Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

I’m Jemima L Yeggs, a.k.a. Stinker.  Pink Lady Apple Yeggs, my landlady and my auntie, wants to read about how younger people, especially couples respond to what the Bible says.  And she wants to know how God is at work at Lily the Pink.

B.B. and I were in our “green room.”  B.B. was again feeding baby Ethan.  She was sitting in the swooning couch while Arabella put the finishing touches on my hair.

Arabella said, “Aunt Jemima, why can’t you fix your own hair?  Even my silly sister can do that.”

B.B. laughed, “Fireball, she just likes being served.  She should read the Bible more.  We are the ones who are supposed to do the serving.”

I snickered, “And you are both doing a great job of serving.  But to be perfectly honest, I have always had trouble with the hair back there.  You may think that I have eyes in the back of my head, but I don’t.”

Arabella groaned, “We have known that for a long time.”

I snickered, “Just don’t let Stormie know.  I have her off balance at the moment by watching her through mirrors.”

B.B. said, “I just burped Ethan. Let’s go.”

Arabella asked, “Why is it that Ethan has been hungry just before class?”

B.B. said, “He gets that from me, I suppose.  He is a man of strict schedules, like me.  Maybe when I retire from storm chasing, he can take over.”

Arabella sighed, “Nope, he has jumbo jet pilot written all over him.  Either that or you didn’t wipe his face after he burped. … Ha!  Made you look!”

Arabella opened the door and bowed.  I laughed.  I asked, “Are you going to keep this up?”

Arabella replied, “My silly sister set a standard.  I cannot back down now.”

Rev. Joseph led us in prayer and the entire band and choir were ready.  They sang Come Now.

I said, “Emmett, that was wonderful.  Tamara, your flute solo was beautiful.”

Tamara smiled, “Thank you, Aunt Jemima.”

Samuel asked, “Where are we searching for Jesus today, Aunt Jemima?”

I smiled, “We are still looking at the books of Isaiah, but next week we move into Jeremiah.  We will be doing quotations from Isaiah.  Arabella, do you need Mr. Dictionary?”

Arabella nodded, “Next week is Jeremiah?  Really?  Should I start weeping now?”

Easy, with eyes closed, said, “Belle, the people who are good at comic relief need practice to switch to a more serious role, and I think Jeremiah got a bum rap with the whole weeping prophet thing.”

Arabella said, “We will see, Mr. Dictionary.”  I simply shook my head.

Mitzi (Isaiah 42:1-4) “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

Mitzi said,”Matthew uses a direct quote to identify Jesus as the fulfillment of this prophecy from Isaiah.  ‘“Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he has brought justice through to victory. In his name the nations will put their hope.”’ (Matthew 12:18-21). The words aren’t exactly the same, probably because of translation issues from Hebrew to Greek and then to English.  But Paul also quote some of it in Romans… ‘And again, Isaiah says, “The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope.”’ (Romans 15:12).  Jesus was a shoot of Jesse.  And with Paul being the Apostle to the Gentiles, Jesus was the light to the Gentiles.  But I guess the big takeaway is that Jesus is King of kings, but He taught us how to be a servant.”

Baldy (Isaiah 52:7) “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”

Baldy said, “Nahum has something similar. ‘Look, there on the mountains, the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace! Celebrate your festivals, Judah, and fulfill your vows. No more will the wicked invade you; they will be completely destroyed.’ (Nahum 1:15).  Both of these talk about the beautiful feet from the mountains and peace coming.  Isaiah focuses on God reigning while Nahum focuses on the enemy being destroyed.  Either way, there’s peace.  And then Paul kind of focuses on different parts of the prophecy.  ‘And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”’ (Romans 10:15).  And then, ‘and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.’ (Ephesians 6:15).  All those verses talk about feet bringing good news, in Ephesians the good news is peace.”

I smiled, “Thank you. That was very good.”

Baldy said, “Wilma, Fred, and Mitzi came up with most of it, I just did a lot of reading.”

I laughed, “That’s what is so great about this class.  Everyone uses teamwork.  I wonder about the Sunday school class in your individual churches.  Do people do their homework?”  About half of those in attendance shook their heads.

Joseline (Isaiah 54:1) “’Sing, barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband,’ says the Lord.”

Jos said, “What are you trying to pull, Jemi?  I already have a child.”

I shrugged, “Someone had to get that verse.  And if you were barren, it would be a cruel reminder, but what about the verse?”

Jos smiled, “Just yanking your chain.  At first, this talks about the barren women will not produce children that have to suffer through God’s punishment, but then, later on in the chapter they are redeemed.  So, if nobody had any children, they could not be redeemed.  There would be nothing there to redeem.  But on to the New Testament quote.  It’s from Paul’s letter to the Galatian churches.  ‘For it is written: “Be glad, barren woman, you who never bore a child; shout for joy and cry aloud, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband.”‘ (Galatians 4:27).  Paul’s logic is that in using the quote from Isaiah, that is referring to people who are in slavery, but women who are free can rejoice in having a child.  That child is not born into slavery.  For that aspect, it is what Isaiah was saying about Jerusalem.”

Kevin (Isaiah 54:13) “All your children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be their peace.”

Kevin said, “The Lord will teach His people.  That is reiterated by Jeremiah.  ‘“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”’ (Jeremiah 31:33-34).  Everyone will know the Lord.  This seems to be an End Times prophecy. But then Jesus speaks of Himself as the source of that knowledge during His ministry.  ‘‘It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.’ (John 6:45).”

Jochebed (Isaiah 56:7, Louis Segond) “Je les amènerai sur ma montagne sainte, Et je les réjouirai dans ma maison de prière; Leurs holocaustes et leurs sacrifices seront agréés sur mon autel; Car ma maison sera appelée une maison de prière pour tous les peuples.”

Jochebed said, “And now in English.”

Jochebed (Isaiah 56:7) “these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”

Jochebed said, “Isaiah is calling the temple a house of prayer for all nations.  Jeremiah speaks of robbers. ‘Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the Lord.’ (Jeremiah 7:11).  But when Jesus sees the money exchangers and salesmen of the animals for sacrifice, He gets angry.  He combines these two verses as He overturns the tables.  The story is in the synoptic gospels, but I will read from Mark.  ‘And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’ (Mark 11:17).”

I said, “Thanks, Jochebed.  I do not think we need all three.”

Georges (Isaiah 62:11) “The Lord has made proclamation to the ends of the earth: “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your Savior comes! See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.’”

Georges said, “There are two Old Testament cross references.  ‘“You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!”’ (Isaiah 40:9).  And then in Zechariah, ’Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ (Zechariah 9:9).  So, now we can get to the New Testament, ‘“Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”’ (Matthew 21:5).  And in John, ‘““Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”’ (John 12:15). Of course, we just had these verses on Palm Sunday.  Isaiah 62 does not mention the donkey, but they all talk about beholding the Savior coming.”

Clay Bell (Isaiah 66:24) ““And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.””

Clay Bell said, “This gives me the ick, Aunt Jemima.  But this is talking about those that do not turn to God will be in eternal torment.  Some people think it is just a temporary thing, but this says the worms won’t die and the fire can’t be put out. ‘And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where “‘the worms that eat them do not die, and the fire is not quenched.’ (Mark 9:47-48).  Jesus quoted Isaiah to describe what Hell is like.”

I nodded, “Thank you, Clay.  That is the last verse in Isaiah, and that last paragraph has been used like the Great Commission, a reason to spread the gospel.”

Grannie Fannie (3 John 1:2) “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”

Grannie Fannie laughed, “For one thing, you did not warn me that you were switching.  For another, shouldn’t it be friends?”

I snickered, “Well, when first written, it was meant for Gaius, but we can all benefit.  And I think I am going to 1 Thessalonians 1 next.”

Lauren ran up to Grannie Fannie and hugged her.  “Are you ready to drive us?”

Brooke picked up Stormie and strapped her into the carrier.

Stormie laughed and said, “Book.”  Brooke leaned in close and kissed Stormie on the forehead, and Stormie laughed.

Credits

Here is Come Now.  This is sung by Xander Stok, Project of Love.  He makes a point that this was not AI generated.  If you watch the words appear, the video gives the verse in Isaiah 1 that has those words.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.