The Rescuer - Isaiah 49
Bruce Goettsche
Isaiah • Sermon • Submitted
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Copyright July 10, 2022 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche
We all need to be rescued. Some of us know it and some of us don’t. We may feel we need to be rescued from a bad circumstance or a bad relationship. Maybe we need to be rescued from financial debt or an unbearable job. But our greatest need for rescue is actually in an area of which many people are unaware. We need to be rescued spiritually.
This morning we are going to look at God’s rescuer. In Isaiah 49 we see the second of the servant passages in Isaiah that describe the coming Messiah (or Jesus). This passage will give us some noteworthy (I hope) insights into God’s plans for His followers.
The Words of the Rescuer
1 Listen to me, all you in distant lands!
Pay attention, you who are far away!
The Lord called me before my birth;
from within the womb he called me by name.
2 He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword.
He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.
I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel,
and you will bring me glory.”
4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless!
I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose.
Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand;
I will trust God for my reward.”
5 And now the Lord speaks—
the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant,
who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him.
The Lord has honored me,
and my God has given me strength.
6 He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.
I will make you a light to the Gentiles,
and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
On the surface it is difficult to know who is doing the talking in first six verses. But as you read on it is apparent this is the suffering servant we find periodically in Isaiah. We know this servant to be Jesus. This is partially because of things Jesus said about Himself, and also how He fits the description. The Jews at the time of Jesus did not pick up on this. They did not see that these verses were pointing to a different Redeemer than the one they were anticipating. Let’s look at what He tells us about Himself.
First, He says He was called to His position before He was born. He was called even while He was in the womb. In the story of the first time John the Baptist encountered Jesus, we are told John jumped in the womb of His mother in excitement and honor to be in the presence of the coming Messiah.
We need to understand that this is spoken in what is called phenomenological language. This means that the words are written from the standpoint of how we experience what happened even though it is not necessarily a full picture of what actually happened. For example, we talk about the sun rising and setting. Of course the sun doesn’t move, the earth does.
When it comes the suffering servant, by all appearances He is summoned while in His mothers’ womb. We know (from what the Bible teaches us) that Jesus is the Son of God in human form. The Son has always existed and is part of the Trinity or the three-part perfect unity that we call God. The plan of redemption was planned in the counsels of the Trinity before creation. It is much more understandable saying he was chosen in His Mother’s womb.
Second, we are told He would be compelling in the way He spoke.His words would be like a sharp sword. He was given a divine authority. We read this in the Gospels that the people marvelled at Jesus because He was One who spoke with authority, whereas the scholars and teachers of the day QUOTED authorities. Frequently, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said . . . “ (quoting an authority) and then He added, “But I say to you . . . “ The words of Jesus are the Words of God!
Third, the Messiah (Jesus) did not get discouraged over the apparent failure of His mission. The suffering servant almost sounds dejected. Jesus came to earth and was rejected and executed. Yes, this was necessary for our salvation but from the human side of things, it appeared His mission had failed. His followers ran away and denied Him. He was executed by the very people He came to save. From all appearances, His mission had been an abject failure.
However, the suffering servant entrusted Himself to the Lord. Jesus knew God was working in all circumstances. He may not (in His human frame) have known what the Father was doing through all that was happening, but He trusted Him.
Aren’t you a little encouraged by these words? There have been times for all of us when we felt life was falling apart and we were a big failure. Pastors often feel this way and I suspect you do too. You try to do the right thing, but it just doesn’t seem to work.
· In your marriage
· In your business venture
· In your attempts to witness
· In raising children
· In your hunger for holiness
· In teaching the Word of God
This is when we must learn from our Lord . . . in spite of appearances we must trust God. Keep doing what is right and working to communicate well. The end of things is often not known until much much later. There are Sunday School teachers who feel like they failed who, years from now, may hear from a child who tells them (or someone else) how much their teaching meant to them. Our job is to do what God has called us to do. It is up to Him to bring the impact.
Fourth, His work would extend the call of God even to those outside of the Jewish community. Up until the time of Christ, the work of God was mostly tied to the Jews. When Jesus came on the scene, the work of God’s forgiveness and grace was now extended to non-Jews (like us)! The salvation God offers is for anyone who will receive it. That includes both you and me. Thanks be to God!
God’s Words to the People
In verses 7-13 God the Father speaks to the Suffering servant. He tells Him several things. First,
He said, there is coming a time when this suffering servant will be exalted by all. We read this in Philippians 2,
6 Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
8 he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
The Father went on to assure the Son that He would be protected and through His ministry lives would be dramatically changed.
Jesus may have at times felt the work wasn’t “working” but God was going to fulfill His purposes through these unique happenings. The invitation to follow Christ was not going to extend to the whole world. This is why verse 13 says,
13 Sing for joy, O heavens!
Rejoice, O earth!
Burst into song, O mountains!
For the Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on them in their suffering.
If we understand the message of the gospel, we should rejoice! God took it upon Himself to save us. He did this not because we are good, but because He is faithful. The Lord has rescued His people. But . . . as we will see, not everyone sees this as being the case. Some view Jesus as just a crazy man.
The Response of the People
Once again, judging by appearances, the people saw things differently.
14 Yet Jerusalem says, “The Lordhas deserted us;
the Lord has forgotten us.”
As the people looked at the circumstances around them (The Babylonians taking exiles and attacking Jerusalem) their conclusion was simple: “the Lord has forgotten us.”
We know better, but we also know what it is like to feel deserted. There are times for all of us when God is silent, and we conclude He is indifferent to our problems and life. This is again looking at things as they appear on the surface.
God was actually using the Babylonians to awaken His people. If you will, it was an extreme act of discipline designed to get Israel to give up their idols and return to the Lord.
When God seems silent it is always a good idea to ask, “Is there some barrier between God and I that I have erected through the choices of my life?”
· A sin for which you have not, and do not want to repent.
· A barrier between you and another person.
· Something that takes precedence in your heart before the Lord (i.e. an idol)
· A spiritual attitude of indifference
If you identify such things, you need to deal with that problem. God’s silence is often a call to repentance. However, God’s silence may also be designed to strengthen your faith. I remember hearing an illustration that helped me here. A good teacher imparts knowledge in the class sessions. However, when it is time to test what the students have grasped, the teacher is silent as the test is administered. So, it is with the Lord! Sometimes the silence is God’s way of helping us see what we have learned. The point is that silence does not mean indifference.
The Response of God
God seems offended that the people could even think He would turn away from them. He says,
15 “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child?
Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?
But even if that were possible,
I would not forget you!
16 See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.
Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.
I remember at the intermission of one of our concerts. I met the artist in the back room and they asked if I remembered the lyrics for a popular Christmas song. We looked them up and this person wrote the words on their hands so they wouldn’t forget them.
The Lord says, “I will never forget you.” He said, A godly mother will always try to tend to the needs of their small child/children. But even if a mother could be bad . . .God will not forget because, He has, if you will, tattooed our names on His hands. We are constantly before Him!
The beginning of chapter 50 continues this thought line.
This is what the Lord says:
“Was your mother sent away because I divorced her?
Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors?
No, you were sold because of your sins.
And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.
2 Why was no one there when I came?
Why didn’t anyone answer when I called?
Is it because I have no power to rescue?
No, that is not the reason!
For I can speak to the sea and make it dry up!
I can turn rivers into deserts covered with dying fish.
3 I dress the skies in darkness,
covering them with clothes of mourning.”
God said to Israel: “I never divorced you. You walked away from me!” God did not go back on His promise to Israel. He won’t go back on His promises to us. The situation in Israel was not because God didn’t care. It also wasn’t because God was UNABLE to help. He has all power at His disposal! The one who put the stars in place and separated life from darkness is not without resources to help His people. The problems was Israel drifted from the Lord!
Life Lessons from the Text
Our Lord Loves us a great deal. For some reason, many people see to feel we have an adversarial relationship with God. We see Him as the parent who doesn’t want us to have any fun. So, we spend our lives trying to find a way around Him. In a sense we try to sneak out after curfew!
This is to miss the point completely. The Lord sent Christ into the world BECAUSE He loves us. Jesus endured the insults of men and willingly endured the torture of the cross all to make it possible for God to extend mercy and grace to us. Every time we look at a cross we should think, “Look how much He loves us!”
God does not seek to afflict us, but to bless us. Did you enjoy disciplining your children? (If you did, you should probably talk to someone.) We don’t want to give adverse consequences to people we want to flourish.
God does not find “pleasure” in disciplining us, but He does it because without discipline we will never develop into healthy people. It is the same with our children, or our pets, isn’t it? If you don’t discipline them, they will never learn the difference between right and wrong or good and bad. They will not know the boundaries of their lives which will cause them to drift, often into trouble. The Lord disciplines us for our own good. In Hebrews 12 we read,
5“My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t give up when he corrects you.
6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”
10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
“God’s discipline is always good for us, so we might share in His holiness.” God is not trying to give us an easy life, He is working to help us find true life, deeper life, and eternal life. To do this, He sometimes has to change our direction because we resist His Word and His counsel.
God never says it is not “worth the hassle.” He will do whatever it takes to make us into who He created us to be. He left His throne in Heaven to come to earth as one of the created rather than as the Creator. He bore the wrath of the justice that is required due to our sin and god’s holiness.
Yes, we all need to be rescued sometimes. Fortunately, if we are in Christ, we belong to the strongest rescuer there is. He is committed to us. He will go to great extremes to help us be what we were created to be. You see, sometimes, we don’t see the danger because the thing we need to be rescued from, is ourselves.