The Lord's Servants
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
If you get an opportunity to evangelise a follower of Judaism a key place to go to is these later parts of Isaiah. There are many beutiful prophecies here that are directly fulfilled by Jesus who is the prophesied Servant.
For some Jews, hearing about these things is eye opening because it was something they never saw before.
But as you would expect, the Judaism needs a defence against this - if your heart was sealed against our Lord and wanting to reject him, how would you read and explain these passages about a Servant?
They say that the Servant of these later part of Isaiah is Israel. It is a personification of the people of God.
And you know what? They’re right.
The Servant of these passages is Israel, and, that changes nothing! As with lots of biblical prophecy there are layers of meaning and fulfilment and it can be true that Israel is the Servant and Jesus is also the servant!
But how?
Well we will explore that as we dive into ch42!
Making our way through the last part of Isaiah.
Last week we explored some of the futility of idolatry which was mocked by God.
We were encouraged not to fear because God comes to protect and bless his people, even in difficult circumstances.
The LORD’s Servant(s)
The LORD’s Servant(s)
Explore the nature of a special servant that the LORD will use to bring justice to the world.
He will get lots of air time in these later chapters.
This is something of an introduction to this prophesied servant. Lets see what he’s like:
Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street;
This servant is
God’s - belonging to him, chosen by him.
Upheld by God
Delighted in by God
Empowered by God’s Spirit
In his role he will bring justice to the world - a big ask!
He will come quietly (at least initially)
An he will come not to opress the opressed and downtrodden, but to provide the justice that they long for, have a look:
a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.
He won’t stop until the job is done!
Some people in our age hijack the language of opressed and victim status to created protected classes and guilt others into treating them as having special privlidges, and worse some of that is based on how wicked you are - the more you celebrate your sins, the more privlidges you are. This is not the kind opressed that the Servant comes to aid.
He comes to help those who are genuine sufferers of miscariage of justice - who have been unjustly attacked, defrauded, mistreated and devalued.
The servant will undo injustic, and one of the ways is through the application of God’s Law - and he won’t stop until God’s law goes to all the nations!
This was in part the role of Israel the nation -
Chosen by God and charged to be a faithful follower of God, upheld by God and a delight to him.
To protect the promote justice and the Love of GOd to the nations.
But the failed miserably!
We needed one who would come and do what Israel could not, to be the embodiment of the people and return them to their purpose, a that was what Jesus did!
Matthew 12 quotes these 4 verse and says Jesus was fulfilling them! Jesus is the servant of God who does these things.
There’s more Jesus fulfills this too:
“I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.
The LORD Leads the Way
The LORD Leads the Way
In response to the good new in the earlier part of the chapter, it’s time to sing a new song!
Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.
Let them give glory to the Lord, and declare his praise in the coastlands. The Lord goes out like a mighty man, like a man of war he stirs up his zeal; he cries out, he shouts aloud, he shows himself mighty against his foes.
It is right and proper to respond to the works of God with song and praise, and that’s why our gatherings are full of singing and prayers! And I hope your life during the week is also marked by praising God. Sing! You will get over the awkwardness soon enough.
The Lord shows himself - he will reveal himself, he has waited long enough:
For a long time I have held my peace; I have kept still and restrained myself; now I will cry out like a woman in labor; I will gasp and pant.
The time of waiting will be over, the culmination will arrive.
In that day God will reveal his wrath and he will lead his people:
And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.
This is already happening through Jesus, with the fullness to come.
The Failed Servant
The Failed Servant
In the last part, we see the way that Israel had failed to live up to what God’s servant should be:
Who is blind but my servant, or deaf as my messenger whom I send? Who is blind as my dedicated one, or blind as the servant of the Lord?
The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious. But this is a people plundered and looted; they are all of them trapped in holes and hidden in prisons; they have become plunder with none to rescue, spoil with none to say, “Restore!”
They did not hear and keep the law, they did not remain loyal, they opressed the poor and needy. They did not see the proper way and have driven themselves into captivity.
God will judge them, many smaller warnings (judges), then eventually the Exile.
Who gave up Jacob to the looter, and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned, in whose ways they would not walk, and whose law they would not obey?
God is right to punish and correct us when we wander.
It is better for us to suffer consequnces that chasten us, than to go headlong in our foolishness.
We need the greater Servant, the second Adam, a better David. Jesus Christ!
So What?
So What?
