The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of rulers, that struck the peoples in wrath with unceasing blows, that ruled the nations in anger with unrelenting persecution. The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. Isaiah 14:5-7

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context:

Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for you are my servant; I formed you; you are my servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me. I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you. Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth into singing, O mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and will be glorified in Israel. Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners, who turns wise men back and makes their knowledge foolish, who confirms the word of his servant and fulfills the counsel of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited,’ and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built, and I will raise up their ruins’; who says to the deep, ‘Be dry; I will dry up your rivers’; who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose’; saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’” Isaiah 44:21-28

Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Psalm 2:1-12

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the LORD has comforted His people and will have compassion on His afflicted. Isaiah 49:13

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​And I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways shall be raised up. ​Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene.” Isaiah 49:11-12

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Thus says the LORD: “In a time of favor I have answered you; in a day of salvation I have helped you; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages, ​saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.’ They shall feed along the ways; on all bare heights shall be their pasture. Isaiah 49:8-9

Stacked papers: Ancient Charm; cluster, additional elements: Best of Times - all by Manu Designs

You might enjoy reading my devotional, "Beautiful." You can view and/or download it in magazine style pdf (48 mb) here, or text w/highlighting format pdf (.5 mb) here. All of my other devotionals are also freely available in pdf format if you click on the link at the top of the right column.

Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea, declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it, send it out to the end of the earth; say, “The LORD has redeemed His servant Jacob!” Isaiah 48:20

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This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. 1 Timothy 1:18-20

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But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life. 1 Timothy 1:16

stacked papers: Ancient Charm, cluster: Serenity - both by Manu Designs

context:

I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 1 Timothy 1:12-16

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 1 Timothy 1:15

And when Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17

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Please also read yesterday's blog post remarks about what Paul means in this verse. Also, Jesus is the Great Physician - so we know that He doesn't leave His patients "sick" (i.e. enslaved to sin like they were when they came to Him). We are changed from the inside out to bear good fruit by the Holy Spirit. (John 8:31-33, 34-36, Titus 3:3-8, Rom. 6:12-14, 15-18, 19-23, 8:13-14, 13:14, 1John 1:5-2:11, 1John 2:28-3:10, Gal. 5:13-15, 16-18, 19-23, 24-25, Phil. 2:12-16) (Also see yesterday's blog post about which of His commands Jesus is referring to.)

context:

I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. 1 Timothy 1:12-17

And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.  The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:15-28

I thank Him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 1 Timothy 1:12-14

stacked paper: Serenity by Manu Designs

You might enjoy reading my devotional, "Beautiful." You can view and/or download it in magazine style pdf (48 mb) here, or text w/highlighting format pdf (.5 mb) here. All of my other devotionals are also freely available in pdf format if you click on the link at the top of the right column.
context:

I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. 1 Timothy 1:12-17

I feel that it's necessary to mention here that Paul acted ignorantly in unbelief not because he didn't believe in God at all or because he was immersed in and enslaved to sinful behaviors forbidden by God (such as sexual immorality, stealing, etc.), but because he thought he was doing God a great service to persecute followers of Jesus. He was being zealous for God, but in the wrong way. (Acts 9:1-2, 26:9-11, 7:59-60, 8:1)

I have heard people use the passage above to suggest that Paul's being the "chief of sinners" means he continued to be so as the apostle to the Gentiles. That is simply not true. It is true that we're not perfect, but no one should get the impression from the New Testament that believers are allowed to use their freedom in Christ as a license to sin. (Gal. 5:13, Rom. 6, 1Pet. 2:16, Jam. 2:12, 1:25, 2Cor. 12:20, 21)

Walking in the Spirit is the same as being led by the Spirit. (Rom. 8:13-14, 1John 3:1, 9, 23-24, 4:13, 1Pet. 1:14-19, Rom. 16:19) When He is present in a person, the Holy Spirit's fruits are good - not in name only, but visibly so (just like we can see the effects of the wind - John 3:3-8). (Gal. 5:16-25) Jesus said we could recognize a good or bad tree by its fruits, so that means we can see by their behavior what sort of things are hidden inside of them (good or bad - they work their way out). (Matt. 12:33, Luke 6:43-49, Mark 7:21-23)

This is why we shouldn't grieve and quench the Holy Spirit - so that we don't indulge our old sinful flesh instead of the new creation. (Gal. 6:15, 2Cor. 5:17, Col. 3:9-10, Eph. 4:22-24, Heb. 3:12-14, 1Pet. 2:11) When we're led by our old flesh, we rebel against the Spirit, who is helping us exercise self-control and go in the right way (leading us). (Eph. 4:30, 1Thess. 5:19, 1Cor. 9:24-10:7, 10:8-10, 11-12, 13, 6:12, 13, 2Pet. 1:5-12) He is called our Helper for good reason. (John 14:16-24, 26, 15:26, 16:7) The commands and words of Jesus that we keep because we love Him are to LOVE God first and our neighbor as ourselves. (Gal. 5:14-15, Rom. 13:8-10, 11-14, Jam. 2:8, Matt. 22:37-38, 39-40, 1John 4:19, 21, 5:3, 2Cor. 5:14-15)

"Doing harm to a neighbor" includes BOTH sinning against them AND encouraging them to sin by sinning with them or by approving of their sin. (Rom. 1:32, Matt. 5:12-13) We Gentile (non-Jew) believers are STILL prohibited from sexual immorality even though the heavy yoke of the law has been lifted from us. (Acts 21:25, 15:10, 1Cor. 6:18-20, 1Thess. 4:3-5, 6-8, Gal. 5:1, 2:4-5, Matt. 11:28-30) We bear good fruit for God, by the power of His Spirit in us. (Rom. 7:4, 5-6, Matt. 5:16, 13:23, Rom. 8:9, Titus 2:11-3:8, John 15:1-10, Jam. 1:12, Matt. 25:1-13)

But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again. Philippians 1:24-26

Stacked paper: Snaps from the Past by Manu Designs

You might enjoy reading my devotional, "Beautiful." You can view and/or download it in magazine style pdf (48 mb) here, or text w/highlighting format pdf (.5 mb) here. All of my other devotionals are also freely available in pdf format if you click on the link at the top of the right column.

full passage:

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again. Philippians 1:12-26