OUR FATHER WHOSE GLORY IS DECLARED BY THE HEAVENS 

Psalm 19 verse 3 (Amplified version) says this;

There is no speech, nor are there [spoken] words [from the stars]; Their voice is not heard.

In describing how the heavens continuously declare the glory of the Lord and how the skies proclaim the works of God's hands, this verse states that the broadcasts of such knowledge are silent and occur without audible words.

This counterintuitively silent mode of the transmission of knowledge from the heavens to the earth suggests the existence of a discreet spiritual channel that is spiritually discerned and spiritually decoded.

Amen.

3

OUR FATHER WHO FREELY OFFERS A COVENANT TO THOSE WHO WOULD BELIEVE

The book of Isaiah chapter 55 verses 3 - 4 says this;

Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live.

I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.

See, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a ruler and commander of the peoples.

This passage, written to those who would believe in the promise of salvation of the Lord, advises them to incline their ear towards God to hear the message of life.

The message is of an eternal covenant that the Lord makes with those who put their  trust in Him and the covenant is through the promise made to king David whose throne was going to be established as the throne for the One to come as ruler and commander.

Those marshalled under the covenant of the  kingship of the promised One will be endowed with the splendor of their God and the whole world will be blessed through them.

As Isaiah chapter 55 verse 5 says;

Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations you do not know will come running to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor.”

There is a limited time during which the covenant may be joined and there are conditions to fulfill in order to join the covenant as spelled out in Isaiah chapter 55 verses  6 - 7;

Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.

Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts.

Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO WILL RESTORE HIS PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 54 verses 3 - 4 says this;

For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.

“Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated.

You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood.

This verse captures the reassurance that the Lord our God gives to His bride.

He lets her know that  he will increase in descendants will disposess  the kingdoms of the earth that are controlled  by the powers and rulers in high places.

He also assures her that the times that she lost her way and suffered defeats and humiliation would fade from memory and she would permanently be favored by her Husband.

These who are part of God's bride are those who walk in faith and in the Spirit of God. They are the ones who sought the One who saved them from darkness and who then loved their God through travails and griefs until the day of His appearing and He restored her to Himself.

As Isaiah chapter 54 verse 9 says;

“To me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again.

Amen.

3

OUR FATHER WHOSE DAY OF JUDGEMENT WILL INDUCE DREAD part 3

The book of Isaiah chapter 34 verses 1 - 2 says this;

Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention, you peoples!

Let the earth hear, and all that is in it,  the world, and all that comes out of it!

The Lord is angry with all nations; his wrath is on all their armies.

He will totally destroy them, he will give them over to slaughter.

The judgement of God upon the peoples of the earth and all the nations will be heralded to alert everyone of the coming destruction.

They are warned that the Lord is angry with the nations and that His wrath is aimed at their military might to render them defenceless.

The Lord will then bring absolute destruction upon them from which they will not recover.

The spiritual kingdoms that had hithertofore governed the territories of the nations, after the entire geo-political order on earth has been destroyed by the Lord, will now be dismantled and all the powers, authorities and rulers in high places will dry up and fall to the earth like dead foliage. As Isaiah chapter 34 verse 4 says;

All the stars in the sky will be dissolved and the heavens rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine,  like shriveled figs from the fig tree.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHOSE DAY OF JUDGEMENT WILL INDUCE DREAD part 2

The book of Isaiah chapter 13 verse 7 says this;

Because of this, all hands will go limp, every heart will melt with fear.

Continuing with the judgement that shall fall upon Babylon because of their arrogance and rebellion against God, this verse details the physiological and psychological responses that the Babylonians would suffer when they witness the catastrophic events that are brought upon them.

First, all the people, great and small, in the face of the unimaginable phenomena occurring around them, will lose all their strength and their hands will just hang helplessly at their side. They will be unable to muster any physical reaction to the scene that will play out before them.

Second, fear will completely engulf every person observing the oncoming disasters which will cause them to lose the ability to form cogent thoughts and responses to what they are seeing.

The judgement of God is fearsome.

12

OUR FATHER WHOSE DAY OF JUDGEMENT WILL INDUCE DREAD

The book of Isaiah chapter 12 13 verse 13 6 says this;

Wail, for the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty.

This verse captures the dread that will envelope everything when the day of the Lord arrives.

Witnesses of that day will cry uncontrollably for they will see the destruction of all the works of darkness that the civilization of Babylon had built.

Terror and agony will afflict those who hoped in the splendor and marvels of Babylon only to see her struck down to nothing before their eyes.

The day of the Lord will bring the schemes and plots of the kingdom of darkness to an abrupt halt and all her cities will be rendered permanently uninhabitable.

The day of the Lord is a fearsome and awesome day. 

5

OUR FATHER WHOSE SPIRIT GIVES POWER TO LIVE IN GOD

The book of Isaiah chapter 11 verse 2 says this;

The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—

This verse, speaking of the Messiah who was foretold, details the nature of His spiritual endowment.

The Messiah would first have the Spirit of the LORD rest upon Him which was fulfilled when the Holy Spirit rested upon the Lord Jesus Christ after His baptism in the River Jordan.

The Spirit of the Lord, working in the Lord Jesus Christ, would express the Spirit of Wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and might, the Spirit of Knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

The ministry of the Lord Jesus would demonstrate all these manifestations of the Spirit of the Lord from the great  miracles that were performed to the teaching that conveyed great wisdom and knowledge.

And by the Spirit, the Lord Jesus, in the Spirit of the fear of the Lord, maintained a life of absolute obedience before His father.

Such was the expression of the Spirit of God through the life of the Lord Jesus.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO REDEEMS HIS PEOPLE FROM THE OPPRESSOR

The book of Isaiah chapter 19 verses 4 - 5 says this;

I will hand the Egyptians over to the power of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

The waters of the river will dry up, and the riverbed will be parched and dry.

The spiritual kingdom of Egypt is a system of authority established by deception, political oppression, tyranical control over its subjects and ultimately, total enslavement.

This system, modeled by pharonic Egypt's marginalization and enslavement of the children of Israel, works to gain control of God's people in order to reduce their numbers and influence. This type of system inflames racial and cultural animosity and then works to eradicate disfavored groups of people.

In contemporary times, this pattern is repeated on a global scale in order to subjugate populations that were formerly free.

Against this back drop, the Lord, in Isaiah chapter 19, intervenes to save His people from oppression and bondage like He did when His people were being held captive in the land of Egypt.

Like in the land of Egypt, multiple avenues of intervention will be used to loosen the grip of spiritual Egypt over God's people.

Verses 4 and 5 describe two paticular conditions that spiritual Egypt will suffer.

Firstly, as the Egyptians struggle to gain dominance, they will find themselves under the rule of a cruel and brutal master.

The people of kingdom of Egypt will lose heart under the violent and harsh rulership of their new king and they will have to endure the same cruelty and harshness they inflicted on God's people.

Concurrently, the supplies of water needed to quench the thirst of their arid land will dry up and they will be parched by the judgement of a drought that will completely drain their main river.

In the end, Egypt's efforts will add up to nothing and God's people will be set free.

Amen.

6

OUR FATHER WHO EXALTED HIS SON

From Psalm chapter 2;

On My Holy mountain

You're crowned King of Zion

Today I'm Your Father

And You are My Son

Ask Me for the nations

I'll give You to rule

Blessed are they

Who take refuge in You

3

The Lord our God declared to His Son

I  have installed you as the king on Zion, my holy mountain.

 You are my son;  today I have become your father.

Ask and I will make the nations your inheritance

I will make the ends of the earth your possession.

Let us serve the Lord with reverence

Let us celebrate His rule with trembling

For blessed are those who take refuge in him.

4

The nations of the earth ( both spiritual and earthly ) conspired against the Lord and against the annointed Son of God.

They schemed to shake off the rulership of God and sovereignly determine their own path.

But God the Father declares that the highest throne has been given to the Son of God and that all nations and every territory on earth will be brought under the authority of the Son of God.

The Lord counsels the kings and rulers of the earth ( both spiritual and earthly ) to reverence the One whom God has installed as King because He has been given enough power and authority to shatter all the nations and bring destruction  to the conspirators.

Psalm 2 (NIV)

1 Why do the nations conspire

    and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth rise up

    and the rulers band together

    against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,

3 “Let us break their chains

    and throw off their shackles.”

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;

    the Lord scoffs at them.

5 He rebukes them in his anger

    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

6 “I have installed my king

    on Zion, my holy mountain.”

7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

8 He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father.

Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will break them with a rod of iron[b];

    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;

    be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the Lord with fear

    and celebrate his rule with trembling.

12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry

    and your way will lead to your destruction,

for his wrath can flare up in a moment.

    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

OUR FATHER WHOSE EXTENDED THE DOMINION OF HIS SON TO THE WHOLE WORLD

The book of Isaiah chapter 49 verse 12 says this;

See, they will come from afar—some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.”

In the chapter, God the Father, speaking to the Son of God, tells Him that the salvation of Israel would be too small a thing but that the sacrifice of His own life make him a light to the gentiles and His salvation would be available to the entire world.

The dominion of the Son of God would extend to the whole world where kings and princes would honor Him.

The desolate inheritances in long-lost territory would be restored and the captives in these lands would be called out of darkness and set  free.

The barriers that impede the approach of all the people of the world to the Kingdom of God are removed and the redeemed people would come from distant lands to be part of the Kingdom of God.

See, they will come from afar—some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.”

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO BRINGS FORTH THE HARVEST 

The book of Ecclesiates chapter 11 verse 4 says this;

Whoever watches the wind will not plant;  whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

This verse, speaking of the cycle of sowing and reaping, reveals a principle that governs the auspicious time to plant and to harvest.

A person who watches the wind to try to discern when to plant his crop does not know the course of the wind and therefore cannot  predict the correct conditions as verse 5 says;

Just as you do not know the way and path of the wind or how the bones are formed in the womb of a pregnant woman, even so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.

Similarly, looking at the clouds to decide when to put in crops will yield nothing because when clouds are full, they drop rain on the earth which would be optimal for crop growth but when the planting should be underway, there may not be a cloud in the sky and to withhold sowing when there are no  clouds visible would be a mistake.

The metaphor can expanded to mean that in the same way that the path of the wind cannot be known, the way of the Spirit of God cannot be predicted by men and so the advice that the Apostle Paul gives Timothy in 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 2 is;

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.

Whether or not we sense the presence and activity of God, we should always sow the seeds of the word of God that they may yield a harvest in their time.

As 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 7 says;

So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

Amen.

5

OUR FATHER WHO SCATTERS THE KINGDOM OF BABYLON

The book of Isaiah chapter 13 verse 14 says this;

Like a hunted gazelle, like sheep without a shepherd, they will all return to their own people, they will flee to their native land.

This verse, speaking of the world-dominating Babylonians, details the response of the agents of Babylon when the judgement of God is brought to their civilization.

 Whereas the Babylonians sought to stamp out any reference to the God of Israel and to establish their own mode of existence, they are caught by surprise when the power of the judgement of God tears down their systems of rulership and scatters them.

Their entire goverment system over the whole world is uprooted and its administrators and enforcers are scattered like sheep and they run for safety back to their home lands from where Babylon extracted them for service.

Thus haughty Babylon falls under the judgement of God and is utterly and permanently destroyed.

6

OUR FATHER WHO CAUTIONS AGAINST DELUSIONS OF SELF-SUFFICIENCY

Psalm 49 verse 11 says this;

Their tombs will remain their houses forever,  their dwellings for endless generations,  though they had named lands after themselves.

The psalmist, speaking of those who trusted in their great wealth, declares that the great wealth they boasted of will be of no help to them.

They sought honor and tried to gain eternal notoriety for themselves by naming lands after themselves but they could not escape death any more than poor men could or even animals. Their wealth would not spare them from being entombed forever.

To pay the ransom for a single life so that that a person is spared destruction and brought into eternal life, as the psalmist says in verses 7 - 9, is extremely costly and no man, even one of extreme wealth, can pay this price.

No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them—the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough—so that they should live on forever and not see decay.

What is impossible for man, however, is possible for God and God, through His Son, Jesus Christ, not only paid the ransom for a single man but paid enough by sacrificing Himself to die upon a cross to bring salvation to many sons across the world.

The eternal life that wealthy men searched for and could not buy, was in fact given as a free gift to whomever would believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and the death He suffered for our sake.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHO IS OUR SHIELD AND GLORY

Psalm 3 verse 3 - 4 says this;

But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. I call out to the Lord, and he answers me from his holy mountain.

When king David was on the run from his son Absalom who had attempted to usurp the throne of Israel, he cried out to the Lord for help. 

He first recognized the Lord as his shield and protector. He understood the Lord was between he and his enemies and that none could harm him.

He then recognized the Lord Himself to be his glory. David saw that it was the Lord presence in his life that had conferred on him the honor of king of Israel. 

It was the Lord who had elevated David to be a king over Israel and who had lifted his head above all the other sons of Israel to reign over the nation.

Because David had been given these promotions by the Lord, when he called out to God when he was in jeopardy, the Lord heard him and responded to him from the administrative headquarters of the kingdom of God.

Because, as believers, the Lord has made us kings and priests in His kingdom, He gives us protection from threats. He also  confers a measure of glory and honor upon us and lifts our heads to operate in the authority of His presence.

The Lord is also able to hear our calls to Him and to respond to us from His holy mountain.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO IS AWESOME

From Psalm 47;

Clap your hands all you nations

Shout to God with cries of joy

He reigns from His righteous throne

He is awesome in power

God has ascended amid the shouts of joy

Amid the sound of trumpets did He rise

He is the King of all the earth

Sing to Him a psalm of praise

For the Lord is greatly exalted

The kings of the nations gather before Him

He gives an inheritance to all He loves

For the whole earth belongs to Him

10

OUR FATHER WHO SET A TIME FOR EVERY CONTRAST TO OCCUR IN CREATION

The book of Ecclesiastes chapter 3 verses 4  - 5, says this;

 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

This passage is an excerpt from the widely known listing of contrasting events under the sun for which seasons and times were set.

When the Lord took the strip of time out of eternity and programmed it to be the theater where the lives of men would play out, the parameters were set to allow for a full range of responses and demands upon men to occur.

Life for men on earth is thus experienced as the ups and downs where situations change and we are placed under varying stressors and graces over the course of our lives. 

In the changing scenarios, circumstances bring grief and sorrow that cause men to weep while other periods of relief and celebrabration bring occasion for laughter.

Some times are tragic and we mourn while other times align to be hopeful and we dance in lightness of heart.

These ranges of experience test the hearts of men and measure their capacities and resilience.

Other times test our judgement and disernment. There are situations where scattering stones is the correct thing to do while other times are best served by gathering them. To percieve the difference and act accordingly reveals the faculties of tactical judgement we have developed.

There are situations that arise where interpersonal judgement is needed. There are times when we need to embrace and times when embracing is inappropriate. The interactions we have with others are measured in how we interprete the occasions and how we then calibrate our personal conduct.

Amen.

10

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGEMENT OF THE NATIONS IS INESCAPABLE 

The book of Isaiah chapter 15 verses 9 - 10 verse 9 and chapter 16 verse 1 says this;

(15-9) The waters of Dimon are full of blood, but I will bring still more upon Dimon—a lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon those who remain in the land.

(16-1) Send lambs as tribute to the ruler of the land, from Sela, across the desert, to the mount of Daughter Zion.

This passage describes the harsh judgement that will fall upon the people Moab where even though the waters are full blood, more judgement is brought upon them. A devouring lion is released upon them who are escaping as refugees from Moab and upon the those who opted to remain in the their land.

As the great destruction falls upon them, they are advised to send a tribute offering of lambs to ruler of land to the country of Zion.

In this time of desperation, their prayers to their own gods on the high places avail nothing and their only hope is in the intervention by the king of Zion.

They ask the neighboring nation of Zion to give shelter to the refugees from Moab and to conceal them from the destroyer. Nevertheless, their judgement leaves them devastated and feeble.

As Isaiah chapter 16 verse 14 says;

But now the Lord says: “Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab’s splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble.”

2

OUR FATHER WHO GAVE THE MESSIAH TO BE A COVENANT FOR THE PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 49 verse 9 says this;

to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’  and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill.

This verse, speaking of the promised Messiah, declares that He was given to be a covenant for the people whose role would include restoring the land, reassigning the desolate inheritances, releasing the captives and  liberating those in darkness.

The result of the ministry of the promised One would result in the people, likened to a flock of sheep, finding plentiful pasture along the roads on every barren hill.

They would lack nothing and be protected as verse 10 says;

They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.

He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.

Psalm 23 verses 1 and 2 mirrors this scenario almost exactly but from the point of view of the sheep;

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul;

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO TEARS DOWN THE WORKS OF FALSE PROPHETS

The book of Ezekiel chapter 13 verse 11 says this;

therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth. 

This verse, a prophetic word to the false prophets in Israel whose  spiritual  guardianship over the nation of  Israel was flimsy but who had disguised their flimsy defences as robust defenses by covering up their lack of substance with false assurances, warned them that their weak defenses would be destroyed by the Lord who would use rain, hailstones and violent winds to bring the false edifice down.

In their role as the prophets of Israel, the men should have been steadfast in their pursuit of the truth but instead were declaring visions that they did not see and prophesying peace that was not coming.

As a result, Israel's defences were weak and  left them vulnerable and this brought the judgement of the Lord on the false prophets themselves and on their false works.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO IS OUR HELP IN TIME OF DANGER

Psalm 53 54  verse 9  3  says this;

Arrogant foes are attacking me; ruthless people are trying to kill me—people without regard for God.

This verse is referencing the people who were hunting David at the behest of  King Saul.

David was in hiding and even though he had been chosen to be the king of Israel by the Lord, Saul was still ruling the kingdom and had undertaken to kill David.

David described those who sought kill him as arrogant, ruthless and godless.

Inspite of having the full power of the government being brought to bear against him, David trusted in the Lord for his safety saying in verse 4;

Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.

Amen.

4

OUR FATHER WHO WILL PROTECT THE REMNANT

The book of Isaiah chapter 17 verse 3 says this;

The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, and royal power from Damascus; the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites,” declares the Lord Almighty.

This verse speaks of the dissolution of the both the kingdom of Syria (Aram) and the kingdom of Israel ( Ephraim ).

Their glory will depart and their cities will be left in ruins.

Only a remnant will exist in the land and that remnant will regard and honor the Lord their God and they will ignore the infrastructure that existed in the land to serve the worship of idols.

This remnant will see tumult as the nations roar against them but their enemies will be suddenly disappear.

2

OUR FATHER WHO REACHES TO SAVE US FROM SIN  BY SENDING A REDEEMER

The book of Isaiah  chapter 59 verses 4 - 5 says this;

 No one calls for justice; no one pleads a case with integrity.

They rely on empty arguments, they utter lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.

They hatch the eggs of vipers and spin a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die, and when one is broken, an adder is hatched.

This passage captures one of the ways that the evil in the hearts of mankind manifests as injustice and how wicked practices are inducted into the lives of people.

In sinful societies, no one pursues true justice and no one makes honest and accurate cases.

Deception and fallacies are the tools used to manipulate the status quo to instigate trouble and crisis' and introduce demonic and destructive policies.

The concepts of wickedness are brought in disguised as innocuous ideas that seem wholesome and fair but once these cultures are adopted and people are entangled in them, they hatch into venomous snakes and they fatally afflict anyone who ingests them.

This is but one of the techniques by which our societies are dragged away from God and brought under the subjugation of the realm of darkness.

To redeem mankind from this darkness, a saviour had to be sent. The Lord Jesus Himself took action to save us.

Amen.

9

OUR FATHER WHO IS AMONG THE RIGHTEOUS

From Psalm 14;

God is present

With the righteous

Those who oppress the poor

Are filled with dread

O that the salvation 

For Israel 

Would come out of Zion!

So let Jacob be glad!

4

OUR FATHER WHO COUNTERS THOSE WHO OPPRESS HIS PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 19 verse 4 says this;

I will hand the Egyptians over to the power of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

In this passage, the Egyptians being referenced are a type and shadow of an oppressive and exploitative kingdom that have set themselves up over the people of God.

In the time when the Lord moves to free His people from under the yoke of oppression, He will orchestrate a political maneuver that will place a cruel leader over the Egyptian kingdom and the oppressors will suffer oppression themselves.

This change will cause the Egyptians to be economically and culturally discombobulated. They will be struck by unemployment and shortages. 

The kingdom  will also suffer from the lack of wisdom from their intellectuals and policy makers. The fabric of the kingdom will be hollowed out and they will become severely weakened.

In this state, the Lord will have mercy on the Egyptians and when they turn to Him,  He will  heal them and they will become a blessing of God to the world.

As Isaiah chapter 19 verse 25 says?

 The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.”

2

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THOSE WHO ARE USED AS INSTRUMENTS OF HIS JUDGEMENT

The book of Isaiah chapter 10 verse 14 says this;

As one reaches into a nest, so my hand reached for the wealth of the nations; as people gather abandoned eggs, so I gathered all the countries; not one flapped a wing, or opened its mouth to chirp.’”

This verse captures the proud words of the king of Assyria as he undertook to capture the nations of the world in order  to destroy them, erase their borders and to subjugate them under his will.

He likened his conquest of nations to the gathering of abandoned eggs where none resisted him with even a chirp. He hautily believed it was by his own strength that he had achieved the power over the nations.

What he did not recognize was that it was God who had bestowed strength to him so that he would act as judgement on God's people.

The king of Assyria went beyond his mandate and attempted to grasp the kingdom of the people  of God for himself.

It was for this overreach that brought the judgment of God down upon the Assyrian.

As verse 12 says;

 When the Lord has finished all his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the willful pride of his heart and the haughty look in his eyes. 

The Assyrian spoken of in this chapter is a type and shadow of the anti-christ who, having been released into the world to test the people of God, perceived himself to be above God and used his position of power to grasp for control of the whole world and for this, he is brought into abject destruction.

8

OUR FATHER WHO SPARES A REMNANT

The book of Ezekiel chapter 9 verses 3 - 5 says this;

Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.”

As I listened, he said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 

In this passage, the prophet Ezekiel, speaking of the idolatrous conduct of the people of Jerusalem, described three things things that he saw in his vision which  that occured when the Lord was provoked to wrath.

First, the Shekina and brightness of the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim in the innermost chamber of the temple and moved to the exit of the temple. This was the somber start of the departure of the presence of God from among His people in Jerusalem.

Second, the judgment of the Jerusalem was initiated when a man in white linen and a writing impliment at his side was called and instructed to put a mark on the foreheads of all those in the city who had disapproved of the evil things that were going on in their city. This mark excluded them from the judgement that was about to fall on the city.

Third, six men who had been summoned from heaven with lethal weapons were instructed to follow the man in linen and impartially execute the judgement of death upon those who did not have the mark on their foreheads.

And thus the vision of Ezekiel detailed how the Lord departed from Jerusalem and then how  judgement started first among the people around the temple and then proceeded to the rest of the city leaving a remnant of people. 

3

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THE ENEMIES OF HIS PEOPLE

The book of Obadiah chapter 1 verse 2 says this;

“See, I will make you small among the nations; you will be utterly despised.

This verse, recorded by the prophet Obadiah from a vision that he had, describes the judgement that would befall the kingdom of Edom.

Edom, being a neighbour and rival of the nation of Israel, is the area of land given to Esau the brother of Jacob.

Edom's judgement was that he would be demoted and marginalized among the nations because of the indifference shown towards his brother Jacob during a time when Jacob was being attacked and ransacked by enemies.

This judgment is a type and shadow of the judgment that was brought against the sector of spiritual kingdoms that rose up against their brothers in pride and violent malevolence.

12

OUR FATHER WHO IS OUR REDEEMER

The book of Isaiah chapter 47 verses 4 - 5 says this;

Our Redeemer—the Lord Almighty is his name— is the Holy One of Israel.

 “Sit in silence, go into darkness, queen city of the Babylonians; no more will you be called queen of kingdoms.

The Prophet Isaiah, is prophecying the coming judgement on Babylon, establishes that the Lord Almighty, the One who has the standing to redeem the souls of men, is the holy one of Israel.

When Babylon is confronted by the Lord God Almighty, her devastation will be overt and final.

The result will be that the world system of Babylon will be muted and pushed out of relevance. 

From her admired position of pre-eminence in the world , she will be brought down and will no longer be the model kingdom to be followed and emulated by other kingdoms.

Such is the fate of the world's economic, political and cultural center of Babylon.

3

OUR FATHER WHO BRINGS JUDGEMENT TO THE BABYLONIAN WORLD SYSTEM

The book of Isaiah chapter 13 verse 11 says this;

I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins.

I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.

This verse, referring to the day of  judgement and specifically to the judgement on Babylon ( which is a global world system governing economics, politics and culture ), declares that the evil and sinful actions of those who participate in the Babylonian system will account for their deeds.

The main result of this day of reckoning will be that the pride and haughtiness of the culture of Babylon will be terminated.

Even though Babylon thought she was impregnable, a powerful military force will shshssatter her defences and all her wealth and power will be destroyed.

The aftermath of Babylon's judgment is captured in Isaiah chapter 13 verses 19 - 21;

She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations; there no nomads will pitch their tents, there no shepherds will rest their flocks.

But desert creatures will lie there, jackals will fill her houses; there the owls will dwell, and there the wild goats will leap about.

Hyenas will inhabit her strongholds, jackals her luxurious palaces.

Her time is at hand, and her days will not be prolonged.

4

OUR FATHER WHO FORBIDS FAVOURITISM

The book of James chapter 4 verse 1- 2 says this;

My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.  Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in.

This passage by the Apostle James declares axiomatically that believers are to be impartial in our acceptance of one another.

The example given is of two people arriving  at a gathering where one person is oppulently attired while the other is poorly dressed in dirty old clothes.

James instructs us not to show special favour to the rich man while belittling the poor man and in fact the Apostle categorizes such discrimination as sinful.

The Lord chose the poor to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom of God while the rich are in the category of those who litigiously oppress believers and blasphem the name of the Lord Jesus and as such, it is foolishness to be deferential towards the rich while being condescending towards the poor.

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHOSE GLORY IS DECLARED BY THE HEAVENS

Psalm 19 verse 4 says this;

Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

This verse speaks of the heavens and the denizens of the heavens and the activity that they carry out where knowledge continually pours forth from them wordlessly and even though this knowledge is transmitted in silence, the message nevertheless proceeds to the whole earth and to the ends of the world.

Those who can incline their ears to hear in the spirit are the ones who can intercept this  knowledge that is being broadcast continually from the realm of the spirit.

Part of this activity in heaven is the service of the sun that the Lord set a path for and it traverses from one end of heaven to the other end and as it moves, it provides heat to every place on the earth. As Psalm 119 verse 6 says;

The sun’s rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

This could be interpreted to be describing the journey that the sun takes around the milky way  galaxy and how it takes the whole earth along with it providing warmth to it as it goes.

Amen.

9

OUR FATHER WHO WARNS AGAINST INCITING REBELLION AGAINST HIM

The book of Deutronomy chapter 13 verse 5 says this;

That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

This verse, referencing prophets and dreamers who would try to persuade the people to turn away from God towards false gods, commands that such be put to death.

Even those among them who were  demonstrating signs and wonders were to be seen as false if their messages to the people were to follow gods other than the only true God who brought them out of bondage in Egypt.

The severity of such offences is illustrated when the Lord characterizes them as evil to be purged and prescribes that it be punished as a capital crime.

5

OUR FATHER WHO ARISES TO JUDGE AND TO SAVE

Isaiah 33 verse 10 says this;

“Now will I arise,” says the Lord.

“Now will I be exalted; now will I be lifted up.

This verse conveys the singular event where the Lord ascends and is promoted and elevated above all else.

This verse is a textual confirmation of the Lord Jesus being God and the Father, a separate person, also being God. 

Here, the Lord Jesus, after declaring that He will arise by His own will then says that He will be exalted and lifted up. The allusion here is that another person will exalt Him and will lift Him up and the only one who would have the capacity to exalt and lift up the Lord Himself is of course God the Father.

Bless the Lord.

Amen

12

OUR FATHER WHO PROVIDES A WAY TO GET AWAY FROM TEMPTATION

The book of James chapter 1 verse 14 says this;

but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 

In speaking of the progression of wrongdoing, the Apostle James indicates in this verse that it is our personal evil desires that provide the arena for enticement where temptation plays out.

Any part of our lives that are under the control of the flesh rather than the Spirit are vulnerable to enticement because the fleshly nature always seeks ways to express its sinful affinities.

Our fleshly nature, being our original built-in condition, is deeply entrenched in us and so has home-court advantage when it comes to determining which desires to foster.

We are  "dragged away"  from our intention to pursue righteousness by our desires and we are then surrounded by the enticement to gratify our fleshly nature. The temptation then progresses to sin and sin progresses to death.

To avoid getting caught in this inescapable vortex, each believer must continuously pray in the Spirit to strengthen our inner man so that our  spirits can gain dominance over our fleshly nature and thus put to death the works of the flesh.

Regarding the process of acquiring strength in our spirit, Jude chapter 1 verse 20 says this;

But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

When built up and strengthened, our spirits can set the agenda of what kinds of thoughts and emotions are harboured in our lives and when evil desires are not given the chance to be conceived in our minds, temptations have no power over us and we can increasingly live free of the ravages of sin.

Amen.

10

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES HIS PEOPLE

The book of Isaiah chapter 3 verses 2 - 4, says this;

1) See now, the Lord, the Lord Almighty, 

2) is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water, the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder,

3) the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.

4) “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”

This passage details the nature of the affliction that will descend on Jerusalem and Judah when their day of judgement commences.

First, the provision of food and water will be disrupted and second, any kind of leadership  among the people will be removed.

Just when the population will need authority figures to coordinate the aquisition and distribution of vital supplies, every possible leader from judges to elders to captains will be removed which will leave the territory paralyzed and unresponsive.

In this extreme power vacuum, inexperienced  youths will rise to take charge of the affairs of the nation exacerbating the confusion and  misery.

A terrible day of judgement indeed.

2

OUR FATHER WHO RESCUES US

From Psalm 13;

Day after day I have sorrow in my heart

My enemies gained a victory

Lord, My God, don't depart

Don't hide Your face from me

Look upon me Lord and give light to my eyes

For my foes rejoice when I fall

But I trust in Your unfailing love

You always hear my call

3

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES THE EARTH

From Psalm 58;

When God Judges the earth

The righteous will be glad 

They will see their vindication 

And enter their reward

2

OUR FATHER WHO WILL HUMBLE THE ARROGANT

The book of Isaiah chapter 2 verses 11 - 13 says this;

The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled), for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty, and all the oaks of Bashan,

This passage, speaking of the day of the Lord when the Lord establishes His kingdom on earth, tells of how, in the face of the authority of the Lord, the arrogance of men will be brought down.

In every enterprise of mankind from the kingdoms and nations to global corporations where pride has lifted its head among men, they will be dashed  and humbled as men go into hiding in caves and holes to escape the presence and splendor of God.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO JUDGES FALSE PROPHETS

The book of Ezekiel chapter 13 verse 11 says this;

therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth.

This verse is a word of warning to the false prophets of Israel who were falsely declaring that there was to be peace when there was no peace.

These prophets were like those who covered up their flimsy construction projects with whitewash so that it would appear that that there was substance to their  foundations while they were, in reality, just a fascade.

The judgement of the Lord would come in torrents of rain, hail stones and violent winds to bring the whole false premise down.

3

OUR FATHER WHO VISITS HIS PEOPLE

The book of Leviticus chapter 9 verse 13 says this;

Then say to the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering,

This verse records two instructions that Moses commanded Aaron the priest to convey.to the the Israelite.

The first was to take a male goat for a sin offering and the second was to take a calf and a lamb, both one year old and without defect for a burnt offering.

Continuing with verse 4, they were also to take  two additional animals for a fellowship sacrifice along with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.

and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil.

Thus they had five animals and a grain offering to prepare in order to be ready for the appearance of the Lord.

When the sacrifices were meticulously prepared and placed on the altar before the Lord, the glory of the Lord appeared before all the people and they shouted with joy and fell to the ground.

This pattern is a model for preparation that a believer can follow to make way for an encounter with the Lord.

We must attend to the atonement and cleansing of sin through the appropriation by faith of the blood shed by the Lord Jesus.

Then we must press further towards the purging of the influence of the flesh from our lives by giving no quarter to the flesh and burning away any parts  of our lives that are being dictated by the flesh.

Then, in all sincerity and earnest, we must set aside a fellowship offering comprised of the resources of time, worship, obedience and reverence needed to appropriately welcome the Lord as Abram, our progenitor in faith, did when the Lord visited him at the oaks of Mamre.

Amen.

2 

OUR FATHER WHOSE FIERCE JUDGEMENT MARKS THE END OF THE AGE

The book of Ezekiel chapter 7 verse 9 says this;

I will not look on you with pity;  I will not spare you. I will repay you for your conduct and for the detestable practices among you.

“‘Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you.

This fearsome prophecy recorded by the prophet Ezekiel, speaks of the end of the age when judgement would be brought down upon the people for their evil conduct.

They had occupied their time accumulating gold and silver for themselves and used it to make jewelry of vanity and images for idolatry.

For these detestable practices, the fierce judgement of God struck the people and no pity was shown and there was no uncertainty that the calamities that repeatedly struck them were from the Lord.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO WILL PRESERVE THOSE WHO TAKE REFUGE IN HIM

The book of Isaiah chapter 57 verse 7 - 9 says this;

You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill; there you went up to offer your sacrifices.

Behind your doors and your doorposts you have put your pagan symbols.

Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed, you climbed into it and opened it wide; you made a pact with those whose beds you love, and you looked with lust on their naked bodies.

You went to Molek with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away; you descended to the very realm of the dead!

The prophet Isaiah, in this passage, catalogues the activities of darkness that the people were participating in rather than remaining true to their own God.

They set up altars on high places to engage  with spirits from the realm if darkness with sacrifices.

In their homes, they put symbols of their pagan practices in discreet places.

They abandoned their intimacy with God and pursued intimacy with evil spirits.

They presented olive oil and perfumes at the altar of Molek to gain passage into the underworld in order to traverse the realm of the dead.

They fled from the  light of God to plumb the depths of darkness.

The Lord, through His prophet, warned the people that these idols they had followed could not save them from destruction.

Only those who seek refuge in the Lord will be saved.

As Isaiah chapter 57 verse 13 from the Amplified version says;

“When you cry out [for help], let your [ridiculous] collection of idols save you. But the wind will carry them all away, A [mere] breath will take them. But he who takes refuge in Me will possess the land [Judea] And will inherit My holy mountain.”

Amen 

1 

OUR FATHER WHOSE WORDS OF WARNING ARE SERIOUS

The book of Ezekiel chapter 6 verse 10 says this;

And they will know that I am the Lord; I did not threaten in vain to bring this calamity on them.

God's people, having engaged in idolatrous practices like maintaining false altars and burning incense to idols, are warned in a prophecy recorded by the prophet Ezekiel, of a coming judgement that would destroy the idols they had fashioned for themselves. 

The judgement would also be a fatal calamity to the people leaving only a remnant of the people alive.

This surviving remnant, having escaped the disaster that had struck them, would then remember the Lord and they would understand how grievous their detestable actions had been towards their God.

This realization would show the remnant that their God was the only true and living God and that His warnings to them were not empty threats.

Amen.

OUR FATHER WHO WILL GATHER HIS OWN  PEOPLE

Isaiah 27 verse 13 says this; 

And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

The prophet Isaiah, speaking of the day of redemption of Israel, describes a great trumpet sounding. 

This event is also captured by the Apostle Paul in the book of 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verses 51 - 53;

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

The day will come when all those of Israel and those grafted into Israel will be brought out of the world ( represented by Assyria and Egypt ) and they will worship the Lord in the eternal realm. 

Amen.

7

OUR FATHER WHO PROVIDED SALVATION FOR THE WHOLE WORLD

The book of Isaiah chapter 55 verse 4 in the Amplified Version says this;

“Listen carefully, I have appointed [b]him [David, representing the Messiah] to be a witness to the nations [regarding salvation],

A leader and commander to the peoples.

The whole of Chapter 55 is a record of the words of the Lord God exhorting Israel (and ultimately the human race) to accept the great salvation that He was going to provide for them.

This specific verse captures the Lord informing Israel that the coming Messiah was going to be in the line of David as a leader and commander of the people and that He was going to hold an office that was global in scope.

Amen.

3

OUR FATHER WHO GREATLY LOVES US

Psalm 117 says this;

Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples.

For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord.

This passage, which is the entirety of Psalm 117, calls on all people and all nations to praise the Lord and speak of His goodness and greatness.

There are two reasons given why we should all praise the Lord. 

The first is that He loves us greatly and the second is that His faithfulness towards us is evelasting.

Amen.

1

OUR FATHER WHO IS HOLY

Psalm 99 verse 3 says this;

Let them praise your great and awesome name— he is holy.

Predicating this verse is a declaration that the Lord Jesus has arisen to absolute rulership over every nation on earth.

So great is His power that all the nations tremble before Him and the whole earth shakes as He sits enthroned in authority.

It is in this context that the verse exhorts the nations to praise the great and awesome name of the Lord for He is Holy.

Amen.

6

OUR FATHER TO WHOM WE PRAY 

The book of Isaiah chapter 64 verse 9 says this;

Do not be angry beyond measure, Lord; do not remember our sins forever.

Oh, look on us, we pray, for we are all your people.

This verse speaks of God's people coming to the realization that even though they had seen the unmatched power of their God, they had drifted away from Him and sinned against His ways.

They were steeped in uncleaness and they no longer searched for their God.

In this state, surrounded by the devastation of their nation, they pleaded with God to relent from His anger and to forget their sins.

They pray to remind God that they are His people and as such, they have no other way to be saved.

As Isaiah verse 5 says;

You come to the help of those who gladly do right,  who remember your ways.

But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved?

Amen.

2

OUR FATHER WHO RESTORES HIS PEOPLE

From Psalm 53;

God looked down from heaven on all mankind

To see if there were any, any who understood

Everyone had turned to go their own way

There were none of us who did good

Oh, that redemption for Israel

Would come out of Zion! Out of Zion!

When God restores His people

Let Israel be glad in our salvation

7

 OUR FATHER WHO ESTABLISHES EQUITY

Psalm 99 verse 4 says this;

The King is mighty, he loves justice—you haed ca lotve established equity; in Jacob you have done what is just and right.

This verse establishes the main attributes of God that make the nations quake before Him and make Him worthy of honor and praise.

He is firstly a sovereign King who is exceedingly strong in power.

He also loves justice and undergirds equity by always doing what is just and right.

Amen.

5

OUR FATHER WHO VINDICATES HIS PEOPLE

Psalm 9 verse 4 says this;

For you have upheld my right and my cause, sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.

This verse, the words of the Lord's servant, gives the reason why he sings praises to the Most High God.

The servant was under attack from his enemies and stood accused in the courtroom of judgement.

In this court, the Lord who is a righteous Judge, ruled in favor of His servant and protected his right and his cause.

Those who had brought the accusations against the servant were beset with destruction and  ruin.

This prophecy in Psalm 9 speaks of the Lord Jesus facing trial in the spirit when He descended into hell but was vindicated by God the Father  and the spirit kingdoms that  had falsely persecuted Him were uprooted and blotted out as Psalm 9 verse 6 says;

Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies, you have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished.

2