The Bible Binge: Tunnel's End (Isaiah 61:1-12)

Planned Obsolescence

They don’t make things like they used to. Whether it’s cars or clothes, we say this often. How many of you know who this guy is? The Maytag repairman. One of the longest running characters in advertising. He was known as the “lonely Maytag repairman” because Maytag washers were so dependable, you rarely needed a repairman. And through the years that was generally so. But by the 2000s, Maytag washers were so bad, the company had to retire the character and eventually the entire company was bought out by Whirlpool. Because they didn’t make things like they used to.

And that’s what companies do. “Planned obsolescence” is what it is called.. making products that are intentionally designed to go bad after just a few years so you have to buy a new one. Cars are made this way. They do this with our phones. No sooner you buy the latest and the software is outdated and they’re wanting you to buy the next, new, greatest version. We are used to things getting old and breaking.

This is where we are at in the book of Isaiah. Things have been going downhill in Jerusalem for a long time. Isaiah began this book by saying that judgment is coming. Judgment has come for the northern 10 tribes, and it’s only a matter of time before it happens to Jerusalem. Jerusalem is old and broken. They are going to experience some hard times because of their unbelief and disobedience.

But as we make our way to the end of the book. There is light at the end of the tunnel. It’s not always going to be this way. Here’s what Isaiah says:

Isaiah 60:1–3 “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord shines over you. For look, darkness will cover the earth, and total darkness the peoples; but the Lord will shine over you, and his glory will appear over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to your shining brightness.”

It’s dark. It’s going to get darker. There will be many more hard days. In fact, Jerusalem is going to be destroyed. It will all be rubble. But it’s not going to be permanent. Someday, it’s going to be bright. There is going to be a restoration. There will be good times again. And God himself is going to make all of it happen. Isaiah has Good News.

Isaiah 61:1–3 “The Spirit of the Lord God is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord to glorify him.”

This is Isaiah’s proclamation. There will be healing, there will be liberty, there will be comfort, there will be favor, there will be freedom. That’s the tunnel’s end. It’s not always going to be dark. The judgment isn’t final for Jerusalem. But it’s not simply going back to the glory days of Israel. There is something significantly different about the future. The future will be better than the past. How will it be better?

The future will be perfect

This healing, this freedom, this favor will all be perfect. No sin. No disease. No sickness. No arguments. No injustice. There will be nothing but great blessing and stability and peace. That’s at the end of the tunnel. The glory and the light that is coming is going to make everything right. God is going to make everything new. But then, there’s also this:

The future will be permanent

The healing and the liberty and the peace and the glory and the light… it will all be permanent. It will never go back to what it was. Here’s what Isaiah says:

Isaiah 60:19–20 The sun will no longer be your light by day, and the brightness of the moon will not shine on you. The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your splendor. Your sun will no longer set, and your moon will not fade; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your sorrow will be over.

There will never be God’s judgment again. There will be no more obsolescence. Things will never get obsolete or old. Things will always be new. There will be no more “they don’t make things like they used to”. This will be nothing like we’ve ever had.

The future will be for all nations

And it’s not going to be just for Jerusalem. He’s already said it more than once and we read it a short time ago:

“Nations will come to your light”.

This peace, this healing, this great blessing is for the whole world. All of the nations will be included. There will be one humanity living in peace and liberty and perfection. There will be no more war because permanent peace will be for all of humanity in the whole world.

The future is a Person who suffers

But this great future that Isaiah is painting for Jerusalem isn’t simply God waving a magic wand and making all sin and evil and sickness disappear. It’s really easy to hop, skip, and jump to the good parts of Isaiah’s end here in these last chapters. But there is a solitary figure who shows up as a Servant who is going to rescue his people. The Divine Warrior is a major figure in the last part of the book. But it’s not a snap of the finger. Here’s how this Servant, this Divine Warrior is going to bring about permanent blessing and light for the whole world:

Isaiah 53:5 He was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.

Isaiah doesn’t just see goodness showing up out of nowhere. There is a Person who will rescue his people by being pierced, and crushed, and punished, and wounded. There is no newness without it. There is no blessing without it. This warrior who rescues will be scarred and disfigured beyond recognition.

The future is a Person who saves

If all of that sounds like Isaiah is talking about Jesus 700 years prior to God showing up in a manger, that’s because this is precisely where Isaiah’s dark tunnel ends in the light. The tunnel’s end isn’t just a bunch of pie-in-the-sky idealism. The tunnel’s end is a Person… and when Jesus arrives on the scene, He himself says… yeah, Isaiah was talking about me. We read it earlier. Jesus sits in a synagogue, and reads these words from Isaiah:

Luke 4:18–19 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

That’s me. I’m here to preach good news to the poor. I’m here to rescue. I’m here to heal. I’m here to bring peace and freedom. That’s all me. And Jesus eventually heals and rescues and provides freedom by being the Divine Warrior who is crushed, pierced, and punished, and wounded to save His people from their sins. Jesus is Isaiah’s Light at the end of the Tunnel.

Two Crowns

There is a famous painting by Frank Dicksee, an English Victorian painter from the late 19th century entitled “Two Crowns”. In this painting, a king who looks like he is in a parade for his coronation, is surrounded by the crowds and the big celebration. However, the rider on the horseback is not enjoying the occasion at all. He is looking with shock, to his left. And there is a another king at this occasion, hung on a cross. That cross speaks volumes about the parade and the celebration. Without the cross, there is no celebration. There is no coronation. There is no happiness and joy. The cross paid for it all.

That’s Isaiah’s entire book. Moving from the Old Jerusalem to the New Jerusalem. But the New Jerusalem doesn’t happen, the world where there is no death and pain and sorrow… where there is nothing but healing and freedom.. that doesn’t happen unless Jesus dies to make it happen.

The future is already/not yet

And that future that Isaiah talked about isn’t just about what’s coming. Jesus died and rose from the dead so that someday we could experience everything Isaiah talked about. No sickness. No death. No sin. No anger. All peace, all love, all joy, all of the time. But there’s also hope for today. Isaiah wants us to see that the Suffering Servant, the Divine Warrior, is for us. Now.

We still live in the day where “they don’t make them like they used to be.” But it’s not always going to be this way. That’s hope for us when we see wars, natural disasters, acts of violence and terrorism on our screens. And that’s hope for closer to home when we have personal setback and struggle, family hurt and dysfunction, uncertain finances. Isaiah invites us to look beyond our present tears and fears and behold our future home in the presence of Jesus!

And Isaiah wants us to see that Jesus is already making all things new. The new starts now. We are not the people who we are going to be, but he has already rescued us from sin, death, and the devil. He has already made good on His promise to free you, rescue you, heal you in your salvation. In the mess, he is with you, caring for you, loving you, providing healing and rest.

And it’s not just for us. Note Isaiah’s words that Jesus quotes in the gathering at the synagogue:

Isaiah 61:1 The Lord has anointed me to bring good news..and proclaim liberty

Jesus proclaims the Good News to us every time we gather. In His Word. In His Sacraments. And that proclamation isn’t just for us. It’s for the world. The nations will come to the light. The nations are here this morning. The nations are all across our city in the various gatherings. The nations are where we live, work, play, and learn. Many don’t know the Good News. So much hurt and anxiety and anger. Our freedom and our healing can be their healing and freedom. Proclamation of the Good News begins here… and is sent from here into your lives… where you live, work, learn, and play.

It’s not always going to be this way. Jesus is our Tunnel’s end. And the tunnel’s end for people in our community who haven’t yet heard the Good News.

Let’s Pray

The Table

This Table is where Jesus frees the prisoner and heals the wounded and binds up the broken-hearted. We know the future will not always be this way because of this Table. Jesus is here making all things new. Believe His promise that He is present here FOR YOU.

Benediction

Numbers 6:24–26 May the Lord bless you and protect you;

may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;

may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.