“But now hear, O Jacob my servant, Israel whom I have chosen! 2 Thus says the Lord who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you: Fear not, O Jacob my servant, Jeshurun whom I have chosen. 3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. 4 They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams. 5 This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s,’ another will call on the name of Jacob, and another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.”

6 Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. 7 Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. 8 Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any.”

9 All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame. 10 Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is profitable for nothing? 11 Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble, let them stand forth. They shall be terrified; they shall be put to shame together. 12 The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint. 13 The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. 14 He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. 15 Then it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it. 16 Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, “Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!” 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!” 18 They know not, nor do they discern, for he has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand. 19 No one considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, “Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and have eaten. 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 deluded heart has led him astray, and he cannot deliver himself or say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?” 21 Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for you are my servant; I formed you; you are my servant; O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me. 22 I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you. 23 Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth into singing, O mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and will be glorified in Israel. 24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: “I am the Lord, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, 25 who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners, who turns wise men back and makes their knowledge foolish, 26 who confirms the word of his servant and fulfills the counsel of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited,’ and of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built, and I will raise up their ruins’; 27 who says to the deep, ‘Be dry; I will dry up your rivers’; 28 who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose’; saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.’ ” - Isaiah 44:1–28

Sermon Text:

Let’s look together this morning to the 44th chapter of Isaiah.

Since we read the chapter in our Old Testament reading earlier today, I would like right now to read only the 6th through the 8th verses of this chapter:

[Read Isaiah 44:6-8]

I think there are a lot of people who read Isaiah and notice he talks a LOT about idolatry.

Worshipping other gods, who are not really even gods.

And it’s not just Isaiah: all the prophets, it seems, spend a lot of time telling us not to trust other gods.

You might think the First Commandment should take care of this particular sin: “You shall have no other gods beside Me” declares the Lord.

Why would this commandment give Israel so much trouble?

Were they just so primitive, so superstitious, that they just kept looking for other gods, even when the living and true God, the Creator of everything, had called them to Himself?

Was it just that they wanted a god they could see?

A god they could physically touch?

Was that their problem with the true God: He is Spirit?

It’s a fair question, I think, to ask an idolater: What are you looking for in a god that the God of the Bible doesn’t make the cut?

What do you think that false god will do for you that the true God doesn’t do?

That’s how many of us think these days, isn’t it?

We pretend like religion is like a big shopping mall, where we can browse all the churches in our area and find the one that suits me.

This one’s too big.

This one – too small.

This one has good programs, but I don’t like the music.

I like some of the people who go to this one.

And one of the saddest things about this mindset for the last half-century is that churches have been more concerned about positioning themselves in the marketplace than positioning themselves closer to Scripture.

Now don’t get me wrong: there is no virtue in a church that is just trying to be contrary for its own sake.

It is not more spiritual to be boring or unconcerned with the needs of people around us.

We aren’t called to be deaf to the culture; we should never close our hearts to the eternal damage modern philosophies are inflicting on the people around us.

We should and we must be seeking the sheep of Christ, wherever they may be found, wherever He leads us, wherever we are:

That is our mission as followers of Christ and as His church.

But that is a far cry from softening the message of the Bible to make it easier to hear.

To speak less of sin.

To ignore repentance.

To sanitize the gospel of the blood to focus only on the love of God.

There is simply no good news at all without the blood of Jesus Christ that removes our sin.

But the temptation is great for a church or a pastor to “tone down” the sharper edges of the gospel to appeal to more people.

And that is because we have given in to the idea that the church is simply a “religion provider”.

We sell our brand of religion: 1689 Reformed Federalism.

Other churches sell Arminianism, Catholicism, miraculous events, big shows, you name it.

No matter what a person is looking for in religion, there is a church or so-called church that is providing it.

But when we put the seeker in the driver’s seat in determining HOW we will worship, what happens then?

When we choose our hymns based on the tune and popularity rather than the solid doctrine they convey?

When we cut the messages for the sake of time or content, not wanting to give offense to any who may be here?

When a church invites everyone, saved or not, to join in the communion table?

You may be asking what all this has to do with the idolatry Isaiah is talking about today.

The problem for many of us is that we don’t think we KNOW any idolaters.

We aren’t familiar with many people who have shrines set up in their houses that they bow down to or burn incense toward.

That’s for the villains in a movie or TV show.

We don’t have, so far as I know, in our area a giant altar where animals are sacrificed to a false god.

But it doesn’t mean that there are no idolaters here.

It doesn’t even mean that we ourselves aren’t prone to fall back into idolatry.

On the contrary, I suggest to you that for many people who walk into churches, they are looking for an idol.

What is an idol?

It is simply a god who is not the true God.

It is something we are devoted to that is not Jesus Christ.

It is the first thing we turn to in times of trouble.

It is the one we seek wisdom or help from.

Some may seek a god because it brings them happiness or a sense of purpose.

Many seek a god who will give them hope.

But you see the common denominator in all these things, the real thing people look for in an idol?

What will he do for ME?

Will he do what I think he should?

Often, when you are talking with someone about Jesus Christ, they will tell you something like this:

“I prayed that my Momma would be healed, but she died, so I don’t believe in God.”

It’s possible that someone listening today is thinking that very thing.

If you are, you have my sympathy in your loss.

But you, in no way ever, will be powerful enough or good enough to ask God for YOUR will and expect Him to do it.

This is how God put it here:

Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. – v.6

See how God describes Himself:

THE Lord – not “A god” – not even “the greatest god”.

THE Lord.

THE King of Israel – not Hezekiah, not Uzziah, not Manasseh – the LORD is the King of Israel.

He rules. He reigns.

He has not abdicated His sovereignty to the nation of Judah nor to the United States.

He doesn’t look at us and say, “Oh, if that is how the majority feels, I will do it.”

He is THE King.

HIS Redeemer

Forgive me if I take just a moment to unpack what this means.

Because it is a remarkable statement.

Some of you may know what the word “Redeemer” means, particularly in the Old Testament.

Some may only know it as another title for Jesus that we sing in hymns.

The Redeemer is the nearest kin to someone.

It is the Redeemer’s responsibility to buy back their relative if they find themselves in slavery, whether they sold themselves or were captured.

It is the Redeemer’s job to avenge the life of his relative.

And, as we see in the story of Ruth and Boaz, it is the Redeemer’s job to care for the widows or orphans of his relative.

And God is HIS Redeemer? Yes.

The nearest kin.

The avenger.

The One who cares for your family when you can’t.

The One who delivers from slavery.

And if you are His, He is your Redeemer also.

After He calls Himself the Redeemer, He is the Lord of Hosts.

The picture is that He is surrounded by armies (known ad hosts), even angels, to carry out His bidding.

But He has no real NEED of those angelic hosts to accomplish anything.

So the title “Lord of Hosts” is meant to tell us that He has more than enough power to see His will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

Then we see from the mouth of God two “I AM” statements:

I am the first and I am the last.

Before the beginning, God is.

After the completion of this life, this age of earth, and long after the last star has fused the last hydrogen atoms in the universe, He is God.

So in looking at these things, what is an idol compared to the only God?

What are the gods we create, whether of stone, metal, wood, or thought compared to Him?

What can we create, even with all our best thoughts, that can even approach OUR power, much less the power of Almighty God?

Some of my friends call themselves atheists, and even as I pray for their salvation, I am certain of one thing: they are not atheist.

Atheist means “not believing in a god.”

Yet, they believe in themselves, and the power of their own intellect to guide their own life.

So it is not that they don’t believe in a god;

It is just that the god they believe in, themselves, is so puny and inadequate to the task of caring for them, they won’t confess it.

They are atheist because they rebel and reject the one true God who reveals Himself through the Scriptures.

So what is a believer, then?

It is someone who has been called and saved by God, chosen in Christ before the world began.

That person will then learn to seek the glory of God, not his own glory.

It is a process, though, as we understand more and more.

Because we were right where the atheist is: we were in rebellion.

We had rejected God’s command to repent and believe the gospel.

But God’s grace, His mercy, changed us from death to life.

God, by His great love, REDEEMED us from the sin we were enslaved to.

And it is to those believers, those followers, those chosen people, He says in verse 8:

Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any.”

Fear not.

How much comfort is that false god you may be holding to?

Does the Muslim find comfort in Allah? Is he a redeemer?

Does the atheist find comfort in science?

As he looks out and considers all the galaxies and stars, and recognizes he is less than a speck of dust in the cosmos:

Does he feel comfort?

Do the riches of the rich man stave off the fires of hell he will face if he doesn’t repent of his sin?

Does all the learning of the PhD survive when he develops Alzheimer’s?

Fear not!

When you are faced with sickness, fear not.

Your God, the true God, knows your need. He may heal your body; He will absolutely save your eternal life if you cry out to Him in faith.

When you lose everything, fear not.

Your God, the true God, will care for you.

When you mourn for the loss of friends or family, fear not.

You do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with you. He was tested in all the ways you are, and never sinned.

If you follow the God of Scripture, you do not follow some cleverly-devised philosophy.

You don’t even follow a well-formulated theology.

You follow the living Sovereign of the universe, the Creator of all things, who is enthroned above all power, nations, peoples, and thrones.

It is He who has known you, who has loved you, and who has redeemed you by His Son, who gave His life to remove your sin.

Target Date: Sunday9 March 2025

Word Study/ Translation Notes:

Thoughts on the Passage:

2 - The endearing name “Jeshurun” means Upright One (cf. Deut. 32:15; 33:5, 26). Even though Israel had stumbled badly, she was still upright because God had held her up. “Jacob” (the deceiver) may represent what Israel was in the past and “Jeshurun” (the upright) what she would be in the future.

3 – I will pour My Spirit upon your offspring…

This promised blessing of God is not necessarily to be realized immediately, but is a promise to be a blessing to those who come after.

And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. - Hebrews 11:39–40

3 - The Lord promised to pour out His Spirit on the Israelites in the future. This gift would have the same effect, for the nation, as pouring water on dry ground would have for the landscape.

3 – Constable - Since this is a promise specifically to the Israelites, they would be the special recipients of this outpouring. Thus it must still be future. The giving of the Spirit in the apostolic age, first on the day of Pentecost and then on several subsequent occasions, was not a gift to Israel but to the church, not to Jews uniquely but to Jews and Gentiles equally (cf. Acts 11:15).

This is one of the dangers of allowing your eschatology to govern your interpretation of a passage. Constable takes this as a future (to us) prophecy because he holds a dispensational view of the last days.

I have more sympathy with the preteristic interpretations of Henry, who deems the prophecies in this chapter to point primarily to the return from the Babylonian captivity. That interpretation is, at the very least, defensible in the context of the chapter. The dispensational view espoused here is artificial.

Better to understand the truth that the church IS Israel (not a mere replacement for her). It is the church for whom Jesus died, and that church includes both Jew and Gentile in fellowship through Christ.

Many people see no need for God. Indeed, they would say they see no need for ANY god. But the truth of the matter is that they see no need of another god because they are acting as their OWN god. It is they who determine, to themselves and to any who will listen, what a god should be, what he should do, how he should act, and what rules he should enforce and how he should enforce them. In short, they have assumed the role of god over themselves and any they can influence. And they are poor gods indeed.

People, including God’s people, are incurable idolaters.

What is the Good News of this passage – Where is Jesus Christ? (if you can’t answer this question, are you finished?)

Teachings:

What do we learn about God/ Jesus/ Holy Spirit?

Applications:

For the Christian:

For the Backslidden:

For the Unconverted:

Primary Preaching Point:

Building Points:

[on even numbered page]

MORNING PRAYER:

Adoration:

Almighty God and everlasting King.

Confession:

Forgive us our pride, and the loathsome lengths to which we will go to support our fleshly vanity.

Thanksgiving:

In You we find our only hope, both in this life and in eternity joined with Christ Jesus.

Petition:

We beg that You subdue the power of our sins by Your Holy Spirit.

Intercession: (also beyond our local)

We pray that Your peace would reign anew on the earth: