1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,200 I would invite you to take your Bibles and turn with me to the 2 00:00:02,200 --> 00:00:05,400 Old Testament book of Isaiah. We're going to be looking at 3 00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:09,160 chapter 60 today. You can find that on page 619 in 4 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:11,720 the red Bibles and the chairs around you. 5 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:13,840 If you're visiting with us today. 6 00:00:13,840 --> 00:00:16,720 We have been studying this book of Isaiah. 7 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:22,560 It's a long book, 6066 chapters, and we've been looking at it for 8 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:24,040 the better part of a year and a half. 9 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:28,040 And months and months ago when I was planning out the final 10 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:32,320 chapters and when we would cover what chapter on what Sunday, I 11 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:35,480 realized that chapter 60 was going to fall on Easter Sunday. 12 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:39,160 Now, as we read chapter 60, you're going to see how that put 13 00:00:39,160 --> 00:00:42,600 a smile on my face without having to plan for it. 14 00:00:42,920 --> 00:00:45,720 God and His Providence decided that this is what we should read 15 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:47,880 today. This is what we should think 16 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:50,120 about today. This is what we should be 17 00:00:50,120 --> 00:00:53,520 changed by today. Listen as I read to you from 18 00:00:53,520 --> 00:01:00,880 Isaiah chapter 60. Arise, shine, for your light has 19 00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:05,280 come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. 20 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:09,400 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, in thick darkness the 21 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:12,360 peoples. But the Lord will arise upon 22 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:17,320 you, and His glory will be seen upon you, And nations shall come 23 00:01:17,320 --> 00:01:21,000 to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. 24 00:01:21,840 --> 00:01:24,200 Lift up your eyes all around and see. 25 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:27,360 They all gather together. They come to you. 26 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:30,400 Your son shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be 27 00:01:30,400 --> 00:01:33,880 carried on the hip. Then you shall see and be 28 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:36,720 radiant. Your heart shall thrill and 29 00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:40,560 exalt, because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you. 30 00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:43,720 The wealth of the nations shall come to you. 31 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:46,720 A multitude of camels shall cover you. 32 00:01:46,960 --> 00:01:51,040 The young camels of Midian and Effa, all those from Sheba shall 33 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:53,320 come. They shall bring gold and 34 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:56,720 frankincense and shall bring good news, the praises of the 35 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,520 Lord. All the flocks of Kedar should 36 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:02,720 be shall be gathered to you. The Rams of Navy off shall 37 00:02:02,760 --> 00:02:04,960 minister to you. They shall come up with 38 00:02:04,960 --> 00:02:09,039 acceptance of on my altar, and I will beautify my beautiful 39 00:02:09,039 --> 00:02:11,520 house. Who are these that fly like a 40 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,760 cloud and like doves to their windows? 41 00:02:14,200 --> 00:02:17,840 For the coastland shall hope for me the ships of Tarshish. 42 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:20,280 First, to bring your children from afar. 43 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:22,360 There's silver and gold with them. 44 00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:25,560 For the name of the Lord your God, and for the Holy One of 45 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:28,160 Israel, because he has made You Beautiful. 46 00:02:28,840 --> 00:02:31,960 Foreigners shall build up your walls, and their kings shall 47 00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:35,240 minister to you. For in my wrath I struck you, 48 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:38,760 but in my favor I have had mercy on you. 49 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:43,600 Your gates shall be continually open, continually, day and 50 00:02:43,600 --> 00:02:45,680 night. They shall not be shut, that 51 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,960 people may bring to you the wealth of the nations with their 52 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,800 kings LED in procession. For the nation and Kingdom that 53 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:56,560 will not serve you shall perish. Those nations shall be utterly 54 00:02:56,560 --> 00:02:59,600 laid waste. The glory of Lebanon shall come 55 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:03,400 to you, the Cypress, the plain, and the pine, to beautify the 56 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:07,000 place of my sanctuary, and I will make the place of my feet 57 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:10,000 glorious. The sons of those who afflicted 58 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:11,640 you shall come bending low to you. 59 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:15,160 All who despised you shall bow down at your feet. 60 00:03:15,680 --> 00:03:19,720 They shall call you the city of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy 61 00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:23,400 One of Israel. Whereas you have been forsaken 62 00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:25,720 and hated with no one passing through. 63 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:30,400 I will make you majestic forever, a joy from age to age. 64 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:32,560 You shall. You shall suck the milk of 65 00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:35,920 nations, you shall nurse at the breast of kings, and you shall 66 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:40,720 know that I, the Lord and your Savior, and your Redeemer, the 67 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:44,040 Mighty One of Jacob. Instead of bronze I will bring 68 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:46,280 gold. Instead of iron, I will bring 69 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:48,880 silver. Instead of wood bronze, instead 70 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:52,320 of stones, iron. I will make your overseers peace 71 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:55,320 and your taskmasters righteous righteousness. 72 00:03:55,920 --> 00:04:00,360 Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or 73 00:04:00,360 --> 00:04:04,200 destruction within your borders. You shall call your walls 74 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:06,480 salvation, and your gates praise. 75 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:11,520 The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness 76 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:14,560 shall the moon give you light, but the Lord will be your 77 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:18,079 everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. 78 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:22,800 Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself, 79 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:26,280 for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days 80 00:04:26,280 --> 00:04:30,800 of mourning shall be ended. Your people shall be righteous, 81 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:33,160 shall all be righteous. They shall possess the land 82 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:37,320 forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, 83 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:40,840 that I might be glorified. The least one shall become a 84 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:43,760 clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation. 85 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:49,200 I am the Lord, and it's time I will hasten it. 86 00:04:50,360 --> 00:05:00,260 Let's pray together. Father, thank you for the 87 00:05:00,260 --> 00:05:04,460 wonders of Your word as we take a few moments and meditate upon 88 00:05:04,460 --> 00:05:06,220 it today. We pray for the work of the Holy 89 00:05:06,220 --> 00:05:10,260 Spirit in these moments as we read it, as we think about it. 90 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:13,560 We pray that you would open our eyes and our hearts to see and 91 00:05:13,560 --> 00:05:15,800 to receive what you want us to see and receive. 92 00:05:16,760 --> 00:05:20,200 We pray that you would even be pleased to change us here in 93 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:22,520 these moments through the work of your Spirit. 94 00:05:23,920 --> 00:05:26,360 We pray all this in Jesus name, Amen. 95 00:05:32,350 --> 00:05:34,390 Many of you are probably familiar with the name John 96 00:05:34,390 --> 00:05:39,310 Huss. Huss was a 14th and 15th century 97 00:05:39,590 --> 00:05:42,550 check forerunner to the Reformation. 98 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:46,760 He was convinced that there were a number of errors being taught 99 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:50,320 by the church at that time, and he taught and he wrote 100 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:55,280 extensively about it. In 1415, a council was called by 101 00:05:55,280 --> 00:05:59,720 the church, the Council of Constance and Haas was invited 102 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:05,920 to come to this council and to defend his grievances against 103 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:09,160 the disagreements with the church, and he was promised 104 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:12,400 safety while he was there at the council. 105 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:16,040 But instead, after he arrived, he was apprehended, he was 106 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:19,840 arrested, he was chained, and eventually he was condemned by 107 00:06:19,840 --> 00:06:22,680 the church. He spent a good amount of time 108 00:06:23,240 --> 00:06:26,360 imprisoned. His conditions were miserable, 109 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:30,960 he he became sick, he was isolated, and he was all alone. 110 00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:34,440 Hus knew that he would almost certainly be executed 111 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,080 eventually. From every outward perspective, 112 00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:45,120 Hus's life was darkness. And yet, from his prison cell, 113 00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:48,240 he wrote a number of letters to friends and to family members. 114 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:53,560 And he wrote with an unshakable peace and even a measure of joy, 115 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:58,240 encouraging his friends and family to not lose heart. 116 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:03,560 He spoke of Jesus Christ as his sure hope, and he faced death 117 00:07:04,120 --> 00:07:09,480 with an unmovable confidence. It's said that near the time of 118 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:12,560 his execution, he told the leaders of the church this You 119 00:07:12,560 --> 00:07:16,600 may kill a goose, that's what Huss's name means in Czech. 120 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:23,280 You may kill a goose, but in a century will arise a swan that 121 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,760 you will not be able to silence. Now, whether he actually said 122 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:31,560 that exact sentence or not, his belief in conviction was clear. 123 00:07:31,560 --> 00:07:36,480 He knew the end of the story, that his suffering, that his 124 00:07:36,480 --> 00:07:40,200 pain, that his persecution and even his death was not the end 125 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:45,120 of the story because Jesus had rose from the grave, He had been 126 00:07:45,120 --> 00:07:49,600 resurrected and in the end God wins. 127 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:56,080 On July 6th, 1415, at 46 years of age, Hus was burned at the 128 00:07:56,080 --> 00:07:59,480 stake. It is said that he died singing 129 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:02,920 about the certainty of God's grace and mercy and the coming 130 00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:07,760 of the Kingdom of God. He was able to live with hope in 131 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:11,000 the midst of his present darkness because he was he. 132 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:14,680 He was experiencing and he knew what the end of the story was. 133 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,640 The people that were hearing Isaiah's words for the first 134 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:20,760 time were also in a time of great darkness. 135 00:08:20,760 --> 00:08:23,640 They had rebelled against the Lord, They had walked away from 136 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:27,120 following him, and the Lord had sent them into exile, first to 137 00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:30,920 Assyria and then to Babylon. They had lost their freedom, 138 00:08:31,040 --> 00:08:34,039 they had lost their home, they had lost their temple, they had 139 00:08:34,039 --> 00:08:38,000 lost their way of life. The Lord, we read last week, the 140 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:41,799 Lord turned his face from them and he left them to their own 141 00:08:41,799 --> 00:08:44,039 devices. And eventually the people began 142 00:08:44,039 --> 00:08:48,080 to wonder, has the Lord finally and fully abandoned them? 143 00:08:49,280 --> 00:08:52,920 Has he forsaken them? And this last part of Isaiah's 144 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:56,160 book is focusing on reminding God's people that are in the 145 00:08:56,160 --> 00:09:01,400 midst of such darkness that he would never forsake them, that 146 00:09:01,400 --> 00:09:04,720 he would send a great and powerful servant Redeemer to 147 00:09:04,720 --> 00:09:09,920 rescue and to redeem them. Pointing first to their rescue 148 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:12,760 from their exile in return to the promised land, but pointing 149 00:09:13,000 --> 00:09:16,360 to a much bigger and greater redemption that they would 150 00:09:16,360 --> 00:09:21,040 experience in the future to a much greater promised land. 151 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,320 A place where the Lord would remove all suffering and 152 00:09:24,320 --> 00:09:27,840 mourning and grief and sin, A place where the Lord would be 153 00:09:28,120 --> 00:09:31,400 their light. The Lord's point. 154 00:09:31,640 --> 00:09:34,400 And telling his people about the end of the story, about the 155 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:38,560 glory to come, was to give them hope and strength and even joy 156 00:09:38,800 --> 00:09:43,600 that is needed to be able to persevere in the present, in the 157 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:48,400 midst of hardship, in darkness. And that's what we need to hear 158 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:54,160 again and again as well, how God's story, His story of his 159 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:57,520 eternal, almighty and sovereign plan ends. 160 00:09:58,640 --> 00:10:03,360 Light overcomes the darkness. The city of God is restored. 161 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:05,640 The people of God are transformed. 162 00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:10,800 In the end, God wins and evil and sin and death are defeated 163 00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:16,440 and God's people live forever in light and glory of the Lord 164 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:20,360 because of the life and the death and the resurrection of 165 00:10:20,360 --> 00:10:24,400 the Lord Jesus for God's people, the story ends with glory. 166 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:28,560 That's what we read as we come to Isaiah 60. 167 00:10:28,560 --> 00:10:32,200 So let's reflect on this passage for just a few moments and let's 168 00:10:32,200 --> 00:10:35,400 look and see how it tells us about how the light overcomes 169 00:10:35,400 --> 00:10:38,400 the darkness. The city of God is restored, and 170 00:10:38,400 --> 00:10:41,200 the people of God are transformed. 171 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:45,040 Now, before we jump into the passage, let's just remember 172 00:10:45,040 --> 00:10:48,560 that there are multiple timelines going on when we read 173 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:52,000 Isaiah's prophecies. At this point in the book of 174 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,200 Isaiah, he's writing to God's people who were at exile in 175 00:10:55,200 --> 00:10:57,640 Babylon. And certainly as he's writing 176 00:10:57,640 --> 00:11:01,160 these words, he is talking here about the return from exile that 177 00:11:01,160 --> 00:11:04,040 the people would experience the the going back to the promised 178 00:11:04,040 --> 00:11:06,680 land. But as we've already heard, and 179 00:11:06,680 --> 00:11:10,760 as we'll see as we look at the verses, chapter 60 of Isaiah is 180 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:13,920 bigger than just that event of going back to the Promised Land. 181 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:18,520 There are also foreshadowings here in chapter 60 about the 182 00:11:18,520 --> 00:11:22,560 arrival of the promised Redeemer, pointing us to when 183 00:11:22,560 --> 00:11:27,240 Jesus would come and accomplish his mission of redemption. 184 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:30,520 I don't know how you can't think of Jesus when you hear about 185 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:34,320 gold and frankincense being brought from the nations into 186 00:11:34,320 --> 00:11:38,440 Israel. But as we read these verses, 187 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:40,800 there's a third timeline. Not just in the moment, the 188 00:11:40,800 --> 00:11:46,040 return from exile, not just pointing to Jesus. 1/3 timeline 189 00:11:46,440 --> 00:11:50,960 of the end of time itself, when Jesus returns for the second 190 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:55,240 time, when all mourning and sadness and grieving and pain 191 00:11:55,240 --> 00:11:57,680 and sin and death will be finished. 192 00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:03,640 We can see that third timeline as we begin reading the first 193 00:12:03,640 --> 00:12:07,520 verses of Isaiah 60. Look at verses 1-2 and three. 194 00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:12,000 Arise, shine. For your light has come, and the 195 00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:14,880 glory of the Lord has risen upon you. 196 00:12:15,360 --> 00:12:18,560 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness 197 00:12:18,560 --> 00:12:21,280 the peoples. But the Lord will arise upon 198 00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:25,200 you, and his glory will be seen upon you, and the nation shall 199 00:12:25,200 --> 00:12:29,160 come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. 200 00:12:31,280 --> 00:12:36,520 Light overcomes the darkness. If you if you remember back in 201 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:40,200 all the way back in chapter 6 of Isaiah, we saw the glory of the 202 00:12:40,200 --> 00:12:45,880 Lord being displayed. We saw the seraphim singing back 203 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:48,520 to one another. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of 204 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:51,040 hosts. The whole earth is full of his 205 00:12:51,040 --> 00:12:52,120 glory. They sang. 206 00:12:52,760 --> 00:12:56,280 But back then the holiness and the glory of the Lord caused 207 00:12:56,280 --> 00:13:00,640 Isaiah to tremble. He pronounced woe upon himself 208 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:04,840 because of his sin. But notice here in chapter 60 209 00:13:05,240 --> 00:13:08,160 pointing forward to what is coming when Jesus returns. 210 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:11,680 The glory of the Lord has risen upon His people. 211 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:17,000 The glory of the Lord will be seen upon the people of God. 212 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:21,120 Darkness that is covering the earth, thick darkness that is 213 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:24,520 covering the people will be overcome by the light of the 214 00:13:24,520 --> 00:13:28,640 glory of the Lord. And notice here the nations, 215 00:13:29,400 --> 00:13:31,360 they'll be attracted to that light in verse three. 216 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:34,360 Nations and kings shall come to the brightness of the light, 217 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:37,840 we're told. Then we come to verses 4 through 218 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:41,000 9 and it gives us a picture of God's people coming home from 219 00:13:41,000 --> 00:13:45,120 exile, but even more than that, a picture of God's people and 220 00:13:45,120 --> 00:13:49,520 people from all nations being drawn to the bright light in 221 00:13:49,520 --> 00:13:52,400 heaven, the glory of the Lord Isaiah. 222 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,400 If you notice in verses 5 through 9, Isaiah mentioned 223 00:13:55,400 --> 00:13:57,080 several different locations there. 224 00:13:57,520 --> 00:14:00,160 He's pointing to the reality that people will come from 225 00:14:00,160 --> 00:14:03,080 everywhere to the light of the glory of God. 226 00:14:03,080 --> 00:14:05,600 The wealth of the nations will be brought in. 227 00:14:07,200 --> 00:14:10,480 The Holy One of Israel, the Lord of the Lord our God, will make 228 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:13,000 his people beautiful. It says at the end of verse 9. 229 00:14:14,200 --> 00:14:17,560 This is an incredible picture here that we are being given of 230 00:14:17,560 --> 00:14:21,360 the light of the glory of God overcoming the darkness of the 231 00:14:21,360 --> 00:14:25,800 world, of the glory of the Lord rising upon his his people 232 00:14:26,680 --> 00:14:30,880 making his people beautiful, and the nations being attracted to 233 00:14:30,880 --> 00:14:34,560 that light. Then as we move to the middle 234 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:38,040 part of the passage in verses 10 through 14, we see this picture 235 00:14:38,040 --> 00:14:40,240 of the city of God being restored. 236 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:43,920 Again, it would have been encouraging to the people who 237 00:14:43,920 --> 00:14:46,320 were hearing these words for the first time. 238 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:50,480 They, they, they would hear about the fact that the city of 239 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:53,400 God was going to be restored. They, they longed for the city 240 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:57,960 of Zion, Jerusalem to be rebuilt and the the temple reestablished 241 00:14:57,960 --> 00:15:02,120 and the walls restored. But Isaiah's words here are 242 00:15:02,120 --> 00:15:05,240 pointing to something even bigger, the ultimate city of God 243 00:15:05,240 --> 00:15:08,480 that is mentioned at the end of the Book of Revelation, a 244 00:15:08,480 --> 00:15:13,320 picture of heaven itself. Verses 10 through 14, Isaiah 245 00:15:13,320 --> 00:15:15,920 gives his people some exciting news. 246 00:15:16,480 --> 00:15:20,120 He says that because of their sin and rebellion, in his wrath, 247 00:15:20,120 --> 00:15:22,840 God had struck his people. He had, He had punished them and 248 00:15:22,840 --> 00:15:26,440 sent them into exile. But because they are his people, 249 00:15:26,560 --> 00:15:29,360 because they are the people of God, he will show mercy to them. 250 00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:34,760 He says foreigners and kings who once imprisoned the people of 251 00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:40,240 God would one day serve them. In fact, in verse 12, we read 252 00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:44,560 that the nations and kingdoms that won't serve God's people 253 00:15:44,560 --> 00:15:47,680 will perish. Verse 10, the walls will be 254 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:50,280 built up. The gates of the city will 255 00:15:50,280 --> 00:15:53,280 remain open permanently to allow the wealth of the nations to 256 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:56,840 come in. In verse 11, the sanctuary, the 257 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:59,840 temple of the Lord, will once again be made beautiful and 258 00:15:59,840 --> 00:16:04,000 glorious. In verse 13 and in verse 14, 259 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:07,280 those who were once afflicted, those who wants afflicted, God's 260 00:16:07,280 --> 00:16:11,720 people will come and humility and service to Israel. 261 00:16:12,320 --> 00:16:18,120 And what is all of this about? It is God reminding God's people 262 00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:22,880 the end of the story, that in the end God wins and the people 263 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:25,600 receive glory. That's the whole point that is 264 00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:29,920 being made here about the rebuilding and restoration of 265 00:16:29,920 --> 00:16:33,240 God's city of Zion. But I want you to notice 266 00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:35,320 something here at the end of verse 14. 267 00:16:35,880 --> 00:16:41,000 Notice what it says here. They shall call you the city of 268 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:45,120 the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. 269 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:49,360 This is not just a picture of the city of God being restored. 270 00:16:49,560 --> 00:16:53,920 It is a picture of the people of God being transformed as well. 271 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:57,400 And that's what we see as we come to the final verses and 272 00:16:57,400 --> 00:17:04,079 verses 15 through 22. Whereas you have been forsaken 273 00:17:04,079 --> 00:17:07,200 and hated, with no one passing through, I will make you 274 00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:11,079 majestic forever, a joy from age to age. 275 00:17:11,079 --> 00:17:14,599 You shall suck the milk of nations, you shall nurse at the 276 00:17:14,599 --> 00:17:18,240 breast of kings, and you shall know that I, the Lord and your 277 00:17:18,240 --> 00:17:21,640 Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. 278 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:24,160 Instead of bronze, I will bring gold. 279 00:17:24,359 --> 00:17:26,280 And instead of iron, I will bring silver. 280 00:17:26,599 --> 00:17:29,640 Instead of wood bronze, Instead of stones iron. 281 00:17:30,160 --> 00:17:33,080 I will make your overseers peace and your taskmasters 282 00:17:33,080 --> 00:17:36,240 righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard 283 00:17:36,240 --> 00:17:39,520 in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders. 284 00:17:40,120 --> 00:17:42,600 You shall call your walls salvation, and your gates 285 00:17:42,600 --> 00:17:47,200 praise. The sun shall be no more your 286 00:17:47,200 --> 00:17:50,280 light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light. 287 00:17:50,920 --> 00:17:54,280 But the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God 288 00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:57,960 will be your glory. Your Son shall no more go down, 289 00:17:57,960 --> 00:18:01,320 nor your moon withdraw itself. For the Lord will be your 290 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:05,080 everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended. 291 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:07,880 Your people shall all be righteous. 292 00:18:08,800 --> 00:18:11,480 They shall possess the land forever, the branch of my 293 00:18:11,480 --> 00:18:14,720 planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified. 294 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,000 The least one shall become a clan, and the smallest one a 295 00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:22,640 mighty nation. I am the Lord, and it's time I 296 00:18:22,640 --> 00:18:27,040 will hasten it. The Lord gives His people here a 297 00:18:27,040 --> 00:18:29,760 picture of the transformation of His people. 298 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:33,080 That they would be majestic forever, That they would be made 299 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:37,680 a joy from age to age. That God's people will be amply 300 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:40,000 and sufficiently supplied and cared for. 301 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:44,200 They will have no doubt who their Savior is, who their 302 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:46,840 Redeemer is, who is the mighty One. 303 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:52,640 For 17 they will be transformed like bronze to gold, like iron 304 00:18:52,640 --> 00:18:55,840 to silver. They will experience peace and 305 00:18:55,840 --> 00:18:57,600 righteousness. Verse 18. 306 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:02,440 Violence will one day be no more devastation, destruction will be 307 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:05,200 ended. They shall live within the House 308 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:08,640 of salvation and praise, and the Lord Himself will be their 309 00:19:08,640 --> 00:19:10,680 everlasting light and their glory. 310 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:17,960 Verse 20 Mourning, grief, sadness shall cease for them. 311 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:21,840 The Lord will transform His people such that they will be 312 00:19:21,840 --> 00:19:24,680 righteous. They will be like a garden. 313 00:19:24,680 --> 00:19:31,600 He says that the Lord tends and cultivates that glorifies Him in 314 00:19:31,760 --> 00:19:34,240 beginning of verse 22. What is small and few will 315 00:19:34,240 --> 00:19:36,560 become great, will become a multitude. 316 00:19:37,560 --> 00:19:42,200 What an incredible picture of God being at work and His people 317 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:45,920 transforming them into a heavenly existence. 318 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:49,600 And do you want proof that He'll do it? 319 00:19:51,120 --> 00:19:52,840 What does He say at the end of verse 22? 320 00:19:54,120 --> 00:19:56,720 This is not Isaiah speaking, This is God himself speaking. 321 00:19:57,280 --> 00:20:03,160 I am the Lord, I am Yahweh, he says, and in its time I will 322 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:07,760 hasten it. The sovereign, omnipotent, 323 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:13,800 omniscient, Almighty Creator of the universe guarantees that He 324 00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:17,640 will do what He says. Who are we to doubt it? 325 00:20:23,160 --> 00:20:24,520 So what do we do with all of this? 326 00:20:24,520 --> 00:20:26,200 What are some takeaways for us today? 327 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:30,080 Three things. The first is this. 328 00:20:31,800 --> 00:20:38,360 As God's people, we should have certain resurrection hope. 329 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:43,440 Resurrection hope. These words here in Isaiah 330 00:20:43,520 --> 00:20:48,360 chapter 60, they were meant to fill God's people with great 331 00:20:48,360 --> 00:20:53,480 hope to to remind us of what the Lord has promised that He will 332 00:20:53,480 --> 00:21:01,040 do, That He would fill us with hope so that in the present 333 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:06,480 darkness and hardship that we face, we can persevere without 334 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:09,880 giving up. If that was true for God's 335 00:21:09,880 --> 00:21:12,640 people back then, how much more so is that true for God's people 336 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:17,040 today? On this day when when we 337 00:21:17,040 --> 00:21:20,600 remember and we reflect and we celebrate the resurrection of 338 00:21:20,600 --> 00:21:24,200 the Lord Jesus Christ, God's people should be filled with 339 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:29,720 true, enduring biblical hope, certainty, and satisfaction of 340 00:21:29,720 --> 00:21:31,760 what is true and what is coming for us. 341 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:37,040 Resurrection, the resurrection of Jesus from the grave is 342 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:38,960 paying for sin and conquering death. 343 00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:42,800 It secures everything that we're reading here in Isaiah 6 that is 344 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:47,680 being promised. And what's more, what's even 345 00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:52,000 more than Isaiah chapter 60, we have the Book of Revelation. 346 00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:55,200 We have the last book of the Bible. 347 00:21:55,760 --> 00:21:59,080 And in chapter 21 of Revelation, we read this. 348 00:22:05,790 --> 00:22:09,350 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the 1st heaven and 349 00:22:09,350 --> 00:22:13,030 the first earth had passed away. The sea was no more, and I saw 350 00:22:13,030 --> 00:22:16,190 the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from 351 00:22:16,190 --> 00:22:19,310 God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 352 00:22:19,920 --> 00:22:23,320 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the 353 00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:25,400 dwelling place of God is with man. 354 00:22:25,840 --> 00:22:28,640 He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God 355 00:22:28,640 --> 00:22:30,640 Himself will be with them as their God. 356 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,840 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall 357 00:22:34,840 --> 00:22:37,520 be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, 358 00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:40,480 nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have 359 00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:43,000 passed away. And he who was seated on the 360 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:47,160 throne said, Behold, I am making all things new also. 361 00:22:47,160 --> 00:22:50,080 He said, write this down, for these words are trustworthy and 362 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:53,040 true. And he said to me, it is done. 363 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:56,840 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. 364 00:22:57,080 --> 00:23:00,280 To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life 365 00:23:00,440 --> 00:23:04,040 without payment. To one who conquers will have 366 00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:08,200 this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 367 00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:13,400 This is the end of the story for all who are in Christ Jesus. 368 00:23:13,640 --> 00:23:18,400 The light overcomes the darkness, the city of God is 369 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:21,280 restored, and the people of God are transformed. 370 00:23:21,480 --> 00:23:31,880 And in the end God wins. All evil and wickedness and sin 371 00:23:32,120 --> 00:23:36,520 and pain and sorrow and even death itself will be defeated 372 00:23:36,520 --> 00:23:39,280 forever. And God says, and in revelation 373 00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:43,080 he says, write these things down, for this is trustworthy. 374 00:23:43,400 --> 00:23:47,520 This is true, and He will hasten to make it be. 375 00:23:50,320 --> 00:23:53,600 The Lord calls on His people to live in the midst of the present 376 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:57,160 darkness and hardship that they endure to to know these things 377 00:23:57,160 --> 00:24:00,560 about the future, to think about them to to meditate upon them, 378 00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:04,720 to immerse ourselves in these truths so that they can we can 379 00:24:04,720 --> 00:24:08,640 then persevere in the present. So in the midst of the the 380 00:24:08,640 --> 00:24:11,800 darkness now, the hardship, the temptation, the challenges, the, 381 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:14,960 the persecution, the weight of the, the fallenness of this 382 00:24:14,960 --> 00:24:19,400 world, the weight of our own sin, we can keep going, 383 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:25,840 persevere and loving and faithful walking with the Lord 384 00:24:27,200 --> 00:24:31,720 resurrection hope is real for those who are in Christ Jesus. 385 00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:38,080 Secondly, do you know the Holy One of Israel? 386 00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:43,400 Do you know the Holy One of Israel? 387 00:24:45,320 --> 00:24:48,560 These words that we're reading in Isaiah 60 and Revelation 388 00:24:48,560 --> 00:24:52,000 chapter 1, these, these words of resurrection hope about the 389 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:54,640 glorious and light filled future. 390 00:24:55,120 --> 00:24:58,640 You, you have to understand that these words are only words of 391 00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:03,200 hope and encouragement for those who know the Lord, for those who 392 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:06,720 know the Holy One of Israel. That's one of Isaiah's favorite 393 00:25:06,720 --> 00:25:08,840 titles for the Lord God Almighty. 394 00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:11,480 He uses it twice here in Isaiah chapter 60. 395 00:25:12,960 --> 00:25:15,920 So we have to ask the question, do you know the Holy One of 396 00:25:15,920 --> 00:25:18,120 Israel? Do you know the Lord? 397 00:25:18,120 --> 00:25:22,360 And not just do you know about the Lord, Do you know the Lord 398 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:25,800 personally? Are you in a relationship with 399 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:27,800 the Lord? Are you in a relationship with 400 00:25:27,920 --> 00:25:30,160 Jesus? Have you put your faith in him? 401 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:35,280 Are you walking with the Lord? All of these wonderfully 402 00:25:35,280 --> 00:25:38,520 encouraging and hope filled words about the future, they're 403 00:25:38,520 --> 00:25:41,920 only true for those who know the Holy One of the Lord. 404 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:47,600 If if you don't know the Holy One of Israel, the picture, the 405 00:25:47,600 --> 00:25:51,600 picture that the Bible gives of what is coming is just the 406 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:53,840 opposite of what we read here in these verses. 407 00:25:55,120 --> 00:25:58,160 It's eternal separation from the light and the glory of the Lord, 408 00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:01,760 eternal darkness and torment. The Bible tells us that everyone 409 00:26:01,840 --> 00:26:05,600 who has everybody has fallen short of the standard of of God, 410 00:26:06,040 --> 00:26:09,520 His standard of perfect and personal obedience to every part 411 00:26:09,520 --> 00:26:12,360 of His word. Everyone has sinned, we are 412 00:26:12,360 --> 00:26:14,200 told, and rebelled against the Creator. 413 00:26:15,720 --> 00:26:18,720 In order to have the future like the one that is described here 414 00:26:18,720 --> 00:26:23,720 in Isaiah 60 or Revelation 21, our sins have to be paid for. 415 00:26:24,560 --> 00:26:26,520 There are only two ways that that can be done. 416 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:31,400 Either we have to pay for our own sins for all eternity in 417 00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:35,720 hell, or someone else can pay them for us. 418 00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:40,480 But there's only one person who has ever lived who is qualified 419 00:26:40,480 --> 00:26:45,320 to pay the debt of our sin. Only one person has lived a life 420 00:26:45,320 --> 00:26:49,360 of perfect and personal love and obedience to God, and that 421 00:26:49,360 --> 00:26:56,920 person is the Lord Jesus Christ. After living a life of loving 422 00:26:56,920 --> 00:26:59,280 obedience, He went to the cross and was crucified. 423 00:26:59,280 --> 00:27:02,120 He gave His life to pay for the sins of His people. 424 00:27:02,120 --> 00:27:05,000 He was He, He died, He was buried, and on the third day He 425 00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:07,520 rose from the grave and resurrected. 426 00:27:09,440 --> 00:27:12,920 And because of his resurrection, He secured this glorious future 427 00:27:12,920 --> 00:27:16,720 for His people. To every person who admits that 428 00:27:16,720 --> 00:27:20,200 they are a Sinner, that they are in need of a Saviour and they 429 00:27:20,200 --> 00:27:24,200 trust that Jesus is that Saviour and put their faith in Him, they 430 00:27:24,200 --> 00:27:28,440 believe in Him, Their sins are paid for and this glorious 431 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:34,400 future is theirs. So the question remains for us 432 00:27:34,400 --> 00:27:36,080 today. Do you know the Holy One of 433 00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:38,520 Israel? Are you in a relationship with 434 00:27:38,520 --> 00:27:42,720 the Lord God Almighty, with the Lord Jesus Christ? 435 00:27:42,960 --> 00:27:55,800 If not, let today, Easter Sunday be that day. 3rd and lastly, a 436 00:27:55,800 --> 00:28:00,400 question for all of us. Do the nation's see our light? 437 00:28:03,520 --> 00:28:06,000 Did you hear that wording in Isaiah 60? 438 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:11,000 If you look back in chapter 16, verses 2 and three, and verse 5. 439 00:28:12,200 --> 00:28:15,440 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness to 440 00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:18,960 peoples, but the Lord will arise upon you, and His glory will be 441 00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:24,200 seen upon you, and the nations shall come to your light, and 442 00:28:24,200 --> 00:28:28,080 kings to the brightness of your rising down in verse 5. 443 00:28:28,320 --> 00:28:30,520 Then you shall see and be radiant. 444 00:28:30,680 --> 00:28:34,240 Your heart shall thrill and exalt, because the abundance of 445 00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:38,720 the sea shall be turned to you. The wealth of the nations shall 446 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:43,560 come to you now. While this picture is ultimately 447 00:28:43,560 --> 00:28:46,400 about something that will happen in the future, there's still 448 00:28:46,400 --> 00:28:51,400 elements of truth to this now. I mean, remember what Jesus said 449 00:28:51,520 --> 00:28:54,040 in his Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 5. 450 00:28:54,520 --> 00:28:58,600 He said to his disciples, his followers in the same way, Let 451 00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:02,760 your light shine before others so that they may see your good 452 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:06,040 works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. 453 00:29:08,080 --> 00:29:13,600 Only God can draw people to his light and glory, but He gives 454 00:29:13,880 --> 00:29:18,120 his people the blessing and the privilege of being the means by 455 00:29:18,120 --> 00:29:22,000 which he does that. The Lord calls his people to be 456 00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:29,120 light in the midst of darkness. Through our words and our deeds 457 00:29:29,120 --> 00:29:31,640 and our good works, we are to tell people the good news of the 458 00:29:31,640 --> 00:29:35,360 gospel, and we are to live as an example of what it looks like to 459 00:29:35,360 --> 00:29:39,760 walk with Jesus. We're to let the light of the 460 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:44,960 Lord's grace and truth shine brightly through us to those 461 00:29:44,960 --> 00:29:48,040 around us. Do the nations see your light? 462 00:29:50,560 --> 00:29:53,400 We can shine the Lord's light in all kinds of ways. 463 00:29:54,320 --> 00:29:59,000 We can do that through our art. We can do that in our vocations 464 00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:03,280 as students. We can do it with our children 465 00:30:03,280 --> 00:30:07,680 and grandchildren. We can take the light of God's 466 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:09,800 truth and grace to the people of Crow Creek. 467 00:30:11,600 --> 00:30:15,520 We can do it with our neighbors, with people that we don't even 468 00:30:15,520 --> 00:30:17,920 know, at the store, the gas station. 469 00:30:21,320 --> 00:30:26,240 What is one way that you can intentionally shine the light of 470 00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:29,520 God's grace and truth to the people this week? 471 00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:35,720 Just one way. It's not a rhetorical question. 472 00:30:37,360 --> 00:30:39,920 Think about it. Is there one way that this week 473 00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:45,400 you can be the means by which God's light shines, His grace 474 00:30:45,400 --> 00:30:49,080 and His truth shine. People see it. 475 00:30:51,640 --> 00:30:59,040 Pray for that opportunity, Look for it, and when you see it, 476 00:31:00,080 --> 00:31:03,600 seize the opportunity. Let's pray together.