Unveiling the Prophecy 1: Isaiah 41 Unpacked

Dive deep into the rich tapestry of prophecy with our latest episode, "Unveiling the Prophecy 1: Isaiah 41 Unpacked." Join hosts Leigh Murphy Verere and Adams Joseph as they explore the profound truths hidden within Isaiah 41, revealing God's blueprint for the Church's redemption and triumph. This two-part series sheds light on the judgment era, the rise of the Church, and the battle against institutionalism. Discover how these ancient scriptures resonate with today's spiritual climate and call for renewal. 

Let’s engage in this inspiring journey together! Like and share this masterpiece to spread the word. 

OUTLINE: 

00:00:00 Title Sequence

00:00:07 Introduction by LMV

00:00:36 Introduction by Adams

00:01:00 Music Transition

00:01:07 Verses 1-7

00:05:12 Verses 8-14

00:07:06 Verses 15-18

00:08:41 End of Part 1

00:08:56 Introduction to Part 2 by LMV

00:09:21 Verses 19-29

00:17:28 Closing Remarks

#Pearlpod #Isaiah41 #ChristianProphecy #ChurchRestoration #FaithJourney #SpiritualRenewal

Transcript

Intro: Pearlpod. 

LMV: Welcome to Pearlpod. I’m your host, Leigh Murphy Vereree. Hidden in the pages of Scripture lies the blueprint for the Church's ultimate redemption. Isaiah 41, shrouded in mystery, holds keys to God's plan for restoration and triumph for the Church. 

Adams: In this episode, we are beginning a new two-part series: “Unveiling the Prophecy.” In this first part, we are delving into “Isaiah 41 Unpacked.” Join us as we unravel Isaiah 41 and discover God's grand design for the redemption of His Church. My name is Adams Joseph, …your co-host.

Adams: Isaiah 41:1

Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

LMV: Isaiah 41 deals with the beginning of the Judgment era when the one raised by heaven will begin to sound. The word "Islands" refers to the fragmented body of Christ polarized by denominationalism. God commands their silence instructing them to allow the people to embrace the message of redemption and renewal. That means we should eschew rashness that might lead to blasphemy. It’s a time for sobriety. The verse is an affirmation that the message of Redemption is of God.

Isaiah 41:2-4  

Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him…. gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.  He pursued them, and passed safely…. Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.

LMV: In these verses, God reminds us, in a prophetic imagery of how He established the Church in dominion and gave her victory over kingdoms.  In the same vein, we are being assured of victory. His determinate counsel in this era will be fulfilled. The words: “I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he” amplifies the fact that only the first or early Church was found faithful so far. God identified with the first (the early Church), and promised to be with the last (the redeemed Church).

Adams: Wow! Intriguing. We move now to Isaiah 41: 5-7  

The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came. They helped everyone his neighbor; and every one said to his brother, Be of good courage.  So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smooths with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

LMV: These verses portray fear of the Lord’s vengeance and what it shall lead to. This is a morbid rather than reverential fear upon the whole earth because the Day of Judgment is upon us.  The word ‘isles’ refers to religious bodies or places of worship, including religious churches. This fear will lead to the rise of both good and "dark forces." One rises in support and the other, ostensibly, the forces of institutionalism – how they rose and conspired against the Church, derailed her purpose and silenced her prophetic voice. They’d yet rise again in like manner as the Lord arises to redeem the Church.

Adams: Hmm. These words are sending shivers down my spine. You talked about religious churches, what do you mean?

LMV: If you understand the difference between being spiritual and religious, you’d know what I mean. The difference is between those walking after the spirit and those walking after the flesh. Another simple way of putting it: the difference is between that which is sacred and sacrilegious. 

Adams: Religious churches then are those walking after the flesh, right? They turn that which is sacred to sacrilegious. That makes them profane rather than spiritual.

LMV: Institutionalism is a religious form of worship and therefore profane or sacrilegious. All it takes to turn something sacred into profanity is to prioritize human dogmas over God’s will and insights.

Adams: We have hardly looked at institutionalism this way. May God help us understand the grievousness of this transgression.

LMV: Let’s delve into the next segment, Isaiah 41:8-14. 

But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend. Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, ‘Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.’ Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them… For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee. Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

LMV: These verses speak of God's Comfort and Zeal. In the preceding segment, we saw that the “dark forces” which derailed the Church are prophesied to come against her in this redemption era. In verses 8-14, God comforts the Church, but especially Jacob – the remnant Church, because they are the ones raised to fulfill God’s zeal. He avowed His faithfulness, promising to help, uphold, and strengthen Jacob until her enemies are destroyed. He comforts the Church enjoining all to be fearless and not to be dismayed in this era.

Adams: Except the Lord has left us a remnant, we would have been like Sodom, we would have been like unto Gomorrah.

LMV: That’s right.

Adams: We move on. Isaiah 41:15-16 

Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff. Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them: and thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

LMV: Verses 15-16 further assure Jacob especially, of fortification and triumph over the dark forces, promising restoration of the Church to her joy. The verses are a tapestry of the joy that will accompany the Church’s repentance; rejoicing in her triumph over the kingdoms that had prevailed against her.

Adams: Isaiah 41: 17-18 

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue fails for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

LMV: This portion talks about the dynamism of God’s Power at Work. Verses 17-18 Is a call to the organic model; for us to seek the water of life from the source, accompanied with a divine promise of abundant watering for a people returned to their Sovereign Lord and Guide; to the fountain of living waters and fundamental principles of the faith.

Adams: We’ve reached the end of Part 1 of “Isaiah 41 Unpacked.” Tune in to Part 2 for the continuation of our inspiring exposition. 

Part 2

LMV: Welcome to Pearlpod, and to the concluding part of “Isaiah 41 Unpacked,” “Unveiling the Prophecy.” In the preceding part of this episode, we unpacked verses 1-18. Join us as we continue from verse 19.

 Adams: Isaiah 41:19-20 

I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together: That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

The wilderness is the first port of call to everyone who’s given his life to Christ. The trees here, thus, symbolize people from diverse religious and cultural backgrounds, planted together in the wilderness or desert, joined together by the unity of heart and way - not a mere superficial bond but a deep, spiritual connection: a unity of Spirit and Truth, testifying to the power and dynamism of God’s word and ways. This will happen only when the Church has returned to her authentic model.

Adams: Exciting. Isaiah 41:21-24 

Produce your cause… bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob… Let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them… Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods… and behold it together. Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooses you. 

The great battle between good and evil revolves around the claim of the Apostate to be a god worthy of worship as the Godhead. Though he may seem to have succeeded in derailing God’s plan to plant a righteous nation on earth, he’s failed thus far to prove his god-ship having no iota of godliness or godly attributes. In verses 21-24, God challenged the dark forces to prove their mettle as gods. He challenged them to point to anything they had prophesied that had come to pass, and show things to come hereafter. 

The import is that all He foretold concerning this era is unfolding before our eyes. That in itself is proof He will fulfill the Church’s restoration and the judgment of the world.  Verse 24 infers that the Church’s captivity prevailed for as long as it was God’s determinate counsel.

Adams: Excuse me LMV. Does that mean Satan has no power to say things and bring them to pass?

LMV: He’s nothing but a toothless bulldog. Whatever Satan has succeeded to do is done only because either God or the Church allows him. The buck always stops at God’s table. When the Church fails to stop him, God more often than not, will not interfere, except if Satan gains an undue advantage that will subvert God’s will forever.

Adams: That’s huge. It underscores the need for the Church to reclaim her dominion from the apostate.

LMV: That’s the battle we are raised for. It’s the battle of the age. Once we return to organic cluster groups, hear what the Lord God will do:

And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all, the glory shall be a defense. Isaiah 4:5

Adams: Wow! That means Satan’s dominion and influence would be cut off by our return to organism.

LMV: The model is our true defense.

Adams: Glory to God! Isaiah 41:25-26

I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon mortar, and as the potter treads clay. Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and before time, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that shows, yea, there is none that declares, yea, there is none that hears your words.

These verses, 25-26, testify to God’s vessel of Redemption. It prophesies concerning how God raised His vessel for the Church’s redemption and the world’s judgment. Nothing qualified him for the call, because like others, he neither knew nor declared before time as proof that he’s more righteous than anyone else. Whereas he was called early in life, to accomplish God’s works of redeeming the Church, he had no pre-knowledge of God’s plan of redemption for the Church before the time appointed. He is raised to make known the mysterious rhythms and echoes of God’s will, upon which generations have stumbled, and he is given power to reign over the princes of the dark forces.

Adams: I’m getting curious. I mean I don’t want to assume I know what my heart is telling me. Jesus! LMV, can I ask you a personal question?

LMV: Go ahead, Joe, you’re free.

Adams: Are you the one, the vessel God has chosen for the work of the Church’s redemption?

LMV: I see where you are going. Pontius Pilate asked our Lord Jesus: “Are you the King of the Jews?” What was His answer?

Adams: He said: ‘Your mouth has spoken it.”

LMV: Is there anything else to add? Please let’s proceed.

Adams: Wow! Okay. We are at Isaiah 41:27-28

The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that brings good tidings. For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, and there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word. 

This is a sign of the times - Verses 27-28 speak of a foretold sign signifying the appointed time. There shall be one who is crying foul against the Church. He is a sign that the times are fulfilled. It’s at this time that the one raised from the Church by heaven will emerge, but before this time, God couldn’t find any among His people who could counsel or answer a word concerning the Church’s transgressions.

Adams: Wow! This is the last segment.Isaiah 41:29

Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.

LMV: This speaks of God's sovereignty and power. Finally in this verse 29, Isaiah declared a two-layered prophecy. The first layer relates to the futility of the Church’s worship in apostasy as captured in Isaiah 1:10-15. 

Reading from verse 12, “When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? Verse 13: Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Verse 14: Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. “

The second layer of Isaiah 41:29 pertains to the vain efforts of the Dark Forces at subverting God’s will pertaining to the Church’s and humanity’s redemption.

Isaiah 41 prophecy is a guide, warning, and comfort to the Church and the world. It’s a call to embrace renewal in order to avert God’s wrath upon all who fail to repent.

Adams: We must embrace the voice of redemption and stand against the dark forces. 

LMV: Join us in prayer, praying in fervid tongues for grace to embrace renewal and for the fulfillment of God’s zeal as promised to His vessel, the Remnant, and the Church in general. 

Adams: Tune in next time for another inspiring encounter. In the next episode on Pearlpod, we'll delve into “Isaiah 32 Unpacked” in the series “Unveiling the Prophecy.” Don't miss it! 

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LMV: Remember that authentic organic communities, spiritual restoration, and your transformation are the goals! To God be all the glory. Thanks for listening. Bye and stay blessed.