The Book of Isaiah (Part 1)

0:19 And it's tough because it's springtime. It's tough because it's the book of Isaiah. It's tough because the first half is really about God's judgment. And it just seems like over and over so repetitive. And so it's very tempting to skim this part or skip this part. going, okay, I get it. He judges him. He judges him. He judges him. But let's have a little more reverence for the word of God and say, you know what? Maybe there's a reason why God puts so many of these passages in scripture that have to do with his judgment. Could it be possible that God actually wants us to meditate on his judgment. I know that's just culturally strange for us growing up in America, but could it be possible that God wants you to meditate on his judgment?

1:27 is that's a thought that I don't hear anyone talking about. Oh, let's think about his love. Let's think about his goodness. Let's meditate on his mercy. Let's meditate on his grace. But have you ever meditated on the wrath of God? His justice.

1:47 I mean, I understand for some of us, like I've said before, some attributes come easier to us. you know like for some people maybe maybe grace is very difficult God's grace is difficult for you because you grew up in a home where there was no grace I mean as a child I think about growing up and see I can understand justice I can understand wrath I can understand punishment because that's what I grew up with but it's hard for me to understand grace meanwhile there's other people who understand grace because they were never punished. They never understood justice in the home. There's other people who have a hard time understanding the faithfulness of God, like a God who keeps his word because all your life you've been with people who didn't keep their word. And you were with parents who made a vow, well, we'll stay together forever, and they didn't keep their word. Or maybe parents that were supposed to take care of you, and they didn't keep your So there's different parts of God that are difficult for each of us to accept because we didn't experience it growing up.

3:02 But that's why we go to the word of God. And we go, okay, this is true of God, even though it's not true of my experience. And here in the book of Isaiah, you've got so much about God's judgment. But there's a purpose to it all. There's something here where God wants to humble the arrogance of man.

3:33 In chapter 2, he says it over and over. Verse 11, The haughty looks of man shall be brought low. The lofty pride of men shall be humbled. And the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. For the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty. Against all that is lifted up. and it shall be brought low.

3:56 See, one of the things about judgment is that nothing humbles us like judgment. What can be more humbling than the fact that your whole eternal destiny, your whole future is in the hands of one person? Like how big does that make you feel when he lumps everyone and all the inhabitants of the earth, and says that they're like a drop from a bucket and then here am I. I'm the one that decrees these things. And he explains about how he wants to humble his people. And so reading these passages and looking at the numbers of people that are humbled by his wrath, by his judgment, it should do something to us.

4:44 He goes on in verse 17, he says, The haughtiness of man shall be humbled. The lofty pride of men shall be brought low. And the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. And the idols shall utterly pass away. And the people shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground from before the terror of the Lord, from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to terrify the earth. Gosh, that's similar to Revelation 6. And in Revelation 6, it says in verse 15, the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful and everyone slave and free hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains calling to the mountains and rocks fall on us hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne and from the wrath of the lamb for the great day of their wrath has come and who can stand look God is is constantly talking about this day of wrath this day of judgment and in chapter 5, he says, look, what more can I do for my people? And he describes it like a vineyard. He goes, man, I'm caring for it. I'm pulling the weeds. I'm moving the rocks. I'm watering, fertilizing, and there's nothing there. In verse 4, he says, what more was there to do for my vineyard that I have not done in it? But again, in verse 5, he says, man, 15, Man is humbled and each one is brought low and the eyes of the haughty are brought low.

6:35 But the Lord of hosts is exalted in justice and the holy God shows himself holy in righteousness. Verse 20, woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and shrewd in their own sight. okay God I don't know how God could make it any more clear a day is coming when he is going to humble arrogance arrogant men and women who believe they're wise in their own eyes God's desire is for a day when everyone is brought low and only he himself is exalted. It's important that we meditate on these things.

7:35 We dwell on these things. That we humble ourselves now so that he doesn't humble us. I mean, either way, we want to be humbled. We want God alone to be exalted. and God himself wants he himself to be exalted. So we want to be on the same page desiring the same thing and there's something about reading of his judgment to understand just how serious he is. And then you get to the vision of Isaiah 6. After all of that, then you come to Isaiah 6 and talk about humbling. You've got Isaiah the prophet who gets a glimpse of God. and I know most of you have heard this preach several times but I I hope that it doesn't get old to you because you got to recognize this is a prophet of God like I don't know what you think you're going to see when you come to the end of your life but Isaiah you know he says in the year the king Uzziah died I saw the Lord he was sitting on a throne he's high he's lifted up the train of his robe filled the temple. And he talks about these seraphim who each have six wings. With two, he covered his faith. Two, he covered his feet. With two, he flew. And one called out to the other and said, holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory.

8:59 And the foundations of the threshold shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke and I said woe is me I'm lost I'm a man of unclean lips I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips from my eyes have seen the king the lord of hosts that's Isaiah gets one glimpse of God and just thinks he is going to kill me because I know what I've done I know what I've said he sees the angels the angels are covering themselves from head to toe. The high angels, what does that tell you? When you've got high angels that are covering themselves up from head to toe because they can't look upon this holy God.

9:51 Okay, that's what's going on in heaven. Meanwhile, down here on earth, we have people questioning God, thinking it's no big deal to face him at the end of their lives. I mean, do you understand the arrogance on this earth. Understand why we cry, Lord, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. God, would we humble ourselves like those high angels and just understand who you are? and some of that comes by reading passages like Isaiah, where God promises, look, the arrogant, they will be humbled. They'll be hiding in caves awaiting my wrath. Meanwhile, there's people who are like Isaiah, who understand who God is, understand they have no business being in the presence of God, and says, woe is me, and he admits his sin, confesses his sin.

10:48 And that's when in verse 6, Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar, and he touched my mouth and said, Behold, this has touched your lips. Your guilt is taken away. Your sin atoned for. See, some of you read the book of Isaiah and go, Okay, that makes sense. You know, God forgave him. but I don't get the other part about the terror and the wrath and why was he afraid to begin with and I'm the opposite I'm going wait I understand the majesty of a holy God who wants to humble everyone but I'm going okay so why did you forgive he didn't have to do that but we have to dwell on his justice and his wrath and his mercy and his love and his grace and understand our own sinfulness and our need for that type of grace, that type of atonement.

11:48 But I really encourage you, gosh, don't just look at all of these judgments and go, oh, okay, okay, judge this and that. No, meditate on this. So he judges Babylon in chapter, I mean, think about all these cities. He judges Babylon, you know, in these countries, Babylon in chapter 13, Assyria in chapter 14 Philistia in chapter 14 Moab in chapter 15 Damascus in 17 Cush in 18 Egypt in 19 and then Jerusalem itself in 22 like don't think you're getting away with anything just because this is my city like I will humble the arrogant in fact when he talks to Jerusalem in chapter 22 verse 12 it says in that day The Lord God of hosts called for weeping and mourning, for baldness and wearing sackcloth, and behold, joy and gladness, killing oxen, slaughtering sheep, eating flesh, drinking wine.

12:51 Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. The Lord of hosts has revealed himself in my ears. surely this iniquity will not be atoned for you until you die, says the Lord God of hosts. you know, it's this wrath of God where he says, look, this is what I'm calling for. I'm calling for weeping, mourning.

13:23 And it's just, instead of this weeping and mourning, we don't do that. God wants us to take his wrath seriously. And the reason, you know, like in Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes talks about how the fools love the feasting, but the soul of the wise is in the house of mourning. Like the wise person will actually take time to grieve loss, and he'll take time to meditate on the pain of God's judgment, whereas the fool will continue to just go his own way, keep on drinking, you know, just kind of eat, drink, tomorrow we die. And God says, you know what, this is, you're going to pay for this. You are going to pay for this. He continues, talks about his destruction of Tyre, of Sidon, and then finally in chapter 24, he says, it's the whole earth.

14:24 It's the whole earth. Verse 3, the earth shall be utterly empty, utterly plundered, for the Lord has spoken his word. and I just want to close with chapter 25, verse 1. Real simple verse. I probably pass this every time I read this, but I never really meditated until this time, where he says, Oh Lord, you are my God.

14:51 I will exalt you. I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old faithful and sure That's a verse we would just pass by, and I've done it many times. It doesn't seem like a lot, but I don't know. It just hit me so much when I was reading it this morning. Oh Lord, you are my God. I will exalt you. I will praise your name. Why? Because you have done wonderful things. Plans formed of old. Faithful and sure. why is he lifting up God? Why is he exalting his name, praising his name? He says, because God, you've done, past tense, wonderful things, and they were plans formed of old, faithful, and sure.

15:52 You just did some things. Things that you said you would do from a long time ago. Things you planned. and when you say something's going to happen, it's going to happen. That's what the book of Isaiah is all about. He goes, don't you see, look, I said this would happen to Babylon. It happened to Babylon. I said this would happen to Syria. It happened to Assyria. I said this about Philistia, Moab, Damascus, Cush, Egypt, Jerusalem. And then he says, and I'm saying this about the whole earth.

16:21 And so it's a very humbling thought to think, you know what, God, I'm going to exalt you. I'm going to quit lifting myself up. I'm going to lift you up. Why? Because you do wonderful things. But they're not just things that you just decided spur of the moment. They were plans formed of old, faithful, and sure. see we can make plans for the future but we have no idea if it's going to happen you have no idea if you're going to live through this day you can plan out your day but you have no control over this there's one being who says look this is going to happen and then it always happens and just like the people in Noah's day God told them look a flood's coming and then it's too late. That's what this whole book is about. He's warning people.

17:13 Look, I'm telling you, judgment is coming. Judgment is coming. They don't repent and judgment comes. And all these cities are destroyed. And he says, guess what's going to happen to the whole earth for those who don't humble themselves. Please take some time.

17:33 Meditate on his judgment. The fact that it was planned of old. And no one stops him. think of yourself as just one of many human beings on the earth and just meditate on that just maybe don't just jump straight to his mercy and to his grace and things that you're comfortable with take time to meditate on the totality of who God is all of his attributes including his justice including the fact that God is a God of wrath who wants to humble the whole world so that he himself will be exalted