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Q2. (Isaiah 29:13) Have you ever seen a religious person go through all the religious motions, but whose heart is far from God? How can we detect this in ourselves if it applies to us? What is the remedy? How can you tell if your practice of religion is merely following “rules taught by men”? What is the danger of a rule-based faith? How does it differ from a love-based faith? Yes. Our churches are full of people going through religious motions. One way to detect only going through the motions is when there is no joy and delight in my faith and worship. Without enthusiasm, joy, delight, and love for the Lord, then however I worship or serve is dead. I am only going through the motions. Others can see that deadness in me and I can see it in others. The remedy is daily quiet time spent with the Lord in prayer, Bible study, personal praise and worship. The remedy is to practice the daily presence of God in our lives. When I follow rules and regulations I follow rules and regulations. It is the rules and regulations that I have a relationship with and nothing else. When I practice a love-based faith, my actions and behaviors are motivated by a love of God from the heart. This is genuine and life giving. This type of faith is full of joy, delight, and excitement. Rules and regulations don't do that for anyone. Love-based faith is grounded in a personal relationship with God through his Son Jesus Christ.

Q1. (Isaiah 28) How are we humans able to justify and deceive ourselves so easily? Why do we hold onto lies that guide our lives? Why do people stumble over Christ, the tested foundation stone, and his righteous standards? How can we help people come to the truth? What is the alternative if they don’t, according to Isaiah 28:21? We hear only what we want to hear in order to justify our actions in pursue of our desires. Our selfishness blinds us and that blindness makes it easy to deceive ourselves. We hold on to lies because they justify the way we live our lives. We create a kind of fantasy world that justifies our life styles. Right or wrong. So many stumble over Jesus Christ because He rocks their world and they cannot handle it. Truth often scares people, so they hide in denial and more lies. It is easier to run and hide rather than stand, confront, deal with, and change. We can help people come to the truth by living the truth and by being open and honest about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the sin nature of man. Pointing people to the truth that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Light is found in Christ. Freedom is found in Christ. Changing your life or any part of it is always rough because we get comfortable in our life and the things we do. Coming to the truth can be a real slap in the face. But, we need it or we will destroy our ourselves for eternity.

Q6. (Isaiah 27:12-13) When Isaiah prophesies the gathering of all his people at the sound of a great trumpet call, to what New Testament event does this correspond? This corresponds to the Seconding of Jesus Christ. See Matthew 24 and 25.

Q5. (Isaiah 26:19) Does this passage actually teach a bodily resurrection? What does it teach us about resurrection? When will this resurrection take place, according to the New Testament? Yes this passage actually teaches a bodily resurrection. Jesus Christ was the first fruit of the resurrected and will we have bodies like Him at the end of this age at Jesus' second coming.

Q4. (Isaiah 26:3-4) According to this verse, what is the key to perfect peace? What happens when we get distracted from trusting in the Lord? Why is the Lord called the “Rock eternal”? Trusting in God is the key to perfect peace. When we get distracted from trusting in the Lord oftentimes the spirit of gloom, doom, and angst possesses us. The Lord is called the Rock eternal because He never changes and His ways are always right, true and life-giving. You can built your house on the Rock eternal because it always stands firm despite the myriad conditions around it.

Q3. (Isaiah 25:7) Why does the promise that “he will swallow up death forever” provide such comfort to us when we grieve the death of loved ones? When we contemplate our own death? What will we experience instead of death when Christ comes? There is much hope and comfort knowing that despite biological breakdown and physical death of our earthly bodies that in Jesus Christ there is resurrection and eternal life with God and with others we love that acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah and claim his promises. As I contemplate my own death I have no fear knowing that in Jesus Christ I will live. I claim Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. In Him I have life everlasting. I pray that my love ones do the same and have the same comfort and hope. If Jesus comes before we die we will experience a transformation from the corruptible to the glorified body.

Q2. (Isaiah 25:6-8) Obviously this “feast of rich food for all peoples” is a symbol of something more than just good food. What does this theme represent in Isaiah and the New Testament? What does it promise about the Last Days? This theme represents the fellowship with the Lord and other believers from throughout the ages at the end of the age upon Jesus' Second Advent. It is a time of reunion, happiness, joy, relief, grace, love and I go on and on with this. The overcomers have made it home and what a day of rejoicing that will be in the presence of the Living God -- Yawheh.

Q1. (Isaiah 24) What is the reason that Yahweh will devastate the earth (24:5-6)? Why do we feel so threatened by this kind of prophecy? Why is this kind of prophecy important to forming faithful disciples who “fear the Lord”? In what way does the glitter and glory of man (1 John 2:15-17) contradict this kind of prophecy? The reason that Yahweh will devastate the earth is because it suffers for the sins of humanity. People feel threatened by this kind of prophecy because this is their world and their way of life. This kind of prophecy threatens many church attenders because they are not sojourners on this planet. This world is their all and all and their life styles are shaped by their personal religious worldview not by God's Word. Many say this is "a wonderful world and I am not leaving until I have to." Faithful disciples will proclaim the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of Reconciliation through Jesus with God to those around them. The faithful will remain watchful and will witness to the world around them, proclaiming God's Word and providing light in a dark, fallen world. The faithful are ambassadors for Jesus Christ and warn the world around them, in love, to be prepared for what's coming ahead and that is a new kingdom is coming and this world is going to end as we know it. Man dismisses this kind of prophecy because despite what scripture informs us about the passing nature of human existence, man sees it as lasting and as everything.

Q3. (Isaiah 22) Why is Judah faulted for making necessary military preparations in the face of the Assyrian armies? What should they have done at the same time (verses 11-12)? What seems to be the sin of Shebna, steward of the palace (verses 15-19)? Have you ever been guilty of selfishness instead of doing your duty to Christ? The military preparations excluded God. Judah never God for his help. The sin of Shebna seems to that of arrogance, self-reliance, self-glorification, self-centeredness, and the exclusion of God from the affairs of Jerusalem. At times I am selfish, but it is not my life style. I strive to carry out my duties to Jesus Christ on a daily basis.

Q2. (Isaiah 20) Why did God command Isaiah to go naked for three years? What was its meaning? What effect did this acted prophecy have on Judah’s foreign policy? If you were Isaiah, would you have obeyed God? It was a sign or symbol for the terrible troubles God was going to bring on Egypt in the future. This acted prophecy, given about 711 BC, was designed to keep Judah from aligning itself with Egypt against Assyria. Isaiah's nakedness is to be a constant reminder to Judah not to rely on Egypt, that Assyria will attack Egypt and carry off captives, who were often stripped just as Isaiah was. And that's just what happened. In the long run Judah didn't heed Isaiah's prophecy, they would eventually join the rebellion against Assyria and Assyria would conquer all of Judah except Jerusalem. If I was Isaiah I would have obeyed God. God prepared Isaiah for his period of prophecy. I believe after God permitted Isaiah to see His throne room and cleansed him from sin, he was totally in awe of God and would have done anything for God. Isaiah had seen the truth and reality of God.

Q1. (Isaiah 14) What was the attitude of heart in the ruler described in Isaiah 14:12-17? What is the scriptural evidence that this indeed refers to Satan? Have you ever exalted your opinion and will over God’s will and God’s word? How does this differ from the ruler in 14:12-17? What is the best way to humble oneself before the Lord? The heart of this ruler was arrogant and he proclaimed himself to be like the Most High -- God like. So, in actually, he conducted himself like his perception of God. He was mighty, powerful, and controlled the lives of many. Everything was about him and his glory. The glorification of self. The lack of acknowledgment of the One True God. Some Bible scholars link Luke 10:18 where Jesus said the following: "...I saw Satan fall from heaven like lighting!" with Isaiah 14:12-17and Ezekiel 28:12-19 in describing the fall of satan from heaven at some point in space and time. Yes. When I exercise my will and sometime selfishness I exalt my will over Gods. However, I do not proclaim myself above God or like God or God as the ruler in this passage of scripture does. The best way to humble yourself before the Lord is to daily study scripture, pray, exalt God in praise and worship, and to serve Him. Repenting of sins and submitting our wills to the will God also humbles us before God.

Q7. (Isaiah 11:10-16) What does it mean that “the nations” will rally to the Messiah when he appears? Who are these “nations”? Who else will be “gathered” at this time? How does this prophecy relate to Jesus’ and Paul’s teaching about the Rapture (Mark 13:26-27; 2 Thessalonians 2:1)? When will this prophecy be fulfilled? It means that Jesus Christ upon his second advent will gather his people from the four corners of this world to him. These nations include both Jews and gentiles -- all the nations and peoples of the world. All nations will bow at the name Jesus Christ upon his return. This passage speaks to Jesus and Paul's teaching in Mark 13:26-27 and 2 Thessalonians 2:1. Again, this prophecy will be fulfilled on the second coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus will gather all of the living and dead in Christ to him in the sky on that day.

Q6. (Isaiah 11:6-9) The passage speaks in figurative language. What kind of peace does it describe? How far will this peace extend? According to Isaiah 11:9b, why will there be peace? What does “the knowledge of the Lord” mean? How widespread will this “knowledge” be? It describes a universal peace where all are at peace with each other and God. There is no warfare and violence. Nobody has enemies. The world is at peace where no one will get hurt. This peace extends throughout the natural world. There will be peace because the world is filled with people who know and delight in God. The knowledge of the Lord means having a loving personal relationship with Him. This type of knowledge will exist throughout the world as it was originally intended to be before the fall of Adam and Eve.

Q5. (Isaiah 11:1-5) Who was Jesse? How does his name indicate that this passage speaks of the Messiah? What attributes will he have due to the Spirit of God upon him? What do we learn about this Messiah from verses 4-5? Who seem to be the victims of injustice and oppression here? When the Messiah comes, what will happen to all who involve themselves in injustice? Jesse was the father of David. The Messiah will come out of the line of Jesse who was the father of the royal line of Israel. Jesus Christ is the Lion of Judah. The Messiah will have the following attributes: he will be full of divine wisdom and understanding; divine counsel and might; divine knowledge and fear of the Lord. The Messiah will delight in obeying the Lord. He will be a perfect judge, not judging by appearance and hearsay. He will provide justice to the poor, weak, and exploited. He will be righteous and truthful. Peace will prevail throughout His kingdom. All of the natural will coexist in peace. The wicked will be destroyed.

Q4. (Isaiah 10:1-2) Why do we humans tend to pass laws that oppress the weak and poor? What can we as Christians do to prevent this? What can we do to help the poor and weak in our communities? We humans tend to pass laws that oppress the weak and poor for some kind of personal gain. The strong oppress the weak and poor to maintain their power position within society. We as Christians can aggressively defend and help eliminate the conditions that oppress the weak and poor within our society. From supporting the right laws to helping the weak and poor on the field level. Christians must be involved with removing the pressures and stress placed upon the weak and the poor. This way is taught from Genesis through Revelation. Jesus emphasized this in the Sermon on the Mount. We are to take care of one another - to love your neighbor as yourself. We can help the poor and weak in our communities by providing various services to them i.e., food, clothes, transportation assistance, and providing care in so many different areas. Most importantly, they need to know they are loved and are valuable. As Christians, we must provide grace to the poor and weak as God as provided grace to us in Jesus Christ. Respond when the Spirit moves you help another or get involved in a Christian service organization. There are all kinds of Christian service organizations and people in our neighborhood we can get involved with to live out our faith in both word and deed as Jesus taught.

Q3. (Isaiah 9:6-7) What in the text convinces us that the Child/Son is the Messiah himself? What do you learn about the Messiah from the four word pairs describing him? Which of these saving attributes do you need most in your life right now? The titles describing the child -- Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace all infer a divine being. Isaiah states that the child will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of David for all eternity and that his government and its peace will never end. This can only be the Messiah -- Jesus the Christ. This passage of scripture describes no other person in human history. Only Jesus fits this prophecy. There is no human-being capable of ruling with fairness and justice for all eternity. That is God's realm. The four word pairs reveal that the Messiah is all wise, is God, and is peace loving. He will rule with fairness and justice to all. God is fair and just to all. All of these. As a young adult i will need Jesus through my whole life as i make decisions and further my relationship with him.

Q2. (Isaiah 8:14-15) In what sense is Yahweh (and his Messiah Jesus) a “stumbling stone” and “a trap and a snare”? In what way are people broken in this stumbling? Why do you think people stumble over a God who is almighty and righteous and must be obeyed? Either we surrender our will to God and trust in Him or we end up stumbling over Him. When I disregard God's direction for my life and things don't work out the way I thought they would it creates an awareness in me that I need God. I need His direction and counsel. So, stumbling can cause an awareness in a person that they need God's involvement in their life. I think there a basic awareness in people that they need God. However, there is the battle between self-will and God's will for our lives. God might be almighty and righteous, but he loves his creation. So, many people want God in their lives, but also want to live the way they want to live. So this causes tension within a person. There is also the conviction of the Holy Spirit to do things according to God's direction or way. When we resist this conviction it causes unrest and stumbling over God. We were created to have a relationship with God. God is interested in us. God is trying to get our attention. There is a battle with satan over the minds of men and women. The battle for influence. God is a mighty force because He is creator. No one can really ignore God. A person can resist, deny, and run, but it will always cause unrest in the human soul and cause people to stumble over God. Because God is here.

Q1. (Isaiah 7-8) What was the gist of Isaiah’s prophetic instruction to Ahaz? Why do you think Ahaz chose to disregard it? What did Ahaz do instead? What was the consequence of this disobedience? Why do we sometimes seem to think that we’re smarter than God? Why is it sometimes so hard to do what God tells us to do? Ahaz was not to fear Israel or Syria because God would not permit them to touch Judah. Ahaz was to trust in God. Ahaz chose not to regard Isaiah's words because he did not regard or trust in God. Instead Ahaz made an alliance with Assyria and deferred to the Assyrian Ruler including modifying the temple and religious practice to reflect Assyrian worship. The consequences would be the fall of Judah to the Assyrians. It's not that we think we are smarter than God, it's the fact that we don't regard God's word or take Him seriously. It's hard to do what God wants us to do because we want to do what we want to do. We want to be God or like God. That's the way its been since Adam and Eve disobeyed God and they were removed from the garden. We want to exercise our own will. .

Q6. (Isaiah 6:9-10) How do you make sense out of these verses? Is Isaiah called to an impossible mission? Why will Isaiah’s prophecy make the task worse? In which parable did Jesus quote this passage (Matthew 13:1-23)? In Jesus’ parable, is there any frustration in preaching the gospel? Is there any hope? It is irony. The people of Judah and Jerusalem will not hear and understand what Isaiah is saying because of their hard hearts. The task will be made worst because Isaiah knows they will not respond. Jesus quoted this passage of scripture in the Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seed. Many hear the gospel and just don't understand or don't want to understand. Many don't permit the gospel to take root in their lives for a myriad of reasons. Mostly because the cares and the things of the satanic world order are more important. However, there are some who grasp and treasure the gospel and integrate it into their lives and bear fruit for the Kingdom of God.

Q5. (Isaiah 6:5-8) What is Isaiah’s reaction to the vision? How does God deal with Isaiah’s fear? What question follows Isaiah’s cleansing? What is Isaiah’s response to God’s question? What is your response when you sense God calling you? After seeing the vision Isaiah's reaction was one of fear for his life. He confessed being a sinful man with filthy lips who lives among people with filthy lips. Otherwise he was a sinful man who lives among sinful people not worthy to be in the presence of God. However, God forgives him of his sin and guilt and cleanses him from that sin and guilt. After this takes place Isaiah hears God asking the question: "Whom shall I send as messenger to the people? Who will go for us." Isaiah's response was "Here I am. Send me." My response to God calling me would be, Yes.

Q4. (Isaiah 6:1-4) Why do you think Yahweh revealed himself in this way to Isaiah? In what ways does this vision reveal God’s majesty? What do we learn about Yahweh from the serphaim’s chant? I believe God revealed himself in this way to Isaiah because he was going to use Isaiah in a extraordinary way in prophesying to Judah and Jerusalem and to generations down through the ages until the present. God was permitting Isaiah a glimpse of himself in a most personal way. Creating a most personal bond before a great mission started. This vision revealed the grandeur, the power, the other worldliness, and holiness of God. We learn that God, the Lord of the Armies of Heaven, is holy and the whole earth is filled with his glory.

Q3. (Isaiah 5:1-6) What was the vintner’s vision for the vineyard? What did he do to accomplish his vision? What happened when the crop came in? What did the vintner say he would do with the vineyard? What does this parable mean? The vintner's vision for the vineyard was to produce sweet grapes. In order to accomplish his goal he plowed the land; cleared stones; and planted the best vines. He built a watchtower in the center of his vineyard and built a protective wall around it. The vineyard was planted on a rich and fertile hill. However, when the crops came in it was bitter not sweet. As a result, the vintner said that he would destroy the vineyard and leave it open to the animals and let it go wild. God was the vintner and Israel was the vineyard. Instead of responding to God's loving care and becoming a sweet grape, Israel became a bitter, foul smelling grape. Israel did not respond to God's attention and care. So, like the vineyard in this parable, God would destroy Judah just as the vintner destroyed the vineyard.

Q2. (Isaiah 2:1-5) What does this prophecy of the future Jerusalem tell us about God’s plan for the Gentiles? About God’s plan for the Jews? About spiritual hunger? About peace? God's plan for the Gentiles is to acknowledge and recognize Him universally. To have a relationship with Him. People from all over the world will come to Jerusalem to worship God. All nations worshipping God together including the Jews. God will teach all the world His ways in order to walk in His paths. He will settle international disputes and there will be no more fighting and war among the nations of the world. The peoples of the world will live in peace with each other and God.

Q1. (Isaiah 1:2-20) In what way is Judah confused about its identity, according to verses 2-4? What are the consequences when Christians today suffer from such identity confusion? What injustices does God accuse his people of in verses 15-17? In verses 18-20 God argues that their behavior is “unreasonable.” Why is it unreasonable? What does God offer as an alternative? Judah no longer recognizes the One who formed and brought them together as a people and nation. They have turned their backs on God, the Holy One of Israel. They have become corrupt and evil in their ways and in their religion. In addition, they were loaded down by guilt because they knew better and knew what they were doing. Like the people of Judah, Christians suffer guilt, depression, and dysfunction when they lose their identity with Jesus Christ and turn their back on Him. They lose their way and the peace that goes with The Way, The Truth, and The Life. The fact, Christians who turn their backs on God know what they are doing too. God accuses his people of practicing meaningless, sinful, and false religion. Their religion was false because it was not true and genuine based and rooted in a love for God. It was just religious ritual. Sinful and unclean people going through the motions of religious ritual. It meant nothing to God. In fact, it made Him sick. Phoniness is never reasonable. However, God told them if they repented and turned from their evil ways He would forgive them, make them clean, and restore their relationship from Him.

Q5. Now that you're finished with James: Practical Christianity, what did you get out of this study? How would you evaluate the study? What can be improved? It gave me a better understanding of the entirety of faith. And helps me grow in my own faith. And the i thought the study was great!