Hello Friends,
Welcome back to
Prepared Hearts, our online lectionary based Bible study. This week’s
lectionary texts include: Isaiah 49:1-7, Psalm 40:1-11, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9,
John 1:29-42. This Sunday is also Human Relations Sunday. I’ll be preaching on
evangelism, a thread that runs throughout each of this week’s texts, so please
spend some time with each of them. The Isaiah scripture is below as it is my primary text, and
starter thoughts follow.
Isaiah 49:1-7
Listen to me, O
coastlands,
pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me
before I was born,
while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.
He made my mouth
like a sharp sword,
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a
polished arrow,
in his quiver he hid me away.
And he said to me,
‘You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’
But I said, ‘I have
labored in vain,
I have spent my strength for nothing and
vanity;
yet surely my cause
is with the Lord,
and my reward with my God.’
And now the Lord
says,
who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back
to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honored in
the sight of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
he says,
‘It is too light a
thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a
light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of
the earth.’
Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply
despised, abhorred by the nations,
the slave of rulers,
‘Kings shall see and
stand up,
princes, and they shall prostrate
themselves,
because of the Lord,
who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’
STARTER THOUGHTS
1. What does the word “evangelism” mean to you? How
would you define it? What role does it play in your daily life? Or does it play
a role in your daily life?
2. The Psalmist describes in Chapter 40, verses 9
& 10 how he has “told of the glad news of deliverance in the great
congregation.” Have you shared your own story of faith to a gathering of
Christians or have you heard others do so? What was that experience like?
3. Paul commends the church in Corinth, “I give
thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given
you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech
and knowledge of every kind— just as the testimony of Christ has been
strengthened among you...” How do you think the testimony of Christ was
strengthened among them? How is the testimony of Christ being strengthened
within our church?
4. In the Gospel text John declares, “Here is the
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” If you were to see Jesus
walking toward you tomorrow, what would you say about him to those standing
near you?
5. Finally, in Isaiah we read how God has spoken to
the Prophet declaring, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to
raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will
give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of
the earth.” What does it mean that God’s light would reach to the ends of the
earth?
As always, I look forward to hearing your thoughts and
reflections. You can email me directly, or post a comment here.
Peace,
Pastor Amee
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