WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.259 So I want to begin this morning by imagining as a filmmaker, redoing the story of the prodigal son. 00:00:06.940 --> 00:00:13.759 You all know, hopefully, the prodigal son, the son who was given half of the inheritance by his father upon his demand, 00:00:13.960 --> 00:00:20.699 and he runs off and he goes far away from his father and he spends it all, and he finds himself in this crisis point. 00:00:20.940 --> 00:00:28.019 He's lost all of his money, he's far from home, he's fighting with the pigs in the pigsty for the food. 00:00:28.019 --> 00:00:35.380 He's buried the most dishonorable place that a Jewish boy could ever find himself. 00:00:35.880 --> 00:00:37.500 And he thinks of his father. 00:00:38.359 --> 00:00:44.239 And as a filmmaker, I want you to sort of hone in on this because the Bible passage goes on and it says, 00:00:44.359 --> 00:00:47.379 he imagines his return and he would say to his father, 00:00:47.799 --> 00:00:53.679 Father, I've sinned against heaven and before you, I'm no longer worthy to be called your son, treat me as your hired servant. 00:00:53.679 --> 00:01:00.780 But I wonder if in a filmmaking, they might pause there and maybe he might sit there and think, 00:01:00.979 --> 00:01:04.539 would my father even receive me? 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:10.120 Can I ever go home even as a servant? 00:01:12.579 --> 00:01:16.780 Somehow as a filmmaker, we'd want to think, how do we capture his fear? 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:26.680 That as he walked up to the door, the father might turn his face away, shut the door with a stone face. 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:32.519 The message is you had your chance, you blew it, you are dead to me. 00:01:36.780 --> 00:01:38.620 Have you ever felt like that with God? 00:01:38.620 --> 00:01:41.500 God, you know you're not perfect. 00:01:42.439 --> 00:01:44.520 In fact, you've blown it. 00:01:45.260 --> 00:01:52.500 Your life bears the scars and the stories of how black your heart is and how destructive your actions have been. 00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:57.439 You know that everything you touch has been stained and marred. 00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:08.680 And you realize that everything you've been a part of, not only your life, but every group, every institution, every people that you've been a part of, 00:02:09.159 --> 00:02:11.199 has been stained in the same way. 00:02:13.359 --> 00:02:17.099 And as you look at the world through this lens, despair creeps in. 00:02:17.099 --> 00:02:29.939 If God sees what I see, if God knows what I know about myself and the people that I am with, 00:02:32.939 --> 00:02:37.000 would He ever welcome us back? 00:02:37.319 --> 00:02:39.359 Would He ever redeem us? 00:02:39.799 --> 00:02:45.280 Or are we in fact beyond repair, beyond the reach of even His help? 00:02:47.099 --> 00:02:49.659 Is there hope for an irredeemable people? 00:02:51.759 --> 00:02:58.199 This, I believe, is the question that the prophet Isaiah is speaking to in the passage that we're going to look at this morning. 00:02:58.719 --> 00:03:03.139 We are in a summer series on the book of Isaiah, chapters 40 through 55. 00:03:03.639 --> 00:03:07.939 If you want to turn with me in the Pew Bible, it'd be good for you to follow along if you can. 00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:09.579 It's page 564. 00:03:10.199 --> 00:03:14.159 We're going to start in Isaiah 42, verse 18. 00:03:14.159 --> 00:03:18.699 And we'll look through chapter 43, verse 21. 00:03:18.819 --> 00:03:19.939 So we're looking at a big chunk. 00:03:20.159 --> 00:03:23.479 We're going to look at it in sections, so we're not going to read it all up front. 00:03:23.579 --> 00:03:26.039 We're going to look at it piecemeal along the way. 00:03:26.780 --> 00:03:30.139 And what we want to remember is that Isaiah has been writing. 00:03:30.240 --> 00:03:33.039 Remember the first word in chapter 40, comfort. 00:03:33.740 --> 00:03:34.840 Comfort my people. 00:03:34.840 --> 00:03:40.900 Isaiah is writing to a people, giving them a word of hope. 00:03:41.080 --> 00:03:44.719 A word of hope that, in fact, God may redeem His people. 00:03:47.180 --> 00:03:50.960 So with that, let's pray, and then we'll look at the passage together. 00:03:52.080 --> 00:03:54.980 Lord, we pray this morning as we look at Your Word. 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:55.980 We pray for Your help. 00:03:55.979 --> 00:04:02.840 Lord, for we know that we are, Lord, hard-hearted and hard-headed sometimes. 00:04:03.519 --> 00:04:04.979 We are not easy to teach. 00:04:05.780 --> 00:04:07.799 And Lord, we often misunderstand You. 00:04:09.219 --> 00:04:11.679 Lord, I pray for Your help by Your Spirit this morning, 00:04:11.780 --> 00:04:14.039 that we together would sit under Your Word, 00:04:14.519 --> 00:04:15.979 that You would speak to us. 00:04:16.800 --> 00:04:18.680 Lord, that You would convict our hearts, 00:04:19.259 --> 00:04:21.680 Lord, both of the depth of our sin 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:25.539 and also the greatness of the hope that we have in You. 00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:29.680 Lord, I pray for Your help, that You would help me to speak clearly. 00:04:30.680 --> 00:04:34.020 Lord, and that You would do good work in all of our hearts this morning. 00:04:34.379 --> 00:04:36.100 We pray in Jesus' name. 00:04:36.819 --> 00:04:37.100 Amen. 00:04:43.040 --> 00:04:45.040 As we walk through this text this morning, 00:04:45.180 --> 00:04:47.060 for those of you who are taking outlines, here it is. 00:04:47.340 --> 00:04:49.740 We're going to look at the people that God redeems. 00:04:50.040 --> 00:04:52.379 We're going to look at the way that God redeems. 00:04:52.379 --> 00:04:56.159 And then we're going to look at the response of God's redeemed. 00:04:57.060 --> 00:05:03.240 So, the people that God redeems is what we see at the end of Isaiah chapter 42. 00:05:03.540 --> 00:05:06.019 So, let's read those verses together. 00:05:07.680 --> 00:05:09.980 Isaiah 42, starting in verse 18. 00:05:09.980 --> 00:05:14.640 Hear, you deaf, and look, you blind, that you may see. 00:05:15.759 --> 00:05:17.780 Who is blind but My servant? 00:05:18.020 --> 00:05:20.740 Or deaf as My messenger whom I send? 00:05:21.420 --> 00:05:24.140 Who is blind as My dedicated one? 00:05:24.180 --> 00:05:26.220 Or blind as the servant of the Lord? 00:05:26.920 --> 00:05:30.800 He sees many things, but does not observe them. 00:05:30.980 --> 00:05:34.100 His ears are open, but He does not hear. 00:05:34.100 --> 00:05:40.840 The Lord was pleased for His righteousness' sake to magnify His law and make it glorious. 00:05:41.640 --> 00:05:44.040 But this is a people plundered and looted. 00:05:44.480 --> 00:05:47.920 They are all of them trapped in holes and hidden in prisons. 00:05:48.360 --> 00:05:54.000 They have become plunder with none to rescue, spoil with none to say restore. 00:05:55.460 --> 00:05:58.000 Who among you will give ear to this? 00:05:58.300 --> 00:06:00.980 Who will attend and listen for the time to come? 00:06:00.980 --> 00:06:05.960 Who gave up Jacob to the looter and Israel to the plunderers? 00:06:06.620 --> 00:06:07.960 Was it not the Lord? 00:06:08.500 --> 00:06:16.220 Against whom we have sinned, in whose ways they would not walk and whose law they would not obey. 00:06:17.140 --> 00:06:21.819 So, He poured on Him the heat of His anchor and the might of battle. 00:06:22.319 --> 00:06:25.920 It set Him on fire all around, but He did not understand. 00:06:25.920 --> 00:06:31.400 It burned Him up, but He did not take it to heart. 00:06:33.280 --> 00:06:39.080 So, in this passage, Isaiah is turning his attention towards the people of Israel, 00:06:39.560 --> 00:06:45.900 the people who God is redeeming, and He describes them in a very unflattering picture. 00:06:46.800 --> 00:06:47.120 Right? 00:06:47.460 --> 00:06:51.340 As we walk through this, what does He say about the people God redeems? 00:06:51.339 --> 00:06:56.719 Well, in verses 19 and 20, it says, they are blind and deaf. 00:06:57.339 --> 00:06:58.699 He starts with verse 18. 00:06:58.819 --> 00:06:59.379 He's calling… 00:06:59.379 --> 00:07:02.839 In verse 18, He's calling the nations, hey, come, come nations. 00:07:02.979 --> 00:07:05.759 Come and look and see what Israel has done. 00:07:06.279 --> 00:07:10.679 You who are blind and deaf because you don't know us, come and see Israel. 00:07:11.519 --> 00:07:13.719 But you know what you're going to see when you look at them? 00:07:13.839 --> 00:07:15.039 They're no different than you. 00:07:15.299 --> 00:07:17.599 They too are blind and deaf. 00:07:17.600 --> 00:07:27.320 They are no longer able or willing to hear your voice, to hear God's voice, to see God's hand. 00:07:28.700 --> 00:07:33.180 And if you've been here for a couple of weeks, you might be confused because in this passage, 00:07:33.300 --> 00:07:39.800 He describes Israel, this blind and deaf, this disobedient people, as my servant. 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:45.259 And if you were here last week, you remember Nick preached in the beginning of chapter 42 00:07:45.259 --> 00:07:48.840 that my servant seemed like the great hope of Israel. 00:07:49.060 --> 00:07:52.560 And here we see the servant is the great failure of Israel. 00:07:52.699 --> 00:07:53.939 So how do we understand this? 00:07:54.020 --> 00:07:55.540 Well, here's the picture. 00:07:56.139 --> 00:08:00.420 God here is speaking of Israel as a nation, as His covenant people. 00:08:00.860 --> 00:08:05.199 You are my servant because I've called you to be my people and to serve me in the world. 00:08:05.199 --> 00:08:08.060 But you have failed and you will continue to fail. 00:08:08.360 --> 00:08:10.279 And so you need a greater servant. 00:08:10.459 --> 00:08:12.120 You need one who's going to come later. 00:08:12.639 --> 00:08:17.259 You need the servant of the beginning of chapter 1 verses… 00:08:17.259 --> 00:08:20.300 Or the beginning of chapter 42 verses 1 through 7. 00:08:20.659 --> 00:08:27.240 A servant who really will obey, who really will bring justice, who really will live out righteousness. 00:08:27.839 --> 00:08:31.079 And so there's this contrast in Isaiah and there are two different servants. 00:08:31.079 --> 00:08:37.000 And whenever you see that word, you'll want to spend some time discerning which one is being referred to in this place. 00:08:37.379 --> 00:08:41.240 What is the connotation of servant in each of these contexts? 00:08:41.939 --> 00:08:46.259 So, as we're reading with Isaiah, there's your little Bible study note for the week. 00:08:47.319 --> 00:08:52.079 What Isaiah is focusing on here at the end of chapter 42 is that Isaiah… 00:08:52.620 --> 00:08:56.079 That God's people Israel are disobedient. 00:08:56.939 --> 00:08:58.360 They are blind and deaf. 00:08:58.360 --> 00:09:03.379 And there in verses 21 and 22 it says, you are supposed to hear. 00:09:03.460 --> 00:09:09.800 You are supposed to hear God's law and then live it out in a way to display God's glory to the world. 00:09:10.500 --> 00:09:12.480 But instead you turned away. 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:21.019 Rather than being the glory of God, they have suffered under the judgment of God. 00:09:21.100 --> 00:09:24.300 And they're scattered with no one to rescue them. 00:09:24.299 --> 00:09:28.759 That's what the nations see because Israel is scattered. 00:09:31.359 --> 00:09:34.779 And this is what we see in verses 23 through 25 as well. 00:09:35.139 --> 00:09:40.979 Because not only has God judged His people, but they continue in their unrepentant hearts. 00:09:42.419 --> 00:09:45.859 And for those of you who are new here and if you've forgotten the history, 00:09:46.259 --> 00:09:52.099 part of what's happening here is Isaiah's preaching in the early 600 B.C. 00:09:52.100 --> 00:09:56.840 So, what has happened is the northern kingdom has already fallen to a nation called Assyria 00:09:56.840 --> 00:09:59.080 because of their disobedience to the Lord. 00:09:59.180 --> 00:10:02.700 So, the southern kingdom that Isaiah is preaching to has seen that. 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:09.120 And then Isaiah here in this section is looking ahead to a second conquering of God's people 00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:16.440 when the nation of Babylon is going to come and ruin Jerusalem and take people away into captivity. 00:10:16.440 --> 00:10:17.440 It's called the exile. 00:10:17.440 --> 00:10:25.520 And so, he's preaching ahead to those people who have seen the final destruction of the nation of Israel, 00:10:25.740 --> 00:10:28.980 of the capital Jerusalem, of the temple being destroyed. 00:10:29.160 --> 00:10:30.760 They've all been taken away. 00:10:33.580 --> 00:10:35.120 And Isaiah is saying, 00:10:35.840 --> 00:10:37.220 My people did not understand. 00:10:37.380 --> 00:10:38.860 They did not take it to heart. 00:10:38.860 --> 00:10:44.100 Even when they saw my disciplining hand, they did not respond. 00:10:46.000 --> 00:10:49.000 And they will go into exile and they will be scattered. 00:10:52.180 --> 00:10:56.539 Can you imagine what it would be like to be that Israelite in exile? 00:10:57.779 --> 00:10:59.159 Maybe they too felt, 00:10:59.519 --> 00:11:03.560 We've sinned too badly against the Lord and He has abandoned us. 00:11:04.539 --> 00:11:07.420 We've blown it one too many times. 00:11:07.419 --> 00:11:13.579 The Lord who has been so faithful to us and received us over and over again through our failure. 00:11:15.839 --> 00:11:16.899 Israel has fallen. 00:11:19.099 --> 00:11:21.399 Maybe they feared that God could not restore. 00:11:24.639 --> 00:11:27.579 Now, before we move on to the next section, I want to stop and think. 00:11:27.580 --> 00:11:32.620 Look, as we think about applying this passage to us today, 00:11:32.759 --> 00:11:36.639 it's easy for us to think about our own personal failure and our own personal sin. 00:11:37.040 --> 00:11:40.320 Actually, Nick's going to preach on that with a lot of clarity next week. 00:11:40.660 --> 00:11:42.520 So, come back next week because it'll be great. 00:11:44.100 --> 00:11:49.280 But the focus here is actually on the nation and God not being able to restore the nation. 00:11:49.279 --> 00:11:55.740 And we know in the New Testament, we know from the progress of biblical teaching that when Jesus comes, 00:11:55.839 --> 00:11:57.720 the people of God become something different. 00:11:57.839 --> 00:12:04.419 They're no longer a nation with a political identity and physical boundaries. 00:12:04.659 --> 00:12:07.019 But it becomes, in fact, the church. 00:12:07.019 --> 00:12:14.199 But maybe you look at the church and you think, can God redeem this? 00:12:17.100 --> 00:12:18.939 That's a real question, isn't it? 00:12:19.679 --> 00:12:21.679 We're a part of the Southern Baptist Church. 00:12:21.799 --> 00:12:29.899 And the Southern Baptist Church has a convention this week that will have a reckoning for its failure to be what God called it to be. 00:12:29.899 --> 00:12:33.319 And it's grievous and it's heartbreaking. 00:12:33.939 --> 00:12:42.620 And we pray that God will do good in this convention and move forward with righteousness and with justice and with humility and with brokenheartedness. 00:12:44.519 --> 00:12:45.879 But it might not. 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:52.620 Because we know the church continues to fail and continues to not do these things well. 00:12:52.620 --> 00:13:00.720 What will God do with a church that continues to turn away? 00:13:00.980 --> 00:13:07.179 What will God do with a church that, in its arrogance and glib presumption, disregards God's Word? 00:13:08.060 --> 00:13:11.620 Who builds institutions at the sake of His glory? 00:13:13.700 --> 00:13:15.419 What will God do with us? 00:13:17.320 --> 00:13:19.919 Can God redeem a people to Himself? 00:13:20.840 --> 00:13:22.220 Can He redeem His church? 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:24.919 Well, Isaiah goes on. 00:13:25.419 --> 00:13:31.919 And just as he spoke words of hope to those Israelites in exile, he speaks words of hope to us today. 00:13:33.159 --> 00:13:35.100 Chapter 43 begins with the word, 00:13:35.299 --> 00:13:41.779 But now, though it looks so bleak, but now there is a greater word that I have for you. 00:13:42.779 --> 00:13:43.820 So let's read this. 00:13:43.820 --> 00:13:49.560 We'll start with verse 143, verses 1 through 7. 00:13:49.559 --> 00:13:53.079 But now, what will it look like for God to redeem His people? 00:13:54.359 --> 00:13:55.599 Let's read this together. 00:13:55.600 --> 00:13:56.860 But now, thus says the Lord, 00:13:56.860 --> 00:13:57.860 For I am the Lord, 00:13:57.860 --> 00:14:01.659 For I am the Lord your God. 00:14:01.659 --> 00:14:06.360 Fear not, for I have redeemed you. 00:14:06.459 --> 00:14:08.539 I have called you by name. 00:14:08.539 --> 00:14:09.959 You are mine. 00:14:09.959 --> 00:14:13.519 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. 00:14:13.519 --> 00:14:16.740 And through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you. 00:14:16.740 --> 00:14:20.559 When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned. 00:14:20.559 --> 00:14:23.159 And the flame shall not consume you. 00:14:23.620 --> 00:14:29.579 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. 00:14:29.580 --> 00:14:36.700 I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you, because you are precious 00:14:36.700 --> 00:14:38.800 in my eyes and honored. 00:14:39.340 --> 00:14:40.540 And I love you. 00:14:40.900 --> 00:14:45.340 I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life. 00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:48.379 Fear not, for I am with you. 00:14:49.280 --> 00:14:51.440 I will bring your offspring from the east. 00:14:51.500 --> 00:14:53.160 And from the west, I will gather you. 00:14:53.400 --> 00:14:55.040 I will say to the north, give up. 00:14:55.080 --> 00:14:56.820 And to the south, do not withhold. 00:14:56.820 --> 00:15:02.640 Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth, everyone who is called 00:15:02.640 --> 00:15:08.780 by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. 00:15:10.760 --> 00:15:17.520 In this first section of chapter 43, we see the first thing about the way that God will 00:15:17.520 --> 00:15:18.540 redeem his people. 00:15:19.200 --> 00:15:23.220 And the overwhelming emphasis here is that God will do it personally. 00:15:23.220 --> 00:15:32.180 Secondly, I will be with you, for I have called you to be mine and I am your God. 00:15:32.500 --> 00:15:34.600 I am the one who formed you like a creator. 00:15:34.740 --> 00:15:35.519 I knit you together. 00:15:35.660 --> 00:15:37.019 I know everything about you. 00:15:37.240 --> 00:15:40.840 There's nothing hidden and I have made you and called you to be mine. 00:15:41.440 --> 00:15:43.420 Your creator has not abandoned you. 00:15:43.759 --> 00:15:45.300 And he says, called you by name. 00:15:45.399 --> 00:15:48.300 I have called you into a covenant relationship with me. 00:15:48.299 --> 00:15:54.279 Like a marriage, I have said, I will be yours and you will be mine forever. 00:15:54.839 --> 00:15:58.319 And this is the picture that he says, I formed you to be this people. 00:15:58.539 --> 00:16:02.539 And even in your unfaithfulness, my covenant will not fail. 00:16:02.919 --> 00:16:04.699 My faithfulness will not waver. 00:16:05.059 --> 00:16:07.079 I will not fall away. 00:16:08.059 --> 00:16:12.279 We see in verse four, the heart of this personal God for his people. 00:16:12.279 --> 00:16:18.819 He says, you are precious in my sight and honored and I love you. 00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:26.079 And friends, remember that from the very beginning, way back in the book of Deuteronomy, 00:16:26.179 --> 00:16:30.699 as God was calling his people out of Egypt and out of Israel, he reminded them, I didn't 00:16:30.699 --> 00:16:33.000 call you because you were so special. 00:16:33.279 --> 00:16:37.579 I didn't call you because you were lovely or because you were strong or because you were 00:16:37.579 --> 00:16:39.559 big or because you were particularly righteous. 00:16:39.559 --> 00:16:47.419 I set my love on you because of my choice has nothing to do with your worth or ability 00:16:47.419 --> 00:16:50.819 to earn or to deserve what I'm giving to you. 00:16:53.319 --> 00:17:00.000 Prophet Zephaniah will say later that God delights in his people, that he sings over them 00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:00.699 with joy. 00:17:01.679 --> 00:17:03.199 This is the heart of God. 00:17:03.500 --> 00:17:08.980 And Isaiah is reminding us that this is the kind of love that God has for his people. 00:17:08.980 --> 00:17:14.200 that drives his determination to redeem his people. 00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:16.339 Israel felt like trash. 00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:19.420 They felt like they had been discarded. 00:17:20.019 --> 00:17:25.059 They were out of their home, out of their place of worship, away from the temple where 00:17:25.059 --> 00:17:25.740 God dwelt. 00:17:26.120 --> 00:17:28.860 They were, remember the description, they were hiding in holes. 00:17:28.980 --> 00:17:29.819 They were in prisons. 00:17:31.539 --> 00:17:33.880 They were all, they were scattered and broken. 00:17:33.880 --> 00:17:37.240 And Isaiah speaks these words of hope. 00:17:37.700 --> 00:17:39.440 God sees you as precious. 00:17:40.480 --> 00:17:42.920 And the center of this section is verse 3. 00:17:43.140 --> 00:17:46.180 I am your God. 00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:54.700 Though you feel cast out and captive by others, I have not abandoned you and I will come for 00:17:54.700 --> 00:17:57.340 you and I will restore you. 00:17:57.339 --> 00:18:06.419 Isaiah goes on in verses 8 through 20. 00:18:07.199 --> 00:18:11.220 Not only is God's redemption personal in this way, but it is powerful. 00:18:11.740 --> 00:18:15.699 Let's read verses 8 through 20 together to see how he describes this. 00:18:15.700 --> 00:18:23.100 Bring out the people who are blind, yet have eyes, who are deaf, yet have ears. 00:18:23.960 --> 00:18:27.180 All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. 00:18:27.319 --> 00:18:31.700 Who among them can declare this and show us the former things? 00:18:32.480 --> 00:18:35.299 Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right. 00:18:35.380 --> 00:18:37.880 And let them hear and say, it is true. 00:18:37.880 --> 00:18:44.880 You are my witnesses, declares the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may 00:18:44.880 --> 00:18:49.780 know and believe me and understand that I am he. 00:18:50.940 --> 00:18:56.360 Beside me no God was formed, nor shall there be any after me. 00:18:56.720 --> 00:19:00.980 I, I am the Lord, and beside me there is no Savior. 00:19:01.420 --> 00:19:04.000 I declared and saved and proclaimed. 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:10.720 When there was no strange God among you, and you are my witnesses, declares the Lord, and 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:11.960 I am God. 00:19:12.420 --> 00:19:17.099 And henceforth I am he, and there is none who can deliver from my hand. 00:19:17.279 --> 00:19:19.319 I work, and who can turn it back? 00:19:20.039 --> 00:19:23.259 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. 00:19:23.720 --> 00:19:30.339 For your sake I send to Babylon and bring them all down as fugitives, even the Chaldeans in 00:19:30.339 --> 00:19:31.940 the ships in which they rejoice. 00:19:31.940 --> 00:19:37.259 I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King. 00:19:38.220 --> 00:19:42.820 Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings 00:19:42.820 --> 00:19:45.500 forth chariot and horse, army and warrior. 00:19:45.680 --> 00:19:47.600 They lie down, they cannot rise. 00:19:48.080 --> 00:19:50.519 They are extinguished and quenched like a wick. 00:19:50.980 --> 00:19:55.279 Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. 00:19:56.160 --> 00:19:58.440 Behold, I am doing a new thing. 00:19:58.440 --> 00:20:00.320 Now it springs forth. 00:20:00.500 --> 00:20:01.779 Do you not perceive it? 00:20:02.100 --> 00:20:06.220 I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. 00:20:06.600 --> 00:20:10.940 The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches. 00:20:11.100 --> 00:20:16.500 For I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, 00:20:17.120 --> 00:20:23.279 the people whom I formed for myself, that they might declare my praise. 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:29.200 So there's a lot in this section for us to look at. 00:20:29.259 --> 00:20:33.700 But I want to give you just a little bit of an outline of how God is saying, I have the 00:20:33.700 --> 00:20:34.940 power to save. 00:20:35.460 --> 00:20:35.619 Right? 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:40.119 He's already referred to it, some of it in verses 1 through 7 where he says, you will 00:20:40.119 --> 00:20:45.139 pass through fire and you will pass through water, but you will not be destroyed by them. 00:20:45.420 --> 00:20:45.639 Right? 00:20:45.759 --> 00:20:49.220 Fire and water in the ancient world were pictures of chaos. 00:20:49.220 --> 00:20:55.019 There were uncontrollable forces that would simply overwhelm and bring destruction. 00:20:56.100 --> 00:21:01.460 And he says, my power will preserve you through these great trials. 00:21:02.700 --> 00:21:06.559 He also says, my power is great enough to reach even to the ends of the earth. 00:21:06.640 --> 00:21:07.279 Did you hear that? 00:21:07.339 --> 00:21:11.220 Where he says, I will call my people from the north and the south and the east and the west. 00:21:11.860 --> 00:21:15.319 I will call my people to myself from everywhere. 00:21:15.319 --> 00:21:17.379 There's nowhere where you can go. 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:21.839 Nowhere is too far off for me to not be able to bring you back. 00:21:22.279 --> 00:21:28.299 And then in verses 8 through 10, what he basically says is, okay, witnesses, come and see. 00:21:28.619 --> 00:21:30.019 Come and see what I'm doing. 00:21:30.619 --> 00:21:30.919 Right? 00:21:31.720 --> 00:21:37.099 You who serve other gods, have your gods told what is going to happen in the future? 00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:40.220 Have your gods been able to explain what has happened in the past? 00:21:40.220 --> 00:21:42.860 No, none of you have done this. 00:21:43.880 --> 00:21:47.940 He says, I alone am the one who is able to redeem you. 00:21:48.920 --> 00:21:55.940 And then verses 14 and 15, he gets to the nub of the point that he wants the Israelites to hear while they're in exile. 00:21:56.759 --> 00:21:58.860 Verses 14 and 15 are a promise. 00:21:59.420 --> 00:22:02.180 I will break the Babylonian exile. 00:22:02.660 --> 00:22:05.860 I will sweep over them with a new power. 00:22:05.859 --> 00:22:16.939 And we know in just a few verses or just a few chapters that it's going to come at the hand of the nation of Persia and the person of Cyrus who's going to take over the Babylonian empire. 00:22:17.379 --> 00:22:21.240 And the Chaldeans are just a part of the Babylonian empire if you're wondering who they are. 00:22:22.019 --> 00:22:23.979 And so he brings them together. 00:22:24.559 --> 00:22:33.379 And he's saying to Israel, the power that seems to control your life right now, they'll be gone like that. 00:22:33.380 --> 00:22:38.140 By my hand, I will use other nations to destroy them. 00:22:38.220 --> 00:22:40.380 In fact, I will send them into exile. 00:22:40.880 --> 00:22:44.080 They will be like fugitives, just like you are now. 00:22:44.540 --> 00:22:52.000 And this is the power that I am promising that I have to redeem you. 00:22:53.160 --> 00:22:58.000 And then he goes on to remind them in verses 16 and 17 of his past deliverance. 00:22:58.000 --> 00:23:00.299 Do you remember what I did in Egypt? 00:23:00.579 --> 00:23:07.279 How I delivered a people forgotten, forsaken, and broken, enslaved by another nation. 00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:11.700 I came and I rescued them with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. 00:23:11.900 --> 00:23:16.460 How I reached in and rescued them from the strong nation of Egypt. 00:23:17.160 --> 00:23:20.720 How I brought them through the fire and through the waters. 00:23:20.859 --> 00:23:22.680 How I delivered them through the Red Sea. 00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:25.740 How I destroyed the armies of the Egyptians. 00:23:26.080 --> 00:23:28.340 The chariots were thrown into the sea. 00:23:30.779 --> 00:23:32.140 All of them were defeated. 00:23:33.759 --> 00:23:37.440 So remember in my past what I have done to redeem my people. 00:23:37.860 --> 00:23:42.680 And now, then in verses 18 through 20, he's saying, and now I'm doing a new thing. 00:23:44.220 --> 00:23:49.240 As I am going to redeem my people now, I am going to do something new. 00:23:49.240 --> 00:23:52.400 And it's not going to be out of character with what I've already done. 00:23:52.460 --> 00:23:56.000 It's going to be a greater redemption than you've ever seen before. 00:23:57.259 --> 00:23:59.059 The exodus, that's great. 00:23:59.539 --> 00:24:01.640 The return from exile, awesome. 00:24:02.380 --> 00:24:05.059 But what I have for you is something even better. 00:24:06.579 --> 00:24:09.920 Like streams in the desert, I will bring a redemption. 00:24:10.720 --> 00:24:12.940 That will be greater than you can imagine. 00:24:12.940 --> 00:24:23.440 And so, 1 Peter writes that we were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from our forefathers, 00:24:23.559 --> 00:24:30.660 not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, 00:24:31.400 --> 00:24:34.500 like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 00:24:34.500 --> 00:24:42.380 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in the last time for the sake of you, 00:24:43.039 --> 00:24:45.079 who through him are believers in God. 00:24:46.019 --> 00:24:49.440 God who raised Jesus from the dead and gave him glory, 00:24:49.839 --> 00:24:52.599 so that your faith and hope are in God. 00:24:53.559 --> 00:24:56.480 Friends, this is the new thing that Isaiah is looking at. 00:24:56.759 --> 00:24:58.700 And we'll see it later in this section. 00:24:58.700 --> 00:25:02.019 And we'll see it so clearly in chapters 52 and 53, 00:25:02.620 --> 00:25:08.000 that Isaiah has in mind this salvation and this redemption that is to come. 00:25:08.420 --> 00:25:12.340 That at the very cost of the life of the Son of God, 00:25:12.740 --> 00:25:16.660 God will show his love for his people and his determination, 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:23.180 his commitment, his faithfulness to his promise to redeem a people for himself. 00:25:23.440 --> 00:25:27.460 Not just from the Jewish people, but from every tongue and tribe and nation, 00:25:27.460 --> 00:25:32.200 from the corners of the earth, God will be calling a people to himself. 00:25:32.799 --> 00:25:35.420 And so Jesus promises that he will build his church, 00:25:35.600 --> 00:25:38.140 and the gates of hell will not stand against it. 00:25:38.500 --> 00:25:42.779 So he says that he promises us that he who began a good work in us 00:25:42.779 --> 00:25:45.960 will bring it to completion in the day of Christ Jesus, 00:25:46.299 --> 00:25:49.440 that he will continue to call and save and redeem. 00:25:51.640 --> 00:25:54.279 And I wonder if you are here this morning, 00:25:54.279 --> 00:25:57.440 and if you've lost sight of that hope. 00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:06.700 Maybe you thought you're too far gone for God to redeem you. 00:26:07.399 --> 00:26:10.119 Maybe you're here exploring Christianity and you're wondering, 00:26:10.359 --> 00:26:12.180 does God even want me? 00:26:13.279 --> 00:26:16.059 You've wandered from the church that you grew up in, 00:26:16.379 --> 00:26:19.039 and you wonder if the Father will embrace you. 00:26:19.039 --> 00:26:22.559 Isaiah says, 00:26:23.859 --> 00:26:25.879 the God of Israel, 00:26:26.480 --> 00:26:27.599 the God of the Bible, 00:26:28.139 --> 00:26:31.539 is a God who redeems people just like that. 00:26:32.700 --> 00:26:33.440 Come home. 00:26:34.220 --> 00:26:34.839 Turn to him 00:26:34.839 --> 00:26:36.940 and find this great hope. 00:26:39.639 --> 00:26:41.799 Friends, this is where I want to close 00:26:41.799 --> 00:26:44.240 with just a few practical applications. 00:26:44.240 --> 00:26:47.960 The end of verse 21 captured me 00:26:47.960 --> 00:26:49.720 as I looked at this whole verse, 00:26:50.620 --> 00:26:51.859 at this whole section, 00:26:51.980 --> 00:26:53.460 because at the end of 43, 00:26:54.259 --> 00:26:55.539 verse 21, he says, 00:26:55.900 --> 00:26:57.779 the people whom I formed for myself, 00:26:58.000 --> 00:27:00.359 that they might declare my praise. 00:27:01.880 --> 00:27:03.000 How do we respond 00:27:03.000 --> 00:27:05.240 to being God's redeemed people? 00:27:05.420 --> 00:27:06.819 What does this mean for us? 00:27:07.480 --> 00:27:07.880 Quickly, 00:27:08.059 --> 00:27:08.319 one, 00:27:08.420 --> 00:27:09.940 it should make us a humble people. 00:27:09.940 --> 00:27:12.580 The church should never be 00:27:12.580 --> 00:27:13.900 an arrogant people 00:27:13.900 --> 00:27:15.920 who look down on others 00:27:15.920 --> 00:27:17.100 because they are different 00:27:17.100 --> 00:27:18.920 or because they believe in us. 00:27:20.039 --> 00:27:21.580 We are broken people 00:27:21.580 --> 00:27:23.039 who know that we don't deserve 00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:23.980 any of this, 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:26.820 that God has invited us in 00:27:26.820 --> 00:27:28.500 because of His mercy 00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:29.720 and His grace. 00:27:31.519 --> 00:27:33.320 And if we live in this, 00:27:33.960 --> 00:27:36.420 we will be humble 00:27:36.420 --> 00:27:37.920 before God 00:27:37.920 --> 00:27:39.480 and before this world. 00:27:42.700 --> 00:27:43.940 So let us remember 00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:44.920 that we have nothing 00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:46.180 to commend ourselves, 00:27:46.860 --> 00:27:48.320 but that God 00:27:48.320 --> 00:27:49.539 brings us to Himself 00:27:49.539 --> 00:27:50.840 because of His 00:27:50.840 --> 00:27:52.580 amazing love. 00:27:53.620 --> 00:27:54.860 Let us go back 00:27:54.860 --> 00:27:56.160 and like those 00:27:56.160 --> 00:27:57.240 wandering in the desert 00:27:57.240 --> 00:27:58.340 who find an oasis, 00:27:58.720 --> 00:27:59.259 not think, 00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:00.180 what a great oasis 00:28:00.180 --> 00:28:00.960 I have built, 00:28:02.000 --> 00:28:03.240 but simply drink 00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:05.860 and be thankful. 00:28:07.920 --> 00:28:09.240 Secondly, 00:28:09.620 --> 00:28:10.380 it should make us 00:28:10.380 --> 00:28:11.660 a people who bear witness. 00:28:12.700 --> 00:28:13.120 Friends, 00:28:13.200 --> 00:28:14.700 if God has saved us, 00:28:15.360 --> 00:28:16.560 let us declare Him 00:28:16.560 --> 00:28:17.720 to the world. 00:28:18.220 --> 00:28:19.759 Just like we might share 00:28:19.759 --> 00:28:20.759 the great news 00:28:20.759 --> 00:28:21.800 of a car we bought 00:28:21.800 --> 00:28:22.980 or an app that we found 00:28:22.980 --> 00:28:23.940 or a recipe 00:28:23.940 --> 00:28:24.759 that we want to share 00:28:24.759 --> 00:28:25.380 with others, 00:28:25.840 --> 00:28:26.519 let us share 00:28:26.519 --> 00:28:27.600 things much greater 00:28:27.600 --> 00:28:28.560 than that, 00:28:29.080 --> 00:28:29.660 that we know 00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:30.860 a God who redeems 00:28:30.860 --> 00:28:32.539 even the most 00:28:32.539 --> 00:28:33.759 far-gone people. 00:28:35.060 --> 00:28:35.880 Let us do it 00:28:35.880 --> 00:28:36.460 with joy 00:28:36.460 --> 00:28:37.300 and humility. 00:28:37.299 --> 00:28:38.139 Let us do it 00:28:38.139 --> 00:28:38.720 with awe 00:28:38.720 --> 00:28:40.039 of the God 00:28:40.039 --> 00:28:40.899 who had set His love 00:28:40.899 --> 00:28:41.940 on anyone at all. 00:28:43.419 --> 00:28:44.059 Let us speak 00:28:44.059 --> 00:28:45.200 of Jesus who came 00:28:45.200 --> 00:28:47.599 so that we might know 00:28:47.599 --> 00:28:48.980 and be restored to God. 00:28:50.619 --> 00:28:51.619 And finally, 00:28:52.700 --> 00:28:54.200 knowing this God, 00:28:54.440 --> 00:28:56.039 a God who redeems us, 00:28:57.220 --> 00:28:57.879 may it make us 00:28:57.879 --> 00:28:58.599 a people who are 00:28:58.599 --> 00:28:59.759 full of praise. 00:29:01.319 --> 00:29:02.399 Praise to Him. 00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:04.039 We live in a world 00:29:04.039 --> 00:29:05.220 where much is wrong. 00:29:05.220 --> 00:29:07.640 Let us spend time 00:29:07.640 --> 00:29:08.900 praising what is right. 00:29:11.460 --> 00:29:12.720 It's okay to point out 00:29:12.720 --> 00:29:13.360 what's wrong, 00:29:14.100 --> 00:29:15.319 but maybe we need 00:29:15.319 --> 00:29:16.319 to spend more time 00:29:16.319 --> 00:29:17.339 simply praising 00:29:17.339 --> 00:29:18.519 what is right. 00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:19.539 We need 00:29:19.539 --> 00:29:22.440 to lift our eyes 00:29:22.440 --> 00:29:23.900 from our daily 00:29:23.900 --> 00:29:26.220 burdens and trials 00:29:26.220 --> 00:29:28.160 that so often overwhelm us. 00:29:28.380 --> 00:29:29.940 We need to lift our eyes up 00:29:29.940 --> 00:29:32.200 and to see this God, 00:29:32.299 --> 00:29:33.680 the Holy One of Israel, 00:29:34.120 --> 00:29:34.940 our Redeemer, 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:36.080 our Savior, 00:29:36.400 --> 00:29:37.759 who calls us precious 00:29:37.759 --> 00:29:38.420 and says, 00:29:38.600 --> 00:29:39.460 I love you. 00:29:41.779 --> 00:29:43.220 Let us do it practically. 00:29:44.279 --> 00:29:44.820 Isaiah says, 00:29:44.920 --> 00:29:45.559 let us sing. 00:29:46.279 --> 00:29:46.720 Sing. 00:29:47.259 --> 00:29:48.360 That's not just an idea. 00:29:48.539 --> 00:29:49.340 Really, do it. 00:29:49.860 --> 00:29:50.860 Do it in your car 00:29:50.860 --> 00:29:51.799 on your way to work. 00:29:52.340 --> 00:29:53.340 Do it with your family 00:29:53.340 --> 00:29:54.480 around the dinner table. 00:29:54.980 --> 00:29:56.299 Do it with your small group. 00:29:56.299 --> 00:29:57.539 Do it as you come 00:29:57.539 --> 00:29:59.119 and gather with God's people 00:29:59.119 --> 00:29:59.839 regularly. 00:30:00.639 --> 00:30:02.440 Practice praising God 00:30:02.440 --> 00:30:03.259 in song. 00:30:04.200 --> 00:30:05.119 And then be creative 00:30:05.119 --> 00:30:06.200 and do all the other ways 00:30:06.200 --> 00:30:07.180 that you can praise Him 00:30:07.180 --> 00:30:07.859 in art 00:30:07.859 --> 00:30:09.119 and in words 00:30:09.119 --> 00:30:10.599 and in journaling 00:30:10.599 --> 00:30:11.419 and all the other ways 00:30:11.419 --> 00:30:12.059 you can do it. 00:30:12.440 --> 00:30:14.799 But let's not forsake 00:30:14.799 --> 00:30:16.500 praising God 00:30:16.500 --> 00:30:17.379 in public 00:30:17.379 --> 00:30:18.299 and in private 00:30:18.299 --> 00:30:20.180 so that our hearts 00:30:20.180 --> 00:30:22.180 may be reminded 00:30:22.180 --> 00:30:23.820 over and over again 00:30:23.820 --> 00:30:26.820 of the Redeemer's love 00:30:26.820 --> 00:30:27.380 for us. 00:30:27.700 --> 00:30:28.180 Let's pray. 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:40.759 Oh Lord, 00:30:40.840 --> 00:30:42.080 your love is so amazing 00:30:42.080 --> 00:30:42.759 to us 00:30:42.759 --> 00:30:44.019 and we have 00:30:44.019 --> 00:30:45.340 such a great salvation. 00:30:48.600 --> 00:30:49.120 Lord, 00:30:49.200 --> 00:30:50.340 today by your Spirit 00:30:50.340 --> 00:30:51.860 renew in us 00:30:51.859 --> 00:30:53.159 a joy 00:30:53.159 --> 00:30:54.740 of knowing you. 00:30:56.439 --> 00:30:56.819 And Lord, 00:30:56.879 --> 00:30:57.659 if there's some here 00:30:57.659 --> 00:30:58.379 this morning, 00:30:59.079 --> 00:30:59.799 will you pierce 00:30:59.799 --> 00:31:00.879 through the fear 00:31:00.879 --> 00:31:02.299 and the hardness 00:31:02.299 --> 00:31:03.019 of hearts 00:31:03.019 --> 00:31:03.740 that believe 00:31:03.740 --> 00:31:04.799 are too far gone? 00:31:06.679 --> 00:31:08.179 Will you envelop them 00:31:08.179 --> 00:31:08.959 with your grace? 00:31:10.579 --> 00:31:11.279 Embrace them 00:31:11.279 --> 00:31:12.000 with your love 00:31:12.000 --> 00:31:13.919 that they may turn 00:31:13.919 --> 00:31:14.479 to you 00:31:14.479 --> 00:31:16.099 and be saved. 00:31:18.839 --> 00:31:20.240 We pray in Jesus' name. 00:31:20.659 --> 00:31:20.899 Amen. 00:31:21.859 --> 00:31:23.959 Amen. 00:31:24.039 --> 00:31:24.299 Amen. 00:31:26.699 --> 00:31:27.059 Amen. 00:31:29.240 --> 00:31:29.699 Amen. 00:31:29.879 --> 00:31:32.179 Amen. 00:31:32.319 --> 00:31:33.199 Amen. 00:31:33.279 --> 00:31:33.659 Amen. 00:31:33.719 --> 00:31:34.179 Amen. 00:31:34.179 --> 00:31:34.639 Amen. 00:31:34.779 --> 00:31:35.240 Amen. 00:31:35.240 --> 00:31:35.279 Amen. 00:31:35.579 --> 00:31:35.939 Amen. 00:31:35.939 --> 00:31:36.799 Amen. 00:31:36.799 --> 00:31:37.039 Amen. 00:31:37.259 --> 00:31:37.699 Amen. 00:31:37.759 --> 00:31:40.339 A watts are too far in 00:31:40.339 --> 00:31:40.639 es emphasized. 00:31:40.639 --> 00:31:40.740 Amen. 00:31:40.759 --> 00:31:40.879 Amen. 00:31:40.879 --> 00:31:42.039 Amen. 00:31:42.039 --> 00:31:42.659 Amen. 00:31:42.719 --> 00:31:42.759 Amen. 00:31:42.819 --> 00:31:42.959 Ahora, 00:31:42.959 --> 00:31:43.139 amen. 00:31:43.159 --> 00:31:43.779 Amen. 00:31:43.779 --> 00:31:43.959 Amen. 00:31:43.959 --> 00:31:44.019 Amen. 00:31:44.019 --> 00:31:44.259 Amen. 00:31:44.279 --> 00:31:44.699 Amen. 00:31:44.699 --> 00:31:44.759 Amen. 00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:44.939 Amen. 00:31:45.199 --> 00:31:45.659 Amen. 00:31:45.740 --> 00:31:46.119 Amen. 00:31:46.119 --> 00:31:46.919 Amen. 00:31:46.919 --> 00:31:47.339 Amen. 00:31:47.379 --> 00:31:47.719 Amen.