That He May Teach Us

Isaiah 2:1-3 ESV

 

“The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

 

“It shall come to pass in the latter days

    that the mountain of the house of the Lord

shall be established as the highest of the mountains,

    and shall be lifted up above the hills;

and all the nations shall flow to it,

    and many peoples shall come, and say:

‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

    to the house of the God of Jacob,

that he may teach us his ways

    and that we may walk in his paths.’

For out of Zion shall go forth the law,

    and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

 

In the Latter Days

 

The context is the latter days, so in the days of the Messiah, in the Messianic age, under the New Covenant, not the Old Covenant. Thus, the mountain of the house of the Lord is not the physical city of Jerusalem, for the house of the Lord is now the hearts of those who trust in Jesus Christ.

 

Jesus Christ is Zion. He is the foundation for his church, the body of Christ, comprised of all who have given their lives over to Jesus Christ in death with Christ to sin and in resurrection with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Rom 6:1-23; Eph 4:17-24). And Zion also refers to the church, the body of Christ, for God dwells within us. And we are his temple.

 

So, Jesus Christ shall be established as the highest place of worship of God. Jesus Christ will be lifted up above all other gods. And now we worship God in spirit and in truth, not in any particular physical place, for God dwells within our hearts. And all the nations will flow to Jesus Christ in the latter days, but not all people will believe in Jesus Christ.

 

In the latter days, many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to Jesus Christ and to his church, the temple of God (not the institutional church), and to our Lord’s salvation from sin, and to his gospel, that he (Jesus Christ) may teach us his ways and that we may walk in His paths.”

 

For out of Jesus Christ shall go forth the law of God (the law of liberty and of righteousness and truth), for he is the fulfillment of the law. And the word of the Lord shall go forth from the church, the heavenly Jerusalem (Zion), but not the institutional church, but only the body of Christ, his people.

 

And the law of the Lord and the word of the Lord are synonymous, for they are the gospel of Jesus Christ (the whole counsel of God). The gospel of Jesus Christ will go out from our Lord through his word and through his servants who are spreading his word throughout the world.

 

[Rom 9:33; Heb 12:22-24; 1 Pet 2:4-10]

 

His Ways and His Paths

 

So, what is the “Word of the Lord” that is going forth from the body of Christ to the world? Well, it is not what is primarily going forth from “the church” today, which is primarily the institutional church (of men, not of God), which is not the body of Christ, not in itself.

 

What is primarily going forth from the institutional market-driven church today is a diluted, altered, and adulterated half-truth (lie) gospel which is often referred to as the “cheap grace gospel,” for they have cheapened God’s grace and have turned it into a free license for lasciviousness.

 

So, the “Word of the Lord” is referring to the true gospel of our salvation (the whole counsel of God) as taught by Jesus, by Paul, and by the other NT apostles. It is the gospel which teaches that faith in Jesus Christ results in us dying with Christ to sin and us living to Christ and to his righteousness.

 

For, the “Word of the Lord” is to teach us the ways of the Lord so that we may walk (in conduct, in practice) in his paths. And the cheap grace gospel doesn’t teach that we must walk in the ways of the Lord, but it gives us free license to continue living in sin without guilt, with a false promise of heaven.

 

So, we need to learn the ways of the Lord, and we can only learn those if we are being taught by Jesus Christ. It doesn’t mean we don’t read devotions or Bible studies or that we don’t listen to sermons, but it does mean that we are testing what we hear against the Word of God and that we are studying the Scriptures ourselves so that we are hearing directly from our Lord.

 

And we must read the Scriptures in their context, and in the context of the whole of the New Testament, for certain, though the Old Testament is still useful for training in righteousness if taught within the context of the New Covenant. For, many false teachings stem from Scriptures taught out of context and interpreted in ways which are against the original context. So, context is especially important.

 

So, if we are studying the Scriptures (in context), and we are testing what we hear against the Word of God (in context), and if we are seeking God’s face with a genuine desire to know his ways and to walk (in conduct) in his truth, then he will show us his ways that we may walk in them.

 

But, in summary, his ways are this: We must die with Christ to sin, be raised with Christ to newness of life in Christ, then in the power of God’s Spirit within us we must walk (in conduct) according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh. And daily we must be dying with Christ to sin and living to Christ and to his righteousness.

 

[Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; Lu 9:23-26; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Pet 2:24; 2 Co 5:15, 21; 1 Co 6:19-20; Gal 2:20]

 

Isaiah 2:5 ESV

 

O house of Jacob,

    come, let us walk

    in the light of the Lord.

 

In the Hour of Trial

 

Lyrics by James Montgomery (1771-1854)

Music by Spencer Lane (1843-1903)

 

In the hour of trial, Jesus, pray for me,

Lest by base denial, I depart from Thee;

When Thou seest me waver, with a look recall,

Nor for fear or favor suffer me to fall.

 

With its witching pleasures, would this vain world charm

Or its sordid treasures spread to work me harm,

Bring to my remembrance sad Gethsemane

Or, in darker semblance, cross-crowned Calvary.

 

If with sore affliction, Thou in love chastise,

Pour Thy benediction on the sacrifice.

Then upon Thine altar, freely offered up,

Though the flesh may falter, faith shall drink the cup.

 

When in dust and ashes, to the grave I sink,

While heaven’s glory flashes o’er the shelving brink,

On Thy truth relying, through that mortal strife,

Lord, receive me, dying, to eternal life.

 

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