March
1st Thursday Connect
Our next monthly gathering for women is March 4 at 7PM. We will not be meeting on Zoom this month, but we will be meeting in person in the New Life Church West Linn sanctuary! It will be wonderful to join together for conversation, Bible teaching from Matthew, and more. If you cannot make it in person, please join us by livestream at https://bit.ly/NewLifeWomenLivestreamMarch.
For the months of March and April, we will be soaking in the beautiful truth of the superiority of Christ from the book of Hebrews. A reading plan for Hebrews and Side by Side Bible Reading studies are available on the church website as well as at the 1st Thursday Connect meeting. Sign up for a Side by Side Bible Reading partner at https://bit.ly/NewLifeWomenSignUp. Share prayer needs and request printed materials at the same link. New to Side by Side Bible Reading? Look for more information on the church website or email the Women’s Ministry team at wlwomen@newlifenw.com.
Isaiah 40
As we memorize Isaiah 40, these excerpts from the commentary Isaiah: God Saves Sinners by Raymond Ortlund are provided for your education and enjoyment. We will be memorizing verses 18-20 in March.
To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? An idol! A craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and casts for it silver chains. He who is too impoverished for an offering chooses wood that will not rot; he seeks out a skillful craftsman to set up an idol that will not move. (Isaiah 40:18-20 ESV)
Isaiah is a wise pastor. He knows our most urgent need. He knows that the human heart is driven with a compulsive desire to make God controllable by reducing him to our own categories. That’s why he insists that God is unique. The Bible often describes God with comparisons from within the creation. He’s like a lion, a fountain, a tower, a husband, a father, a soldier, and so forth. But verses like Isaiah 40:18 remind us that no analogy within the creation can say it all. When we see God through God’s eyes, he doesn’t fit into any box of created size. He goes beyond our categories of experience and therefore deserves our trust.
Isaiah doesn’t criticize idol-making; he just describes it…. Idol-making is too stupid to require comment. His serious tones and careful observations are dripping with sarcasm. Idols may be decked out impressively, they might even inspire awe and mystery, but all they are is what they are. And that’s why we must never derive our sense of worth from anything within the creation. It will rot. That’s why we must delight that God alone is God. His incomparability is our salvation.
Links
Below are links to articles, books, podcasts, and music that might be of interest or help on various topics. Resources are curated but may not always reflect the views of New Life Church. Enjoy!
4 Ways to Love Someone Blindsided by Loss —by Clarissa Moll @ TGC.
Things We Remember —@ The Palest Ink. Beautiful. Encouraging. “We all have our own aches, deep down, that we long to crush. Those Israelites grew weary, as do I. So I am reminding myself that our Savior will soon return.”
Pray Because God is Sovereign—@ Desiring God. An important topic, and this article sums it up well. If you are needing motivation to pray, it’s here.
Easter Monday —an Easter livestream concert by Andrew Peterson on April 5. Tickets are for sale online.
The Wisdom Pyramid: Feeding Your Soul in a Post-Truth World —by Brett McCracken. “To become wise in the information age…we need to be more discerning about what we consume.”
Food Trucks in Babylon—listen to Brett McCracken speak on the topic of his new book, The Wisdom Pyramid.
Risen Motherhood—a beneficial new mini-series on fear at the Risen Motherhood podcast.