The Servant Sustains the Weary with His Word (Isaiah 50)

Previous post: A Light To The Nations (Isaiah 49).

Isa 50:4-9 is the 3rd of 4 Servant Songs which anticipates the Messiah (Isa 42:1-9; Isa 49:1-13; 52:13-53:12).

The Servant Suffers to Sustain Others (Isa 50:1-3, 4-9, 10,11)

God did not fail, for Israel sinned their way into exile (Isa 50:1), refusing to respond to God's word (Isa 50:2,3). God's title, "the Sovereign Lord," appearing 4 times (Isa 50:4,5,7,9), shows that God expresses his power not by being a ruling dictator, but taking the form of a servant (Phil 2:6,7). This servant is a scholar, well schooled and responsive to the Word (Isa 50:4,5), a gentle healer (Isa 42:3), a patient worker (Isa 49:4), a wise comforter (Isa 50:4), yet he was greeted with abusive opposition (Isa 50:6). The Servant's rejection intensifies as the Servant Songs progress (Isa 49:7; 50:6; 52:14-53:9), not because he was a victim nor because he was guilty (Isa 50:9). Indeed, he willingly chose his sufferings (Isa 50:7), and knew that God would vindicate him (Isa 50:8). Thus we trust him (Isa 50:10), not our own wisdom (Isa 50:11).

3 Questions:

1. Have you been rebellious (Isa 50:5)?
2. Do you "know the word that sustains the weary" (Isa 50:4)?
3. Do you know of One who was disgrace, mocked and spit at for you (Isa 50:6)?

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The Servant is a Light for the Nations (Isaiah 49)

Previous post: Peace Like A River (Isaiah 48)

The Servant is a Light for the Nations (Isa 49:1-13)

Isa 49:1-13 is the 2nd of 4 Servant Songs describing the Messiah Jesus (Isa 42:1-9; 50:4-9; 52:13-53:12). Jesus:

• calls to the world (Isa 49:1),
• conquers with the truth of his word (Isa 49:2, 11:4; Rev 1:16, 19:15,21), unlike Cyrus,
• glorifies God and succeeds where Israel failed (Isa 49:3,4),
• redeems not only Israel, but the ends of the earth as a light for the nations (Isa 49:5,6),
• conquers the nations by his sufferings (Isa 49:7; 50:6; 52:14,15),
• triumphs worldwide, is vindicated by God (Isa 49:8-12), and inspires unprecedented joy (Isa 49:13).

God will Save his Despairing People (Isa 49:14-26)

The Jewish exiles felt forsaken by God (Isa 49:14). But their despair is offset by divine grace, like a mother who cannot forget her child (Isa 49:15,16). Though Jerusalem is destroyed by the Babylonians (Ps 74:3; 102:14), God will rebuild Zion (Isa 49:17,18; 44:26,28), and miraculous growth, expansion and recognition will result with ease (Isa 49:19-26).

Practical Application: Listen to what God will do for the nations through his Servant: "I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth" (Isa 49:6).

God's Repeated Self-Declaration: "I, the LORD, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob" (Isa 49:26).

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Your Peace Would Have Been Like A River (Isaiah 48)

God Puts Up with His Stubborn People for the Sake of His Own Glory (Isa 48:1-11)

"Hear," "Listen," are the repeated imperatives (Isa 48:1,12,14,16) designed to lead deaf and blind Israel (Isa 48:6,8; 42:18-20; 51:1) to recognize their hypocrisy (Isa 48:1-5), and what God would do (Isa 48:6-8) for his own glory. God would defer his anger (Isa 48:9) not because they don't deserve his full wrath, but in order to display his own glory in his persistent compassion (Isa 48:9-11).

God Will Free His People from Babylon Through Cyrus (Isa 48:12-22)

God reaffirms his plan to use Cyrus for his own redemptive purpose (Isa 48:14,15). Christ, the servant of the Lord (Isa 42:1-13; 49:1-6), appears to be speaking in Isa 48:16b with a reference to the Trinity: "And now the Sovereign Lord (the Father) has sent me (the Son) endowed with his Spirit (the Holy Spirit)." When we resist God's word by not listening (Isa 48:17-19), idolatry prevails, which never profits (Isa 44:9). "Peace...like a river" is not seasonal but perpetual; it is not experienced by the wicked (Isa 48:22).

Practical Application: "If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea" (Isa 48:18)

Truism: There is a transient evanescent peace that comes from the world (John 14:27), but we have real peace when we have peace with God (Romans 5:1).

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The Gods and Idols of Babylon are Doomed (Isaiah 46,47)

Babylon, representing worldly kingdoms in contempt of God (Rev 18:1-24), are destined for defeat and destruction.

God's Purposes Always Prevails (Isa 46:1-13)

Bel and Nebo (Isa 46:1), the 2 chief gods of Babylon can't save them when Cyrus came to take them into captivity (Isa 46:2). Only God is able to save his remnant (Isa 46:3,4). God cannot be compared to anything in creation (Isa 46:5), not to gold or silver that can never save anyone (Isa 46:6,7). So, God says to his people, "Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind" (Isa 46:8), and "Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted" (Isa 46:12), for our natural thoughts gravitate to idols and resist the truth about God. Only God is God whose purposes always prevail (Isa 46:9-11,13).

Babylon is Doomed to Humiliation (Isa 47:1-15)

As judgment descends upon Babylon (Isa 47:1-3), God is the only place of refuge (Isa 47:4). Though God used Babylon to discipline his people, as he said he would (Dt 28:49,50), God still held Babylon accountable for her abuses (Isa 47:5-7), and her self-deifying autonomy (Isa 47:8,10). She will suffer sudden loss of children and widowhood (Isa 47:9), disaster and ruin (Isa 47:11-15).

Practical Application: "Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels" (Isa 46:8).

Remember: "I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me" (Isa 46:9).

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The Lord Alone is God (Isaiah 44,45)

Despite his people's superficial worship, unrepentant hearts (Isa 42:22-24, 26-28), and persistent idolatry (Isa 44:9-20), God declares his deity (Isa 44:6-8), and promises to bless and pour out his life-giving Spirit upon them (Isa 44:1-5), for his own sake (Isa 42:25).

Besides Me There Is No God (Isa 44:1-45:13)

God is committed to his people because he choose them ("Jeshurun" means "upright one"). They became thirsty and dry because of their rebellion, but God would pour our his Spirit upon them and the Gentiles (Isa 44:3-5, 32:15; Joel 2:28,29; Acts 2:38,39). Like God, Jesus affirms his deity by calling Himself the First and the Last (Isa 44:6-8; Rev 1:17, 2:8, 22:13). Because the Lord alone is God, it exposes all our useless worthless idols that make us stupid by deceiving our deluded hearts (Isa 44:7-20). God alone can redeem us (Isa 44:21-24). God, who is sovereign over all things, names Cyrus the Great as the one through whom he will restore postexillic Jerusalem (Isa 44:24-28, 45:1-13; 1 Ki 13:1-3; 2 Ki 23:15-17). With no financial incentive for Cyrus, his support of the rebuilding of the temple had to be of God (Isa 45:13).

There Is No Other God Besides Me (Isa 45:14-25)

God hiding himself (Isa 45:15) does not mean that God is evasive, but that he is counterintuitive. Though his people were exiled and felt abandoned by God, yet God was always with them, and God would save and deliver them (Isa 45:17). How do we know? Because God alone is God (Isa 45:14,21,22).

Practical Application: Idols never save (Isa 44:9-20), only God alone saves.

Food For Thought: "Jesus Christ will be Lord of all, or he will not be Lord at all." St. Augustine

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Through God's Chosen Servant, God Glorifies Himself and Heals the World (Isaiah 42,43)

Isa 42:1-25 Don Carson's Daily Devotional. This servant song is divided into three parts.

1. In Isa 42:1-4 God addresses Israel and introduces the Servant, who will bring “justice” to the nations.
2. In Isa 42:5-7, the Servant himself is addressed (note Isa 42:6: “I the LORD, have called you [sing.] in righteousness”), and Israel is allowed to overhear what is said. Here the God who gives breath to all people (Isa 42:5) now makes this Servant “to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles” (Isa 42:6), undoing all the degrading effects of sin (Isa 42:7).
3. In Isa 42:8-9, the Lord again addresses Israel, once again summarizing the mission of the ideal Servant and insisting that these are “new things” graciously announced in advance.

Isa 42:1-9 is the first of 4 Servant Songs, fulfilled in Christ (Isa 49:1-13; 50:4-9; 52:13-53:12). "The servant of the Lord," sprinkled through out ch. 40-55, is a title for the people as a whole (Israel, the church), but at times the servant is a specific person who is distinct from the whole.

God's Chosen Servant (Isa 42:1-9; 10-17; 18-25)

God's Servant is the only Savior of the world (Isa 42:1; Mt 12:18-21). The key word "justice" (Isa 42:1,3,4) means fulfilling mutual obligations (forgiveness) consistent with God's moral law to individuals and the world. Unlike human rulers, like Cyrus (Isa 41:2-4,25-29), the Lord's quiet servant will not crush but defend the weak (Isa 42:2,3; 11:4; 40:11). God will fulfill his covenant promise to his people and heal the nations (Isa 42:4,6,7), for he is the Creator and Sustainer God (Isa 42:5), who will glorify himself (Isa 42:8,9). Because of the Servant's work of redemption, the world will sing a new song, with unprecedented praise to God (Isa 42:10-17; 1 Pe 2:9). Though Israel is God's chosen instrument and servant, they, like the blind (Isa 42:18-20) on account of their disobedience (Isa 42:22-25), need God's word (Isa 42:21), and God's salvation themselves (Isa 42:6-9).

Israel's Only Savior (Isa 43:1-28)

For his own glory, God reassures his people that he, their Savior (Isa 43:3,11), Redeemer, Creator and King (Isa 43:14,15), will ransom and restore them from their enemies (Isa 43:1-7) through a new exodus (Isa 43:16-21). Why would God save them? In order to be witnesses to God's exclusive reality as God to the world (Isa 43:8-13). Yet they failed to honor God, and burdened God with their sins (Isa 43:22-28).
Memorable Verses: "A bruised reed he will not break" (Isa 42:3); "I will not yield my glory to another" (Isa 42:8); "Sing to the Lord a new song" (Isa 42:10); "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you" (Isa 43:2); "I created for my glory" (Isa 43:7); "I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior" (Isa 43:11); "See, I am doing a new thing" (Isa 43:19).


Application Verse: "The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness' sake, to maginify his law and make it glorious" (Isa 42:21).

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2010: the year of the Gospel; 2011: the year of Grace

Happy New Year! In brief, I pray that 2011 may be the year of Grace--my weakest attribute amongst too many--as some of us prayed for 2010 to be the year of the gospel--the matters of 1st importance (1 Cor 15:3,4). I pray that 2011 may continue our gospel-centered, cross-centered, Christ-centered focus (1 Cor 9:16; Acts 20:24), which can be summarized as Grace.

A Weak Ministry Results from the Rule of Law

I believe that what weakens our Christian influence and Christian ministry is a deviation from grace, however subtle. When Grace is weak, the Law prevails: "Just obey. Just pray. Just repent. You should be thankful. You should work harder and sacrifice more. You should be mission-centered, not family-centered. You're proud. Etc." These statements may be true. But they do not transform the heart. As Paul Zahl, an evangelical Anglican and author, said, Grace alone achieves what the Law demands.

An Unjustified Accusation Against Preaching Grace

Many have made the accusation that preaching grace produces apathy, negligence and laziness--that is "cheap grace." But I'd say that preaching imperatives, such as "make disciples" (without sufficient grace) produces legalism and arrogance among the initiated, and despair, despondency and indifference among the rest. But grace, properly and repeatedly expounded and expressed by the Spirit, leads to the best result. The apostle Paul says it best: "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me" (1 Cor 15:10). So....

So, What's the Problem?

• If someone is lazy, it may be because I failed to expound on grace sufficiently that produces hard work (Phil 2:12,13).
• If someone is proud, it may be because I have not expressed the real humility that can only come from grace (Eph 2:8,9).
• If someone is lustful, it may be because I have not displayed the grace of Christ that reveals the beauty of the Lord (Ps 27:4), and the king in his beauty (Isa 33:17).
• If someone is disobedient, it may be because I failed to manifest Christ's gracious obedience unto death (Heb 5:8,9).
• If someone is selfish, it may be because my grace and patience shrunk in proportion to my perception of their selfishness.
• If someone has no spirit, it may be because my spirit lacks the grace, freedom and liberation that comes from the Spirit of God (2 Cor 3:17).
• If someone is unthankful, it may be because I forget the grace that causes thanksgiving to overflow from within me (2 Cor 4:15).
• If my ministry is not growing, it may be because I am like the angry legalistic older brother who cannot tolerate despicable failures and ingrates (Luke 15:28-30), rather than the gracious father who loved the ungrateful failure (Luke 15:20).

May God have mercy on me to practically live out in 2011 the truth that "Grace alone achieves what the Law demands." May 2011 be the year of Grace.

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