GOD COMFORTS.......ISAIAH 49:1-13

Mark S. Miller

Isaiah 49 • Sermon • Submitted 3 years ago

Isaiah 49:1–13

Comfort

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The one true God is compassionate; He comforts His People then and Now!

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Transcript

KICK-OFF!

Question:

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS AND WHY?

(HUMOROUS)

“YOU’RE THE REASON OUR KIDS ARE SO UGLY”.....”HOW CAN I MISS YOU IF YOU WON’T GO AWAY?”.....”HOW COME YOUR DOG DON’T BITE NOBODY BUT ME?.....”IF THE PHONE DON’T RING, BABY, YOU’LL KNOW IT’S ME”

(FOCUSED ON THE LORD!)

“BE STILL MY SOUL”.....”CHRIST THE SURE AND STEADY ANCHOR”.....

“THE LORD IS A MIGHTY KING”.....”MY HOPE IS BUILT IN YOU ALONE”

SOME REMIND US OF SOME GOOD OR NOT SO GOOD MEMORIES AND REMIND US OF SPECIAL MOMENTS.....

SONGS CAN ALSO CREATE EMOTIONS JOY.....PAIN.....HOPE.....REGRET.....OR COMFORT!

TODAY’S STUDY FOCUSES ON ONE OF FOUR SERVANT SONGS (OR POEMS) IN ISAIAH.....THIS LESSON FORETELLS THE WORK OF THE LORD’S SERVANT.....THE MESSIAH.......

SALVATION CAME TO EARTH THROUGH HIM!

SO.....THE LORD IS CALLING THE PEOPLE BACK TO A PROPER RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM.....HE WAS REMINDING THIS GENERATION OF THE SINFUL CONDITION IN WHICH THEY WERE LIVING AND OF ITS CONSEQUENCES!

CHAPTER 49..... DESCRIBES THE ULTIMATE COMFORTER OF HIS PEOPLE.....HE ASSURED GOD’S PEOPLE THAT THEY COULD FIND COMFORT IN KNOWING GOD HAD NEITHER FORGOTTEN NOR FORSAKEN THEM.....

AS WE MOVE CLOSER TO ISAIAH 53, WE WILL SEE THE WONDERFUL REVELATION OF THE CROSS OF CHRIST.....WHERE CHRIST WILL BECOME MUCH CLEARER TO US!

ISRAEL WAS THE SERVANT OF JEHOVAH.....BUT AS THE SERVANT.....ISRAEL HAD FAILED!

NOW.....GOD IS GOING TO SPEAK OF ANOTHER SERVANT, AND THAT SERVANT IS JESUS CHRIST!

THINK ABOUT: SCRIPTURE TALKS PRIMARILY OF ISRAEL AS GOD’S SERVANT.....YET THE FINAL MEANING IS FOUND IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST.....( A PICTURE PERFECT ILLUSTRATION)

HOSEA 11:1

New Living Translation Chapter 11

1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him,

and I called my son out of Egypt.

THE NATION FAILED.....BUT THE ONE WHO CAME OUT OF THE NATION WILL SUCCEED!

ISAIAH 49 IS GOING TO HIGHLIGHT THE ROLE OF GOD’S SERVANT.....HE ALSO CHALLENGED GOD’S PEOPLE TO PROCLAIM THE MESSAGE OF GOD’S SALVATION TO OHTERS!

QUESTION:

WHAT ABOUT TODAY?.....HOW ARE WE TO RESPOND TO THE MESSAGE OF HOPE THAT SCRIPTURE COMMUNICATES WITH EACH OF US?

TODAY WE ARE GOING TO BE LISTENING IN ON A TREMENDOUS STORY OF HOPE.....(PROPHETIC IN NATURE).....CHRIST IS LOOKING AT THE WORLD AS A WHOLE AND IS LOOKING AT IT THROUGH THE EYES OF THE SERVANT OF GOD WHO HAS COME AS THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD!

TODAY’S OUTLINE:

INCLUDED...............ISAIAH 49:1-4

CALLED...................ISAIAH 49:5-7

VINDICATED.............ISAIAH 49:8-13

1. INCLUDED...............ISAIAH 49:1-4

The New International Version (1984) The Servant of the Lord

49 Listen to me, you islands;

hear this, you distant nations:

Before I was born the LORD called me;

from my birth he has made mention of my name.

2 He made my mouth like a sharpened sword,

in the shadow of his hand he hid me;

he made me into a polished arrow

and concealed me in his quiver.

3 He said to me, “You are my servant,

Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.”

4 But I said, “I have labored to no purpose;

I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing.

Yet what is due me is in the LORD’s hand,

and my reward is with my God.”

REGARDING VERSE 1.......

ISLANDS.....COASTLINE = ESSENTIALLY MEANING “HABITABLE PLACES OR REGIONS.”

ISAIAH WAS CALLING ON ALL GROUPS OF PEOPLE EVERYWHERE TO LISTEN AND PAY ATTENTION.....HEARKEN

Matthew 28:19–20 NIV

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Jeremiah 1:4–5 NIV

4 The word of the Lord came to me, saying, 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

IN BOTH CASES THE DECLARATION SERVED TO AUTHENTICATE THE MESSENGER’S CREDENTIALS.....THE LORD, NOT ISAIAH.....TOOK THE INITIATIVE TO SET HIM APART FOR HIS LIFE’S WORK.....

THE SERVANT’S CALLING SERVED TO VALIDATE HIS CALLING.....MEANING THAT THE SERVANT OF THE LORD SPOKE AND ACTED IN THE LORD’S AUTHORITY.....NOT HIS OWN!

Galatians 1:15 NIV

15 But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased

THE PICTURE IS THAT GOD TAKES THE INITIATIVE TO CALL PEOPLE TO HIMSELF IN FAITH AND OBEDIENCE!

QUESTION:

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED TO?

REGARDING VERSE 2.......

Isaiah 49:2 NIV

2 He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.

ISAIAH HAS ESTABLISHED HIS CALLING AND AUTHORITY.....THAT IT ALL CAME FROM THE LORD.....

Hebrews 4:12 NIV

12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Revelation 2:16 NIV

16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

GOD REVEALED HIS SERVANT FOR A SPECIAL PURPOSE AT AN APPOINTED TIME!

REGARDING VERSE 3.......

Isaiah 49:3 NIV

3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.”

Galatians 4:4 NIV

4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,

WHETHER THROUGH THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL OR FULLY IN CHRIST.....THE SERVANT’S PURPOSE WAS (AND IS).....THAT GOD BE GLORIFIED.....DISPLAY MY SPLENDOR!

THE ROOT MEANING OF THE VERB.....”BE GLORIFIED”.....IS “TO BE HEAVY OR WEIGHTY.”

IT PAINTS A PICTURE OF GOD’S MAJESTIC PRESENCE AS POWERFUL AND UNMISTAKEABLE.......EXCEPT TO THOSE WHO CHOOSE TO BE SPIRITUALLY BLIND!

ISAIAH WAS DECLARING THAT THE SERVANT.....INITIALLY ISRAEL.....WAS CALLED TO BE GOD’S MESSENGER BEFORE THE SERVANT WAS EVEN BORN!

REGARDING VERSE 4.......

The New International Version (1984) The Servant of the Lord

4 But I said, “I have labored to no purpose;

I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing.

Yet what is due me is in the LORD’s hand,

and my reward is with my God.”

THINK ABOUT:

AS GOD’S SERVANT ISRAEL WOULD EXPERIENCE TIMES OF EXTREME DIFFICULTY AND SELF-DOUBT.....ESPECIALLY DURING THE CAPTIVITY AFTER 586 BC.....MANY OF THE EXILES WOULD WONDER IF THEY HAD LABORED IN VAIN IN THEIR CALLING!

LABORED IN VAIN = “TO BE EMPTY!”......THAT THEIR HOPE WAS EMPTY!

QUESTION:

HAVE YOU EVER EMBRACED THIS LINE OF THOUGHT.....THAT WHAT I AM DOING IS TO NO AVAIL.....THAT I HAVE SPENT MY STRENGTH FOR NOTHING.....IT IS HAVING NO IMPACT?

SPENT = THE WORD DESCRIBES A COMPLETE EXHAUSTION OF ONE’S RESOURCES AND STRENGTH!

NOTHING = THE EMPTY FORMLESSNESS PRIOR TO GOD’S CREATIVE ACTIVITY.....

GENESIS 1:2

The New International Version (1984) The Beginning

2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

FUTILITY = (VANITY).....SOLOMON USED THIS WORD NUMEROUS TIMES IN THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES TO DESCRIBE THE POINTLESSNESS OF EVERYTHING APART FROM A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD!

ECCLESIASTES 3:19

The New International Version (1984) A Time for Everything

19 Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless. 20

QUESTION:

HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE A SERVANT OF THE LORD IN YOUR OWN WORDS?

WHAT DO WE SEE IN THESE 4 VERSES THAT CAN HELP YOU WITH THE THOUGHT OF A SERVANT LEADER?

THE SERVANT WAS CALLED AND COMMISSIONED BY THE LORD.......

THE SERVANT W0ULD DELIVER A LIFE CHANGING MESSAGE.....

GOD IS WALKING WITH THE SERVANT LEADER.......

SOME THEOLOGIANS INTERPRET THAT THE SERVANT AS AN INDIVIDUAL.....SOME, THE NATION OF ISRAEL.....MANY SUGGEST THAT THE SERVANT IS JESUS CHRIST!

2. CALLED...............ISAIAH 49:5-7

The New International Version (1984) The Servant of the Lord

5 And now the LORD says—

he who formed me in the womb to be his servant

to bring Jacob back to him

and gather Israel to himself,

for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD

and my God has been my strength—

6 he says:

“It is too small a thing for you to be my servant

to restore the tribes of Jacob

and bring back those of Israel I have kept.

I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,

that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”

7 This is what the LORD says—

the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel—

to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation,

to the servant of rulers:

“Kings will see you and rise up,

princes will see and bow down,

because of the LORD, who is faithful,

the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

REGARDING VERSE 5.......

The New International Version (1984) The Servant of the Lord

5 And now the LORD says—

he who formed me in the womb to be his servant

to bring Jacob back to him

and gather Israel to himself,

for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD

and my God has been my strength—

NOT JUST A JOB.....ISAIAH HAD BEEN GIVEN A LIFE PURPOSE.....GOD HAD FORMED HIM FOR THIS MISSION!

QUESTION:

WHAT WAS THAT PURPOSE OR MISSION?

(TO BRING GOD’S PEOPLE BACK TO HIM.....NOT ONLY GEOGRAPHICALLY BUT ALSO SPIRITUALLY!)

CHRIST HAD GONE FROM DISCOURAGEMENT TO EMBRACING HIS ROLE AS GOD’S MESSENGER!.....HE IS HONORED IN THE EYES OF THE LORD.....THE LORD APPROVES OF HIM AND HE REALIZES THAT THE LORD IS HIS STRENGTH!

Philippians 4:13 NIV

13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:19 NIV

19 And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

REGARDING VERSE 6.......

Isaiah 49:6 NIV

6 he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

Genesis 12:3 NIV

3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

John 8:12 NIV

12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

AS BELIEVERS IN CHRIST WE ARE TO BE THE LIGHT THAT SHINES IN THE DARKNESS OF THE WORLD!

Matthew 5:14–16 NIV

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

REGARDING VERSE 7.......

Isaiah 49:7 NIV

7 This is what the Lord says— the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel— to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings will see you and stand up, princes will see and bow down, because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

TO REDEEM = SET-FREE SOMETHING OR SOMEONE UNDER OBLIGATION OR IN DEBT!

Romans 3:23 NIV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 6:23 NIV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Isaiah 53:3 NIV

3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

Isaiah 52:15 NIV

15 so he will sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.

QUESTION:

HOW DOES OUR SPIRITUAL MISSION COMPARE TO THE MISSION THAT GOD GAVE ISRAEL?

Matthew 28:18–20 NIV

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

HOW DO WE.....AS CHRIST’S DISCIPLES DISPLAY HIS LIGHT IN TODAY’S WORLD?

(CHRISTLIKE CHARACTER.....ATTITUDE.....ACTIONS.....AND SPEECH IN EVERYTHING THAT WE DO!)

Philippians 1:6 NIV

6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:6 NLT

6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

3. VINDICATED...............ISAIAH 49:8-13

The New International Version (1984) Restoration of Israel

8 This is what the LORD says:

“In the time of my favor I will answer you,

and in the day of salvation I will help you;

I will keep you and will make you

to be a covenant for the people,

to restore the land

and to reassign its desolate inheritances,

9 to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’

and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’

“They will feed beside the roads

and find pasture on every barren hill.

10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,

nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them.

He who has compassion on them will guide them

and lead them beside springs of water.

11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,

and my highways will be raised up.

12 See, they will come from afar—

some from the north, some from the west,

some from the region of Aswan.”

13 Shout for joy, O heavens;

rejoice, O earth;

burst into song, O mountains!

For the LORD comforts his people

and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

REGARDING VERSE 8.......

The New International Version (1984) Restoration of Israel

8 This is what the LORD says:

“In the time of my favor I will answer you,

and in the day of salvation I will help you;

I will keep you and will make you

to be a covenant for the people,

to restore the land

FOUR ASSURANCES:

GOD WILL ANSWER.....GOD WILL HELP.....GOD WILL KEEP OR PRESERVE YOU.....APPOINT YOU AS A COVENANT PEOPLE!

REGARDING VERSE 9.......

Isaiah 49:9 NIV

9 to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’ “They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill.

THESE WERE THE CAPTIVES IN BABYLON.....

REGARDING VERSE 10.......

Isaiah 49:10 NIV

10 They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.

REVELATION 7:16-17

The New International Version (1984) The Great Multitude in White Robes

16 Never again will they hunger;

never again will they thirst.

The sun will not beat upon them,

nor any scorching heat.

17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd;

he will lead them to springs of living water.

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

REGARDING VERSE 11-12.......

Isaiah 49:11–12 NIV

11 I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up. 12 See, they will come from afar— some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.”

TAKE COMFORT IN THE FACT THAT THE LORD WOULD BE LEADING THE WAY!.....PREPARING THE WAY.....(PAVING THE WAY) FOR HIS CHILDREN!

REGARDING VERSE 13.......

Isaiah 49:13 NIV

13 Shout for joy, you heavens; rejoice, you earth; burst into song, you mountains! For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

A CALL TO WORSHIP!.....WHY?..... = THE LORD HAS COMFORTED HIS PEOPLE AND THE LORD WOULD HAVE COMPASSION ON HIS AFFLICTED ONES!

FINAL THOUGTHS:

QUESTION:

HOW DOES THE THOUGHT OF CHRIST’S RETURN GIVE YOU COMFORT WHEN FACING TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS?

THE KEY THOUGHT TODAY IS THAT THE BIBLE ASSURES US THAT GOD DESIRES TO COMFORT US IN OUR EARTHLY STRUGGLES AND AFFLICTIONS!

OUR MINDSET SHOULD BE THAT OF THE APOSTLE PAUL!

Hebrews 12:2 NLT

2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.