Count on God, Not Foreign Alliances
Greetings in the Lord~ Today's word comes from Isaiah chapters 6 and 20. Chapter 6 will be a familiar one for many Christians because of Isaiah's response to the Lord, "Here I am, send me!" He volunteers to go to Israel and preach and prophesy, and many Christians get encouraged to serve the Lord in like manner. However, what Isaiah was told to preach is never really mentioned in sermons. Basically, he was told to preach God's words that would have the effect of hardening the hearts of rebellious listeners; thus, making God's judgment against them certain and justified. I affectionately like to call this type of ministry, "The Buck Stops Here;"--God is out of patience and has determined to bring His correction. At this point in Israel's history they are two separate nations, Israel in the north and Judah in the south. Most of the northern Israelites did not go to Jerusalem to pray in the temple anymore, but they erected their own idols in