1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,360 I would invite you to take your Bibles and turn with me to the 2 00:00:02,360 --> 00:00:08,200 Old Testament book of Isaiah, specifically Isaiah chapters 46 3 00:00:08,200 --> 00:00:12,680 and 47. If you're using the red Bibles 4 00:00:12,680 --> 00:00:15,200 and the chairs around, you can find the page printed for you 5 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:18,960 and the bulletin for where you can find chapters 46 and 47. 6 00:00:19,880 --> 00:00:23,280 So we continue on in our study of the book of Isaiah. 7 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:27,520 We have been reminding ourselves that we've moved into kind of 8 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:30,800 the last section of the book, chapters 40 through 66. 9 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:36,520 And as we are reading in these final chapters of Isaiah, you 10 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:40,160 should really be thinking about 3 separate time frames. 11 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:46,520 The first time frame is the time in which Isaiah ministered as he 12 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:51,440 spoke, as he wrote down these wonderful words, it was about 13 00:00:51,440 --> 00:00:56,560 7:40 to 700 BC. But a second time frame that you 14 00:00:56,560 --> 00:00:59,880 should have in your mind is who is he addressing in this 15 00:00:59,880 --> 00:01:02,560 particular part of Isaiah? And we've talked about the fact 16 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:06,320 that as we've moved in to this last section, Isaiah's words are 17 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:10,600 focused not so much on the people in his day, but the 18 00:01:10,600 --> 00:01:15,160 people about 150 years in the future, the people who would be 19 00:01:15,160 --> 00:01:19,720 in exile in Babylon. But the third time frame you 20 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:24,120 should have in your mind is today, God's people today. 21 00:01:24,120 --> 00:01:28,200 What does God's Word have to say for the people in all three of 22 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:31,640 those time frames? Let's look and see what God's 23 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:35,400 Word says today from Isaiah chapters 46 and 47. 24 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:44,840 Bell bows down, Nebo Stoops. Their idols are on beasts and 25 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:48,040 livestock. These things you carry are born 26 00:01:48,040 --> 00:01:52,680 as burdens on weary beasts. They stoop, they bow down 27 00:01:52,680 --> 00:01:55,880 together. They cannot save the burden but 28 00:01:55,880 --> 00:01:57,640 themselves. Go into captivity. 29 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:02,040 Listen to me, O House of Jacob, all the remnant of the House of 30 00:02:02,040 --> 00:02:06,880 Israel who have been born by me from before your birth, carried 31 00:02:06,880 --> 00:02:09,840 from the womb even to your old age. 32 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:13,360 I am He. And to Gray hairs I will carry, 33 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,400 you I have made, and I will bear. 34 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:21,400 I will carry and will save. To whom will you liken me, and 35 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:24,640 make me equal, and compare me, that we may be alike? 36 00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:28,920 Those who lavish gold from the purse, and weigh out silver and 37 00:02:28,920 --> 00:02:33,000 the scales hire a Goldsmith, and he makes it into a God. 38 00:02:33,640 --> 00:02:37,760 Then they fall down and worship. They lift it to their shoulders, 39 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:42,000 they carry it, they set it in its place, and it stands there. 40 00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:47,120 It cannot move from its place. If one cries to it, it does not 41 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:49,040 answer or save him from his trouble. 42 00:02:49,640 --> 00:02:53,240 Remember this and stand firm. Recall it to mind you, 43 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:56,600 transgressors. Remember the former things of 44 00:02:56,600 --> 00:03:00,480 old, For I am God, and there is no other. 45 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:03,360 I am God, and there is none like me. 46 00:03:03,920 --> 00:03:07,480 Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times 47 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:11,000 things not yet done. Saying, My counsel shall stand, 48 00:03:11,320 --> 00:03:15,200 and I will accomplish all my purpose, calling a bird of prey 49 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,680 from the East, the man of my council from a far country. 50 00:03:19,520 --> 00:03:22,120 I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass. 51 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:24,400 I have purposed, and I will do it. 52 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:29,080 Listen to me, you stubborn of heart, you who are far from 53 00:03:29,080 --> 00:03:32,680 righteousness. I bring my righteousness. 54 00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:36,720 It is not far off, and my salvation will not delay. 55 00:03:37,400 --> 00:03:40,760 I will put salvation in Zion for Israel. 56 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:44,640 My glory. Come, come down and sit in the 57 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:47,160 dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon. 58 00:03:47,600 --> 00:03:50,640 Sit on the ground without a throne, O daughter of the 59 00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:53,840 Chaldeans. For you shall no more be called 60 00:03:53,840 --> 00:03:57,160 tender and delicate. Take the millstones and grind 61 00:03:57,160 --> 00:04:00,040 flour. Put off your veil, strip off 62 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:03,440 your robe, uncover your legs. Pass through the waters, through 63 00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:06,360 the rivers. Your nakedness shall be 64 00:04:06,360 --> 00:04:08,760 uncovered, and your disgrace shall be seen. 65 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:12,720 I will take vengeance and I will spare no one. 66 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:17,079 Our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, is His name, is the Holy One of 67 00:04:17,079 --> 00:04:19,720 Israel. Sit in silence and go Into 68 00:04:19,720 --> 00:04:23,120 Darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans, for you shall no more 69 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:25,160 be called the mistress of kingdoms. 70 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:28,800 I was angry with my people. I profaned MyHeritage. 71 00:04:29,120 --> 00:04:34,240 I gave them into your hand. You showed them no mercy on the 72 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:37,120 aged. You made your yoke exceedingly 73 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:40,280 heavy. You said I shall be mistress 74 00:04:40,280 --> 00:04:43,440 forever, so that you did not lay these things to heart or 75 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:47,000 remember their end. Now therefore hear this, you 76 00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:52,040 lover of pleasures, who sits securely, who say in your heart 77 00:04:52,280 --> 00:04:55,800 I am, and there is no one besides me. 78 00:04:56,680 --> 00:04:59,560 I shall not sit as a widow or know the loss of children. 79 00:05:00,280 --> 00:05:02,480 These two things shall come to you in a moment. 80 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:06,680 In one day the loss of children in widowhood shall come upon you 81 00:05:06,680 --> 00:05:09,640 in full measure. In spite of your many sorceries 82 00:05:09,640 --> 00:05:13,160 and great power of your enchantments, you felt secure in 83 00:05:13,160 --> 00:05:16,200 your wickedness. You said, No one sees me. 84 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:18,880 Your wisdom and your knowledge LED you astray. 85 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:23,520 And you said in your heart, I am, and there is no one besides 86 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:26,360 me. But evil shall come upon you 87 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:29,000 which you will not know how to charm away. 88 00:05:29,360 --> 00:05:32,600 Disaster shall fall upon you for which you will not be able to 89 00:05:32,600 --> 00:05:36,800 atone, and ruin shall come upon you suddenly, of which you know 90 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:39,960 nothing. Stand fast in your enchantments 91 00:05:40,320 --> 00:05:43,440 and and your many sorceries with which you have labored from your 92 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:45,360 youth. Perhaps you may be able to 93 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:48,400 succeed, perhaps you may inspire terror. 94 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:51,200 You are weary with your many councils. 95 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:53,440 Let them stand forth and save you. 96 00:05:53,840 --> 00:05:57,800 Those who divide the heavens, who gaze at the stars, who at 97 00:05:57,800 --> 00:06:00,560 the new moons, make known what shall come upon you. 98 00:06:01,280 --> 00:06:05,600 Behold, they are like stubble. The fire consumes them. 99 00:06:06,320 --> 00:06:09,000 They cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. 100 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:11,880 No coal for warming oneself is this. 101 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:16,560 No fire to sit before such to you are those with whom you have 102 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:19,520 labored, who have done business with you from your youth. 103 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:23,280 They wander about, each in his own direction. 104 00:06:24,400 --> 00:06:29,240 There is no one to save you. Let's pray together. 105 00:06:32,520 --> 00:06:33,840 Father, we thank you for your word. 106 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:35,280 We thank you for giving it to us. 107 00:06:35,280 --> 00:06:37,680 We thank you for this portion of your word that we're looking at 108 00:06:37,680 --> 00:06:41,360 today. As we read it, as we think about 109 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,960 it, as we meditate upon it. We pray you would open our eyes 110 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:48,600 and our hearts to see what You want us to see, to teach us what 111 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:52,160 we need to be taught, to grow us in our understanding of who you 112 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:54,680 are. And above all, Father, help us 113 00:06:54,680 --> 00:06:58,720 to see Jesus, for we ask this in his name, Amen. 114 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:05,320 We've already seen at least a couple times in the book of 115 00:07:05,320 --> 00:07:10,040 Isaiah that Isaiah addresses the the nation and the city of 116 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:13,400 Babylon, and he comes back to them one last time. 117 00:07:13,400 --> 00:07:17,160 Here in the chapters that we've read for today, it'd be good to 118 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:19,600 remember some details about Babylon. 119 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:23,280 It was an empire that included much of what we think of as the 120 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,040 Middle East today, even including some of western Asia. 121 00:07:27,600 --> 00:07:32,080 The capital city was Babylon, and that was located about 50 122 00:07:32,080 --> 00:07:36,760 miles South of the current day Baghdad in Iraq. 123 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:40,000 Now, the ruins of the city still exist today. 124 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:43,760 It's considered a World Heritage site by UNESCO. 125 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:48,720 The Tower of Babel that we read about in Genesis 11 was thought 126 00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:52,840 to have been built in Babylon. It also contained the famous 127 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:57,800 hanging gardens that the king of Babylon created had created for 128 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:00,280 his queen. It's considered one of the seven 129 00:08:00,280 --> 00:08:04,040 wonders of the world. Now in Isaiah's day, the nation 130 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:08,200 of Assyria was the great world power, but they had begun to 131 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:12,640 wane and Babylon began to grow and become strong. 132 00:08:12,640 --> 00:08:17,600 Eventually Babylon became the dominant world power, and around 133 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:23,360 586 BC, Babylon invaded and conquered the southern Kingdom 134 00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:26,440 of Judah, taking them into exile. 135 00:08:28,080 --> 00:08:31,400 But as is usually the case with dominant world powers, 136 00:08:31,400 --> 00:08:35,400 eventually Babylon itself was conquered and destroyed. 137 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:41,400 The pride and the arrogance of the Babylonians was devastated 138 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:48,880 in a single day. It was 2611 years ago last 139 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:55,360 month, in October of 539 BC, Cyrus, who was the king of the 140 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:58,160 Medes and the Persians, conquered Babylon. 141 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:01,760 The accounts that we have explained that Cyrus's army 142 00:09:01,760 --> 00:09:05,880 diverted the Euphrates River which ran next to the city of 143 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:10,040 Babylon and that allowed Cyrus's army to March on the dry 144 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:14,200 riverbed and enter the city bypassing the city walls. 145 00:09:14,760 --> 00:09:18,920 They arrived undetected and they entered the city, surprising the 146 00:09:18,920 --> 00:09:21,800 Babylonian king and the inhabitants of the city. 147 00:09:22,040 --> 00:09:24,720 In fact, the king and his his court were in the midst of a 148 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:28,720 great celebration and feast when Cyrus's army entered the city. 149 00:09:29,800 --> 00:09:33,120 Cyrus and his army took over the entire city almost without a 150 00:09:33,120 --> 00:09:36,920 fight. The great and powerful and 151 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:41,080 arrogant nation and city of Babylon taken down in a single 152 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:44,600 day. Oh, how the mighty fall. 153 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:51,280 Now back in Isaiah 46 and 47, Isaiah tells us about that day 154 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:55,440 that was to come, the day when God would raise up Cyrus, he who 155 00:09:55,440 --> 00:09:58,480 would guide and direct his army into the great city to conquer 156 00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:01,840 it and take it over. But Isaiah goes even further. 157 00:10:02,400 --> 00:10:06,320 He talks about the Absolute and the utter destruction of Babylon 158 00:10:06,320 --> 00:10:08,360 such that it would no longer exist. 159 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:10,520 It doesn't. Today. 160 00:10:11,160 --> 00:10:13,320 You can't go to the city of Babylon today. 161 00:10:13,320 --> 00:10:17,520 Well, you can, but all you'll see are ruins in the dirt. 162 00:10:18,840 --> 00:10:21,720 Now, why is this important for God's people to see and to know? 163 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:26,320 It's because as we see this and we understand what God said and 164 00:10:26,320 --> 00:10:29,480 what God has done, it shows us once again the absolute 165 00:10:29,480 --> 00:10:32,160 faithfulness and sovereignty of the one true God. 166 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:36,560 It shows us how He is at work accomplishing His purposes and 167 00:10:36,560 --> 00:10:39,080 His plans and nothing can thwart Him. 168 00:10:40,360 --> 00:10:43,400 It shows us that God is about the business of redeeming his 169 00:10:43,400 --> 00:10:46,800 people, saving them and keeping them and preserving them. 170 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:51,160 It shows us that our God, the one true God, is a God to be 171 00:10:51,160 --> 00:10:57,320 trusted, to be believed in, to be followed and obeyed and 172 00:10:57,320 --> 00:11:00,240 loved. So let's look at the passage 173 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:01,760 today and let's see several things. 174 00:11:01,760 --> 00:11:05,120 First of all, let's, let's look and see the, the contrast and 175 00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:09,880 the comparison between these, these idols of Babylon that were 176 00:11:09,880 --> 00:11:15,640 burdens and see that contrasted and compared to the one true God 177 00:11:15,640 --> 00:11:17,840 who bears the burdens of his people. 178 00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:22,000 And then secondly, let's look and see what we hear about the 179 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:27,400 destruction of Babylon. Then third, the wonderful 180 00:11:27,680 --> 00:11:31,080 message to God's people about God's salvation. 181 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:35,000 And then lastly, we'll ask, So what, what difference does all 182 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:38,800 of this make for us today? First of all, notice the 183 00:11:39,040 --> 00:11:43,720 contrast and the comparison here between the idols of Babylon and 184 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:48,680 how they were such a burden and the burden bearing God, the true 185 00:11:48,880 --> 00:11:51,000 God. You can see right here at the 186 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,840 start of chapter 46 Isaiah draws this stark contrast. 187 00:11:55,760 --> 00:12:01,960 Verses 1 and 2 bell bows down Nebo, Stoops. 188 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:08,000 Those were two of the the main Babylonian gods, and far from 189 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:13,800 acting and living and working, they are lame and inactive and 190 00:12:13,800 --> 00:12:18,240 they are burdens. They have to be LED around on, 191 00:12:18,480 --> 00:12:23,560 on beasts, weary beasts. They can't even move themselves. 192 00:12:24,120 --> 00:12:26,880 They certainly can't save anyone or save anything. 193 00:12:27,120 --> 00:12:30,240 They themselves, we are told here, have to bow down and 194 00:12:30,240 --> 00:12:35,240 stoop. In contrast and verses 3 and 4, 195 00:12:36,040 --> 00:12:42,400 God says listen my people, listen the people of God, I am 196 00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:46,080 the one who has created you. I knew you before you were even 197 00:12:46,080 --> 00:12:49,160 born. I am the one who carries you 198 00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:53,360 from the womb and I will continue carrying and caring for 199 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:58,920 you until you are old with Gray hair, even to the very end. 200 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:05,960 He says, I am the one who makes, who bears, who carries, and who 201 00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:11,560 saves. God continues by making a 202 00:13:11,560 --> 00:13:13,560 comparison in verses 5 through 11. 203 00:13:14,400 --> 00:13:18,200 He says, to whom or to what can you compare the Lord who, who is 204 00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:20,840 like me? He says, who is my equal? 205 00:13:21,160 --> 00:13:23,320 Is it? Is it the ones who who take 206 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:28,160 silver and gold and and use that to make an idol to make up their 207 00:13:28,160 --> 00:13:31,840 God and then they fall down and worship the very thing that 208 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,080 they've made? Those idols, he says, have to be 209 00:13:35,080 --> 00:13:37,520 lifted up and put on shoulders of people. 210 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:40,200 They have to be moved and carried around. 211 00:13:41,360 --> 00:13:44,560 The people put the idols in a place and then the idol just 212 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:47,640 sits there. It can't move on its own. 213 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:51,480 It can't respond to the cries, the cries of need, the cries of 214 00:13:51,480 --> 00:13:54,440 help, the cries of trouble. It certainly can't bring 215 00:13:54,440 --> 00:13:59,360 salvation to anyone. The Lord goes on in verses 8 to 216 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:02,520 11 to make his point. Those fake gods, those false 217 00:14:02,520 --> 00:14:04,480 idols, they can't compare with the Lord. 218 00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:10,440 He says remember, recall to mind, remember the things in the 219 00:14:10,440 --> 00:14:14,040 days of old. Remember the one true God. 220 00:14:14,040 --> 00:14:18,400 There is no other, there is none that compares with Him. 221 00:14:20,440 --> 00:14:24,640 Our God knows and declares the end from the beginning, from 222 00:14:24,640 --> 00:14:28,000 ancient times, the future. It is our God who told Adam and 223 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:32,800 Eve in the garden that a Messiah would come in Genesis chapter 3. 224 00:14:33,400 --> 00:14:37,200 It's our God who will be the one to raise up Cyrus, the the bird 225 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:40,560 of prey, as he's referred to here, the man of the Lord's 226 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:43,480 counsel, who would bring the destruction to Babylon. 227 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:48,800 It is our God, the one true God, not the false, ineffective 228 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:55,120 inanimate idols that will bring to pass the purposes of the 229 00:14:55,120 --> 00:14:58,080 Lord. So the Lord is speaking to his 230 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:01,400 people here. He's saying, listen the listen 231 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:06,120 to me, my people, remember, know that I am the Lord, the only 232 00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:09,600 God. The false idols of Babylon are 233 00:15:09,600 --> 00:15:14,280 just a burden, but I am the true God who bears the burdens of my 234 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:18,280 people. Then as we move into chapter 47, 235 00:15:18,280 --> 00:15:21,920 the focus shifts from this contrast and comparison between 236 00:15:21,920 --> 00:15:28,320 God and the idols to an announcement, a declaration of 237 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:31,800 the destruction of Babylon. You can see that as we move into 238 00:15:31,800 --> 00:15:36,200 chapter 47, the 1st 5 verses, we read about the utter humiliation 239 00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:40,480 of Babylon. Babylon here is personified as 240 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:44,320 as a woman, as a lady. And what are we told about her? 241 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:47,480 That she will sit in the dust of the ground rather than on a 242 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:51,480 royal throne. She'll no longer be tender and 243 00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:54,520 delicate. She'll live like a slave. 244 00:15:54,520 --> 00:15:57,760 That's the reference there to the millstone grinding flower. 245 00:15:59,080 --> 00:16:03,160 Her veil will be removed, her robe will be stripped off. 246 00:16:03,400 --> 00:16:06,440 She'll have to hike up her dress and walk through rivers on her 247 00:16:06,440 --> 00:16:10,840 own rather than being carried. Her nakedness will be uncovered 248 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:15,240 and she will be disgraced. She will sit in darkness and 249 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:18,840 silence and no longer have the titles that she once had. 250 00:16:19,640 --> 00:16:23,320 And notice he says that of all, all of this will happen because 251 00:16:23,320 --> 00:16:26,280 it's the Lord's doing. It is the Lord who will bring 252 00:16:26,280 --> 00:16:30,120 vengeance. It is the Lord of hosts, the 253 00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:33,360 Holy One of Israel, our Redeemer, who will accomplish 254 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:35,720 this. And he gives them reasons. 255 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:39,600 He he explains to them the causes of why this vengeance is 256 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:42,600 coming to them. The first is in verses 6:00 and 257 00:16:42,600 --> 00:16:47,080 7:00. The Lord said that to judge his 258 00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:49,080 people He was going to send them into exile. 259 00:16:49,080 --> 00:16:51,200 And he he gave the people to Babylon. 260 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:54,360 He used Babylon for his own purposes. 261 00:16:54,800 --> 00:16:58,080 But even though he was using Babylon for his own plan, it 262 00:16:58,080 --> 00:17:01,760 didn't mean that Babylon wasn't going to be judged too. 263 00:17:03,400 --> 00:17:06,280 Babylon was the means by which the Lord would discipline and 264 00:17:06,280 --> 00:17:09,119 judge His people. But the Babylonians went even 265 00:17:09,119 --> 00:17:12,160 further than what was needed. Notice what it says. 266 00:17:12,960 --> 00:17:22,040 They showed no mercy even on the aged and elderly vulnerable 267 00:17:22,040 --> 00:17:25,040 people in the society in the midst of them. 268 00:17:25,319 --> 00:17:28,280 They made their yoke exceedingly heavy. 269 00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:31,240 They didn't care for the vulnerable in their midst, but 270 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:34,800 they brought harm to them. We're cruel to them. 271 00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:39,040 But another reason why the vengeance is coming is at the 272 00:17:39,040 --> 00:17:42,080 beginning of verse 8. He calls them lovers of 273 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:44,240 pleasure. Now there's nothing wrong with 274 00:17:44,240 --> 00:17:47,000 pleasure in and of itself, but the sense here is that the 275 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:49,280 Babylonians were being driven by pleasure. 276 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:53,800 Pleasure was the end to be achieved at whatever cost. 277 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:58,120 Pleasure was more important than trusting and serving the one 278 00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:03,320 true God. Another reason the vengeance is 279 00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:05,640 coming and you can see it in verses 8 through 11. 280 00:18:06,360 --> 00:18:08,200 It's the pride of the Babylonians. 281 00:18:08,960 --> 00:18:11,200 Their pride and their arrogance was extreme. 282 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,800 Look, look at what is said here, the end of verse 8. 283 00:18:15,800 --> 00:18:21,360 They sit securely and they say to themselves, I am and there is 284 00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:25,840 no one besides me. Do you see the level of 285 00:18:25,840 --> 00:18:31,200 hypocrisy? Who is I am? 286 00:18:33,280 --> 00:18:37,320 That is the special name that God gave to His people for 287 00:18:37,320 --> 00:18:40,560 Himself. There is only one I AM. 288 00:18:40,760 --> 00:18:44,600 There is only one Yahweh, and it is not the Babylonians. 289 00:18:45,520 --> 00:18:50,840 It is the one true God. Notice also at the end of verse 290 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:53,240 8. They boast that they will never 291 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:56,520 have to experience the loss of a spouse or the death of a child, 292 00:18:57,400 --> 00:18:59,720 but the Lord goes on at the beginning of verse 9 to tell 293 00:18:59,720 --> 00:19:02,440 them that both of those things would brick come to pass. 294 00:19:05,240 --> 00:19:07,560 The end of verse 9 we're told that they relied on their 295 00:19:07,560 --> 00:19:11,480 sorceries and their enchantments to try to dictate and understand 296 00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:15,680 and know the future. Verse 10 They felt secure in 297 00:19:15,680 --> 00:19:18,120 their wickedness. They thought no one could see 298 00:19:18,120 --> 00:19:20,080 them, no one could measure up to them. 299 00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:24,760 And again they boast, I am, and there is no one besides me. 300 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:30,720 Verse 11. The Lord would send evil and 301 00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:35,840 disaster and ruin to come upon Babylon, and no charms, no magic 302 00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:40,680 would be able to help them. That's actually another reason 303 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:42,440 why the vengeance of the Lord is coming. 304 00:19:42,440 --> 00:19:44,640 It's their sorcery. You can see it in verses 12 305 00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:49,440 through 15 enchantments, sorceries, people who would gaze 306 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:52,720 into the sky and look at the stars and the moons and try to 307 00:19:52,720 --> 00:19:56,320 understand and know the future. And he says all of it is is 308 00:19:56,440 --> 00:20:00,240 futile. All of it will be like stubble 309 00:20:00,240 --> 00:20:04,960 in a fire. It will be consumed, not in any 310 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:09,560 way able to deliver you. And then he tells them the 311 00:20:09,560 --> 00:20:13,320 hardest stark words at the end. No one is coming to save them, 312 00:20:13,320 --> 00:20:15,480 not even people that they've known since their youth. 313 00:20:16,400 --> 00:20:20,080 No one, no one is coming to save them. 314 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:26,400 But I want you to notice that is not what is said to God's 315 00:20:26,400 --> 00:20:30,240 people. Look back at chapter 46, verses 316 00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:34,920 12 and 13 and notice these incredible words of God to His 317 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:38,200 people. The Babylonians had no one, no 318 00:20:38,200 --> 00:20:40,840 one coming to save them. But what does God tell His 319 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:44,200 people in chapter 46, verses 12 and 13? 320 00:20:44,480 --> 00:20:48,800 Listen to me, you stubborn of heart, you who are far from 321 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:53,480 righteousness. I bring near My righteousness. 322 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:57,400 It is not far off, and my salvation will not delay. 323 00:20:58,240 --> 00:21:03,320 I will put salvation in Zion for Israel, my glory. 324 00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:06,760 God's people had stubborn hearts. 325 00:21:07,120 --> 00:21:09,000 They were far from righteousness. 326 00:21:09,360 --> 00:21:12,040 They could never earn God's acceptance with their own 327 00:21:12,040 --> 00:21:14,400 righteousness. But the Lord calls on his people 328 00:21:14,400 --> 00:21:18,320 to listen. Listen, he says, because 329 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:21,480 although no one is going to come and rescue and redeem and save 330 00:21:21,480 --> 00:21:24,120 the Babylonians, the Lord promised He would bring 331 00:21:24,120 --> 00:21:28,000 salvation for His people. Even though the righteousness of 332 00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:32,160 God's people is far off, the Lord would bring His own 333 00:21:32,160 --> 00:21:34,720 righteousness, which was not far off. 334 00:21:35,720 --> 00:21:41,840 He would bring salvation to Zion for Israel, which was His glory. 335 00:21:44,920 --> 00:21:47,960 So what? What do we do with all of this 336 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:55,800 today? Four things. 4 hours Receive. 337 00:21:57,360 --> 00:22:06,120 Remember, root out and restore. First of all, receive. 338 00:22:06,120 --> 00:22:10,080 Receive what? Receive the righteousness of 339 00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:15,960 God. Isn't this remarkable? 340 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:21,760 Isn't this amazing? The gospel of God's grace and 341 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:26,520 mercy is so clearly proclaimed in the book of Isaiah, 700 years 342 00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:30,640 before Jesus arrived. Do you see what is being said 343 00:22:30,640 --> 00:22:32,640 here? The people aren't righteous in 344 00:22:32,640 --> 00:22:35,560 themselves. They are stubborn hearted 345 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:38,240 sinners. But the Lord declares them 346 00:22:38,240 --> 00:22:41,400 righteous. Through His righteousness He 347 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:45,520 redeems them. The Apostle Paul unfolds and 348 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:49,560 unpacks this for us and even more clarity in Romans chapter, 349 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:52,240 excuse me, Romans chapter 3 and verse 21. 350 00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:55,760 He says, but now the righteousness of God has been 351 00:22:55,760 --> 00:22:59,320 manifested apart from the law. Although the law and the 352 00:22:59,320 --> 00:23:03,400 prophets bear witness to it. The righteousness of God through 353 00:23:03,400 --> 00:23:07,560 faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe, for there is no 354 00:23:07,560 --> 00:23:11,000 distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of 355 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:15,760 God, and are justified by His grace as a gift through the 356 00:23:15,760 --> 00:23:19,680 redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a 357 00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:23,680 propitiation by His blood to be received by faith. 358 00:23:23,920 --> 00:23:27,160 This was to show God's righteousness because in His 359 00:23:27,160 --> 00:23:30,600 divine forbearance He had passed over former sins. 360 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:34,720 It was to show His righteousness at the present time so that He 361 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:39,960 might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in 362 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:42,640 Jesus. Do you see what Isaiah is 363 00:23:42,680 --> 00:23:45,400 proclaiming, what God is proclaiming through Isaiah to 364 00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:49,120 his people, that we see Paul unpacking for us that the 365 00:23:49,120 --> 00:23:52,800 righteousness of God has been manifested, that the law and the 366 00:23:52,800 --> 00:23:55,240 prophets, the Old Testament tells us about it. 367 00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:59,040 All have sins, all have stubborn hearts. 368 00:23:59,600 --> 00:24:02,720 Everyone falls short of the glory of God, of obeying God's 369 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:05,960 word. But through faith in Jesus, we 370 00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:09,240 are justified by the gift of God's grace. 371 00:24:09,840 --> 00:24:13,320 We are declared righteous in God's sight because of the work 372 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:17,480 of Jesus on the cross. Jesus came to be the 373 00:24:17,480 --> 00:24:20,280 propitiation for us. That's a a big word. 374 00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:22,880 That means that through his blood, through his sacrifice on 375 00:24:22,880 --> 00:24:26,920 the cross, God's wrath and judgment is turned away from us 376 00:24:27,720 --> 00:24:33,120 and it is put on Christ. And now we get the righteousness 377 00:24:33,120 --> 00:24:38,240 of God credited to us simply by faith, by believing and trusting 378 00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:41,600 in Jesus. Have you received the 379 00:24:41,600 --> 00:24:48,920 righteousness of God? It's the only way to be accepted 380 00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:50,320 by God. It's the only way to go to 381 00:24:50,320 --> 00:24:54,600 heaven. You get it by putting your faith 382 00:24:54,600 --> 00:24:57,920 in the Lord Jesus Christ and believing in who he who he is 383 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:03,480 and all that he accomplished receive the righteousness of 384 00:25:03,480 --> 00:25:08,760 God. Secondly, remember, Remember 385 00:25:08,760 --> 00:25:14,440 what the Lord regularly tells His people, like in verses 8 386 00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:18,720 through 10 of chapter 46. Here, like in Psalm 143 that we 387 00:25:18,720 --> 00:25:22,000 read earlier in the service, the the Lord regularly tells these 388 00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:27,880 people, remember, recall, remember what? 389 00:25:28,080 --> 00:25:32,920 Remember the Lord. Remember and reflect on His 390 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:36,960 faithfulness in the past. The people back then had the 391 00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:40,160 stories in the history of God's faithfulness to his covenant 392 00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:44,000 promises to his people going all the way back to the Garden of 393 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:47,720 Eden. And he called on his people to 394 00:25:47,720 --> 00:25:52,480 remember back to, to bring to mind, to, to recall all that God 395 00:25:52,480 --> 00:25:56,240 had done and said in order that they might trust that he would 396 00:25:56,240 --> 00:25:59,960 continue to be at work saving and securing and caring for his 397 00:25:59,960 --> 00:26:02,720 people, the brothers and sisters in Christ. 398 00:26:02,720 --> 00:26:05,920 How much more so is that true for God's people today? 399 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:10,160 We have the entire story. We have the beginning and the 400 00:26:10,200 --> 00:26:13,000 end. And the Lord calls on us to 401 00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:17,200 remember as well to, to look back and to recall all that God 402 00:26:17,200 --> 00:26:20,840 has said and all that he has done, His faithfulness, His 403 00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:24,800 goodness, His love, His care, His protection, his preservation 404 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:30,320 of his people. That helps us in various ways to 405 00:26:30,320 --> 00:26:38,400 do that when we're doubting. Does God really love me? 406 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:46,120 Can God actually forgive me? Again, when we're doubting, when 407 00:26:46,560 --> 00:26:50,080 without, we remember these things and it helps us to trust 408 00:26:50,080 --> 00:26:53,560 the Lord when, when He's at work in our lives in ways that we 409 00:26:53,560 --> 00:26:55,480 don't understand or we don't like it. 410 00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:58,720 It helps us to trust and to rest in His purposes for us. 411 00:26:58,880 --> 00:27:00,840 We know the faithfulness of our God. 412 00:27:01,360 --> 00:27:04,360 We know the goodness of our God. We know the grace of our God. 413 00:27:04,360 --> 00:27:06,840 We can trust Him even when we're doubting. 414 00:27:09,120 --> 00:27:13,480 It also helps us when we are in seasons of discouragement being 415 00:27:13,480 --> 00:27:17,280 down. We remember the work and the 416 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:21,200 words and the promises of the Lord, and it can fill us with 417 00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:25,720 hope and comfort and peace. So the question is, how do we 418 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,920 remember the Lord? How do we reflect? 419 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,040 How do we recall on the Lord? Well, the Lord's given us some 420 00:27:32,040 --> 00:27:34,320 very specific tools to do just that. 421 00:27:35,120 --> 00:27:36,640 They're called the means of grace. 422 00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:40,440 We can read his Word and meditate upon it. 423 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:43,800 We can spend time talking to the Lord in prayer. 424 00:27:44,640 --> 00:27:47,880 We can come to corporate worship with God's people regularly, 425 00:27:48,000 --> 00:27:51,320 hearing God's Word preached and participating in the sacraments 426 00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:54,360 of the church. We can spend time with God's 427 00:27:54,360 --> 00:27:56,920 people and be in fellowship with them. 428 00:27:57,440 --> 00:28:00,560 These are all gracious and generous gifts the Lord has 429 00:28:00,560 --> 00:28:06,840 given His people to help us to remember, to recall, to reflect. 430 00:28:08,800 --> 00:28:11,360 We are to receive the Lord's righteousness. 431 00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:17,680 We are to remember the Lord. Thirdly, root out. 432 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:23,440 Root out what? Well, the two big issues that 433 00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:26,120 the Lord addressed for Babylon were their idols and their 434 00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:31,400 pride. We need to root the idols of our 435 00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:34,560 lives out. Our idols are obviously 436 00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:37,680 different from the Babylonian idols or even the idols that 437 00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:41,800 God's people used on occasion, but they are no less harmful and 438 00:28:41,800 --> 00:28:47,640 they are no less damaging to us. As John Calvin said, our hearts 439 00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:52,760 are idol factories. We have the ability to make 440 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:56,360 almost anything, even good things, into an idol that we 441 00:28:56,360 --> 00:29:00,800 worship and trust more than God. We can do that with 442 00:29:00,800 --> 00:29:04,240 relationships, whether that's with a spouse, a child, or a 443 00:29:04,240 --> 00:29:06,440 parent. We can do that with our 444 00:29:06,440 --> 00:29:11,720 vocational success and attainment, name recognition, 445 00:29:12,920 --> 00:29:19,760 finances, political ideology. We can do it with our church, we 446 00:29:19,760 --> 00:29:25,040 can do it with our theology, and those are all good things, 447 00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:29,600 things that we can be tempted to turn into ultimate things, let 448 00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:32,560 alone the negative things that we make into idols in our lives, 449 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:37,680 like addiction to alcohol, painkillers, pornography, 450 00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:42,080 gambling. What are the idols of your 451 00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:48,320 heart? What are the things that you 452 00:29:48,320 --> 00:29:51,320 worship other than the Lord? What are the things that you 453 00:29:51,320 --> 00:29:56,280 rest in more than the Lord? It's pretty clear in Isaiah what 454 00:29:56,280 --> 00:30:01,600 the Lord thinks of idols. We must root them out of our 455 00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:05,480 lives. But it's not just rooting out 456 00:30:05,480 --> 00:30:07,440 idols. It's also rooting out pride. 457 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:13,080 Now maybe our pride hasn't risen to the level of the Babylonians. 458 00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:17,320 I doubt very seriously anybody here in this room would proclaim 459 00:30:17,360 --> 00:30:20,840 I am and there is no other God besides me. 460 00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:27,800 But even lesser pride is deadly and can cause us to fall and can 461 00:30:27,800 --> 00:30:32,640 form rot in our hearts. We say it regularly. 462 00:30:33,440 --> 00:30:37,600 Of all people, God's people who understand and believe the 463 00:30:37,600 --> 00:30:41,720 gospel of God's grace should be the most humble people of all. 464 00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:47,120 How is your pride? How is the pride of your heart? 465 00:30:48,840 --> 00:30:52,880 Don't let it linger, Don't let it fester, Don't let it grow. 466 00:30:52,880 --> 00:30:54,840 Don't. Don't nurture it and think of it 467 00:30:54,840 --> 00:30:59,920 as insignificance, but instead, with intention and ruthlessness, 468 00:31:00,160 --> 00:31:03,520 root it out of your life. Root it out of your head and 469 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:06,760 your heart. Repent of it and turn away from 470 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:12,160 it and turn humbly back to the Lord and humbly love and serve 471 00:31:12,160 --> 00:31:17,640 others. Receive, remember, root out. 472 00:31:18,360 --> 00:31:28,000 Lastly, restore, restore what? Well, I needed another R, and 473 00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:30,040 this is the one that the thesaurus gave me. 474 00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:33,360 But the sense of what I mean here is this. 475 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:39,600 God's people are called to take care of the vulnerable, to 476 00:31:39,600 --> 00:31:41,480 restore the vulnerable in our midst. 477 00:31:42,920 --> 00:31:45,880 The Babylonians were cruel. They lacked mercy, and they took 478 00:31:45,880 --> 00:31:49,280 advantage of and didn't care for the vulnerable in their midst. 479 00:31:50,480 --> 00:31:53,080 And God's people are called to restore and to care for the 480 00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:55,600 vulnerable and those in need around us. 481 00:31:57,200 --> 00:32:00,320 As we close this morning, can I share with you just an example 482 00:32:00,320 --> 00:32:03,760 of how that was happening this week and an example also of ways 483 00:32:03,760 --> 00:32:07,720 that you could participate in in caring for the vulnerable? 484 00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:12,120 This past week, our Trinity Care Portal team did a couple of 485 00:32:12,120 --> 00:32:14,400 deliveries. Now, if you don't remember, Care 486 00:32:14,400 --> 00:32:16,240 Portal is a network of Christians. 487 00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:20,040 They received legitimate, genuine needs of people that are 488 00:32:20,040 --> 00:32:22,120 in our community. These are needs that are vetted 489 00:32:22,400 --> 00:32:25,200 by social workers, law enforcement officers, nurses, 490 00:32:25,200 --> 00:32:28,880 social services, and then those vetted needs are sent out to the 491 00:32:28,880 --> 00:32:32,920 network of churches and the churches choose to take on 492 00:32:32,920 --> 00:32:35,040 specific needs and to meet those needs. 493 00:32:36,120 --> 00:32:40,000 On Tuesday, we earlier this week we found out about a need in our 494 00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:43,880 community, a single mom with four kids. 495 00:32:44,880 --> 00:32:49,160 The mom and the kids had fled domestic violence situation, 496 00:32:49,160 --> 00:32:51,280 horrific domestic violence situation. 497 00:32:51,280 --> 00:32:54,760 They had been living in various temporary places, even in a 498 00:32:54,760 --> 00:32:58,320 hotel for months. Through the help of social 499 00:32:58,320 --> 00:33:01,240 services, an apartment for the family was secured and they were 500 00:33:01,240 --> 00:33:05,120 going to move in this week because they had fled the 501 00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:08,000 domestic violence situation so quickly and because of some 502 00:33:08,000 --> 00:33:09,920 other difficult circumstances in their life. 503 00:33:09,920 --> 00:33:17,120 They had very, very little. No furniture, very little if any 504 00:33:17,120 --> 00:33:23,880 kitchen supplies, kitchen utensils, plates, glasses, very 505 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:28,400 few toys for the kids. Our team met up with some other 506 00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:30,880 Christians of another good church here in town and 507 00:33:30,880 --> 00:33:33,400 delivered an entire truck full of furniture that had been 508 00:33:33,400 --> 00:33:38,400 donated and then spent time helping to get everything set up 509 00:33:38,400 --> 00:33:41,320 and put together. And as our team interacted with 510 00:33:41,320 --> 00:33:44,320 the mom and the kids, we started to see some additional needs in 511 00:33:44,320 --> 00:33:47,320 the family. So somebody on the team got went 512 00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:49,520 and got some fresh fruit and brought it to the house. 513 00:33:49,880 --> 00:33:53,640 Another person on the team donated the mom 4 pairs of shoes 514 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:56,520 and a bag of clothing and the mom said that's more shoes than 515 00:33:56,520 --> 00:34:01,080 she's ever had. Someone heard that one of the 516 00:34:01,080 --> 00:34:04,040 kids had a birthday yesterday, which back then was coming up. 517 00:34:05,040 --> 00:34:08,199 So somebody on the team went and got a cake and bought some gifts 518 00:34:08,199 --> 00:34:11,199 and some toys and it all got delivered Friday night before 519 00:34:11,199 --> 00:34:15,440 the birthday on Saturday. Someone provided extra kitchen 520 00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:19,400 supplies and utensils and plates and cups and cooking utensils. 521 00:34:20,520 --> 00:34:23,719 Someone provided a a quilt they had made. 522 00:34:25,120 --> 00:34:28,239 And along the way, the mom and the kids were hearing that all 523 00:34:28,239 --> 00:34:31,800 of this was being done by Christians who love Jesus and 524 00:34:31,800 --> 00:34:35,199 who believe that they're called to care for and restore the 525 00:34:35,199 --> 00:34:39,000 vulnerable in those in need. Our team even got to pray with 526 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:43,560 the mom. Later last week, our team heard 527 00:34:43,560 --> 00:34:45,040 about another need in the community. 528 00:34:45,040 --> 00:34:48,440 It was a homeless family that was in need of some winter gear. 529 00:34:48,760 --> 00:34:52,719 It's getting cold. This family didn't have the the 530 00:34:52,719 --> 00:34:54,760 winter gear that they needed to have. 531 00:34:55,800 --> 00:34:59,280 So one of our team on top of the fact that they are homeless, 532 00:34:59,280 --> 00:35:02,560 three of the five family members have a neurological disorder 533 00:35:02,560 --> 00:35:05,160 that causes embarrassing symptoms. 534 00:35:06,240 --> 00:35:09,320 One of our team members took a bunch of winter things to the 535 00:35:09,320 --> 00:35:11,600 nurse that was overseeing this family. 536 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:18,240 When the nurse, the nurse then told us that as she let the dad 537 00:35:18,240 --> 00:35:20,400 know all the things that had been brought, the dad began to 538 00:35:20,400 --> 00:35:23,680 weep. The nurse was so moved that she 539 00:35:23,680 --> 00:35:27,120 handwrote a note back to our team thanking us for caring for 540 00:35:27,120 --> 00:35:31,080 people in the community. These are these are easy and yet 541 00:35:31,080 --> 00:35:35,160 meaningful ways for God's people to care for and restore the 542 00:35:35,160 --> 00:35:37,440 vulnerable and those in need in our community. 543 00:35:37,440 --> 00:35:41,120 Would you, would you consider joining our Care Portal team? 544 00:35:43,520 --> 00:35:46,720 Would you consider thinking about donating some funds for 545 00:35:46,720 --> 00:35:50,120 the team to use and meeting the needs in the community or even 546 00:35:50,120 --> 00:35:53,880 donating things that we can put in our care portal storage unit 547 00:35:53,880 --> 00:35:56,280 that we could use to give away in the future? 548 00:35:56,280 --> 00:36:00,800 If you'd like to do any of that, speak with Ethan Calvert and he 549 00:36:00,800 --> 00:36:02,960 can help you to understand how you can plug in. 550 00:36:03,920 --> 00:36:06,920 Let me mention just one last way that we can be involved in 551 00:36:06,920 --> 00:36:09,920 restoring and caring for the the vulnerable in our midst. 552 00:36:10,520 --> 00:36:13,480 I'd encourage you to go on to our church website and to check 553 00:36:13,480 --> 00:36:16,480 out our own Alongside Orphans page that's on our website. 554 00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:20,400 There are all kinds of resources listed there, both local 555 00:36:20,400 --> 00:36:23,360 resources and and global resources. 556 00:36:23,720 --> 00:36:27,200 Organizations that like Together for Good here in Rochester 557 00:36:27,200 --> 00:36:30,280 that's getting restarted that that are seeking to serve and 558 00:36:30,280 --> 00:36:34,240 support what God is doing and ministering to the vulnerable in 559 00:36:34,240 --> 00:36:37,560 our communities. At the very least, you can find 560 00:36:37,560 --> 00:36:40,800 out what organizations are doing so you can be praying for them, 561 00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:44,480 but maybe even supporting or getting involved with them. 562 00:36:47,640 --> 00:36:49,520 Receive the righteousness of God. 563 00:36:50,520 --> 00:36:54,280 Remember the Lord who He is, what He has said, what He has 564 00:36:54,280 --> 00:36:57,400 done. Root out the idols and the pride 565 00:36:57,400 --> 00:37:03,480 in your heart and restore care for the vulnerable and those in 566 00:37:03,480 --> 00:37:05,720 need. Let's pray together. 567 00:37:13,320 --> 00:37:17,080 Father, as we read your word in the book of Isaiah, at times it 568 00:37:17,080 --> 00:37:25,640 can feel so distant from us. Distant in time, distant in 569 00:37:25,680 --> 00:37:30,080 location, distant in culture, distant in how you were at work 570 00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:34,120 with your people. And yet we see so many ways that 571 00:37:34,120 --> 00:37:39,440 it applies to your people today. So Father, give us eyes to see. 572 00:37:41,120 --> 00:37:43,440 We pray that you would use your word through the work of the 573 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:49,800 Holy Spirit to actually change us, to make us look and sound 574 00:37:49,800 --> 00:37:54,560 and act more and more like our Savior as we seek to glorify you 575 00:37:55,280 --> 00:37:59,040 and serve you and obey you and love you. 576 00:37:59,960 --> 00:38:02,680 All this we ask in Jesus name, Amen.