Right Responses to the Savior

As I have mentioned several times, Isaiah 40-48, focused on Judah’s Deliverance through the Persian King Cyrus. After 70 years of bondage to the Babylonians, they were to be set free. This is all prophetic. Isaiah points to something that will happen 170 years from the date that he preaches about it.

Starting in chapter 49, the emphasis moves to Deliverance that will be achieved ultimately through Jesus. And not just for Judah from Babylon, but all people from their bondage to sin.

In chapters 51-52, the news that A Servant Savior who would deliver all people, required RESPONSE.

Again the emphasis is listen to obey, don’t just let it go in one ear and out the other.

Listen Up

Isaiah 51:1–8 HCSB

Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the Lord: Look to the rock from which you were cut, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain. When I called him, he was only one; I blessed him and made him many. For the Lord will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places, and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and melodious song. Pay attention to Me, My people, and listen to Me, My nation; for instruction will come from Me, and My justice for a light to the nations. I will bring it about quickly. My righteousness is near, My salvation appears, and My arms will bring justice to the nations. The coastlands will put their hope in Me, and they will look to My strength. Look up to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its inhabitants will die like gnats. But My salvation will last forever, and My righteousness will never be shattered. Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is My instruction: do not fear disgrace by men, and do not be shattered by their taunts. For the moth will devour them like a garment, and the worm will eat them like wool. But My righteousness will last forever, and My salvation for all generations.

Listen 51.1, Pay attention 51.4, Listen 51.7, listen 21

Warren Wiersbe calls his commentary of Isaiah “Be Comforted”

This is why God wants His people to listen up… he has words of comfort to bring. Verse 3, verse 12, verse 19, verse 52.8

Verse 3- The Lord will comfort Zion… What is the evidence of this? He says in 1-3 that He has been involved in the Nation from the beginning. He quarried them out as a people. He called Abraham and Sarah. He plans to bring joy and gladness like the Garden of Eden.

In verse 6 and 8, He promises salvation that will last forever to all the people of the worlds.

Respond to the Savior who is totally submitted to the Father.

LISTEN UP! HERE IS A PROMISE FROM THE LORD!

I have taken care of my own, and I will take care of my own.

Wake up

Isaiah 52:1–6 HCSB

“Wake up, wake up; put on your strength, Zion! Put on your beautiful garments, Jerusalem, the Holy City! For the uncircumcised and the unclean will no longer enter you. Stand up, shake the dust off yourself! Take your seat, Jerusalem. Remove the bonds from your neck, captive Daughter Zion.” For this is what the Lord says: “You were sold for nothing, and you will be redeemed without silver.” For this is what the Lord God says: “At first My people went down to Egypt to live there, then Assyria oppressed them without cause. So now what have I here”— this is the Lord’s declaration— “that My people are taken away for nothing? Its rulers wail”— this is the Lord’s declaration— “and My name is continually blasphemed all day long. Therefore My people will know My name; therefore they will know on that day that I am He who says: Here I am.”

These verses are a call to attention and action.

The call to wake up actually begins back in 51.7

There it was a wake up call to realize that God’s wrath against their sin had been satisfied. In the following verses God describes how bad it had been and again seeks to COMFORT THEM!

He tells them to wake up and get ready! Put on their best clothes. Get ready to celebrate.

Wake from spiritual slumber and stupor. This is a call to spiritual revival. I believe this is a call that needs to be voiced to the church often. We get used to the humdrum, half-heartedness of apathetic stupor.

Get ready! You prayed for rain, now carry an umbrella!

There is a change of fortunes on the way!

God is going to bring a complete turnaround!

They have waited and waited and now the deliverance had come!

The end result is to know THAT GOD IS HERE (Verse 6)

Sometimes we pray and pray, and God moves in one way or another, but He always moves!

But there is a call to wake up and be prepared!

This has to be a call to faith… to believe and be prepared. to pray and to do.

Get up

Isaiah 52:7–12 HCSB

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the herald, who proclaims peace, who brings news of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” The voices of your watchmen — they lift up their voices, shouting for joy together; for every eye will see when the Lord returns to Zion. Be joyful, rejoice together, you ruins of Jerusalem! For the Lord has comforted His people; He has redeemed Jerusalem. The Lord has displayed His holy arm in the sight of all the nations; all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God. Leave, leave, go out from there! Do not touch anything unclean; go out from her, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the Lord. For you will not leave in a hurry, and you will not have to take flight; because the Lord is going before you, and the God of Israel is your rear guard.

There is in verse 11 a call you move out. Get up and get going. Listened up, you woke up, now Get UP and move out.

Remember, the emphasis in these few chapters is that we are to ACT on the fact God has sent us a Savior.

This is calling faith to action. 11 and 12 are a call to leave Babylon, but it is much more than that.

It is worth noting that in 51.17 when Isaiah said wake up, he followed that by stand up.

In 52.1 he said wake up and in verse 2 he said stand up. Shake off the dust. Clear out the cobwebs.

This is a call to ACTIVE faith.

You will notice in verses 7-8 the ACTION

Feet carrying the message of peace

Bringing good news

Proclaiming salvation.

saying GOD REIGNS

Watchmen (those who scan the horizon for danger or in this case rescue) shouting for joy that the Lord is returning.

What do we do we this passage?

We need to have listening ears to obey.

We need to wake up. Perhaps many of us in this room are just going through the motions. Satisfied and Content when God is calling us to greater levels of spiritual awakening.

We need to get up and move out. Active faith. Leaving sin behind. Pursuing the things and priorities of God in our life with a red hot passion. Carrying the Gospel in all that we do!