Scriptures: Isaiah 9:1-7, 42:1-7, John 9, Isaiah 60:19-20 Rather than come out and declare that he is the Messiah, Jesus often described himself and his kingdom in parables which are word pictures that describe a particular truth. God speaks through the language of symbols in dreams and visions because symbols can have many layers of meaning. The more we want to know, the deeper the Lord will take us in our understanding. That’s why Jesus told his disciples, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given – and you will receive even more” (Mark 4:24, NLT). The I AM statements…
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Day 6 – I AM the Door
Scriptures: John 10, Hebrews 9 In the same way that Jesus hinted his identity as the Son of David by quoting David and doing what David did, Jesus hinted at his ancient identity through the “I am” statements recorded by the Apostle John. When the religious leaders and guards came to arrest Jesus, and asked which one of them was Jesus the Nazarene, Jesus responded by using the name God told Moses to say to the Israelites when explaining God’s identity: I AM. John 18:6 tells us that when Jesus said this, they drew back and fell to the ground. When Jesus, the Word of God speaks the name of…
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Day 2 – The Branch
Scriptures: Isaiah 11:1, Jeremiah 33:14-18, Zechariah 3:8-9, 6:9-13, Hebrews 7 Isaiah 11 describes the righteous ruler who will be anointed with the Holy Spirit to rule Israel and bring peace to the earth as the Branch. “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit” (Isaiah 11:1). The Branch comes from the stump of Jesse, King David’s father. Not only is Jesus descended from King David, as we see in Matthew 1, but he is an entirely new branch that precedes David because he comes from the stump of David’s father, Jesse. What does that mean? In scripture, cutting down a tree is a…
