Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?Who has believed our message? To whom has Yahweh’s arm been revealed?Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?Who hath believed our message? and to whom hath the arm of Jehovah been revealed?
5 sermons cite this verse
II. The second point of my subject, on which I must speak very briefly, indeed, is this—THESE ARE SOME MARVELOUS THINGS IN REFERENCE TO OURSELVES. The first of these marvelous things is that after all that Christ has done, and the mercy of God in making it known, so many are utterly careless and indifferent concerning it. Tens of thousands will not even cross the threshold to go and hear about it! Bibles are in many of their houses, yet they do not take the trouble to read them. If they are going on a railway journey, they consult their Bradshaw—but they do not search God's own Guide Book to find the way to Heaven, or to learn where and when they must start if they mean to reach that place of eternal happiness and bliss! We can still ask, with Isaiah, "Who has believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" The most marvelous sight out of Hell is an unconverted man! It is a marvel of marvels that the Son of God, Himself, should leave Heaven and all its glories and come to earth to bleed and die in manhood's shape for manhood's sake—and yet that there should be anyone in the shape of a man who should not even care to hear the story of His wondrous Sacrifice, or that hearing the story, should disregard it as if it were of no interest to him! Yet see how men rush to buy a newspaper when there is some little bit of news! With what avidity do some young people—and some old people too, who ought to know better—read the foolish story of a love-sick maid! How freely their tears flow over imaginary griefs! Yet the Lord Jesus Christ, bleeding to death in disinterested love to His enemies, moves them not to tears, and their hearts remain untouched by the story of His sufferings as if they were made of marble! …
Let it be remembered, too, that the ambassador will have to give an account of how he does his businessand, therefore, it is that I appeal to my beloved friends, the members of the Church, that we may always have their prayers. We shall have to report to our Master how men treated our message and whether they would have peace or not. Sometimes, while preaching, I have felt as if I could imitate that Roman ambassador who met a certain king and told him that the Romans forbade him to advance further. The king somewhat jested at the stern command of the Roman, but the ambassador stooped down and with his stick drew a ring in the dust round the king and said, "You must give your answer before you come out of that circle, for if you step over that line, the Romans will accept it as a signal of war." I have sometimes felt, when preaching to this great congregation, as if there were some who had to decide for God or for the world before they stepped out of this place, for God's ambassador had, as it were, drawn a line all round them and said to them, "choose this day whom you will serve. If Jehovah is God, serve Him. Or if Baal is God, serve him." As we have gone to our home, we have prayed, "O Lord, we have again told the people Your message! We have not told it with the broken heart that we wanted to feel, but we have truly told it as far as the matter of it is concerned, though we have failed in the spirit of our telling it. Now, O Lord, make the people willing in the day of Your power, to accept the peace that Christ has made, for unless You work in them by Your gracious Spirit, we shall have to cry, 'Who has believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?' for they will reject the Savior, refuse His peace and remain Your enemies even to the end of their lives." The "ambassadors for Christ" must give to their King an account of how they have done their work. May we be able to do it with joy and not with grief! …
I. Hence we may learn the blindness of the world, that the wisdom appearing in the work of redemption is no more admired in it. God has revealed this his glorious design and contrivance to the world; sends forth his gospel, and causes it to be preached abroad, in order to declare to the world that his infinite wisdom has been engaged for man’s salvation. But how little is it regarded! There are some who have their eyes opened to behold the wondrous things of the gospel, who see the glory of God in, and admire the wisdom of it. But the greater part are wholly blind to it. They see nothing in all this that is any way glorious and wonderful. Though the angels account it worthy of their most engaged and deep contemplation; yet the greater part of men take little notice of it. It is all a dull story and dead letter to many of them. They cannot see any thing in it above the wisdom of men. Yea, the gospel to many seems foolishness. Though the light that shines in the world be so exceeding glorious, yet how few are there that do see it. The glory of God’s wisdom in this work is surpassing the brightness of the sun: but so blind is the world that it sees nothing. It does not know that the Sun of righteousness shines. Thus it has been in all ages, and wherever the gospel has been preached, ministers of the word of God in all ages have had occasion to say, Isaiah liii. 1. Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? Thus the prophets were sent to many with that errand, Isa. vi. 9, 10. “Go and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.” …
I can scarcely sympathize, as I could wish to do, with those who have worked for Christ unsuccessfully. To say, "Master, I have toiled all the night and have taken nothing," has never been my lot and, therefore, I can only speak from what I suppose to be the feeling of unsuccessful men. For these many years I have been preaching the Gospel in this great London and I know not that at any time God has blessed us more than He is blessing us now! Neither can I say that at any time He has blessed us less, for it seems as if He has always been giving us more than we can receive and blessing the Word exceedingly above what we asked or ever thought! There is room for nothing in my case but gratitude and encouragement, for humble dependence upon God for the future and adoring joy for the past and the present. But, what hard work it must be for a minister or a Sunday school teacher to go on preaching and laboring positively without success, or with so little that it is only like a cluster here and there upon the topmost bough! I can imagine such Brothers and Sisters feeling that they can speak no more in the name of the Lord. And, as they weep over their failure, saying with Isaiah, "Who has believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" I should not wonder but that my text may whisper in their ears a comfortable thought, "You know not what a day may bring forth." …
Surely it is demanded of all Believers. We are bidden to confess with the mouth if we have believed with the heart. We have, moreover, the promise that, "he that with his heart believes, and with his mouth confesses, shall be saved." And this likewise, "He that confesses Me before men, him will I confess before My Father who is in Heaven." The alternative is fraught with judgment—"He that denies Me"—which signifies a non-confession—"he that denies Me before men, him will I deny before My Father which is in Heaven." If it is, then, the Lord's will, it is at your peril that you forget or neglect it! "He that knows his Master's will, and does it not, shall be beaten with many stripes." Hasten, then, you backward Christian! Make haste and delay not to keep this Commandment! Be convinced that you have yet to speak on God's behalf. Be assured that such testimony as you can and ought to bear would be a great comfort to the Lord's people. You do not know, some of you saved ones who have never confessed your faith, what pleasure it would give the minister. I know of no joy comparable to that of hearing that one has been made the instrument of the conversion of a soul. It keeps our spirits up and our Master knows that we have good need, sometimes, of some success to encourage us. He who thinks that the Christian ministry is an easy post—exempt from care and free and from trials—had better try it. It were better to be a galley-slave, chained to the oar, than to be a minister of the Gospel, if it were not for the strong consolations which support us in the present—and for the Divine reward which there will be at the last. He who diligently discharges this solemn vocation never knows rest or release from anxiety. His mind is always actively exercised in his Master's service. His heart bears about a load which it cannot shake off. He dreams of some who walk disorderly—and wakes to sigh and cry over others who grow cold or lukewarm. He must plow the stony ground and he can but regret the loss of his seed. He scatters the good seed on the way, and if it come not up, by-and-by, according to the promise, he cries, "Who has believed our report, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" As cold water to a thirsty soul, so would the news be of your conversion! You saved ones ought, for that reason, to speak on God's behalf! …