This Is The Way

Isaiah 30:1-33; Isaiah 31:1-9

Introduction

Returning to Isaiah after a break through Easter season

Today we’re going to look at Isaiah 30-31

In the middle of another series of ‘woes’

It’s a big seciton but they go together to develop an important theme

Each chapter has a slightly different emphasis & application

Question posed to us this morning is, “Where do you turn to find help in times of need?”

Obvious answer is to go where I can find the help that I need

e.g. I need help with math problem I should go to math teacher

Very often we & for various reasons we seek help from other places

There are some significant verses/phrases that structure this message

Isa. 30:15 - In returning and rest...

Isa. 30:21 - This is the way, walk in it

Isa. 31:3 - Now the Egyptians are men, and not God

Key verse & turning point of message is Isaiah 30:18

And we are being led to Isaiah 31:6

Problem faced here is one familiar to all

Judah is threatened with imminent attack by world superpower

Despite being told to trust God, rather than believe God they are pursuing their own way out

Abraham fought the same spiritual battle

God promised a son but impatience with God caused Abe to look for his own way - Ishmael

I’m sure you know what I’m talking about

Rather than trust God and follow guidance of His Word we look for ways to make things happen ourselves

When we are in need, This is the way

The Impatience of Our Faithlessness

Isaiah 30:1-17; Isaiah 31:1-5

Not Alliances but Reliance

Isaiah 30:1-7; Isaiah 31:1-5

Our Need for Help

One of the things that makes this portion of Isaiah so relatable is we all know the feeling of being overwhelmed by our circumstances

We don’t have all the answers, we have much less power & control than we want to admit

This is especially true in spiritual matters

Life of a Christian is recognising we are dependent

Isa. 31:3 - reminds us there is a difference between men and God

Like Judah, our survival isn’t about making the right connections with people but relying on God

Short-sighted Trust

There’s a number of ways Judah’s looking to Egypt is faulty

It’s was only about 10 yrs earlier Egypt suffered a defeat by Assyria

It’s also short-sighted because it’s impatient

Judah was looking for help now

Stress & fear of their situation had them panicking instead of trusting

God told them He would protect them but God wasn’t working on their time schedule

God calls us to trust Him for a reason - it wouldn’t be trust if God was just going to do what we want & in our time

Like Abraham, short-sighted, lack of trust only made things worse

Their trust in Egypt would be their humilitation (Isa. 30:3)

No Help At All

Isa. 30:6-7 is another of Isaiah’s poems

This is a poem of mockery

Like many of his poems there is several ways details could be interpreted

Basic emphasis of his poem is clear

Ambassadors travelling to Egypt on a dangerous path, carrying treasures for Egypt

Treasure will be wasted & dangers endured for nothing

Why? Egyptians will be no help

After all, they are just men (Isa. 31:3)

Like Judah & Assyria, Egypt is a nation in the hand of God

God makes this point very clear by mocking Egypt

Calls her Rahab-Hem-Shebeth

Rahab is used other places in Bible as name for Egypt (Ps. 89; Isa. 51:9)

It could be a taunt about a powerful dragon of the sea they believed offered protection

Rahab means arrogance, pride, boastful

Last part of name means to sit still or do nothing

God calls Egypt big mouth do nothing

Judah is taking “counsel, but not of me” and devising “plans, but not of My Spirit” God says

It will end in emptiness & tragedy

So, it is with us when we don’t seek counsel and wisdom of God

When we rush to fix our problems ourselves instead of hearing the instructions and principles of God’s Word

Refusing to Listen

Isaiah 30:8-11

Our Rebellious Hearts

Politically, alliance with Egypt is a rebellion against Assyria

Isaiah presents this political rebellion as a rebellion against God (Isa. 30:1, 9; 31:1)

Problem isn’t just that they tried to figure their own way out

Real problem lies in why they tried to figure their own way out

They refused to listen to what God had said

They didn’t heed God’s Law, didn’t listen to His prophets

Judah acted the way we all act naturally in relation to God

True that we don’t trust God & we try to work our own way to appease God & escape judgment

Why do we do that? We don’t want to hear what God has to say

Our hearts are rebellious

Not What We Want to Hear

Isa. 30:10 - reveals the rebelliousness

Say to the prophets, “we don’t want to hear the truth”

Tone down your message, don’t talk about judgment and be so harsh

“Don’t speak to us about what God says”

Tell us what we want to hear, soothe us, make us feel good about our decisions

We don’t want to see God or hear from God - we know what we’re doing & we like it

Human nature hasn’t changed

2 Timothy 4:1–3 “1 I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;”

Paul sounds the same as Isaiah

People don’t want to hear the truth but we must continue to speak the truth

Isaiah uses title “Holy One of Israel” in part to show that he isn’t their servant but the servant of God

He will continue to speak the truth

This is a trap we must all beware of - none of us like to hear rebuke & correction

We don’t like to hear about judgment, sin & punishment

We don’t want to be told there is right & wrong

Stop and Listen

Isaiah 30:12-17

Catastrophic Consequences of Our Rebellion

In our sin, our rebellion is the seed of our consequences

What we plant & water is what will grow in our heart

Sin & rebellion build up in our lives like water leaking into a wall

It bulges until it can’t be held & then bursts out

Like a hole in a wall that holds until it can stand no longer

When it breaks, it is complete & catastrophic

Like a clay pot smashed into the ground into smithereens

Whether we like it or not, believe it or not God will let the consequences of our rebellion fall on us

Return and Rest

In the midst of their rebellion God makes a promise

If they return to Him they will have rest & salvation

If they wait on Him & trust Him they will find strength

It’s the glimmer of hope we’ve come to expect in these messages

Sadly, in this circumstance they’ve made up their mind to rebel

They will be left like a tree on a mountain stripped of all it’s branches

The Patience of God’s Faithfulness

Isaiah 30:18-33

God is Gracious

Isaiah 30:18

God Longs to Show Grace

This is key verse, turning point and heart of message

God wants them to trust Him & not go to Egypt because He wants to bless them

God truly desires to show them grace & bless them abundantly, deliver them

Here is how deeply God longs to bless them - He waits for them

They will rebel & suffer the consequences and He will be waiting on the other side

It reminds us of a story Jesus told about God’s heart

Parable of the Lost Son (Lk. 15:11-32)

Younger son decided to live his own way & suffered the consequences

All the while the Father waits, ready to receive the son when he returns

Luke 15:20 “20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.”

In His grace, God is glorified and we are blessed

God is just

Don’t mistake God’s waiting for indifference, passivity

We don’t set the terms for our return to God

God won’t just ignore the sin & rebellion that caused the situation

He is just & will act in justice & righteousness

Any return to God is on God’s terms

After all it was His word we rebelled against

He didn’t do us wrong, we did Him wrong

God is Patient

Isaiah 30:19-20

He Responds to Your Cry

That doesn’t mean God is going to make it difficult for us

We did Him wrong so He’s going to make us jump through hoops to make it right

What He expects for our return is what He expected before

When we cry to Him for help & forgiveness He will hear & He will answer

For you to find God’s grace from your rebellion you too must call to Him for forgiveness & help

He Leads You to His Goodness

Even in the consequences of our sin God is working in grace

He works through our adversity & affliction to open our eyes to see Him & His truth

Romans 2:4 “4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?”

2 Corinthians 7:10 “10 For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”

God is Faithful

Isaiah 30:21-33

God Teaches Us

Doesn’t just tell us we’re going the wrong way

In grace He shows us the way, teaches us the way and guides us in it

By His Spirit and Word He keeps us from straying

God Heals Us

Our sin has consequences that leave scars & pain

Clearly this speaks of a glorious time yet future

It also reveals how God works in life of those who wait on Him

Mountain of bare trees becomes filled with goodness

This is part of the wonderful transformation of God’s salvation

He doesn’t save us from future judgment but leave us in misery in the present

He heals the pain of the past

God Fights for Us

Isa. 30:31.

Our Repentance Brings Fruitfulness

Isaiah 31:6-9

Return to God

Isaiah 31:6; Isaiah 31:1-5

Repentance is Needed

This is where we’re being led - return to God

This is repentance

Stop looking to other things, other people, to yourself

Look to God & him only to deliver you, to guide you

Not return to a way of life but to God

To know God’s grace, to have deliverance & blessing repentance is needed

Reasons for Repentance

Threat of Judgment

Why is repentance so important? Without it we are under judgment

God is just and must act justly, He can’t let rebellion go unpunished

If we persist in following our own plans we will be judged for it

Promise of a Saviour

Isa. 31:4-5.

For those who turn to Him there is salvation, there is a Saviour

One, who like a lion, isn’t scared of those who oppose Him & is able to protect His own

One, who like a bird, covering (passing over) her own with wings cares for & sheilds His own

Let Go of Everything Else

Isaiah 31:7

Leave Your Past Behind

To turn to God means to leave behind the past

Those things you trusted in must be cast away

Cling to God

Look to Him for your salvation

Trust God, listen to His Word & follow it

Don’t refuse His Word but hear it, even when it hurts

Enjoy God’s Blessing

Isaiah 31:8-9; Isaiah 30:30

God Will Give Victory

He will overcome His enemies

He will free His people from bondage

Enjoy God’s Presence

Isa. 31:9 - whose fire...

cf. with Isa. 29:1-2 - Ariel, altar hearth of God

To return to God is to be fully in His presence

It is to free you to worship Him with joy & satisfaction

Conclusion

Everyone of us are tempted to place our trust in other things

Naturally, we place our trust in ourselves over God

That puts us in a place of rebellion against God, separates us & causes us to be at odds with God

God is gracious, He has given His Son for Your salvation & He calls you to trust Him for your salvation

Even as believers we’re tempted to pursue our own ways over God’s

We’re tempted to hear in His word only what we want to hear

Putting our trust in anything, anyone other than God only leads to destruction, pain & misery

God longs to show you grace & give you blessing

To know that grace you must repent and follow Him