Untitled Sermon

This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians,[a] in the ships in which they took pride. 15 I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King.”

16 This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 18 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

It’s been a long year

2020 Has been a year of turmoil. Time Magazine described this year as a year of “rolling disasters” We saw racism on the front page and in the news. We shouted Black Lives Matter from the rooftops. We marched, we cried, we made our presence known and felt. At the same time the counter culture let us know that they were just as vocal and fed up as we are.

There were wild fires in the West and massive hurricanes around the world. 45 showed himself to be well… 45. He penned the terms “Wuhan Flu and China Virus” to describe the worst pandemic in our nation’s history in over 100 years. Over 300 thousand lives lost and every life touched by grief and fear of the unseen enemy.

There were killer hornets, stock markets crash, tourism screeches to a halt, cities, states, countries go on lockdown, schools close, hospitals are overloaded and we all find ourselves looking to God for an answer.

The Israelites were in a situation where they too were in desperate need of saving. They were in a foreign land, enslaved and seemingly forgotten. They were under the rule of the Babylonian King Cyrus. Isaiah the prophet has the unfavorable task of speaking to the people who seem to have forgotten their God. He spent his life, warning them of God’s wrath if they should did not turn from their wicked ways. He told them what God said would happen and yet, they seemed to have forgotten the God that saved them and brought them out of Egypt. Egypt was the ransom for the freedom of God’s people.

Much like it seems that America has forgotten God. We live in a world were calling on God is almost taboo. We have forgotten what he did for our ancestors. We have forgotten what he did for our parents. We seem to have forgotten what he did for us… despite our sins. Yes 2020 was challenging but we are still here. Many people lost their lives due to COVID but many people overcame the disease as well. Many lost their jobs but we have seen an outpouring of giving such that we have never seen before.

There was never a time when God had left us, even when we could not discern his voice. For God has said that we are a peculiar people, set aside for his purpose. We are his chosen and he makes a way for us. Keep the faith, because it’s a new day!

Deliverance

43: 14 This is what the Lord says- your Redeemer, the Holy on of Israel: For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the baylonians in the ships in which they took pride.

God told the Israelite that He is their redeemer and he would bring down those in power over them. He would use the very things that they took pride in to bring destruction to them.

God is telling us that He will use the very things that the enemy has used to keep us in bondage, to free us. We will see the racist hate turned against him. We will see the virus that targets people that look like me eradicated by the hands of people that also look like me. The unjust will be held accountable for God will not be mocked. He has given us victory and delivered us from those that would do harm. We just have to have faith and believe.

God told the Israelites vs. 18 “Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past”

That is not to say that the past be obliterated from our minds. There will be lessons that we learned that we will take into our future. But the future that God has for us will be so great that the past will dim. We will no longer think of these things. We do not need to dwell on the past hurts. We need to move forward. We do not need to dwell on our lost jobs, for God is able to provide for us greater than we can hope or imagine. We wont have to dwell on 45 for God is the one in control. It’s a new day!

A New Thing

Vs. 19 “See I am doing a new thing? Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

God is doing a new thing. It is truly a new day. God has begun showing us. The winds of change are blowing. A vaccine for COVID is here. As we speak, hundreds of thousands of people are getting vaccinated. The vaccine was completed in months instead of years… an new thing. The racist amongst the masses are distressed because some of the key scientist were African American… an new thing. Prominent African Americans have the ear of the nation due to the racial injustices that our community know as commonplace. Now the world knows too… a new thing.

People of God, It. Is. A. New. Day. God says NOW it springs up. Like a germinating her that spreads its first sign of life. A small green leaf, coming up from the dirt.

“I am making a way in the wilderness” He is making a way for you and for me. A way out of the chaos. A way out of despair. A way out of poverty. A way out of mental illness. A way out of domestic violence. A way out of bondage. A way out of corruption. A way out of hatred. A way… out of no way. Just like Israel was led through the wilderness, we will see the manifestations of God. It’s a new day.

For God knew that we would need a savior. He knew that we would struggle to keep his commandments and he loves us so much that he gave us His son.

All we need to do is call on that name that is above all names. Some call him savior. Some call him Son of God or Son of Man. Some still refer to him as the Son of David.

The Lamb of God

The Light of the World

The Alpha and Omega

The Bread of Life

The Good Shepherd

But you might know him as a healer, a comforter, a mind regulator, a rock, a savior.

I don’t know what you call him but I just call him Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.