Would you appreciate some direction and structure for your daily quiet time? How about a timely dive into the most cited prophet in the New Testament—Isaiah? Try to remember that in the early church there was not yet a "new testament." For them God's written Word was the Old Testament: the Torah, the Prophets (like Isaiah), and the Writings. In this series we will learn not only about Isaiah and his urgent message; we will also learn about Jesus.

This is the introductory talk (4 mins) to the Isaiah series—which includes 31 reflections on the message of the powerful prophet Isaiah. The short title for the series is "Judgment & Justice."

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The Torah intimately connects justice and righteousness: If we don't treat our fellow humans justly, our religion is a sham.

In Isaiah's time, God’s people are spiritually unhealthy—at an all-time low. Both national and spiritual leadership are abysmal, failing to confront widespread oppression, materialism, worldly anxiety, dishonesty, sexual sin, and a widening gap between the rich and the poor. Through the prophet, the Lord pleads with Israel: "Come now, let us reason together..." (Isaiah 1:18). Will they listen? (Find out!) Will we listen? Isaiah's message—confronting an epidemic of injustice—is as relevant today as ever!

Each talk includes a reading from Isaiah, along with inspiration for the day ahead. We will survey the entire book of Isaiah. The first 10 days are for everyone. After that, website members may continue for several more weeks, until the series ends. The final reflection (no. 31) is also free to everybody, subscriber or not. The series is rich with practical application, in areas like: (1) Social justice, (2) Pandemic wisdom, (3) Personal integrity.

For background on the life and message of Isaiah, please listen to the O.T. Character study Isaiah. There are also daily tweets from New Year’s Day until mid-April 2021, featuring key passages from Isaiah.

The entire series runs 10-11 hours, with the reflections averaging 20-21 minutes. Here are the links:

0. Introduction (this talk)
1. Come Now, Let Us Reason Together — starts at Isaiah 1:1
2. Two Cities, Unquenchable Fire, & a Glorious Future — starts at 1:20
3. The Mountain of the Lord and the Holes of the Ground — starts at 2:1
4. A Crisis of Leadership & the Collapse of Society — 3:1
5. Purified by Fire — 4:2
6. Parable, Woe, Invasion — 5:1
7. "Here Am I—Send Me!" — 6:1
8. Faith or Fear? — 7:1
9. Unto Us a Child is Born — 9:1
10. Rod, Axe, Fire, Shoot, Signal, Sing — 10:5
11. Babylon & Judgment Day — 13:1
12. Moab is Undone—and God Weeps — 14:24
13. African Drama: The Naked & Barefoot Prophet — 17:1
14. Isaiah in Anguish — 21:1
15. Tyre & the Cosmos — 3:1
16. Breathtaking Vision — 25:1
17. Stupor, Stone, Tongues, Hypocrites, & Easy Religion — 28:1
18. The Noble One Makes Noble Plans — 30:15
19. Highway of Holiness — 34:1
20. Intimidation, Deliverance, Healing, Babylon — 36:1
21. Proclaim the Good News! — 40:1
22. The Lord's Servant & a Pagan Messiah — 42:1
23. Potter, Predator, Peace — 45:9
24. Awake and Depart! — 49:1
25. Christ, New Jerusalem, Fresh Start — 52:13
26. A House of Prayer for All Nations — 56:1
27. True Fasting, Wickedness, Justice & Judgment — 58:1
28. Zion's Day Dawns — 60:1
29. Trampling Out the Grapes of Wrath — 62:1
30. No Eye Has Seen, No Ear Has Heard... — 64:1
31. The Glory of the Lord — 66:1