Bible, makes it plain: there are only two ways our life is going to END on this earth. Of those two ways, God leaves us the choice to make: Trust Christ or Not. Everlasting life, or eternal condemnation. You will either be a Saint or an Ain’t. Saved or lost. Choose Christ. Choose now.

Oh, Come, Emmanuelle!

Pre-John 3 Notes

I’m reading through the book of John. I’m also reading through a commentary on John’s gospel by Sam Gipp,

Here’s the link: "Practical and Theological Study of the Gospel"

My goal for the next day and possibly again over the next weekend, is to make some notes that are based on his commentary, along with some other items of interest regarding the exchange between Jesus and Nicodemus. The first 18 verses of chapter 3 will be the focus of my study.

This study has gone much further than I anticipated, even though I’ve read this passage many times throughout life. I am:

• learning more about Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, and how the Lord mastered the conversation
• making connections to other scriptures that I had not noticed, either.
• I’m making connections of words and phrases within this passage I had not noticed before.

Even in such familiar passages as this, there is often more to be gleaned, each and every time I return to God’s Word. Even though I should not be surprised, I am, anyway. I consider this a good thing.  

This is not going to be a book review. I’m not looking to qualify Mr. Gipp’s writing. I’m not critiquing his work. I’m enjoying this book, and simply using this blog to make notes. No plagiarism will be occurring. I do suggest,  that if you’d like to study from it, order yourself a copy.

Again, this study is going to be my notes based on what Mr. Gipp has written, and more importantly, what God has written. My premise regarding the Bible is that God is right, period. His Word supersedes my own notes, is far superior to commentaries from others (including Mr. Gipp’s). Put another way: In Genesis 3, the serpent (Satan) asked Eve, “Yea, hath God said…?” I say, “YEA!!  God most assuredly hath said!!” So, if something I say is not in line with the Word of God, God always' wins. I plead no contest. His Word is forever settled in Heaven. (now, where have I heard that before?)

Until next time, whether its tomorrow, or next weekend…