Dear Brothers and Sisters, Prayer will be held at the Daming home.

What is the essence of true Christianity? If you could summarize the effect of the gospel on a person what word would you use? How do you know if you have embraced it? Here in Isaiah 40:1-2, we find one of the most powerful and helpful effects of authentic Christianity – comfort. As we move into Isaiah 40-66, we discover a change of emphasis – from the horrors of judgment to the comforts of the gospel. We turn from “woe,” to “comfort.” In these chapters, Isaiah takes us on a journey that looks ahead hundreds of years, covering pivotal future events and the great doctrines of the Christian faith. We will pass by many themes – the majesty of God, the power of the Word of God, the coming of the “suffering servant” our Lord Jesus Christ, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the spread of the gospel in the New Testament era, the final judgment and the new heavens and the new earth. In these first two verses in Isaiah 40:1-2 we find the only source of true comfort – the salvation that is in Jesus Christ by His propitiation ending the warfare, His pardon ending our captivity, and His justification ending our worthless fleshly labors for favor with God. As we move from chapter 39 to chapter 40, the prophet is prophesying from the perspective that the captivity has already happened. He is no longer speaking to Judah, but of a future day. The message: God has not forgotten you. He is going to save you. He is the God of all comfort.

Remember, we will be having Prayer Week beginning next Sunday…

The songs we will be singing on Sunday:

We Will Glorify
We will glorify the King of Kings
We will glorify the Lamb
We will glorify the Lord of Lords
Who is the Great I Am

Lord Jehovah reigns in majesty
We will bow before His throne
We will worship Him in righteousness
We will worship Him alone

He is Lord of heaven, Lord of earth
He is Lord of all who live
He is Lord above the universe
All praise to Him we give

Hallelujah to the King of Kings
Hallelujah to the Lamb
Hallelujah to the Lord of Lords
Who is the Great I Am

Comfort, Comfort Ye My People
Comfort, comfort ye my people,
Speak ye peace, thus saith our God;
Comfort those who sit in darkness,
Mourning ‘neath their sorrow’s load.
Speak ye to Jerusalem
Of the peace that waits for them;
Tell her that her sins I cover,
And her warfare now is over.

Yea, her sins our God will pardon,
Blotting out each dark misdeed;
All that well deserved his anger
He no more will see or heed.
She hath suffered many a day
Now her griefs have passed away;
God will change her pining sadness
Into ever-springing gladness.

For the herald’s voice is crying
In the desert far and near,
Bidding all men to repentance,
Since the kingdom now is here.
O that warning cry obey!
Now prepare for God a way;
Let the valleys rise to meet him,
And the hills bow down to greet him.

Make ye straight what long was crooked,
Make the rougher places plain;
Let your hearts be true and humble,
As befits his holy reign.
For the glory of the Lord
Now o’er earth is shed abroad;
And all flesh shall see the token,
That his word is never broken.

All The Way My Savior Leads Me
All the way my Savior leads me
What have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt his tender mercy
Who through life has been my guide
Heavenly peace, divinest comfort
Here by faith in him to dwell
For I know what e’er befall me
Jesus doeth all things well

All the way my Savior leads me
Cheers each winding path I tread
Gives me grace for every trial
Feeds me with the living bread
Though my weary steps may falter
And my soul a thirst may be
Gushing from the rock before me
Lo, a spring of joy I see

All the way my Savior leads me
O the fullness of his love
Perfect rest to me is promised
In my Father’s house above
When my spirit clothed immortal
Wings its flight to realms of day
This my song through endless ages
Jesus lead me all the way

Dear Refuge of My Weary Soul
Dear refuge of my weary soul, on Thee, when sorrows rise,
On Thee, when waves of trouble roll, my fainting hope relies.
To Thee I tell each rising grief, for Thou alone canst heal;
Thy Word can bring a sweet relief for every pain I feel.

But oh! When gloomy doubts prevail, I fear to call Thee mine;
The springs of comfort seem to fail, and all my hopes decline.
Yet gracious God, where shall I flee? Thou art my only trust;
And still my soul would cleave to Thee, though prostrate in the dust.

Hast Thou not bid me seek Thy face, and shall I seek in vain?
And can the ear of sov’reign grace be deaf when I complain?
No, still the ear of sov’reign grace attends the mourner’s prayer;
O may I ever find access to breathe my sorrows there.

Thy mercy seat is open still, here let my soul retreat;
With humble hope attend Thy will, and wait beneath Thy feet.
Thy mercy seat is open still, here let my soul retreat;
With humble hope attend Thy will, and wait beneath Thy feet.

It Is Well with My Soul
When peace like a river attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
“It is well, it is well with my soul”

It is well with my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul

Tho’ Satan should buffet, tho’ trials should come
Let this blest assurance control
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate
And hath shed His own blood for my soul

My sin – O the bliss of this glorious tho’t
My sin – not in part, but the whole
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

And, Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll
The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend
“Even so” – it is well with my soul

—
Michael Davenport