Isaiah 5
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
The Song of the Vineyard audio (5MB)
I grew up in the 60’s listening to the Beatles. If you know anything about their music you’ll know that most of it was love songs: ‘I want to hold your hand’, ‘She loves you’, ‘From me to you’. And it was a winner because everyone loves a love song and everyone can relate to them. Of course not every love song is a happy one. Sometimes they’re more like a lament. That boy took my love away but this boy, wants you back again. She’s ignoring him, he comes to her door and there’s No Reply. I can’t sleep at night since you’ve been gone, ... I call your name.
Well Isaiah gathers the people of Jerusalem together and sings them a love song which turns out to be a parable. It starts out very happy like a good love song
The Hope of a Harvest
You can imagine the people settling down to hear this song of love and devotion. “My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. 2He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it.” If you’ve been out along the Yarra Valley lately you can imagine the scene. Rolling hills, green fields, rows of vines lining the road as you pass by. A stone farmhouse in the middle. It’s an idyllic description isn’t it? The watchtower indicates that he’s here for the long haul. And he’s dug a wine vat to store the wine so he must expect a great harvest. Everything that could be done for the vineyard has been done. The best position, the best soil, the choicest vines.
But then like every good parable we come to the sting in the tail.
Isaiah 1-2
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
A King Forgotten and Foretold audio (5MB)
A King Forgotten
It’s a tragic story isn’t it? A nation chosen, indeed created, by God to be his special possession. A nation nurtured and helped along at every point. Rescued from captivity in Egypt, given the law to direct their daily lives, given priests and kings to guide them; and it’s all been for nothing. They’ve failed so badly that it seems there’s no longer any help for them. In a mere 400 years they’ve gone from being a flourishing nation to being under siege, about to be abandoned by God.
Or is it the other way around? Has God abandoned them or have they abandoned God? You see this book isn’t primarily about Israel. It’s really a book about God. And the problem with Israel is that they’ve forgotten who God really is.
Is 62 - Christmas Day 2010
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
A Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord audio (2MB)
I have a problem with Christmas. Not with the idea of celebrating Jesus’ birth of course. Nor with the idea of giving gifts to our loved ones. That’s good because it helps us remember that God gave us the greatest gift of all. It’s not even the temptation to eat more than I really need, though that is a problem.
No, I have a problem with presents. More particularly I have a problem deciding which present to open first. Should I choose the most interesting shape? Or should I choose the one with the glossy wrapping? Or should it be the one with the plain brown paper wrapping?
Of course you can see the problem can’t you? The quality of the wrapping may have no relationship to what’s inside. Without looking inside it’s almost impossible to see whether the package is worth opening.
That’s the mistake that so many people make when it comes to Christianity. The package doesn’t look particularly exciting so they never look at what’s inside.
Is 7 Immanuel God is With Us
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
God With Us audio (5MB)
There are times when we find it hard to trust God to look after us. There are times when we think our situation is so bad there’s no way out. There are other times when we think we know the best solution to our problems so we don’t bother to ask God for help.
All three of those statements were true for Ahaz, as Jerusalem lay surrounded by the armies of Israel and Syria. It looked like Jerusalem was doomed. The people were starving and there didn’t seem to be much hope unless they were rescued by another nation. In fact Ahaz had it in his mind to form an alliance with Egypt or Assyria. Maybe that would solve their problems.
Unfortunately, too often when we make these sorts of short term decisions we overlook the long term consequences. If they formed an alliance with, say, Assyria, they’d lose their independence, The nation of Judea would be handed over to a pagan king. Jerusalem would become a secular city just like any other city in the world.
I wonder what you do when you’re faced with some impending disaster? Do you use your own political savvy, your own applied logic, to find a way out by yourself or do you ask God to intervene? It’s difficult isn’t it, because either may be appropriate. God promises to help us, but he also tells us to act to help ourselves.
Joshua 10 - Joshua's Farewell Challenge
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
Joshua’s Farewell Challenge audio (10MB)
The land has been conquered. The people are beginning to settle into their new life in the promised land. Joshua is coming to the end of a long life. So he calls the people to come and hear his final words of encouragement and challenge. What he has to say is critical for their life together and, may I suggest, critical for our life together.
A Review of Covenant History
He calls together the whole nation, to remind them of all the things that God has done for them so far in their history. Listen to what he has to say.
The Surprising Grace of God
He begins by focusing on Abraham - the father of the nation. Notice his origins. His family worshipped other gods beyond the river Euphrates. Just like you and me, Abraham came from a culture that was basically pagan. Like many of us here today his family worshipped other gods. But God, in his grace took him out of all that and led him to a new land.
