Healing Leaves Finding God's Will, Answers to prayers

   

    A River where the trees on the side of the rivers have Healing Leaves. Is it in heaven or on earth? Think About it. Holy Spirit gave me this word or today. Healing leaves. Rivers of living life giving waters flows out of the Spirit of God's Saints.

















New Jerusalem “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

      Here Ezekiel was getting a word from God about his temple. Jesus Christ is God's sacrifice, we he Saints are the Temple of God. Our words should come from God' Spirit full of the love and power of God bring living life giving water, or we are doing something wrong. Healing should be we ever there is a saint.

   Ezekiel 47:12 And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.
Revelation 21:1-3 New International Version (NIV)

A New Heaven and a New Earth
21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”[a] for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

Holding hands!

Father holding Son's hands

Isaiah 58 Ministries                                                                         July 25, 2014

Pastor:  Leah Svensson

Scriptures:  Isaiah 49, Isaiah 41, Isaiah 54, Isaiah 61, Revelations 21, 1 Corinthians 12, Matthew 5:17, Mark 10:13, Romans 8:12-17, Galatians 4:1-7, Jeremiah 31:3, 22, 33-34,Romans 12:1-31

     How in the world can you find holding hands in the Bible?

        The Whole Bible is ALL about "Holding Hands".  So simple only a child can understand.  So to understand the Bible you have to remember when you were a child.  How you "saw" things with innocent minds before your "experiences" taught you.  (Mark 10:13) (Note: Some children are born feeling like they know everything, are proud, bossy, violence dwells in them, and are arrogant, spoiled. Always acting  like they are 22 years old at 2 and 3 years old. If these children are humbled by God's Spirit it is possible that they can receive from God.)

         When we receive Jesus as our Savior we become "married to Jesus". (Isaiah 54:5)

   

 I've seen people who have been married for 50 years who take walks and hold each others hands. They say mushy things to each other like: (Isaiah 54:10)

10 For the mountains may depart

and the hills be removed,

but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,

and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”

   

 A spouse's Father and Mother become the Father and Mother of both the Husband and Wife.  Jesus' Father now becomes our "Father".  We call God our "Father" just like Jesus does.....because we  are accepted into God's family through the blood of Jesus Christ just like a woman is accepted into her husband's family. (Romans 8:12-17, Galatians 4:1-7),   The man's family is now responsible for the woman for the rest of her life. 

   







         

 Men are married to Jesus.  Just like a Husband and wife.  Jesus is the husband, the man is dependent on Jesus as the stronger vessel. Jesus becomes his provider and protector. The purpose is for comfort, companionship, health, to end loneliness and out of this love for one another Jesus and his bride  they bring forth children.  Men now call Jesus "my husband" and Jesus calls men his "bride".  It is all very romantic, beautiful, gentle, and tender. A person's relationship or marriage to Jesus brings forth children, "good fruit".

   

When you love someone you "hold hands". God's puts his "Holy Spirit" with in us, his laws, his essence, his presence in which he is always holding our hand and as he promises he will never let go of it........

   

Revelations 21 describes Jesus' bride as the "New Jerusalem." Jesus has written on her the names of the 12 tribes or Israel and the names of the 12 disciples. 21:3-4  God says:

“Behold, the dwelling place  of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people,  and God himself will be with them as their God.  4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

     

Here again we see God as very mushy...  and so in love.  As a Father and loving husband he adorns us with jewels, (Zachariah 13) builds us up with pure gold like clear glass.  Our gates are made of pearl and where we walk the streets become gold..  He wipes away every tear, takes away all pain we no longer have any reason to cry because he takes care of everything.....................As we hold his hand knowing he is already holding our hand we have nothing to fear........

Wedding gown

Revelations 21:18-21

.18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass.19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

Heirs with Christ

Romans 8:12 So then, brothers,  we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons  of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Sons and Heirs

Galatians 4:1 I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, 2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles  of the world.4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

     Jesus came to fulfill the promise of God in the Old Testament. Isaiah 49:2 says:in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  God is holding our hand. In verse 16 God says he has engraved us in his palms.  We are now apart  of God's very being. All  his  labor is for us like a father for his children or a husband for his wife and children.  All God ever thinks about is us, his wife, his bride, his child. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

God is always holding our hand.

          Isaiah 41:13 For I, the LORD your God,

hold your right hand;

it is I who say to you, “Fear not,

I am the one who helps you.”

                 The Year of the LORD’s Favor

                                Isaiah 61

1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,God's (God's hand is in my hand)

because the LORD has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor; 

he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,

and the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all who mourn;

Finally, God our husband our Father holds our hand and says:  I have loved you with and everlasting love!!!Jeremiah 

     

We must return to our husband, our maker, our Father. 

Jeremiah31:  22...........The LORD will create a new thing on earth—

the woman will return to  the man.”

 In the Old testament if a woman left her husband she could never return for she was unthankful, ungrateful and had probably slept with another man.  The Husband is no longer responsible to love her, protect, or provide for her.

      We are that woman who left her husband, the child who left home to join the circus.

Meditate on what you have learned here.  Think about how Jesus is right by your side holding your hand.  While you are seated with him in heaven holding his hand, he is the King, you are his bride. Read as Ezekiel describes the beauty of your husband and Father.  He sits on a throne

Lapis lazuli is a gemstone of the kind that might have come straight out of the Arabian Nights: a deep blue with golden inclusions of pyrites which shimmer like little stars.

 opaque, deep blue gemstone 

Ezekiel in Babylon

Ezekiel 1:1 In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. [fn1] 2 On the fifth day of the month (it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin), 3 the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar canal, and the hand of the LORD was upon him there.

The Glory of the LORD

4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal.  5 And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, 6 but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings.7 Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like burnished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: 9 their wings touched one another. Each one of them went straight forward, without turning as they went. 10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. 11 Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies. 12 And each went straight forward. Wherever the spirit  would go, they went, without turning as they went. 13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.14 And the living creatures darted to and fro, like the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them.  16 As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl. And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. 17 When they went, they went in any of their four directions  without turning as they went. 18 And their rims were tall and awesome, and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. 19 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. 20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures [fn6] was in the wheels. 21 When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

22 Over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-inspiring crystal, spread out above their heads.23 And under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward another. And each creature had two wings covering its body. 24 And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the sound of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings. 25 And there came a voice from above the expanse over their heads. When they stood still, they let down their wings.

26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire, (sapphire equals Lapis Lazuli or deep blue);  and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. 27 And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.  28 Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

Scriptures:

Let the Children Come to Me

Mark 10:13 And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16 And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.

Christ Came to Fulfill the Law

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The New Heaven and the New Earth

The New Heaven and the New Earth

Revelations 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 

“Behold, the dwelling place  of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people,  and God himself will be with them as their God.  4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6 And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. 7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

The New Jerusalem

9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits  by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement.18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass.19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

The Servant of the LORD

 Isaiah 49

1 Listen to me, O coastlands,

and give attention, you peoples from afar.

The LORD called me from the womb,

from the body of my mother he named my name.

2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword;

in the shadow of his hand he hid me;

he made me a polished arrow;

in his quiver he hid me away.

3 And he said to me, “You are my servant,

Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” 

4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;

I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;

yet surely my right is with the LORD,

and my recompense with my God.”

   

5 And now the LORD says,

he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,

to bring Jacob back to him;

and that Israel might be gathered to him—

for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,

and my God has become my strength—

6 he says:

“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant

to raise up the tribes of Jacob

and to bring back the preserved of Israel;

I will make you as a light for the nations,

that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

   

7 Thus says the LORD,

the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,

to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,

the servant of rulers:

“Kings shall see and arise;

princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;

because of the LORD, who is faithful,

the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

The Restoration of Israel

8 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,

9 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;

10 they shall not hunger or thirst,

neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,

for he who has pity on them will lead them,

and by springs of water will guide them.

11 And I will make all my mountains a road,

and my highways shall be raised up.

12 Behold, these shall come from afar,

and behold, these from the north and from the west, 

and these from the land of Syene.” 

   

13 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.

   

14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;

my Lord has forgotten me.”

   

15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child,

that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget,

yet I will not forget you.

16 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are continually before me.

17 Your builders make haste; 

your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.

18 Lift up your eyes around and see;

they all gather, they come to you.

As I live, declares the LORD,

you shall put them all on as an ornament;

you shall bind them on as a bride does.

   

19 “Surely your waste and your desolate places

and your devastated land—

surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,

and those who swallowed you up will be far away.

20 The children of your bereavement

will yet say in your ears:

‘The place is too narrow for me;

make room for me to dwell in.’

21 Then you will say in your heart:

‘Who has borne me these?

I was bereaved and barren,

exiled and put away,

but who has brought up these?

Behold, I was left alone;

from where have these come?’”

   

22 Thus says the Lord GOD:

“Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,

and raise my signal to the peoples;

and they shall bring your sons in their arms, 

and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.

23 Kings shall be your foster fathers,

and their queens your nursing mothers.

With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,

and lick the dust of your feet.

Then you will know that I am the LORD;

those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.”

   

24 Can the prey be taken from the mighty,

or the captives of a tyrant  be rescued?

25 For thus says the LORD:

“Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,

and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,

for I will contend with those who contend with you,

and I will save your children.

26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,

and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.

Then all flesh shall know

that I am the LORD your Savior,

and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Fear Not, for I Am with You

 Isaiah 41

1 Listen to me in silence, O coastlands;

let the peoples renew their strength;

let them approach, then let them speak;

let us together draw near for judgment.

   

2 Who stirred up one from the east

whom victory meets at every step? 

He gives up nations before him,

so that he tramples kings underfoot;

he makes them like dust with his sword,

like driven stubble with his bow.

3 He pursues them and passes on safely,

by paths his feet have not trod.

4 Who has performed and done this,

calling the generations from the beginning?

I, the LORD, the first,

and with the last; I am he.

   

5 The coastlands have seen and are afraid;

the ends of the earth tremble;

they have drawn near and come.

6 Everyone helps his neighbor

and says to his brother, “Be strong!”

7 The craftsman strengthens the goldsmith,

and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil,

saying of the soldering, “It is good”;

and they strengthen it with nails so that it cannot be moved.

   

8 But you, Israel, my servant,

Jacob, whom I have chosen,

the offspring of Abraham, my friend;

9 you whom I took from the ends of the earth,

and called from its farthest corners,

saying to you, “You are my servant,

I have chosen you and not cast you off”;

10 fear not, for I am with you;

be not dismayed, for I am your God;

I will strengthen you, I will help you,

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

   

11 Behold, all who are incensed against you

shall be put to shame and confounded;

those who strive against you

shall be as nothing and shall perish.

12 You shall seek those who contend with you,

but you shall not find them;

those who war against you

shall be as nothing at all.

13 For I, the LORD your God,

hold your right hand;

it is I who say to you, “Fear not,

I am the one who helps you.”

   

14 Fear not, you worm Jacob,

you men of Israel!

I am the one who helps you, declares the LORD;

your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge,

new, sharp, and having teeth;

you shall thresh the mountains and crush them,

and you shall make the hills like chaff;

16 you shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away,

and the tempest shall scatter them.

And you shall rejoice in the LORD;

in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.

   

17 When the poor and needy seek water,

and there is none,

and their tongue is parched with thirst,

I the LORD will answer them;

I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18 I will open rivers on the bare heights,

and fountains in the midst of the valleys.

I will make the wilderness a pool of water,

and the dry land springs of water.

19 I will put in the wilderness the cedar,

the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive.

I will set in the desert the cypress,

the plane and the pine together,

20 that they may see and know,

may consider and understand together,

that the hand of the LORD has done this,

the Holy One of Israel has created it.

The Futility of Idols

21 Set forth your case, says the LORD;

bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.

22 Let them bring them, and tell us

what is to happen.

Tell us the former things, what they are,

that we may consider them,

that we may know their outcome;

or declare to us the things to come.

23 Tell us what is to come hereafter,

that we may know that you are gods;

do good, or do harm,

that we may be dismayed and terrified. 

24 Behold, you are nothing,

and your work is less than nothing;

an abomination is he who chooses you.

   

25 I stirred up one from the north, and he has come,

from the rising of the sun, and he shall call upon my name;

he shall trample on rulers as on mortar,

as the potter treads clay.

26 Who declared it from the beginning, that we might know,

and beforehand, that we might say, “He is right”?

There was none who declared it, none who proclaimed,

none who heard your words.

27 I was the first to say [to Zion, “Behold, here they are!”

and I give to Jerusalem a herald of good news.

28 But when I look, there is no one;

among these there is no counselor

who, when I ask, gives an answer.

29 Behold, they are all a delusion;

their works are nothing;

their metal images are empty wind.

The Eternal Covenant of Peace

 Isaiah 54

1 “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;

break forth into singing and cry aloud,

you who have not been in labor!

For the children of the desolate one will be more

than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.

2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,

and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;

do not hold back; lengthen your cords

and strengthen your stakes.

3 For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,

and your offspring will possess the nations

and will people the desolate cities.

   

4 “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;

be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;

for you will forget the shame of your youth,

and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

5 For your Maker is your husband,

the LORD of hosts is his name;

and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,

the God of the whole earth he is called.

6 For the LORD has called you

like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,

like a wife of youth when she is cast off,

says your God.

7 For a brief moment I deserted you,

but with great compassion I will gather you.

8 In overflowing anger for a moment

I hid my face from you,

but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”

says the LORD, your Redeemer.

   

9 “This is like the days of Noah  to me:

as I swore that the waters of Noah

should no more go over the earth,

so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,

and will not rebuke you.

10 For the mountains may depart

and the hills be removed,

but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,

and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”

says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

   

11 “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,

behold, I will set your stones in antimony,

and lay your foundations with sapphires. 

12 I will make your pinnacles of agate,

your gates of carbuncles, 

and all your wall of precious stones.

13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD,

and great shall be the peace of your children.

14 In righteousness you shall be established;

you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;

and from terror, for it shall not come near you.

15 If anyone stirs up strife,

it is not from me;

whoever stirs up strife with you

shall fall because of you.

16 Behold, I have created the smith

who blows the fire of coals

and produces a weapon for its purpose.

I have also created the ravager to destroy;

17 no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,

and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.

This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD

and their vindication  from me, declares the LORD.”

The Year of the LORD’s Favor

Isaiah 61

1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,God's (hand is in my hand)

because the LORD has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor; 

he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,

and the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all who mourn;

3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion—

to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;

that they may be called oaks of righteousness,

the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified. 

4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;

they shall raise up the former devastations;

they shall repair the ruined cities,

the devastations of many generations.

   

5 Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks;

foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers;

6 but you shall be called the priests of the LORD;

they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God;

you shall eat the wealth of the nations,

and in their glory you shall boast.

7 Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion;

instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot;

therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion;

they shall have everlasting joy.

   

8 For I the LORD love justice;

I hate robbery and wrong; 

I will faithfully give them their recompense,

and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

9 Their offspring shall be known among the nations,

and their descendants in the midst of the peoples;

all who see them shall acknowledge them,

that they are an offspring the LORD has blessed.

   

10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD;

my soul shall exult in my God,

for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;

he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,

as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress,

and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,

and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,

so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise

to sprout up before all the nations

Jeremiah 31:3, 22, 33-34

3 The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying:

“I have loved you with an everlasting love;

I have drawn you with unfailing kindness

22...........The LORD will create a new thing on earth—

the woman will return to  the man.”

33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel

after that time,” declares the LORD.

“I will put my law in their minds

and write it on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

34 No longer will they teach their neighbor,

or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest,”

declares the LORD.

Spiritual Gifts

Romans 12:1-31

1 Now concerning  spiritual gifts,  brothers,  I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

One Body with Many Members

12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves  or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts,  yet one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts.
And I will show you a still more excellent way.