1 00:00:00,840 --> 00:00:03,280 Last week we jumped back into our sermon series on the book of 2 00:00:03,280 --> 00:00:08,800 Isaiah with the 40th chapter. The last half of the book of 3 00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:13,480 Isaiah is just uniquely majestic and so profoundly prophetic of 4 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:17,960 Christ and and the 41st chapter here is no exception. 5 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:20,520 Given the length of this chapter, I'm only going to read 6 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:24,440 the first verse and then pray, But then we'll read this chapter 7 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:27,680 in its entirety as we walk through its message. 8 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:30,800 So look with me at Isaiah 41, verse one. 9 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:35,400 It's a call for the Gentile peoples to hear God's word with 10 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:39,680 reverent silence and to renew their strength in its message, 11 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:44,000 to put their faith in the God who will speak and make a 12 00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:48,920 watertight case that He is to be trusted above all gods. 13 00:00:50,160 --> 00:00:56,040 So Isaiah 41, starting in verse one, listen to me in silence, O 14 00:00:56,040 --> 00:00:59,520 coast lands, let the peoples renew their strength. 15 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:03,120 Let them approach, then let them speak. 16 00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:06,320 Let us together draw near for judgment. 17 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:11,440 Let's pray. Heavenly Father, you are the God 18 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:15,280 who speaks and out of darkness comes light. 19 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:20,040 You speak and and where there is a desert, there becomes pools of 20 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:22,280 water. There comes life. 21 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:26,600 And so we ask Lord, that you as your word is proclaimed, that 22 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:31,640 your spirit by your word would create new life, that there 23 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:34,000 would be hope in our hearts, that there would be peace where 24 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:36,440 there used to be fear. This we pray in Jesus name, 25 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:41,840 Amen. One of the most well known books 26 00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:46,000 defending Christianity was written by a former atheist who, 27 00:01:46,200 --> 00:01:49,640 in setting out to disprove Christianity, ended up coming to 28 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:53,400 faith in Christ. His name is Lee Strobel and the 29 00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:58,480 book is Is the Case for Christ, first published in 1998. 30 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:00,880 Before he came to faith in Christ. 31 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:04,040 Lee Strobel is a successful man by all all worldly accounts. 32 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:08,160 He was a graduate of Yale Law School and a legal editor for 33 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:12,160 the Chicago Tribune. He was married to an agnostic, 34 00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:16,120 he had a daughter and the future was all bright for him. 35 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:21,560 But then his wife Leslie became best best friends with a 36 00:02:21,560 --> 00:02:24,920 neighbor who was a Christian and who had a daughter the same age 37 00:02:24,920 --> 00:02:28,040 as theirs. This woman showed her love and 38 00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:31,000 hospitality and she eventually invited her to church. 39 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:36,440 Leslie became a Christian and Lee thought that his marriage 40 00:02:36,440 --> 00:02:39,520 was over and he was even considering divorce. 41 00:02:40,920 --> 00:02:42,480 But then he had a brilliant idea. 42 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:47,760 He could use his expertise as a lawyer who could publicly expose 43 00:02:47,760 --> 00:02:52,400 shams to to research the resurrection of Christ and 44 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,000 disprove it. If he could disprove the 45 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,840 resurrection, he could win his wife back from the cult that she 46 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:02,920 had joined. So he attempted to do just that. 47 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:06,720 He studied the evidence for the resurrection of Christ and Long 48 00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:11,640 story short, he ended up seeing how reasonable it is to believe 49 00:03:11,640 --> 00:03:16,320 that Jesus Christ existed, that he died and that he rose again. 50 00:03:17,440 --> 00:03:20,360 And so Lee Strobel gave his life to the Lord. 51 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:24,280 His book A Case for Christ is This is the story of this 52 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:27,760 journey and gives reasons why the resurrection should be 53 00:03:27,760 --> 00:03:30,960 believed. He presents a a case to to win 54 00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:34,280 his hearers over and not to bring about any kind of of 55 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:36,720 judgment. And that is similar to what's 56 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:40,920 happening here in Isaiah 41. Here God is making a case. 57 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:44,760 He's making a case for why everyone should trust in him. 58 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,200 And he makes that case not to bring about a wrathful judgment, 59 00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:54,040 but to win over those who hear his argument. 60 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:59,400 And Isaiah 41 the Lord God addresses both Jews and non Jews 61 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:04,320 to consider 3 reasons to trust in Him above all gods. 62 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:07,760 I have these reasons outlined for you in the bulletin on page 63 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:11,600 8. The first reason is the power of 64 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:14,360 God over the nations and history. 65 00:04:15,240 --> 00:04:19,480 The second reason is that those who trust Him have no reason to 66 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:22,600 fear. And the third reason is the 67 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:29,160 powerlessness of other gods. So as we consider this case, May 68 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,040 God give you wisdom to consider these reasons. 69 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:37,360 May God make it crystal clear to each one of us where our trust 70 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:40,320 that where the trust of our souls should rest. 71 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:47,160 Let's start with reason number one in verses one through 7 that 72 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:50,200 we should trust in God and no other because of the power of 73 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:52,360 God over the nations and history. 74 00:04:53,200 --> 00:04:56,520 Read with me verse one again and let's consider God's invitation 75 00:04:56,840 --> 00:05:00,400 to the nations. Listen to me in silence, O 76 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:03,280 Coastlands. Let the peoples renew their 77 00:05:03,280 --> 00:05:06,120 strength. Let them approach, then let them 78 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:09,240 speak. Let us draw this together, draw 79 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:14,320 near for judgment. We see here in verse one the 80 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:17,800 language of judgment and later we'll hear the language of of 81 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:21,520 case and giving a proof. And so we begin Isaiah 41 with a 82 00:05:21,520 --> 00:05:25,120 court scene. God is calling the coastlands 83 00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:28,200 the the Gentile peoples. He call, he's calling them to 84 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:31,800 listen to him and to listen to him with reverent silence as he 85 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:35,720 makes his case to them. In the second poetic line of 86 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:38,720 verse one, you see that God is inviting them into this 87 00:05:38,720 --> 00:05:43,120 courtroom, not to indict them, not to punish them, but he calls 88 00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:46,280 these non Jewish people the people outside of his covenant. 89 00:05:46,280 --> 00:05:49,320 He's calling them to renew their strength. 90 00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:52,960 He's calling them to renew their strength in the words with the 91 00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:54,400 words that He is about to tell them. 92 00:05:55,920 --> 00:05:58,880 Now if you were, if you heard last week's sermon from Isaiah 93 00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:02,600 40, does the phrase renew their strength? 94 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:05,760 Sound familiar? Well, it does, doesn't it? 95 00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:10,760 Just one verse before this, the very last verse of chapter 40. 96 00:06:11,080 --> 00:06:15,520 God promised to Israel that they who wait for the Lord shall 97 00:06:15,520 --> 00:06:18,360 renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings 98 00:06:18,360 --> 00:06:22,440 like eagles. So now in Isaiah 41 the Lord 99 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:25,920 turns to the nations, these nations surrounding Israel, and 100 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:29,600 He invites the nations into what was promised to Israel. 101 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:34,040 They too can have their strength renewed if they wait for the 102 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:36,280 Lord, if they put their trust in Him. 103 00:06:37,640 --> 00:06:41,480 This message of good news and inclusion of the non Jewish 104 00:06:41,480 --> 00:06:43,920 people is a major theme in the book of Isaiah. 105 00:06:45,160 --> 00:06:48,400 It is through Israel that all the nations of the earth will 106 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:52,640 receive God's blessings. This invitation to the Gentiles 107 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:57,920 extends beyond its original hearers and all the way to to us 108 00:06:58,040 --> 00:07:01,040 Gentiles to to all the peoples of the world today. 109 00:07:02,760 --> 00:07:05,800 The promises of God's blessings in the book of Isaiah are 110 00:07:05,800 --> 00:07:09,680 offered not just to believing ethnic Israel, but to all who 111 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:13,720 put their trust in God and in the promise of Jesus Christ. 112 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:20,600 So we Gentiles who live 2700 years later, we can hear these 113 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:25,000 words of comfort and blessing and read them as written not 114 00:07:25,000 --> 00:07:28,400 just to the original audience, but also to us. 115 00:07:29,640 --> 00:07:31,200 That's wonderful. It's fantastic. 116 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:37,200 Let's now look at verses 2 through 4 and hear God's opening 117 00:07:37,200 --> 00:07:40,880 argument in his case. Here God will declare His 118 00:07:40,880 --> 00:07:44,320 unmatched sovereignty. Verse 2. 119 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:47,960 Who stirred up one from the East, whom victory meets at 120 00:07:47,960 --> 00:07:51,120 every step? He gives up nations before him, 121 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:53,160 so that he tramples kings under foot. 122 00:07:53,560 --> 00:07:58,200 He makes them like dust with his sword, like driven stubble with 123 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:00,960 his bow. He pursues them, and passes on 124 00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:03,600 safely by paths his feet have not trod. 125 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:08,480 Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the 126 00:08:08,480 --> 00:08:15,120 beginning, I, the Lord the 1st and with the last, I am He. 127 00:08:17,640 --> 00:08:20,000 Here in this passage is a profound statement from God 128 00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:24,240 declaring His unmatched sovereignty over the nations and 129 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:27,400 over all of human history. And verses 2 through 3. 130 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:31,920 God predicts the future that He will one day raise up someone 131 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:34,000 who is going to soundly defeat the nations. 132 00:08:34,799 --> 00:08:37,840 He asks, Who stirred up one from the east? 133 00:08:37,880 --> 00:08:42,919 Who did that? This man, whom God predicts he 134 00:08:42,919 --> 00:08:46,160 will raise up, will trample kings and defeat nations with 135 00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:49,880 ease, all at the permission and hand of the Lord God. 136 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:53,560 In this passage, God doesn't. God doesn't reveal who he's 137 00:08:53,560 --> 00:08:57,240 prophesying about, probably to just illustrate that, that 138 00:08:57,920 --> 00:09:00,920 there's not merely just one example of God raising someone 139 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:02,960 up to power for his own purposes. 140 00:09:03,440 --> 00:09:05,320 But this is just something. This is something God always 141 00:09:05,320 --> 00:09:12,280 does, but a few chapters later in Isaiah 44 and 45, we're going 142 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:15,000 to see that there is good evidence to believe that this 143 00:09:15,000 --> 00:09:19,960 conquering ruler from the east will be the Persian emperor 144 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:23,760 Cyrus. Cyrus is he's going to come 145 00:09:23,760 --> 00:09:26,640 about 150 years later from when this is written and he's going 146 00:09:26,640 --> 00:09:29,600 to defeat the Babylons and other nations with ease. 147 00:09:31,920 --> 00:09:38,720 And in these chapters, Cyrus's very name is mentioned and it's 148 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:42,880 prophesied that he will call for the rebuilding of Jerusalem and 149 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:45,240 the temple. This is a really amazing 150 00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:48,920 prophecy that the temple and Jerusalem, they were in great 151 00:09:48,920 --> 00:09:52,000 shape in Isaiah's day and the exile of Judah wasn't going to 152 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:54,200 happen for another for over 100 years. 153 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:59,160 But here God declares that He is so sovereign that He is able to 154 00:09:59,160 --> 00:10:02,160 predict and orchestrate the events of the future. 155 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:09,800 Now if someone were to think that God only predicts and plans 156 00:10:09,800 --> 00:10:14,000 just a small set of future events in human history, God 157 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,240 blows all of our minds in verse four with how sovereign He is 158 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:21,040 over the course of human history who has performed and done this, 159 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:26,200 calling the generations from the beginning, Calling the 160 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:29,920 generations from the beginning, God who is the Alpha and the 161 00:10:29,920 --> 00:10:33,560 Omega, the 1st and the last. He has called all the 162 00:10:33,560 --> 00:10:37,200 generations of all peoples into being from the very beginning of 163 00:10:37,200 --> 00:10:42,000 human history. No one is like our God who not 164 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:45,240 only predicts the future but also plans and orchestrates it. 165 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:51,600 Today people themselves, they they try to predict and 166 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:56,160 orchestrate the future, maybe using trying to use horoscopes 167 00:10:56,160 --> 00:10:59,760 or fortune tellers. Or maybe they they believe in 168 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:03,240 karma and so they try to manipulate karma by by doing 169 00:11:03,240 --> 00:11:05,720 good works in the present so that they're guaranteed good 170 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:11,080 fortune in the future. Or in some Christian and pseudo 171 00:11:11,080 --> 00:11:14,920 Christian circles, those who there's, there's people who turn 172 00:11:14,920 --> 00:11:18,760 to so-called prophets for the prediction of certain events. 173 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:23,440 Recently in the news, there was a prediction about the rapture 174 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:25,640 that was supposed to, the rapture was supposed to happen 175 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:29,280 on the past week or two. And so that's just circulated 176 00:11:29,400 --> 00:11:33,160 quite a bit around the Internet only for the predicted day to 177 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:36,240 come and go. And these kind of prediction 178 00:11:36,240 --> 00:11:38,800 predictions have been happening quite a bit over the past 150 179 00:11:38,800 --> 00:11:42,960 years. People even today, they, they, 180 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:46,120 they, they, they try to predict and orchestrate the future, but 181 00:11:46,120 --> 00:11:51,680 it's all to no avail. No one is like God, so we should 182 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:54,080 trust in him. Trust in him. 183 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:57,480 And whose hand are all the nations and all of human 184 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:00,440 history? Those hands, God's hands, are 185 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:05,200 strong and mighty and secure and safe from any harm that you may 186 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:12,320 face. So how do the nations respond to 187 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:15,800 this offer of trusting in the omnipotent power of God? 188 00:12:17,080 --> 00:12:20,840 Read with me their response of fear and idolatry. 189 00:12:21,920 --> 00:12:27,400 And verses 5 through 7. The coastlands have seen and are 190 00:12:27,400 --> 00:12:30,360 afraid. The ends of the earth tremble. 191 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:34,360 They have drawn near and come. Everyone helps his neighbor, and 192 00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:38,400 says to his brother, Be strong. The Craftsman strengthens the 193 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:42,120 Goldsmith and he who smooths with the hammer, him who strikes 194 00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:45,840 the anvil, saying of the soldering, it is good and they 195 00:12:45,840 --> 00:12:49,960 strengthen it with nails so that it cannot be moved. 196 00:12:52,600 --> 00:12:57,080 Instead of trusting in God and renewing their strength in Him. 197 00:12:57,600 --> 00:13:01,320 We see in verses 5 and 6 that they respond with fear and and 198 00:13:01,320 --> 00:13:04,880 with trying to find strength in themselves, in one another. 199 00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:07,320 And we look at verse 6, the Gentile peoples turn to their 200 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:11,440 neighbors instead of turning to God and they say to one another, 201 00:13:11,640 --> 00:13:16,080 be strong, be strong. Why is it that that when when 202 00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:19,680 sovereign, the sovereign power of God is so clearly displayed, 203 00:13:19,680 --> 00:13:22,800 why is it that we so easily resort to trusting in the 204 00:13:22,800 --> 00:13:27,760 strength of men? We want to be like God, don't 205 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:29,480 we? We we want to be sovereign and 206 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:31,240 independent from him and his law. 207 00:13:32,880 --> 00:13:37,440 This is rebellion against our Creator, not only the nation's 208 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:41,680 turn in fear to one another to find strength instead of turning 209 00:13:41,680 --> 00:13:44,800 to God. They then in verse 7 get to work 210 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:48,800 to build idols that they can put their trust in instead of God. 211 00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:53,880 The word strength occurs 2 more times with the Craftsman 212 00:13:53,880 --> 00:13:56,560 strengthening the Goldsmith as they work together to make 213 00:13:56,560 --> 00:14:00,680 idols, and also with how they strengthen and make solid and 214 00:14:00,680 --> 00:14:04,640 firm the design of their idols, securing it with nails. 215 00:14:05,800 --> 00:14:09,440 They put their strength into this idol instead of waiting on 216 00:14:09,440 --> 00:14:11,600 the Lord to receive His strength. 217 00:14:13,400 --> 00:14:16,240 This is utter foolishness. It's completely unreasonable to 218 00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:21,280 exchange the strength freely offered by the Almighty God with 219 00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:24,760 the utter helplessness of man made idols. 220 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:30,680 People still trust in idols and other gods even today. 221 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:34,440 Although it looks different, the human heart has not changed. 222 00:14:35,200 --> 00:14:39,240 It's always worshipping. Worshipping either the creator 223 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:44,400 or some aspect of creation. Katie Jacobson, one of our 224 00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:47,760 missionaries to Cambodia, recently wrote an update about 225 00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:51,320 how at this time of year, there's a 15 day Buddhist 226 00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:55,200 festival where people give food offerings so that the spirits of 227 00:14:55,200 --> 00:14:59,040 their dead ancestors who who visit during that period of time 228 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:03,000 so that they're these ancestors will, will see that they haven't 229 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:05,720 been forgotten. Now they're, they're, they're 230 00:15:05,720 --> 00:15:08,520 afraid that their dead ancestors will will curse them with 231 00:15:08,520 --> 00:15:11,440 misfortune if these offerings are not put out. 232 00:15:12,320 --> 00:15:16,240 So year after year, out of fear, they trust in these food 233 00:15:16,240 --> 00:15:19,920 offerings to to the idols of their dead ancestors so that 234 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:25,360 their future will be blessed. They desperately need the hope 235 00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:29,960 of Jesus Christ, the blessing of yes, one who died, but one who 236 00:15:30,120 --> 00:15:33,960 resurrected again, who is victorious over fear and death 237 00:15:33,960 --> 00:15:37,880 and over cursing, and who is able to bless us with every 238 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:43,200 spiritual blessing. May God bless the work of Katie 239 00:15:43,360 --> 00:15:46,320 and our other missionaries there in Cambodia, especially during 240 00:15:46,600 --> 00:15:51,040 this dark festival. So that's a, that's a pretty 241 00:15:51,040 --> 00:15:54,400 blatant form of idolatry. But here in America, we still 242 00:15:54,400 --> 00:15:56,880 have plenty of idolatry, but it's just a lot, a lot more 243 00:15:56,880 --> 00:15:59,640 subtle. The apostle Paul calls 244 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:03,680 covetousness idolatry. He calls it idolatry. 245 00:16:03,960 --> 00:16:07,840 And so we see that idolatry is not merely something that we 246 00:16:07,840 --> 00:16:09,560 make with our hands and then we worship. 247 00:16:10,200 --> 00:16:13,720 It's something that we desire and worship in our very hearts 248 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:18,680 and minds. We worship what we trust, what 249 00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:20,880 we feel gives us security and purpose. 250 00:16:23,880 --> 00:16:27,600 So for many of us, we worship the idols of of nice houses, 251 00:16:28,280 --> 00:16:35,280 influential friends, respectable jobs, national recognition, put 252 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:41,600 together families. We may also worship pleasures, 253 00:16:41,600 --> 00:16:46,600 sex, food, sleep, comfort all the idols of our heart and and 254 00:16:46,880 --> 00:16:49,880 and of this world. They're they're all empty and 255 00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:55,280 powerless in comparison to the power of Jesus Christ, whom 256 00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:59,560 Hebrews 1/3 says that Jesus Christ upholds the universe by 257 00:16:59,560 --> 00:17:04,359 the word of his power and he as revelation one says he is the 258 00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:10,319 alpha and the Omega. This is reason number one in 259 00:17:10,319 --> 00:17:16,560 God's case to us trust Him and Him alone, for He has supreme 260 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:20,920 power over everything, everyone, and all of human history. 261 00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:27,400 All the nations are like a drop from a bucket in comparison to 262 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:33,560 Him. Let's move on now to reason #2 263 00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:37,960 we are to trust God and God alone because those who trust 264 00:17:37,960 --> 00:17:43,280 Him have no reason to fear. We now look at verses 8 through 265 00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:46,800 20. We saw in verse 5 that the 266 00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:49,080 coastland responded to God in fear. 267 00:17:50,120 --> 00:17:52,600 But now here God is going to speak to His chosen people, 268 00:17:52,600 --> 00:17:56,440 Israel, and and He's going to comfort them to not respond in 269 00:17:56,440 --> 00:18:00,200 fear as the nations have done. So in the section where we're 270 00:18:00,200 --> 00:18:05,080 going to see reason after reason for why we are to trust in God 271 00:18:05,080 --> 00:18:13,240 and not be afraid like those who do not trust, we just saw God's 272 00:18:13,240 --> 00:18:16,400 mighty hand of power. And now in verses now these next 273 00:18:16,400 --> 00:18:21,680 13 verses, we'll see God's mighty heart of comforting love. 274 00:18:23,320 --> 00:18:26,120 So we're going to start, let's start with verses 8 through 10. 275 00:18:26,720 --> 00:18:30,000 And I think you'll recognize the verses for the the verse, the 276 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:36,080 words from verse 10. But you, Israel, my servant 277 00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:40,440 Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend, 278 00:18:40,680 --> 00:18:44,280 you whom I took from the ends of the earth and called from its 279 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:47,440 farthest corners, saying to you, you are my servant. 280 00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:50,400 I have chosen you and not cast you off. 281 00:18:51,360 --> 00:18:54,880 Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your 282 00:18:54,880 --> 00:18:56,760 God. I will strengthen you. 283 00:18:56,760 --> 00:18:59,600 I will help you. I will uphold you with my 284 00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:03,680 righteous right hand. Do you recognize those words? 285 00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:06,000 Yeah. We just thank those in the hymn. 286 00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:09,920 How firm a foundation and they're so reassuring. 287 00:19:10,800 --> 00:19:15,440 God addresses Israel here and and and it's it's three 288 00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:20,280 different times he says to them fear not and he's telling them 289 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:22,960 don't be afraid like the nations who who aren't who aren't 290 00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:27,200 trusting in me. Then over the next 13 verses. 291 00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:30,400 God will give at least seven reasons for why they should not 292 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:32,720 be afraid. But before we look at those 293 00:19:32,720 --> 00:19:37,040 reasons, I think it's important for us to rightly understand 294 00:19:37,360 --> 00:19:40,800 this fear not command in verse 10. 295 00:19:41,640 --> 00:19:45,160 Fear not now. While while this phrase is an 296 00:19:45,160 --> 00:19:50,840 imperative, a command, we should read it more as words of loving 297 00:19:50,840 --> 00:19:55,520 comfort to be received than of just like a harsh command just 298 00:19:55,520 --> 00:19:59,600 to obey. The command of fear not is very 299 00:19:59,600 --> 00:20:03,400 common throughout Scripture, but sometimes we read it as if it's 300 00:20:03,400 --> 00:20:08,840 just simply a command to obey. And so if we are afraid, we, we, 301 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:11,680 we, we think we're, we're, we're being disobedient and we're 302 00:20:11,680 --> 00:20:16,040 sinning. So fear is then is seen as a 303 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:19,320 sin. And then those who are afraid 304 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:22,880 are then also weighed down with the extra burden of guilt, which 305 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:26,200 then increases their fear. It's an awful cycle. 306 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:31,880 I do not think that that is the tone and intention of the phrase 307 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:36,960 fear not to be afraid is fundamentally a matter of 308 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:43,520 suffering, not of sin. To be afraid is fundamentally a 309 00:20:43,520 --> 00:20:49,960 matter of suffering, not of sin. In the Garden of Gethsemane, our 310 00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:55,160 Lord Jesus Christ was praying and weeping as he faced the 311 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:59,400 imminent agonies of the cross. And it says that he was 312 00:20:59,520 --> 00:21:03,400 troubled. He, our Lord, was troubled. 313 00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:07,040 And that's a word that could also be translated as anxious. 314 00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:12,280 Our Savior was weeping and praying for God to remove the 315 00:21:12,280 --> 00:21:16,840 cup, that cup from him. But Jesus in, in his fearful 316 00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:18,880 suffering in the garden, did he sin? 317 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:24,640 Absolutely not. No, He responded rightly to God 318 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:28,560 in his fear. He cried out to God, he prayed 319 00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:34,240 for relief, and he also submitted his will under his 320 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:39,600 Father's will, saying not as I will, but as you will. 321 00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:48,640 Fear is a suffering, not a sin. But our response to our fear is 322 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:52,040 often sinful. Our response to our fear is 323 00:21:52,040 --> 00:21:54,240 often sinful. What we do with that fear, we 324 00:21:54,240 --> 00:21:59,760 often seek to to grab power and control instead of submitting to 325 00:21:59,880 --> 00:22:05,400 and praying to the God who has all power in his hand and who 326 00:22:05,400 --> 00:22:15,080 holds us dearly in his heart. There's a there's a famous skit 327 00:22:15,080 --> 00:22:18,400 by Bob Newhart that further illustrates this point. 328 00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:21,240 It's a it's a it's just comedy gold that you just don't really 329 00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:25,280 get any more in this PC World. The scene opens up with Bob 330 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:28,800 Newhart playing a therapist in his office and a female client 331 00:22:28,800 --> 00:22:30,800 comes in for her first meeting with him. 332 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:33,720 He tells her that the the meetings not going to last any 333 00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:37,520 longer than 5 minutes. She then shares the reason for 334 00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:41,560 her coming in. She's afraid of being buried 335 00:22:41,560 --> 00:22:46,480 alive in a box. After a few questions, he tells 336 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:48,920 her he has 2 words for her that she should write down. 337 00:22:49,800 --> 00:22:53,480 So she gets out a pen and paper and eagerly anticipates those 338 00:22:53,480 --> 00:22:57,760 two words that she hopes will release her from these fears. 339 00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:01,600 He then leans in and shares these two. 340 00:23:01,600 --> 00:23:04,360 Those two words at the top of his voice. 341 00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:14,160 Stop it. Is that what God's doing in 342 00:23:14,160 --> 00:23:17,880 Isaiah 41? When his people are afraid, Is 343 00:23:17,880 --> 00:23:21,360 He simply commanding them fear not stop, It's just stop being 344 00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:24,440 afraid? Absolutely not. 345 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:28,440 These are words of comfort. Words of comfort are meant to 346 00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:32,400 transform a person to, to bring them peace, not to demand that 347 00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:35,680 they transform themselves, that they calm themselves. 348 00:23:36,440 --> 00:23:39,160 When a child sees something that makes them afraid, that they, 349 00:23:39,320 --> 00:23:42,120 they, they then run to their parent or grandparents whose 350 00:23:42,120 --> 00:23:44,520 arms are open. And they, that, that parent or 351 00:23:44,520 --> 00:23:46,720 grandparent, they, they say to them, oh, come here. 352 00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:49,160 You know, let me hold you. It'll be all right. 353 00:23:49,280 --> 00:23:50,560 Don't be afraid. I'm here. 354 00:23:53,280 --> 00:23:55,360 Those are not merely raw commands. 355 00:23:56,280 --> 00:23:59,240 They're words of comfort that the child takes solace in. 356 00:24:01,480 --> 00:24:03,840 So as we look at these comforting words in verses 8 357 00:24:03,840 --> 00:24:07,280 through 20, receive these words as comfort for you. 358 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:10,840 Receive them from God as you would like a hug from a parent 359 00:24:10,840 --> 00:24:13,520 or grandparent. God's with you. 360 00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:17,480 He'll take care of you. It's going to be OK Be at peace. 361 00:24:17,480 --> 00:24:22,280 Don't fear. Let's now look at at 7 reasons 362 00:24:22,360 --> 00:24:25,600 to not be afraid. Look with me again at verses 8 363 00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:28,080 and 9. The the first reason you should 364 00:24:28,080 --> 00:24:31,240 not fear is that God has chosen you. 365 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,200 You see that in both verses 8 and 9. 366 00:24:36,200 --> 00:24:40,480 God chose Israel to be his servant above all other nations. 367 00:24:42,360 --> 00:24:45,960 We you can look in Deuteronomy 7 and it says God. 368 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:49,600 God says there that God chose Israel because he loved them. 369 00:24:50,960 --> 00:24:55,440 He there's no more fundamental reason given than that he loves 370 00:24:55,440 --> 00:24:56,480 them. That's why he chose them. 371 00:24:58,200 --> 00:25:00,720 Israel is God's beloved and chosen servant. 372 00:25:02,960 --> 00:25:08,040 So this this verse is the first use of servant in a very in a 373 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:11,560 new and a very important theme that we're going to now see 374 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:16,600 throughout the rest of Isaiah. Sometimes this chosen servant is 375 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:20,360 referring to the people of Israel, sinful and yet chosen by 376 00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:24,200 God. And sometimes the the chosen 377 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:29,400 servant is the ideal servant, the ideal and true Israel, the 378 00:25:29,440 --> 00:25:33,720 the suffering servant who is none other than Jesus Christ. 379 00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:39,160 So we'll hear more about this this servant next week in Isaiah 380 00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:43,200 42. So brothers and sisters, if you 381 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:48,000 put your trust in God and your faith in Jesus Christ, you need 382 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:51,720 not fear because that means that God has chosen you to be his 383 00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:55,640 beloved servant. He has set his heart on you as 384 00:25:55,640 --> 00:25:59,280 as a husband does for his bride. And so he will provide for you. 385 00:25:59,360 --> 00:26:02,720 He will protect you no matter what evil you may face. 386 00:26:04,720 --> 00:26:07,120 That's the first reason. The second reason we are to not 387 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:12,800 just to fear not is in verse 10. Fear not, for I am with you. 388 00:26:13,960 --> 00:26:17,880 I'm with you when you put your faith in Jesus Christ. 389 00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:20,240 He has promised to never leave you or forsake you. 390 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:26,920 He, Emmanuel, God with us. He promised in John 14 to send 391 00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:32,200 His Spirit, the Comforter, to be with us and in us so that His 392 00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:36,120 presence could always be with us as He is reigning on His throne 393 00:26:36,120 --> 00:26:41,320 in heaven right now. So fear not God says He is with 394 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:44,920 you. A third reason to assuage our 395 00:26:44,920 --> 00:26:47,560 fears comes in the next line of verse 10. 396 00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:52,040 Be not dismayed, for I am your God. 397 00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:57,200 I am your God. When you put your faith in 398 00:26:57,280 --> 00:27:01,200 Jesus, you need not fear because God has promised to be your God. 399 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:05,680 To have God as your God is to have the most loving, most 400 00:27:05,840 --> 00:27:10,200 powerful person on your side. He is for you and not against 401 00:27:10,200 --> 00:27:12,800 you, although yes, you have sinned against him. 402 00:27:12,800 --> 00:27:17,680 Yes, you have at times turned to other idols by faith in Jesus 403 00:27:17,680 --> 00:27:21,440 Christ. God is your God and you are His 404 00:27:21,440 --> 00:27:25,480 forgiven child, so you will not face His wrath. 405 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:29,880 Jesus Christ took upon Himself the punishment for our sins, 406 00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:32,920 that with the sins, the punishment that we deserved. 407 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:37,640 And so you then we then are at peace with God. 408 00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:40,880 So take heart and do not be afraid. 409 00:27:41,040 --> 00:27:45,800 God is your God. Fourth reason for peace to rain 410 00:27:45,800 --> 00:27:49,680 down on our troubled souls comes at the end of verse 10. 411 00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:54,600 I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with 412 00:27:54,600 --> 00:28:00,800 my righteous right hand. When you put your faith in 413 00:28:00,840 --> 00:28:06,440 Jesus, it says if God dumps on you all of his promises one 414 00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:10,320 after another after another, the all just heaped upon you like a 415 00:28:10,320 --> 00:28:12,200 kid just buried in birthday presents. 416 00:28:12,200 --> 00:28:19,320 And here we have three I will promises heaped 1 after another. 417 00:28:19,320 --> 00:28:22,160 God promises his aid to all who trust in him. 418 00:28:22,160 --> 00:28:24,960 He he, he promises he will strengthen us. 419 00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:28,320 He'll strengthen you to do your to do his will. 420 00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:32,280 You will mount up with wings like eagles to do what He has 421 00:28:32,280 --> 00:28:35,640 called you to do. He will be your helper. 422 00:28:35,800 --> 00:28:38,760 He will uphold you with His mighty and just hand. 423 00:28:40,680 --> 00:28:43,840 Our security and our help comes from the Lord. 424 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:46,320 No matter what situation we are in. 425 00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:50,960 God will be our aid as we continue to seek first His 426 00:28:50,960 --> 00:28:58,280 Kingdom and His righteousness. The fifth reason comes in verses 427 00:28:58,280 --> 00:29:01,920 11 through 13. As we read, See how God comforts 428 00:29:01,920 --> 00:29:09,240 us by promising to bring justice on all our enemies. 11A Behold, 429 00:29:09,480 --> 00:29:13,200 all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and 430 00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:15,920 confounded. Those who strive against you 431 00:29:16,080 --> 00:29:18,160 shall be as nothing, and shall perish. 432 00:29:18,880 --> 00:29:21,720 You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find 433 00:29:21,720 --> 00:29:24,040 them. Those who war against you shall 434 00:29:24,040 --> 00:29:28,640 be as nothing at all, for I, the Lord your God, hold your right 435 00:29:28,640 --> 00:29:31,560 hand. It is I who say to you, fear 436 00:29:31,560 --> 00:29:37,040 not. I am the one who helps you when 437 00:29:37,040 --> 00:29:40,480 the Almighty is on your side. There is no enemy that you have 438 00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:44,840 in the heavens or on earth that will not be destroyed when Jesus 439 00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:50,560 comes again to judge the world. Although our enemies mock us, 440 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:56,880 impede us, tempt us, and even kill us, they can never fully 441 00:29:56,880 --> 00:29:59,960 defeat us. Their doom is sure. 442 00:30:01,440 --> 00:30:03,160 Fear not your enemies, O Christian. 443 00:30:03,360 --> 00:30:05,960 The worst they can do is destroy your body, but they cannot 444 00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:09,440 destroy your soul or separate you from your Savior, or take 445 00:30:09,440 --> 00:30:17,680 away your inheritance in the Kingdom of heaven. 6th reason 446 00:30:17,680 --> 00:30:20,800 reasons not fear comes in verses 14 through 16. 447 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:25,120 Now before I read it, I I want to I need to explain one 448 00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:27,920 illustration that Isaiah uses in verse 15. 449 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:31,000 He talks about a threshing sledge. 450 00:30:32,320 --> 00:30:35,200 A threshing sledge was an ancient agricultural tool. 451 00:30:36,160 --> 00:30:38,040 Let me read this description of it. 452 00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:42,920 This was a heavy wooden platform fitted underneath with sharp 453 00:30:42,920 --> 00:30:46,960 stones and pieces of cutting metal which was dragged over the 454 00:30:46,960 --> 00:30:50,800 crop to chop the straw in preparation for winnowing. 455 00:30:51,840 --> 00:30:53,600 OK, so we've got this flat wooden platform. 456 00:30:54,000 --> 00:30:57,760 It's pulled by rope and underneath that platform is 457 00:30:58,000 --> 00:31:02,440 sharp rocks and metal that then chop the crops into smaller 458 00:31:02,760 --> 00:31:06,120 pieces. So let's read about how God will 459 00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:10,520 make his people into a threshing sledge and how on earth that 460 00:31:10,520 --> 00:31:15,760 could be comforting to us. Verse 14 If you're not, you 461 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:20,280 worm, Jacob, you man of Israel, I am the one who helps you, 462 00:31:20,440 --> 00:31:23,480 declares the Lord. Your Redeemer is the Holy One of 463 00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:26,240 Israel. Behold, I make of you a 464 00:31:26,240 --> 00:31:30,040 threshing sledge, new, sharp and having teeth. 465 00:31:30,760 --> 00:31:34,720 You shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall 466 00:31:34,720 --> 00:31:39,160 make the hills like chaff. You shall winnow them, and the 467 00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:42,760 wind shall carry them away, and The Tempest shall scatter them, 468 00:31:43,360 --> 00:31:45,120 and you shall rejoice in the Lord. 469 00:31:45,240 --> 00:31:48,880 In the Holy One of Israel you shall glory. 470 00:31:51,560 --> 00:31:56,200 We are not to be afraid because our God transforms us from being 471 00:31:56,280 --> 00:31:59,840 worms to being mountain threshers. 472 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:02,440 Now what on earth does that mean? 473 00:32:04,760 --> 00:32:08,320 Well, the Lord disses Israel with a fitting insult by calling 474 00:32:08,320 --> 00:32:11,800 them worms, and that could also be translated maggots. 475 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:17,000 These small, weak, pitiable creatures in incapable of any 476 00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:21,280 significant work. And that's kind of a fitting 477 00:32:21,360 --> 00:32:24,880 kind of a fitting title for us. Sometimes we're afraid because 478 00:32:24,880 --> 00:32:28,240 we see our weaknesses, our inadequacies. 479 00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:32,840 We we see them when we get, we get so fixated on what we can't 480 00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:36,800 do, so fixated that we become immobilized with fear and we 481 00:32:36,800 --> 00:32:39,880 just don't do anything at all. We're not good enough. 482 00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:45,360 We've just then become a bump on the log while God's harvest is 483 00:32:45,360 --> 00:32:50,480 plentiful and ready for reaping. Here in this passage, God says 484 00:32:50,480 --> 00:32:54,200 that he will transform his people from worms into threshing 485 00:32:54,200 --> 00:32:57,480 slush sledges that thresh mountains. 486 00:32:58,400 --> 00:33:02,120 Imagine that he says his that his people will make the hills 487 00:33:02,120 --> 00:33:06,080 like chaff, and the pieces will be so small that the wind shall 488 00:33:06,080 --> 00:33:12,560 carry them away. Now a little worm can move tiny 489 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:16,120 amounts of dirt right? But here it's as if God is 490 00:33:16,120 --> 00:33:18,880 saying that he'll transform a little worm into one of those 491 00:33:18,880 --> 00:33:25,840 giant sandworms like in Dune or one of those giant where worms 492 00:33:25,920 --> 00:33:28,600 from The Hobbit. These worms that are so large 493 00:33:28,600 --> 00:33:30,600 they can destroy hills and mountains. 494 00:33:30,600 --> 00:33:37,560 Now what does that mean for the Christian means simply this. 495 00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:43,280 When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, you can be at peace that 496 00:33:43,640 --> 00:33:48,440 although you are weak and inadequate, God uses exactly 497 00:33:48,440 --> 00:33:51,600 those kinds of people to advance his Kingdom. 498 00:33:54,040 --> 00:33:58,040 Jesus used a child with only five loaves and two fish to feed 499 00:33:58,040 --> 00:34:02,160 5000 people. Jesus used uneducated fishermen 500 00:34:02,600 --> 00:34:07,520 as the foundation of his church. And he said to those disciples, 501 00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:11,560 For truly I say to you, if you have faith, like a grain of 502 00:34:11,560 --> 00:34:15,320 mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, move from here to 503 00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:19,000 there, and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for 504 00:34:19,000 --> 00:34:25,159 you. Fearful Peter became the bold 505 00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:29,880 apostle and martyr and the apostle Paul when he could not 506 00:34:29,880 --> 00:34:34,320 shake that thorn in his flesh, the Lord said to him, My grace 507 00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:39,000 is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in 508 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:43,400 weakness. In our weakness, God's power is 509 00:34:43,400 --> 00:34:49,040 made perfect. It's on display how often it is 510 00:34:49,040 --> 00:34:52,239 that we all we just get all obsessed about our weaknesses 511 00:34:52,280 --> 00:34:55,560 and we assume that God cannot use a worm like us. 512 00:34:57,240 --> 00:34:59,680 We fix our eyes on our weaknesses instead of looking to 513 00:34:59,680 --> 00:35:01,800 God. To the God who said I will make 514 00:35:01,800 --> 00:35:07,400 of you a threshing sledge that will thresh the mountains. 515 00:35:08,960 --> 00:35:12,920 It is he that can make maggots into mountain threshers, not by 516 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:16,360 their own might, but by the strengthening power of God. 517 00:35:17,320 --> 00:35:20,440 God's spirit is in you and that is where the power of the 518 00:35:20,440 --> 00:35:22,760 Kingdom comes from. It's not in you, it's in God's 519 00:35:22,760 --> 00:35:26,520 Spirit. So serve God in the spheres of 520 00:35:26,520 --> 00:35:30,880 life that God has put you in, and do not be surprised if he 521 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:37,520 moves a mountain. The seventh reason to fear not 522 00:35:37,520 --> 00:35:40,040 is found in verses 17 through 20. 523 00:35:40,240 --> 00:35:43,920 Here Isaiah paints a very beautiful picture of God 524 00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:46,200 creating life where there is no life. 525 00:35:46,360 --> 00:35:49,280 And for some of you here today, this might be the most 526 00:35:49,280 --> 00:35:50,960 comforting promise for you to hold. 527 00:35:50,960 --> 00:35:56,440 On to verse 17. When the poor and needy seek 528 00:35:56,440 --> 00:36:01,200 water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with 529 00:36:01,200 --> 00:36:04,720 thirst, I, the Lord will answer them. 530 00:36:04,840 --> 00:36:07,520 I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. 531 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:12,000 I will open rivers on the bare heights and fountains in the 532 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:15,520 midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a 533 00:36:15,520 --> 00:36:19,960 pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. 534 00:36:20,440 --> 00:36:24,520 I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the Acacia, the Myrtle, 535 00:36:24,640 --> 00:36:27,200 and the olive. I will set in the desert, the 536 00:36:27,200 --> 00:36:32,000 Cypress, the plain and the pine together, that they may see and 537 00:36:32,000 --> 00:36:35,200 know, may consider and understand together that the 538 00:36:35,200 --> 00:36:39,840 hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has 539 00:36:39,960 --> 00:36:45,160 created it. Brothers and sisters, we need 540 00:36:45,160 --> 00:36:50,600 not be afraid because even when we live in a bleak situation 541 00:36:50,720 --> 00:36:57,040 facing a desert, our God creates life out of nothing by the power 542 00:36:57,040 --> 00:37:03,000 of His Word and Spirit. So what poor condition are you 543 00:37:03,000 --> 00:37:07,360 in, dear Christian? Are you afraid of the bleak 544 00:37:07,360 --> 00:37:09,240 outlook in a certain area of life? 545 00:37:09,240 --> 00:37:12,200 Or maybe, maybe that's just every area of your life right 546 00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:16,320 now. When you are suffering with 547 00:37:16,320 --> 00:37:22,800 fear, respond rightly to God as Jesus did in the garden. 548 00:37:23,960 --> 00:37:27,120 Pray to your loving Father. Call out to Him with your 549 00:37:27,120 --> 00:37:31,320 parched voice. He has promised to answer you. 550 00:37:32,240 --> 00:37:34,840 Submit to His will. Wait upon the Lord. 551 00:37:35,680 --> 00:37:40,040 He makes new creations. He speaks into the darkness and 552 00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:42,960 creates light. He speaks into the void where 553 00:37:42,960 --> 00:37:46,120 His Spirit is hovering and creates something that was not 554 00:37:46,120 --> 00:37:50,280 there. This is our creator God. 555 00:37:52,160 --> 00:37:55,400 We often fear when we see the absence of life and hope. 556 00:37:56,000 --> 00:37:58,000 We see a desert and so we despair. 557 00:37:59,120 --> 00:38:02,280 But when God sees the desert, what is he able to do? 558 00:38:03,560 --> 00:38:07,240 He speaks, and there in the desert is a pool of water. 559 00:38:08,880 --> 00:38:11,080 He speaks and there's a spring of water. 560 00:38:11,080 --> 00:38:15,120 He speaks and above you, all of a sudden there's there's shade 561 00:38:15,120 --> 00:38:18,280 from the scorching sun. There's the shade from a cedar, 562 00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:21,720 the Acacia, the Myrtle, the olive, the Cypress, the pine. 563 00:38:23,360 --> 00:38:27,040 Where there once was no life, God can speak and bring about 564 00:38:27,040 --> 00:38:31,600 life abundant. This is our creator God. 565 00:38:32,760 --> 00:38:37,400 Do not despair when you see a desert call out to God and he 566 00:38:37,400 --> 00:38:43,600 will answer, Do you get afraid? When you look at the hard heart 567 00:38:43,600 --> 00:38:47,840 of somebody that you, someone that you love, you just feel 568 00:38:47,840 --> 00:38:50,640 like there you get afraid that there there could there could 569 00:38:50,640 --> 00:38:53,360 never, there could never be any spiritual life there. 570 00:38:53,360 --> 00:38:57,000 It's such a desert. Do you get afraid? 571 00:38:59,840 --> 00:39:03,600 Is your marriage a desert? Is your relationship with a 572 00:39:03,600 --> 00:39:06,240 child or, or a relationship with a parent? 573 00:39:06,240 --> 00:39:09,520 Is that a desert? You look at your own heart and 574 00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:14,440 you see a lifeless desert. This void of, of, of, of 575 00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:18,200 spiritual vitality, void of perhaps a love for God, void of, 576 00:39:18,400 --> 00:39:21,320 of, of, of, of prayer and worship, void of faith. 577 00:39:21,320 --> 00:39:23,520 There's just a dryness in your soul. 578 00:39:26,560 --> 00:39:28,440 Do not be afraid. Call out to God. 579 00:39:28,640 --> 00:39:33,320 You are poor and needy and He is rich and generous and can create 580 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:36,880 light out of darkness. So come to the water waters, 581 00:39:37,000 --> 00:39:40,800 come and drink. Come to Jesus by asking for His 582 00:39:40,800 --> 00:39:43,640 life. Ask Him to speak His life, 583 00:39:43,640 --> 00:39:47,160 giving words into the desert hearts of those that you love. 584 00:39:48,040 --> 00:39:52,120 Ask Him to speak into your very own heart, to speak into your 585 00:39:52,120 --> 00:39:56,120 broken relationships, and then wait upon the Lord. 586 00:39:56,600 --> 00:39:59,160 For those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. 587 00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:01,640 They shall mount up with wings like eagles. 588 00:40:01,640 --> 00:40:05,280 They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. 589 00:40:07,040 --> 00:40:11,320 This is the promise of God, the Word of our God that will stand 590 00:40:11,320 --> 00:40:17,240 forever. These seven reasons are just the 591 00:40:17,240 --> 00:40:21,520 start of many more reasons why we can trust in the loving and 592 00:40:21,520 --> 00:40:25,240 comforting heart of God. Let's now turn to the final 593 00:40:25,240 --> 00:40:28,440 reason in God's case for trusting Him above any other 594 00:40:29,800 --> 00:40:35,400 reason #3 trust in God, because all other gods are powerless. 595 00:40:36,840 --> 00:40:40,040 Look with me at the last major section of this chapter, verses 596 00:40:40,040 --> 00:40:44,120 21 through 29. God turns His attention now 597 00:40:44,120 --> 00:40:49,080 again to those who trusted in idols, and He calls for them to 598 00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:52,760 make their case that their gods have have power. 599 00:40:56,000 --> 00:40:59,320 Verse 21 Set forth your case, says the Lord, Bring your 600 00:40:59,320 --> 00:41:03,640 proofs, says the king of Jacob. Let them bring them and tell us 601 00:41:03,640 --> 00:41:06,680 what is to happen. Tell us the former things, what 602 00:41:06,680 --> 00:41:09,960 they are, that we may consider them, that we may know their 603 00:41:09,960 --> 00:41:12,880 outcome, or declare to us the things to come. 604 00:41:13,640 --> 00:41:16,640 Tell us what is to come hereafter, that we may know that 605 00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:20,600 you are gods. Do good or do harm, that we may 606 00:41:20,600 --> 00:41:24,880 be dismayed and terrified. Behold, you are nothing, and 607 00:41:24,880 --> 00:41:29,360 your work is less than nothing. An abomination is he who chooses 608 00:41:29,360 --> 00:41:32,920 you. I stirred up one from the north, 609 00:41:33,080 --> 00:41:36,520 and he has come from the rising of the sun, and he shall call 610 00:41:36,520 --> 00:41:39,880 upon my name. He shall trample on rulers as on 611 00:41:39,880 --> 00:41:43,840 mortar as the Potter treads. Clay, who declared it from the 612 00:41:43,840 --> 00:41:46,960 beginning that we might know, and beforehand that we should 613 00:41:46,960 --> 00:41:51,440 sit, might say he is right. There was none who declared it, 614 00:41:51,440 --> 00:41:54,280 none who proclaimed, none who heard your words. 615 00:41:55,720 --> 00:42:00,120 I was the first to say to Zion, Behold, here they are, and I 616 00:42:00,120 --> 00:42:02,200 give to Jerusalem a herald of good news. 617 00:42:03,320 --> 00:42:06,200 But when I look, there is no one among these. 618 00:42:06,200 --> 00:42:09,600 There is no counsellor who, when I ask, gives an answer. 619 00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:15,320 Behold, they are all a delusion. Their works are nothing. 620 00:42:15,560 --> 00:42:18,640 Their metal images are empty wind. 621 00:42:22,480 --> 00:42:24,600 Only a few words here for this section. 622 00:42:24,600 --> 00:42:28,400 We we read here that God challenges the idolaters to 623 00:42:28,400 --> 00:42:30,920 prove that their idols can do something. 624 00:42:31,920 --> 00:42:33,840 Challenges them to to prove that they can do anything. 625 00:42:34,840 --> 00:42:36,480 Can they predict the future like God? 626 00:42:37,160 --> 00:42:39,080 No. Can they do anything at all? 627 00:42:39,880 --> 00:42:42,920 No. All of the idols are nothing. 628 00:42:43,200 --> 00:42:46,880 Their work is less than nothing. Idols are an empty wind. 629 00:42:48,200 --> 00:42:51,120 All of our idols, they they might feel powerful, they might 630 00:42:51,120 --> 00:42:55,000 feel pleasurable, they might feel secure to us, but on the 631 00:42:55,000 --> 00:42:58,160 day of the Lord they will all be exposed as shams. 632 00:42:59,320 --> 00:43:03,440 They are empty, powerless, vanity of vanities. 633 00:43:07,160 --> 00:43:11,760 That is Isaiah 41. The case has been made. 634 00:43:12,600 --> 00:43:18,880 Who will you trust? The evidence demands A verdict 635 00:43:18,880 --> 00:43:23,080 and I I think the choice to trust the Lord Jesus Christ with 636 00:43:23,080 --> 00:43:27,520 your whole life, with your eternity is a clear the the the 637 00:43:27,520 --> 00:43:32,600 verdict is clear. No one is stronger than God and 638 00:43:32,600 --> 00:43:35,040 no one has a bigger heart of love than God. 639 00:43:35,680 --> 00:43:38,560 And he offers himself to you in the person of Jesus Christ. 640 00:43:40,200 --> 00:43:43,480 If you'd like to follow Jesus for the first time, or if you 641 00:43:43,480 --> 00:43:47,040 have unanswered questions about God or Christianity, definitely 642 00:43:47,040 --> 00:43:48,160 come. Please talk to me after the 643 00:43:48,160 --> 00:43:50,040 service or or one of the pastor's. 644 00:43:50,040 --> 00:43:52,480 We'd love to talk to you. Let's pray. 645 00:43:54,960 --> 00:43:59,680 Heavenly Father, we thank you that though we are poor and 646 00:43:59,680 --> 00:44:03,760 needy, though we are but worms, we thank You that you are 647 00:44:03,760 --> 00:44:08,760 mighty, You are strong, You have a loving heart of comfort. 648 00:44:12,520 --> 00:44:16,240 Lord, we we thank you that you are the God who can speak into 649 00:44:16,240 --> 00:44:19,880 the darkness and there's light. And so Heavenly Father, we pray 650 00:44:20,400 --> 00:44:23,720 that you would turn our hearts away from idols and turn them 651 00:44:23,720 --> 00:44:26,840 towards trusting in you, towards praying to you. 652 00:44:27,720 --> 00:44:30,600 Lord, I pray that you would quiet the fears of our hearts in 653 00:44:30,600 --> 00:44:34,320 you. Help us to trust your mighty 654 00:44:34,320 --> 00:44:37,000 hand and your mighty heart of love. 655 00:44:38,480 --> 00:44:40,520 We pray this all in Jesus name, Amen.