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INTRO
We’ve had quite a journey this year through Isaiah’s prophecies of the Messiah. In this lesson, let’s review!
The Prophet Isaiah is named 22 times in the New Testament. We will look at few passages where he is named specifically as a wrap up to our study:
TEXTS
Matthew 3:1–3 • Isaiah spoke of John the Baptist, who came as Jesus’ forerunner.
How did John the Baptist “make ready” and “straight” the path of for Jesus to start His ministry?—
Matthew 4:12–17 • Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would begin His preaching ministry in Galilee—in the land of Naphtali and, especially, Zebulun, where the city of Nazareth is located!
How was this land described, and what did Jesus bring to it?—
Matthew 8:14–17 • Isaiah described how the Messiah would be known for healing diseases.
What did Peter’s mother-in-law do after she was healed?—
How is Jesus’ healing described in this passage—how did He do it?—
Matthew 12:14–21 • Isaiah portrayed the Messiah as meek. He came to minister to the broken and weak.
Huge crowds followed Jesus to hear Him preach—so how can Isaiah say that “nor will anyone heart His voice in the streets”? What is Isaiah emphasizing?—
Isaiah sees the Messiah reaching beyond the cultural barriers. Who will He reach out to, in this passage?—
Matthew 13:13–17 • Isaiah sadly predicted how the Messiah would be rejected by many, and how His preaching would sadly bring rejection instead of repentance.
“Eyes” and “ears” are the focus of this passage—yet, verse 15 connects them to another important body part. What it is this true root of spiritual blindness or deafness?—
Matthew 15:1–9 • This is a stunning prophecy: Long before the Pharisees were teaching their “precepts of men” as “doctrines of God,” Isaiah warned that legalism would keep people from worshiping God rightly. As the old saying goes, “the heart of the problem is the problem of the heart.”
What was the strange tradition the Jews came up with that would allow them to neglect their own parents?—
Do we have any man–made religious traditions that we often elevate to the place of a religious law or rule?—
Luke 4:17–21 • This is one of the most important prophecies of Isaiah. Jesus claimed this one for Himself as He began His ministry preaching in the synagogue in Nazareth. This described His mission and purpose, and was “fulfilled in their hearing.”
What are five distinct parts of Jesus’ mission listed in this passage?—
The response to Jesus’ “gracious words” (vs 4:22) is sad! What do the people try to do to Him? (keep reading!)—
John 12:37–43 • Isaiah sadly predicted that the leadership of Israel would officially reject Jesus as a group. Isaiah saw that this would be an act of God’s judgement against the nation as a whole. Praise God that individual Israelites could still choose to follow Him— the hundreds of disciples and apostles prove that God is merciful!
What is John’s key warning in vs 43?—
Acts 28:25–28 • Paul quotes this passage we saw earlier in a different light: Because the Jewish leaders (rabbis, Pharisees, priests, etc.) were constantly opposing Paul, he knew it was time to focus his ministry primarily on the Gentile world. This was evidence that God was turning His redemptive focus from Israel to the Gentiles. And yet, God was still allowing individual Jews to follow Jesus, despite God’s rejection of their nation. See the next passage…
Romans 9:27–29 • Paul applied this prophecy to Israel’s rejection of Jesus: Even though the nation would officially reject Jesus, there was a remnant of Jews who would be saved—the disciples of Jesus who became the Church and the first converts after Pentecost! Paul’s point is this: There is always a remnant that is saved when God judges the earth.
Some examples include—Noah’s family through the flood, Lot and his daughters from Sodom, &… List a few more examples of a “remnant” in scripture!—
How large was the “remnant” of Israel saved when the church was birthed…?
_____________________ were saved in Peter’s first sermon (Acts 2:41)
_____________________ were saved in his second sermon (Acts 4:4)
Romans 10:14–17 • Isaiah describes the amazing beauty and power of the Gospel message, and how important it is that people evangelize…
Because salvation comes when—
And those who share this Good News are described as having—
Romans 10:20–21 • Isaiah describes the basic mystery of the birth of the Church—that Christianity would not be exclusively “Jewish,” but that it would explode across the Gentile world!
The sad reality was that the Jews would profess to be seeking God, yet fail, as a nation, to accept Jesus as Messiah and King. And the Gentiles, who had no notion of a Messiah, would turn to Jesus as their Savior in great numbers. How awesome is God’s grace…
Yet, what spiritual danger does Paul warn against?—
Romans 15:12–13 • Paul quotes Isaiah again as he wraps up Romans. Isaiah tells us to put our hope in the One who comes from David’s lineage to rule on His throne.
Paraphrase Paul’s prayer in verse 13—
