For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
2 Pet. 1
How can you “make every effort” to add these qualities to your life? What does Peter say will be the result? God has given us both the power and the privilege to leave behind our old nature of evil desires and to participate in His divine nature. Stop and let that sink in. I no longer need to let fear, selfishness, foolishness, anger, weakness, lack of discipline, impatience, or a short fuse control me. Those things were part of my old nature. They have no place in my life with God. When I struggle with them, Peter says that it is because I forget they no longer have power over me.
So once again, I am reminded that godly living requires intentionality. I need to constantly remind myself of the divine power that is now in me so I can focus on living in my new, divine nature, letting go of what no longer has hold over me. It is through faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and love that I will allow myself to be used effectively by God. When that all seems hard, I simply need to remember that God has already given me everything I need to succeed.
Is. 27-28
Where in this chapter does God promise His blessing? His judgment? Why both? Israel’s refusal to listen brought God’s judgment. Where has God been speaking to you, and you don’t want to listen? What will you do? Israel’s religious leaders put their trust in the wrong thing. They lacked understanding and were too foolish to recognize or acknowledge it. They reduced God’s law to a list of rules, which was contrary to God’s intention. According to Isaiah, God’s word to the people that they refused to listen to in all their rulemaking was, “This is the resting place, let the weary rest” (From Is. 28:12).
The result of obedience to God’s law should have been to love God and love others. There is rest in that! Instead, the religious leaders imposed more work on the people that did not result in any kind of rest. In doing all of this, the Lord declared that the religious leaders had put their trust in a lie and made a covenant with death.
In thinking through all of this, I see this portion of Isaiah’s prophecy as yet another message regarding the futility of our own efforts. The religious leaders thought they were secure because of their rules. So God judged them by the very rules in which they trusted. Those rules turned out to be a foundation that could not stand. In contrast God said, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation: the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” (s 28:16).