Lesson 9: The Results of the Gospel
Questions 1 and 2
Hello, friend, greetings to you and welcome to day 9. Please pray with me, and then let’s get started on the lesson for today.
We’ve been studying Isaiah chapter 61 for several lessons now; let’s look at it again and see what else we can discover:
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, (2) to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, (3) and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
Isaiah 61:1-3 NIV
We’ve seen that Jesus used this text for His first sermon, and when He finished reading it He said, “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” (Luke 4:21). So Isaiah 61 is about the work that Jesus would do.
We’ve understood that Jesus brought good news to the poor (us) when He went to the cross and paid in full our debt of sin with His own precious blood. We’ve seen that Jesus comforted the brokenhearted by going to the cross and having His own heart broken and spilled out. His suffering, His wounds and His loss were the means by which our hearts are healed and made whole. We’ve seen how He came to release captives and prisoners by going to the cross and dying in our place, freeing us from all guilt and shame, releasing us eternally from the power of sin.
Now today we want to focus on verse 3 which says:
and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
Isaiah 61:3 NIV
Question 1. Please list each problem in Isaiah 61:3 and what would be done about it.
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The first result of the gospel is that Jesus will provide for those who grieve by replacing ashes with a crown of beauty. This speaks of loss, possibly of death (ashes to ashes) and the grieving and mourning that come because of it. It’s possible that the depression you are experiencing is due to loss - loss of a dream, a marriage, a loved one, a job, etc.
Question 2. Have you been depressed over the loss of something or someone? If so, please explain.
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