William Bode

Wednesday, April 10, 2013 700 years before Isaiah the prophet wrote prophecies concerning Jesus 700 years before he was born in Bethlehem. Listen to the prophet foretell of Jesus' suffering. All passages quoted today are from the New Living Translation. Isaiah 49:15-16 NLT “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands. Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins. Isaiah 50:5-7 NLT The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me, and I have listened. I have not rebelled or turned away. I offered my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting. Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, I have set my face like a stone, determined to do his will. And I know that I will not be put to shame. Isaiah 52:13-14 NLT See, my servant will prosper; h

Tuesday, April 09, 2013 One single choice Isaiah 43:10-13, 25 NLT “But you are my witnesses, O Israel!” says the Lord. “You are my servant. You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other God— there never has been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the Lord, and there is no other Savior. First I predicted your rescue, then I saved you and proclaimed it to the world. No foreign god has ever done this. You are witnesses that I am the only God,” says the Lord. “From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo what I have done.” “I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. __________________________________ Often imitated but never duplicated, there is only one God. People have been inventing God's since the Garden of Eden, when the serpent created a god that lied. Eve imagined a god that jealousy withheld good from her. But maybe the coup d'etat of God making is wh

Monday, April 08, 2013 He never grows weak or weary. https://soundcloud.com/wkbode/consider-the-following Isaiah 40:28-31 NLT Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. ................................................................................................................................................................... Isn't a good nap a wonderful luxury? Isn't it wonderful to sleep peacefully and to rest your weary body and wake refreshed? I often find myself at the end of my energy. Even this morning in reading the Bible and writing this blog I've fel

Sunday, April 07, 2013 Tell us lies. Isaiah 30:8-15, 18 NLT Now go and write down these words. Write them in a book. They will stand until the end of time as a witness that these people are stubborn rebels who refuse to pay attention to the Lord’s instructions. They tell the seers, “Stop seeing visions!” They tell the prophets, “Don’t tell us what is right. Tell us nice things. Tell us lies. Forget all this gloom. Get off your narrow path. Stop telling us about your ‘Holy One of Israel.’” This is the reply of the Holy One of Israel: “Because you despise what I tell you and trust instead in oppression and lies, calamity will come upon you suddenly— like a bulging wall that bursts and falls. In an instant it will collapse and come crashing down. You will be smashed like a piece of pottery— shattered so completely that there won’t be a piece big enough to carry coals from a fireplace or a little water from the well.” This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and re

Saturday, April 06, 2013 He is certainly greater than you! Isaiah 29:13-16 NLT And so the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote. Because of this, I will once again astound these hypocrites with amazing wonders. The wisdom of the wise will pass away, and the intelligence of the intelligent will disappear.” What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their evil deeds in the dark! “The Lord can’t see us,” they say. “He doesn’t know what’s going on!” How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”? ________________________________ God made you! He knows what you're made of. Indictment is one of the main works of the old testament prophet. God points his finger at people thr

Friday, April 05, 2013 He will remove the cloud of gloom Isaiah 25:3-9 NLT Therefore, strong nations will declare your glory; ruthless nations will fear you. But you are a tower of refuge to the poor, O Lord, a tower of refuge to the needy in distress. You are a refuge from the storm and a shelter from the heat. For the oppressive acts of ruthless people are like a storm beating against a wall, or like the relentless heat of the desert. But you silence the roar of foreign nations. As the shade of a cloud cools relentless heat, so the boastful songs of ruthless people are stilled. In Jerusalem, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will spread a wonderful feast for all the people of the world. It will be a delicious banquet with clear, well-aged wine and choice meat. There he will remove the cloud of gloom, the shadow of death that hangs over the earth. He will swallow up death forever! The Sovereign Lord will wipe away all tears. He will remove forever all insults and mockery against his land and people. The Lord has

Thursday, April 04, 2013 The Day of the Lord, probably not what you thought. Audio Blog Isaiah 13:11, 15-16, 18 NLT “I, the Lord, will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their sin. I will crush the arrogance of the proud and humble the pride of the mighty. Anyone who is captured will be cut down— run through with a sword. Their little children will be dashed to death before their eyes. Their homes will be sacked, and their wives will be raped. The attacking armies will shoot down the young men with arrows. They will have no mercy on helpless babies and will show no compassion for children.” _____________________________________ You are not going to like this one bit! But it's true and is serious. The Day of the Lord is coming. It is a terrible day. The Day of the Lord is a day of judgement. It is a day of handing out sentences. You need to think from the view point of the victim. You need to feel the injustice of the oppressed, the pain of the wronged. Now you must accept that God is the vi

Wednesday, April 03, 2013 Finally, justice! Isaiah 11:4 NLT He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked. ____________________________________ The promise God made to King David had always seemed too good to be true. Dynasties don't last forever. David's experience of the promise was seriously threatened before he ever reached the throne. And when the land of Abraham's promise was finally united under David's good rule it is divided by fights among his sons and generals. Does this throw God's promise into doubt. Solomon appears to be a just king, but he is deeply flawed and wavers. God's people are waiting for a prophet who will declare his people free of exile and oppression. They are longing for a promised king who will rule with justice and peace. God's people are looking for a Messiah like Isaiah has foretold. Who would be this 'Sent One', whose very words would bring heal

http://williambode.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/there-will-be-no-end.html Tuesday, April 02, 2013 There will be no end... ISA 9:6-7 ESV For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. ----------------------------------- Isaiah starts right out with 8 chapters that have for the most part amounted to a litany of more than disappointing behaviour and an understandably harsh judgement. But things have taken a major turn in chapter 9. God is beside himself with excitement. God can hardly contain the sense of purpose and accomplishment that comes with seeing through his promise to David. And this plan is far fa

Djangonauts at Greystone Pub / The Backroom by William Bode

Djangonauts at Greystone Pub / The Backroom by William Bode