Invitation by God
Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 3 viewsNotes
Transcript
Intro:
Intro:
AG: You’re waiting at the doctor’s office far longer than you expected (and say to yourself that previous experience would indicate that one should bring a book to this place!) Your eyes wander to a framed painting on the wall, with an eagle soaring over water and mountains. In small script underneath, it reads “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles” (Isaiah 40:31).
You first feel surprised that the doctor may be a Christian - or was it just his decorator? Second, you realize how ironic it is to have a scriptural encouragement to wait patiently at the doctor’s office. Then your thoughts drift to other kinds of waiting.
Perhaps your many visits to the doctor are related to waiting for healing. Maybe you’ve been searching for a job far longer than you expected. A wayward child or a broken family situation may leave you feeling empty-handed and like all you can do is wait. So much of life is outside our control, even when it comes to our deepest needs. These are the times when waiting upon the Lord becomes most relevant.
TS: Last week we covered the 1st 26 verses in Isa 40. There we have seen God on full display in all of His glory.
Attributes of God in Isa 40:
His Mercy
His Glory
His Eternality
His Gentleness
His omnipotent
His Omniscience
His Sovereignty
His Uniqueness
Today, we see where God addresses Judah in light of who He is. He confronts them about a problem and follows up by making a promise.
RS: IT IS EASY TO FOCUS ON OUR PROBLEMS AND STRUGGLES, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE ARE SEEKING TO FOLLOW CHRIST. THE DEVIL HAS A WAY OF BRING THEM UP AT THE MOST INOPPORTUNE TIMES, OR WE GIVE THEM MORE SIGNIFICANCE THAN THEY ARE DUE BY ATTRIBUTING EVERY ISSUE AS A SPIRITUAL BATTLE.
The Problem
The Problem
Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God”?
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
In light of who God is, how could His people in exile have throught He had forgotten them or was ignorant of their condition?
They were thinking in the flesh:
Bad things are happening, so God must not be ABLE to help us
They were self-centered in their approach
“My right” is disregarded
They were acting like their religious behavior should have earned them something with God.
There is an old country song whose lyrics answer this:
“That don’t impress me much!”
God isn’t someone who is fickle and impressed with lip service
He is sovereign! We can’t manipulate Him!
It like an ant trying to impress us!
More like a microscopic creature trying to impress us!
v 29, What is NOT to blame
Through these questions, Isaiah deals with some of Judah’s misconceptions
God isn’t too tired to help
God isn’t too weak to help
He isn’t too ignorant to help!
Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
All human sources of assistance have limitations
In contrast: There is NO limit upon God!
Paul echoes this same sentiment
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
We must never have the same problem!
Don’t underestimate God
Don’t take Him for granted.
The Promise
The Promise
He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
General Principle: patient, praying believers are blessed by God with strength in their trials:
Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Many times it requires our patience
Ultimately, Israel is still awaiting deliverance
Jesus is still returning and will deliver them physically as He has delivered us spiritually
Even though we walk through valleys and trials:
God Will deliver in the end
His promises will 100% be fulfilled.
Sometimes we’re so, so tired. We don’t see any way forward. Yet, we continue to put one foot in front of the other. We keep trusting. We keep trying. We may have reached the end of our rope, but God never will. And God comes through. He “renews” us. God takes our weariness and replaces it with his strength.
We must wait upon the Lord
His Timing
His method
IL: “Waiting for God is not laziness. Waiting for God is not going to sleep. Waiting for God is not the abandonment of effort. Waiting for God means, first, activity under command; second, readiness for any new command that may come; third, the ability to do nothing until the command is given.”
- G. Campbell Morgan
Activity under command:
Do what He has already revealed!
Waiting does not mean stopping everything.
Keep serving where you are as you seek God
Readiness for New commands
Keep praying and studying God’s Word
Keep seeking His wisdom
It may take some practice to deliberately “set your mind” on anything but your problems. But you can use your worry to generate reminders to set your mind on things above.
Search for Scriptures related to your problem
Meditate upon it and related passages
Pray- talk to God
Do nothing new until the command is given
Don’t jump out ahead of God
Sometimes we feel an urge to just do something!
When God has us in a season of waiting, that is the WRONG thing to do.
Running Ahead of God
A friend went to visit the great preacher Phillips Brooks and found him pacing the floor like a caged lion. His friend asked, "What's the trouble, Dr. Brooks?" He replied, "The trouble is that I'm in a hurry but God isn't."
Abraham could have identified with those feelings. God had promised him a son, but, from a human perspective, time was running out. In fact, with Abraham nearly 86 and Sarah 76 years old, most people would have said that time had already run out. Obviously God needed help. In the Ancient Near East, it was acceptable for a barren woman to give her maid as a substitute to bear children for her, so Sarah suggested Abraham take Hagar and let her bear his child. In his hurry, Abraham ran ahead of God and the consequences are still felt in the Middle East today. The Arab nations (descended from Ishmael, the son of the maid servant) and Israel (descended from Abraham's legitimate heir, Isaac) continue to be bitter enemies.
God has both a divine will and an eternal timetable.
Conclusion:
Conclusion: