The Suffering Servant

April 4, 2021 Background Scripture: Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12; Luke 24:1 – 35 Lesson Passage: Isaiah 53:4 – 11a When the Ethiopian asked Philip, “Of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?”, it is easy to understand the confusion he was experiencing. The Ethiopian was reading a passage about a battered and beaten deliverer who appeared to be losing the fight for righteousness. We expect our deliverer to be strong and victorious. We look for saviors to come conquering and destroying. We don’t expect a savior to show up and become a victim. That is the paradox we encounter as God reveals Himself to us. It is also the way God tends to deal with us when we seek Him for help. When we ask God for strength, He often responds by causing us to experience weakness. Through our weakness, we learn to depend on God to be our strength. God does not make us independent of Him; that would not be good for us. Rather, God teaches us to rely on Him as a deliberate act of our will. We don’t depend on God as victims, instead we look to Him as His children. God sent mankind a Savior who came with all the frailties of humanity that we experience. Sin causes humanity to suffer. Our Savior had to experience the suffering of sin. The penalty that sin imposes on us is death. Our Savior did not take away the penalty of sin. He paid it. Mankind did not write the moral laws of the universe, but we must live under them. Because of the fallen state of this world, we are conceived in sin and formed in iniquity. We are birthed into this world under the penalty of sin. There is nothing humanly possible that we can do to change that. However, God can fix the problem. God promised the world a Savior to deliver us from eternal damnation. That Savior would become our hero. We have an idea of what a hero should be like. We expect a hero who wins all the time—not just most of the time. Unfortunately, the moral laws of the universe don’t change because we want things to work differently. The moral laws have not been repealed and neither have the penalties they impose on trespassers. Our deliverer cannot ignore that and effect a deliverance. Long before the Deliverer was sent, God provided a vivid description of Him by way of the prophet Isaiah. He was the suffering Servant of God. Through His living He would fulfill the righteous requirements of the Law. Through His death He would pay the penalty of the sins of the world. In victory He would be called the Lion of Judah, the conquering Savior of the world. He would be everything the Law required, and the world needed. All who look to Him for salvation will be saved from eternal damnation. He is the only way God has provided, or will provide, for humanity to be saved. Deliverance would not come through a physical battle but a spiritual war. In the spiritual war, our Deliverer would be offered up as a sacrificial Lamb for sin. His sinless life was an offering for the sins of the world. The moral laws of the universe were satisfied, and mankind was delivered through His selfless act of offering Himself. Physically, this was accomplished over two thousand years ago. Spiritually, this was accomplished from the foundation of the world. The Lion of Judah was a Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Isaiah described Him for us before He came into the world. He was a Suffering Servant. Robert C. Hudson March 10, 2021

Prophet of Courage

March 28, 2021 Background Scripture: 1 Kings 18 – 19; Matthew 17:1 – 13 Lesson Passage: 1 Kings 18:5 – 18 Oftentimes, if we can observe others doing something, then we might develop enough courage to give it a try as well. This can be true when we view the activity as not being too bazaar, or perceive it as being too dangerous. Let’s face it, many of us don’t like to take chances with things that can leave us feeling vulnerable—at least while we are sober! (But that’s another lesson.) However, history shows that whenever God wants to get someone’s attention, He will sometimes require very strange behavior on the part of the vessel He chooses to use. We believe that God’s glory is magnified in the face of human vulnerability and weakness. Put another way, when it is obvious that a person cannot do something, then it is likely the work of God when it is done through them. To this point, prophets of God were often put in very vulnerable situations so that the message of God could be communicated. It is within those situations that God often impacted the world in remarkable fashion. Prophets of God spoke, and the world was impacted mightily as a result of their prophetic messages. If one ventured to classify the prophets of God based on the impact of their prophecy on the world, I have little doubt that Elijah would certainly be on the shortlist. God used Elijah to prophesy some of His greatest acts of controlling nature. To add to this, at the end of Elijah’s ministry, God miraculously removed Elijah from the earth without allowing him to experience physical death. Elijah was one of the greatest of the miracle working prophets. Elijah’s miraculous departure from the earth was not the last time he would be seen or heard from. Elijah was one of the prophets seen talking to Jesus, as he was transfigured, over eight hundred years after Elijah had left the earth in a chariot of fire. There was nothing common, or run-of-the-mill, about Elijah. Elijah was eccentric in his dress and behavior. Elijah was fearless when it came to proclaiming: “What thus said the Lord”. Elijah presented himself as a spokesperson for God—it seemed to have been unapologetically. God revealed it to Elijah, Elijah spoke it in the hearing of others, and it came to past. Elijah clearly recognized the voice of God when he heard it. It did not matter how unlikely a thing might seem, or whether it had ever happened before. If God said this will come to past, Elijah boldly proclaimed it. God wanted a fearless spokesman to confront a wicked king. Coming into a king’s presence was a precarious proposition. Kings had the power to impose the death sentence on anyone. This ministry was easily described as “Speak truth to Power”. It would require a very courageous prophet to do such a thing. Elijah was chosen to be God’s mouthpiece in rebuking King Ahab. Although Elijah’s ministry involved several incidents and individuals, it does appear that the primary focus of his ministry was to rebuke a wicked king who reigned over God’s chosen people. God’s prophets were noted for speaking truth to power. Elijah was a role model for Elisha, yet Elijah had no contemporary role model himself. Yes, Elijah had to be brave and set an example for others although he had no living example himself. Indeed, Elijah was a prophet of courage. Robert C. Hudson February 22, 2021

Prophet of Wisdom

March 21, 2021 Background Scripture: 2 Kings 22 Lesson Passage: 2 Kings 22:14 – 20 Josiah’s reign as king of Judah began when he was eight years old. It is difficult to imagine that he was little more than a figurehead during those early years of his tenure. However, by the time he was twenty-six years old, he was firmly established as the ruler of Judah. He had what appeared to be some respectable leaders in Judah he could call upon, and they responded to him as their leader. Although twenty-six years of age is still a very young age to be leading a kingdom, there is no doubt that the early tutelage he received concerning what constitutes good leadership was then paying dividends. The adults in the kingdom could trust and rely on Josiah because he had been properly trained from a child to serve them and to be the kingdom’s leader. In today’s lesson, Josiah received some distressing news when the temple caretakers found the book of the Law. It was clear that the book of Law had remained unread and therefore unheeded for years under previous leaders. It is not clear whether Josiah had ever heard the word of God read before that point in time. If he hadn’t heard the word of God read at any time, then this event would have been even more dramatic! Because Josiah came into leadership without knowledge of at least this book, the kingdom continued to pursue a course of action that would cause the wrath of God to come upon them. The two previous kings before Josiah were both wicked. They both walked contrary to the will of God and led Judah astray from their faith. Josiah immediately began to repent and mourn when he learned of the impending judgment. The second step he took shows the character of the young king. Josiah assembled a delegation of five of Judah’s spiritual leaders and sent them to inquire of God concerning what would happen to the kingdom based on the words written in the book of Law. Note, when one wanted to offer prayers, or sacrifices, to God, then a priest would be sought to stand before God on their behalf. However, when one wanted to hear a word from God, then a prophet(ess) was sought. The delegation went to Huldah, a prophetess leaving in Jerusalem. She clearly demonstrated that she had the anointing of God upon her. First, she affirmed the word of God and all that it said. The people were sinning, God was offended, and judgment was coming. Secondly, she stated the specific sins of the people of Judah that were the root cause of the calamity that was to come. The people were ignoring God and worshiping idol gods by burning incense to objects they had made. Thirdly, she stated that God was going to spare Josiah because God had seen how Josiah reacted upon hearing His word read. She gave the details of what Josiah had done as sincere acts of repentance and humility. God knew Josiah’s actions were the outpouring of a tender heart, and He noted it. Therefore, God had heard Josiah’s prayer of repentance and would not allow him to suffer the agony of seeing His judgment against Judah. The accuracy of those things they knew to be true gave assurance of those things that were yet to come. I believe it is worth noting that when the king needed a word from God, the delegation went to a woman they knew to be a prophetess. They knew who she was, who her husband was, who his family was, and exactly where she lived in Jerusalem. Above all of that, they knew she was a prophetess of God. There is an implication in this. The word of God gives the true test of a prophet. If what they say comes to past, then they are true prophets. In other words, their visit to Huldah shows that this was not her first prophetic word, and they knew that her word was authoritative. Huldah’s word was meant to be delivered to the highest office in the kingdom, the king. Obviously, Huldah had prophesied before, and had proven herself to be a prophet(ess) of wisdom. Robert C. Hudson February 22, 2021

Prophet of Conquest

March 14, 2021 Background Scripture: Joshua 5:13 – 6:27 Lesson Passage: Joshua 5:13 – 15; 6:1 – 5, 15, 16, 20 The Lord has strange ways. Isaiah was right when he said, “There is no searching His understanding.” Put another way, what God does, makes no sense—based on human logic. If I must fight and I want God to help me, my desire would be for God to make me stronger than my adversary. Oftentimes, God will do just the opposite. God may choose to weaken me and place me physically at a disadvantage with my adversary. If that were not enough, God may choose to also have me do something that is embarrassing on a human level. God chose Joshua as the prophet to replace Moses in leading Israel. God demonstrated His control over nature in temporarily drying up the Jordan River during the flood season. Israel walked from the East bank to the West bank of the Jordon River on dry ground. And it happened during the time of year when the Jordon overflowed its banks due to the flooding. This put fear in the hearts of the Canaanites who witnessed it. Now, the Canaanites first hope was the fortified city of Jericho. Jericho was constructed to be impregnable. It set upon a hill so that the soldiers inside the city had an advantage over an approaching army. It was surrounded by a high wall which was also quite thick. Thus, the soldiers could be stationed atop the walls and inflict mortal damage upon their attackers. Joshua was given the assignment of leading Israel in conquest of Jericho. Joshua sent two spies inside the city. However, nothing they learned would give an advantage to an attacking force against such a fortified city. But God had a plan that would utterly destroy Jericho. As stated previously, God’s plan made no sense from the standpoint of two human armies fighting each other; especially with one of them being inside a heavily fortified city. Israel was told to have a procession one time around the city of Jericho and then go back to their camp. The procession consisted of an armed Forward Guard, an armed Rear Guard, and in between the two, seven priests blowing horns followed by the Ark of the Covenant. They were to repeat this one encircling of Jericho for six days. On the seventh day, the procession was to march around Jericho seven times, the priests were to blow the horns on that seventh time, and all the people in the procession were to shout. After that, they would be able to walk into Jericho from any place around it and destroy the entire city. Joshua’s assignment was to lead the people to do exactly what God said to do. One must be a prophet of God for such an assignment. The indispensable requirement of the leader is a heart of obedience to God. None of the prophet’s logic was needed for the assignment. That’s the struggle we have with the flesh against the spirit. We want to use logic to derive a plan. We want to use brute force human strength to overcome our enemy. Neither of those is required for God’s plan. In fact, God’s plan purposely leaves no room for either. God does not allow human flesh to glory in His presence. Therefore, God’s plans are foolishness to the human mind. Can you imagine how embarrassing it was to be a part of that procession for six days—and the first six laps around the city on the seventh day? I’m sure by the third day they heard a lot of insults directed at them from the soldiers upon the walls. But Jericho was destroyed on that seventh day by using God’s plan and history records it. Because of its fortified walls and trained soldiers within, there were no human strategies that could have conquered Jericho at that time. God did not need an army to fight the battle of Jericho, He wanted an army to go in and collect the spoils of war after He destroyed the walls. God did not use a general to lead a conquering army against Jericho. He called a prophet to lead the Conquest. Robert C. Hudson February 13, 2021

Prophet of Deliverance

March 7, 2021 Background Scripture: Exodus 12:28 – 50; Deuteronomy 18:15 – 22 Lesson Passage: Deuteronomy 18:15 – 22 The lessons for this quarter focus on the ministry of God’s prophets. God anointed prophets to hear His voice and to speak His words. Often, those words of God described a future action, state, or warning. Sometimes prophets spoke of current events that the hearer(s) would otherwise be totally unaware of except for the word of God. The Background Scripture of today’s lesson describe the prophecy of two of the greatest prophets of God. We attribute greatness to their ministry because of the results that are accomplished by God through them. Moses and Jesus are presented today as fearless prophets of God. Their biblical history does not reflect that view of them during much of the time of their ministries. If it did, it is possible that their reputations might have elevated them to such levels that the people of the day would not have been able to relate to them. Fortunately for us, we have the benefit of some of their history as well as how history has treated their effectiveness over time. We can see how people related to them during their ministry and we can see how people have been affected by those ministries over time. Historically, the first prophet of today’s lesson’s focus is Moses, and the second prophet is Jesus. God used Moses to lead the greatest deliverance of people from the very presence of human bondage. Throughout human history, many nations have enacted emancipation proclamations to end state-sponsored human enslavement. The catch, however, is the people supposedly liberated were essentially required to remain in place after those laws. The new laws were typically manipulated to exact the same amount of “free” labor from the recently liberated, legally. They were free on paper but not much more than slaves—in reality. God used Moses to deliver a nation out of a nation. They were numbered at over six hundred thousand men capable of being a fighting army. The men who were not such, along with women and children, were not counted. It has been estimated that there were over two million people delivered and brought out of Egypt. Their emancipation was absolute. They were no longer under heads-of-state and were therefore free to decide for themselves if they wanted to remain free. That was over three thousand five hundred years ago. The magnitude of that deliverance is still amazing when considered today. The lesson passage revolves around the promise of God to send the second prophet, Jesus. The number of people God delivered through Moses seems insignificant compared to the number of people that are called to deliverance through Jesus. Moses connected Jesus’ ministry to his own in three ways. First, would be his nationality. Like Moses, Jesus would be born a Hebrew. Secondly, Jesus would be of the same order of prophets as Moses. They were both stand-alone fearless prophets not associated with a group or school of prophets. And thirdly, the scale of deliverance wrought by God through both is unparalleled. The numbered delivered through Moses was counted and is not difficult to know. The number of people delivered through Jesus is continuing to add to the total. Yes, Jesus is a prophet like Moses in many respects. And yet, Jesus is unlike any God has or ever will call to deliver His people. Christians are grateful to God that He made Jesus a prophet of deliverance. Robert C. Hudson February 13, 2021