Watching for the Work of God

Isaiah  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  47:42
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Introduction

e.g. Sleeping in my Suzuki Sierra
When I was 19-20 brother and I went camping with friends in Maragaret River
Back of Sierra filled with camping, surfing, etc. gear
Started raining & we weren’t prepared so we slept in front seat of my car
Barely slept, waiting for morning which seemed to take forever to come
Have you ever had a long, sleepless night when you were just watching and hoping for the sun to rise?
What kept you going through the night? The sun will rise!
Today’s message is about enduring a long, hard night(s) waiting for the morning to come
READ Isaiah 21
It continues God’s prophecies against the nations for their rebellion
Here we come back to Babylon and her allies
Wilderness of the Sea = Babylon
Elam = modern southern Iran (Persian Gulf)
Media = modern northern Iran
Edom = descendants of Esau
Arabia = descendants of Ishmael
Why Babylon again? The nation & the spirit have large influence
Like much of this section Isa. 21-22 is vague & mysterious
Wilderness of the Sea isn’t identified until later (Isa. 21:9)
Which is much like life in that God doesn’t reveal things until the end
It’s a prophecy which to Isaiah is future but to us is historical
Though it certainly speaks of God’s work beyond us too
Being able to look back helps us see the continuity of God’s work
Isaiah speaks these words to Jerusalem where the ancestors of Daniel will hear them
Many years later Daniel will live through the fulfilment of these words
In these words comes the imagery of the Watchman
Isaiah both sees a watchman & is the watchman
Watchman is the one who stands vigil through the night until the dawn
To keep an eye out for danger and to give warning
Also to announce the coming of dawn
In other places we’ll learn of our need to be Watchman
Here is a time to listen to the Watcman

Hear God’s Message

Isaiah 21:1-4

Source of Fear

Distressed by what you hear

Isaiah 21:3 (NKJV)
I was distressed when I heard it; I was dismayed when I saw it.
As God reveals this message to Isaiah he is deeply troubled by it - physically affected by it
He sees Medo-Persians rising against Babylon to overthrow
As he hears God’s words he is distressed & pained
Usually we think of God’s Word bringing comfort to God’s people
He encourages, strengthens, promises, even comforts in correction
Rarely do we think that God’s word could bring such distress to God’s people
Especially when those words have to do with the enemies of God & His people
Sometimes God’s word is, and should be, distressing to us
Yes, there is joy in knowing that God will overcome evil
If we’re truly hearing God’s Word we also hear the tragedy that comes with that victory
It’s one thing to say ‘God hates the sin but loves the sinner’ but we must recognise because of sin the sinner dies
Passages like Rev. 20:11-15 are true and real and terrifying
Isaiah isn’t overcome by fear, that is living in fear & distress, but here God’s judgment rightly causes distress

Dismayed by what you see

What amplifies his distress is seeing the reality of it
Isaiah can see the wickedness and rebellion of the nations
He lives in Jerusalem amongst people rejecting God
He can see the words of God being lived out in front of his own eyes
For all the joy, hope & peace that Christians have this world can still be very hard to live in
It’s distressing to hear what God says about those who continue in their sin
It is dismaying to see people you know and love continuing to live in sin
We’re not called to live in fear, be overcome by world or live without hope
If we’re never distressed and dismayed by the reality of sin and consequences something is wrong
In this we see Isaiah’s humanity - he isn’t a cold, heartless, prophet of doom

Source of Compassion

Fear of hopelessness

Isaiah 21:4 (NKJV)
4 The night for which I longed He turned into fear for me.
Fear he feels isn’t a result of lack of faith or pessimism
Rather, God moved him to distress and dismay
Rest & peace he longed for God turned to fear (Isa. 21:4)
Some think it is a sense of hopelessness that overwhelms him to fear
Judgment & destruction are coming and there’s no way to stop it
That is a legitmate possibility for his thinking
It’s a hard job being a prophet of God having to announce judgment

Fear of Judgment

I don’t think his fear is born from hopelessness
As we will see there are glimmers of hope in this message
I think Isaiah has truly heard God’s Word and understands the implications of it
Just like you can’t divide sin and the sinner you can’t divide nations from people
That is, to judge nations causes pain and loss to individuals
To judge sin is to judge people
Judgment on Babylon means pain & suffering for multitudes - including Judah
The personal cost represented in these words is overwhelming
Not first time we’ve seen Isaiah express this compassion
Isaiah 15:5“5 “My heart will cry out for Moab...”
Isaiah teaches us an important truth:
We must not just proclaim the truth but be moved by it
God’s word is never just for others
We must take it in, ponder it, be changed by it
Here, Isaiah shows a true compassion for those under the judgment of God
True proclamation of the Gospel, Word of God, must have a compassion, burden for the lost
Your knowledge of God’s Word is empty if it isn’t moving you, if it isn’t leading to compassion for others
We must have a burden for the lost
700 years before Jesus we see Isaiah illustrating His words, “love your enemies”
We see in Isaiah what we see in Jesus
Matthew 9:36–38 “36 But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 38 Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.””

Oh, my brothers and sisters in Christ, if sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies; and if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay, and not madly to destroy themselves. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.

See God’s Works

Isaiah 21:5-17

God Has a Plan

Dan. 2:36-45

Have faith

Again we see God speak to Jerusalem about other nations
Message doesn’t seem to be given to Babylon at this time
Why? Is it so Israel can gloat over them
No, God reveals things so that the people of God know what He is up to
God doesn’t tell us everything but He does tell us things we ought to know
This message reinforces the message He has been telling Israel:
Don’t trust in worldly alliances, trust in God
God doesn’t tell us all the details of His plan but He tells us enough so that we can have faith in Him

Gain understanding

e.g. Internet game: How often do men think of Roman Empire?
Turns out quite a lot - my girls were surprised how much I think about it
I live in the ancient world
Might help us here to look at bigger picture that God gives
What Isaiah prophesies here God makes clearer to Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon
Statue of Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
God’s program of the ages
In Isaiah’s time, Assyria is the world power - heard God speak to them
Assyria takes northern, Israel into captivity (722 BC)
Babylon eventually conquers Assyria
Babylon takes souther, Judah, into captivity (586 BC)
Babylon is conquered by the Medo-Persian empire (539 BC)
Israel’s exile will end under Persians
Medo-Persia is conquered by Greece (Alexander the Great ~330 BC)
Rome conquers Greece (~146 BC)
Last part (iron & clay) is remnants of Rome still playing out today
Eventually, Christ will bring His Kingdom to crush all and establish an eternal, glorious Kingdom

God Will Be Victorious

Isa. 21:5; Dan. 5:22-29

The Feast

Isaiah 21:5 (NKJV)
5 Prepare the table, Set a watchman in the tower, Eat and drink.
Events of Isaiah 21 are part of the fulfilment of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue dream
Isaiah 21:5 tells of the fall of Babylon to Medo-Persia
Daniel 5 begins with Nebuchadnezzar’s grandson (Belshazzar) hosting a grand feast (Isa. 21:5a) where he mocks God and defiles property from the Temple
Dan. 5:1-4
During that feast God writes on the wall a message of judgment
Dan. 5:5-6.

The Fall

Isaiah 21:5b NKJV
5 Prepare the table, Set a watchman in the tower, Eat and drink. Arise, you princes, Anoint the shield!
It’s written in one verse with abrupt change because that is how Babylon finally fell - in one night
Interestingly, ancient historians record how Persians used donkeys & camels in their conquests
Dan. 5:22-29.
In Isa. 21:9 we should rightly hear the words of Rev. 18:2
Revelation 18:2 “2 And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird!”
The end of the nation of Babylon is the promise of the fall of the spirit of Babylon

Watch for God’s Hope

Isaiah 21:10-12

Trust God’s work

Isaiah 21:10
Remember I said I don’t think Isaiah felt hopeless?
Here is a little of that hope
Short, succinct picture of the threshing floor
Firstly, God speaks of Israel as grain and not chaff
Secondly, work of threshing gives hope
To separate the grain from stalks & husk it was crushed & trampled
That process, though ‘violent’, freed the grain to be useful
Skill of the thresher was in knowing how much to trample the grain to free it without ruining it
God knows exactly what He’s doing
Trust God in His work
God knows how to free you without crushing you
2 Corinthians 4:8 “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed”

Look for the morning

Isaiah 21:11-12
Call to Watchman, “Is the night almost over? Please let the night be almost over”
At first his reply seems unhelpful
“Not yet and then another night is coming”
That doesn’t seem helpful - it seems like how we often feel
Will the night ever end?
When we get a glimpse of sun it disappears into the night again
It’s the Watchman’s instructions that give hope
“Don’t give up, come back and ask again”
God is working in your night so keep looking for the morning
Keep looking for your blessed hope
Trust God and look for the morning

Conclusion

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