Where is your hope?

Scripture

Isaiah 44:9–28 NKJV

9 Those who make an image, all of them are useless, And their precious things shall not profit; They are their own witnesses; They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed. 10 Who would form a god or mold an image That profits him nothing? 11 Surely all his companions would be ashamed; And the workmen, they are mere men. Let them all be gathered together, Let them stand up; Yet they shall fear, They shall be ashamed together. 12 The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals, Fashions it with hammers, And works it with the strength of his arms. Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails; He drinks no water and is faint. 13 The craftsman stretches out his rule, He marks one out with chalk; He fashions it with a plane, He marks it out with the compass, And makes it like the figure of a man, According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house. 14 He cuts down cedars for himself, And takes the cypress and the oak; He secures it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it. 15 Then it shall be for a man to burn, For he will take some of it and warm himself; Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread; Indeed he makes a god and worships it; He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it. 16 He burns half of it in the fire; With this half he eats meat; He roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He even warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, His carved image. He falls down before it and worships it, Prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!” 18 They do not know nor understand; For He has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, And their hearts, so that they cannot understand. 19 And no one considers in his heart, Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say, “I have burned half of it in the fire, Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals; I have roasted meat and eaten it; And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?” 20 He feeds on ashes; A deceived heart has turned him aside; And he cannot deliver his soul, Nor say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?” 21 “Remember these, O Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me! 22 I have blotted out, like a thick cloud, your transgressions, And like a cloud, your sins. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.” 23 Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it! Shout, you lower parts of the earth; Break forth into singing, you mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, And glorified Himself in Israel. 24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, And He who formed you from the womb: “I am the Lord, who makes all things, Who stretches out the heavens all alone, Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself; 25 Who frustrates the signs of the babblers, And drives diviners mad; Who turns wise men backward, And makes their knowledge foolishness; 26 Who confirms the word of His servant, And performs the counsel of His messengers; Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,’ To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,’ And I will raise up her waste places; 27 Who says to the deep, ‘Be dry! And I will dry up your rivers’; 28 Who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, And he shall perform all My pleasure, Saying to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ’

Study

The basic contrast

God formed mankind in his image out of the dust of the ground.

In idolatry, man forms god in his image out of sweat and labor.

Israel repeatedly falls into idolatry, following after the example of the nations.

When they go to Babylon, they will be even more tempted.

They will certainly be asked “Where is your god? Why wasn’t he able to save?”

This will lead to being “ashamed” unless they are grounded in proper instruction.

Their God is in the heaven. He does whatever he pleases. They sinned against him and he did exactly what he said he would do. (Deuteronomy 27)

So God then repeats his nature, as the one true eternal God - the only one with the power to save and to destroy, the only one with whom we have to deal.

He is a covenant God who has set his love on his people, even though they repeatedly rebel against him and create idols.

God cannot deny reality and pretend in the existence of a lie. He formed man for his glory. Man was made to live with God in eternal blessedness.

Man is forever restless until he learns to rest in God.

But man’s pride refuses

Pride

“I am, and there is none beside me”

This reveals itself in many ways.

We naturally make ourselves the measure of everything good and right. That which conforms to my image is proper. That which does not is not proper.

Even as believers, we fall into that trap. It is seen forcefully in the so-called “worship wars.”

Anyone who sings a hymn is old and outdated and stuck in tradition.

Anyone who sings a modern song is a heretic and a fool.

Only one who has compromised the faith prays the Lord’s Prayer at the end of the service.

On and on.

We don’t listen to anyone’s perspective because we cannot imagine ourselves to NOT be the center of all reference.

Because we were created to reflect another. But we are in rebellion and want to be the original.

We will be as gods.

For this reason, we insist that our gods are just as impressed with us as we are.

We love testosterone and wrestling and manly endeavors, and we teach that about God as well. And make him “masculine” according to our definitions.

Our we make him feminine according to our definitions.

Someone softer and gentler, or stronger and smitier. We like the God who smites or the God who cuddles and we make him in our image.

But it is the other way around - God is love, but he defines it. God is wrath, but he defines it. A wise person looks at the words - and this is why God sent his prophets.

A few days ago, I posted a verse about the things that God hates.

Proverbs 6:16–19 NKJV

16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.

Someone commented that you learn about a person by what they love and by what they hate. There is much wisdom there.

But we like to create gods that hate the things we hate, and love the things we love.

So we will destroy ourselves and be miserable building idols in our image, rather than submit to the god who is.

Sin is not a series of misdeeds. But a refusal to live as we were created - image-bearers of the creator.

Idolatry

So Isaiah, after teaching the true nature of the God of Abraham, mocks the foolishness of building an idol.

The idolater knows that there is a god. There was much spiritual activity in the world as I have said before. But the idolater refuses to worship the God who is because that takes true humility. The natural man takes pride even in his self-abasement. This is not humility.

So he builds an image that is in HIS image.

When Israel is deported, they will be hit with the question, “Where is your god”.

But the true shame will come upon the worshipers of idols. It is the God of Jacob that tears down and sets up kings, and when God moves, who will tell him no?

True humility is this:

Isaiah 28:12 NKJV

12 To whom He said, “This is the rest with which You may cause the weary to rest,” And, “This is the refreshing”; Yet they would not hear.

Better to work hard for an unrelenting God than rest in the arms of a God who talks to us like we are babies.

So they work at nurturing a tree. They cut it down.

Part of it they use for wood - they burn it, make bread and they are warm and filled.

Then the rest - that which they used up to warm and fill themselves - they form into a god and fall down and say, “Save us!”

But what good is a god that you can burn for food?

Why are they unable to see?

They have hardened their hearts, and also the Lord has shut their eyes so that they cannot see.

They are in hard bondage to idolatry, praying to stumps and blocks to save them and not even thinking it through.

But the God of Jacob

Verse 21

But YOU - my servant.

God formed his people, not the other way around.

This means that they are NOT like the nations of the earth.

Judgment upon idolatry is blindness. How can Israel see if they are blind?

First, their transgressions must be taken away. They must be redeemed - purchased and set free.

And the only one who can do this is the one who formed mankind to begin with.

Blotting out transgressions.

It is not a change in God’s nature.

It is not mere pardon

It is not a remitting of the penalty of sin

It is a blotting out - a removing it entirely as if it had never happened.

Why was he “crucified” -

So that we might know that he took upon himself the curse that lay upon us

Why? So that we might return to him.

This is repentance. It isn’t being sorry. Some sorrow is to repentance, some sorrow is to death.

Repentance is turning away from the idols of your heart and turning TO the only one who can save.

Return to me, for I have redeemed you.,