It's not enough to say that Jesus Christ is a king. It's not enough to say that he is the king. You have to say he's my king.
There has to be a personal connection. And here it is in the Old Testament. There must be a confession of faith and that assurance that he is the ruler. And so again, the title for this consideration is When Our King Reins. Well, that happens in stages. He reigns in our hearts as individuals, but he will reign over the earth.
That day is coming. That's, I think, one of the lessons that comes out of this section, these last four chapters before we get to this historical teaching. We have the historical section coming up in chapter 36.
They're pretty hard reading for us. We have the king this evening in chapter 32, chapter 33, Jerusalem being delivered. In the next session, we get the global judgment and the kingdom to come and then we go into this brief sort of parenthesis that talks about the Assyrians besieging Jerusalem and of course the Lord dealing with them and then King Hezekiah. And then we go to the second part of the book of Isaiah, which is radically different, I think, in a good way. Reading what this man had to say, you kind of get, you know, you look forward to meeting him one day. You don't get the impression, at least I don't, that he was the guy that walked around moping, had good reason to.
Who doesn't? Just the man, full of knowledge, occupied himself with learning things, with being sensitive to the Spirit of God. And it is no wonder that King Hezekiah just was so endear to him, sort of a relationship between King Hezekiah and Isaiah that David had with Nathan. You just love that when two powerful characters in God are together like in this companionship that they had. Well, Isaiah sees Jerusalem ruled by the Messiah one day, not in his lifetime, but he sees it coming and there is a world system and it is more wicked than we know. I'm talking about right now.
The Internet has greatly helped this, but God knows how wicked it is. And God's victory over Assyria is sort of a dress rehearsal of his victory over the whole world system under Antichrist that is to come. And so we have this microcosm, this little experience that we're watching that is going to happen on a grand scale. You think about the imported smoke that we have now from Canada, how much smoke we're getting from a fire there. Imagine if almost all the forests were on fire at the same time. Well, in the tribulation period, things like that are going to be happening.
And so when he talks about the smoke blocking out the sun, not far-fetched at all. Well, we leave the discussion of Assyria and Egypt just for a moment. We'll come back to Assyria, of course. And this future, the foretelling we're getting from this prophet, isn't it true that once you become a Christian, the future to you is not what it used to be? And that's how it is with Isaiah, just telling about what God's going to do. So let's look at verse 1, Isaiah 32. Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. Oh yeah, when?
When? And see, he's looking way down the telescope, or he's looking in the telescope that's seeing far away, of course. He is speaking of the messianic kingdom, that millennial age. You know, we get excited talking about the rapture. Well, he knew nothing about the rapture, but he knew about the coming of Christ, the Messiah, and he couldn't help himself. It shows up in almost every chapter. And then he pours it on once we get to chapter 40. The princes are those of any rank or class that are in authority, and the princes will rule with justice. We'll be in that number. The apostles were told by Jesus Christ that they would rule in Judah.
They would also rule. I should read it to you because it hit a scripture bump there. Luke chapter 22 verse 30. And it says that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. There'll be enforcement in those days, and Isaiah sees this. He sees it long before we get it developed in the New Testament even further. In Revelation 1, John says he has made us kings and priests to his God and father.
We will be part of this government that Isaiah is talking about that's going to put an end to human rule. But what is really interesting about this first verse, he says behold a king. In chapter 33 in verse 17, he's going to mention the king. But then in chapter 33 in verse 22, he's going to say our king. It's just progression as the prophet is laying it out.
I don't know if he recognizes that he was doing this or not. We recognize it because the Holy Spirit points it out. He's the author and finisher of all that we hold so special in scripture. And so what we get out of this, it's not enough to say that Jesus Christ is a king. It's not enough to say that he is the king. You have to say he's my king.
There has to be a personal connection, and here it is in the Old Testament. There must be a confession of faith and that assurance that he is the ruler. And so again, the title for this consideration is when our king reigns. Well, that happens in stages. He reigns in our hearts as individuals, but he will reign over the earth.
That day is coming. And I think what is significant about this as a Christian is this is something to point out to an unbeliever. If you get a chance to share Christ with them, share that progression. It's one thing to hear of Christ. It's another thing to admire Christ. But is he your savior and Lord?
Because he can't be one without the other. Well, he is Lord, God over all creation in that sense. But when we talk about Lord and Savior, we're talking about our submission to his lordship as well as his saving our soul from the judgment to come. Like Nathaniel in the New Testament. Rabbi, you are the son of God. You are the king of Israel. See, that confession was what the Ethiopian meant.
I believe that Jesus is the son of God. There's so much packed into that that it doesn't have to be said if you'd understand doctrine. You know that's what that statement means. Unless you're the hope of witnesses and you spend a lot of time trying to undo what the statement means.
Well, it didn't mean that. He really wasn't worshipable. That's heresy. Anyway, our relation to this king sets the course for our eternal destiny beyond Israel's destiny. The time comes when God makes a new heaven a new earth and we'll be part of that. And the former heavens and earth will pass away. That goes beyond the millennial reign of Christ.
Well now, verse 32, let's see if we can make up some time here. A man will be as a hiding place from the wind and a cover from the tempest as rivers of water in a dry place as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. And so he's using these metaphors, this imagery.
He's known to do that. And he's saying people will be protective of each other. Although in the millennial reign there won't be much need.
There won't be the threats anywhere near what we have now. And he will close out the 33rd chapter where there won't be any sickness in that millennial kingdom. And he'll develop, he'll come back to that in the latter chapters as he rolls through his prophecies.
And we learn about life in the kingdom age and how different it will be. But when he says a man will be as a hiding place from the wind, well, you know, people won't be a problem. In the millennial kingdom it won't be just the people. It's always the people. Here in this life it's exactly like that. It's like, oh man, are there going to be humans there? But certainly I'm exaggerating a little bit because you can't live without people unless you want to go nuts. We're all tied in together.
No man is an island. And if he becomes one, he becomes a nut. Well, anyway, just imagine in the kingdom age driving somewhere. And you won't have, it will be like, no, no, go ahead. There will be no one cutting you off.
Everyone's turn signal fluid will be filled. Anyway, I think of Philemon when Paul wrote him a very personal letter. He's saying, yeah, your slave ripped you off, but he became a slave of Christ.
Now what are you going to do? That is Philemon, the letter. And Philemon is like, oh man, the culture we live in, he's mine, he's my property. And Paul says, we have great joy and consolation in your love. He's just laying it on Philemon.
He's just sitting the standard higher and higher. He says, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother. Well, that's what Isaiah is saying. A man is going to be a shield for others. We won't have this, you know, pecking and, you know, infighting and judging everyone. You know, anyway, as a shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
And so everything will be better. Psalm 121 verse 5, the Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade at your right hand. Well, this is before HVAC in an arid land, and shade was the best you were going to get, usually, as you could find a cool spring somewhere to dive in, but it was a big deal. Abraham, you know, when the guests came, Abraham was sitting in the shade when the three strangers showed up who did not remain strangers to him. Anyway, verse 3, the eyes of those who see will not be dim in the ears of those who hear will listen.
Well, the audience is loving this. Isaiah's audience, they didn't have what we have, scripture-wise. This is deep stuff coming from a prophet of God, and he's saying the day is going to come. There'll be no blindness or death spiritually or physical.
It's going to be gone. How else would they know? They got a lot of things wrong guessing about God. We had 400 years in Egypt, and they got it wrong.
And so God sent the prophets, and he gradually, he just sort of a time-release fertilizer, you know, just feeding over a period of time nutrients into its surroundings. You find someone come to Christ, and they want to know up everything right away, that doesn't work well. That's why Paul said don't appoint a novice. Unless he gets puffed up, Satan get hold of him, you got a problem. You have the maturity.
There's no replacement for time in the grade. It takes time on the vine to develop. I'll tell you about my raspberry and strawberry bushes.
It took everything I had to not eat them while they were green. It's just like, these are mine. But you have to wait. Anyway, coming back to this, verse 4. Also, the heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly. Ah, the rash people, those who just go with the emotions. They don't think through anything. They're impetuous all the time, and it can just be a heavy drain on something.
I mean, it might be fun at a party. Just don't give them the matches. Anyway, this must have stuck out in his head too, because he said the heart of people who are impetuous like that, and really don't know what's going on, they're not going to be wild like this anymore. It's going to be a new age, not the new age. They don't own that statement, incidentally. People who teach the age of Aquarius, the new age coming in, and the man is evolving to this divine state, they don't own the phrase new age. None of the cults own any of the phrases that I like.
I take it back from them, and that's one of them. There is a new age coming. It's called the messianic kingdom. This is a wicked age that we live in, under the curse with Satan loose as he is. And no question, I think, that Isaiah suffered from people who were ignorant and double-talkers in Jerusalem, a lot of them, and he's saying the day is going to come and we won't have that. We won't have these type of people in government. We won't have these type of people supporting people who don't need to be supported and empowered in the kingdom. And so, people will understand God's word, and they will be able to articulate it.
They won't stammer through it. The gospel message is a very easy thing to communicate. Where it gets tricky is when people begin asking questions about other things concerning the word of God, about the end times, about human nature, why is there suffering. And then it requires a little more depth. But on the surface, the gospel story, it is a very simple message, and you do not need to go to a seminary to understand it.
You just need to be a witness to it personally. Verse 5, the foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful. That word foolish in the Hebrew is Nabal. Remember, Abigail's husband Nabal was the fool, and she said rightly is his name. He is a fool.
I live with this guy. So, you could say without trying to be crass, the stupid person, or it's all built into that one word, the one that's up to no good. That is built into that word.
Despicable people will no longer be fawned over as celebrities as we see today. He said, are you kidding me? That guy is a billion, a millionaire? I mean, you know, he's got that. It's just crazy.
And you've got a brain surgeon that's just not making any way near what some of these entertainers of May are getting. And so, the wicked will no longer be good at winning elections and re-elections. Malachi 3, verse 15. So now, we call the proud blessed for those who do wickedness are raised up. They even tempt God to go free.
And so, it's upside down. Gangsters and immoral athletes are often idolized. I've seen this advertisement pop up where they're glorifying the mafia. The people that bring drugs in and prostitution and extortion. Well, I mean, they will insure your facility. That's called extortion.
They'll walk up and say, you've got a nice place here. Wouldn't want to see it burn down. So, to keep it from burning down, how about you pay me $2,000 a month or whatever the going rate is. That's extortion. So, who would want to glorify somebody? Imagine someone knocking on your door saying, hey, I like your car.
If you want to keep it, you'll have to pay me $1,000 a month. Well, anyway, you know, we talk about the global evil. How come all of these corporations are on this narrative?
How did that happen? They're all, like they had a big meeting together in a stadium, which they did not. They didn't have to. Because there are single sources pulling the strings. These mega investment firms, you know, like BlackRock and Vanguard. They have more money than you can shake a stick at. I mean, you know, posting $12 trillion in assets, not counting all the corporations that they own in other categories.
Follow the money. They hold the power. They can make life very, they don't care if a company goes under or not. They believe, and this is on record, one of the CEOs, last name is Fink, records saying you have to force people to conform.
When did an investment banker become God? And so you look at the stuff that's happening. Something's happening while these companies are bowing down. Even though they don't believe it, they know it's bad for business. They're doing things anyway. Because there are people with tremendous amount of money.
BlackRock, for example, they are the ones that control the investments for all the state pensions in California and New York. You know how much money that alone is? I don't.
Maybe you Google it after service. I don't want to know. I know it's a lot.
It's enough to know these people have so much power. And, you know, the Christians shouldn't say, I want to be like Warren Buffett. How about, you know, I want to be like Jesus Christ. I want to be Christ-like in his righteousness, not his essence. I will not ever be God, but I can be righteous.
And the day is coming when I will be. It just can't happen here. I haven't said this in a while, but could you imagine if you were a Christian that could get it all right? You would probably be the most self-righteous, judgmental Christian, and that alone would make it all wrong. So, because by nature we're sinners. Anyway, things that are happening, they are demonic. They're not spontaneous.
They are deliberate. They are real world powers that are going to make it very easy for Antichrist to gain the power that he will have. He will do even more with it than what is happening now. The riots that we were watching, you know, how are these things getting organized and funded? Well, it wasn't one guy named George funding all these things, controlling all these.
He's actually a pretty small player when you put him next to these investment firms that want to force people to conform to their idea of society. And what they mean by that is if you don't play by our rules, you're fired. And if you don't play by our rules, you will starve. Well, when does that come up in the Bible? Well, you can't buy or sell without the mark of the beast. It's a controlling element. And what our role is to say, well, you know, the world is on fire, an invisible fire when there is a such thing.
Race car drivers are exposed to that. Anyway, coming back to this, verse 6, For the foolish person will speak foolishness and his heart will work iniquity to practice ungodliness to utter error against Yahweh to keep the hungry unsatisfied and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail. Who are these people?
I just told you about them. They don't care about the little people. They're going to do what keeps them in power. Verse 7, Also the schemes of the schemer are evil. He devises wicked plans to destroy the poor with lying words even when the needy speaks justice. So, today it's the middle class that's the problem to the power forces.
Get rid of the middle class, just have an upper and a lower and they'll be very happy with that. You know, you can look at the corn laws in England 200 years ago or so, how the people couldn't get corn because they wouldn't let them import it. Because the people, just the craziness for money, never mind the suffering that was taking place and the good men that fought those diabolical laws. Isaiah is saying that, you know, in his day there were people with their schemes, their opportunistic plans, the current conditions he's back to now. He's talking about, he's saying in the millennial age we're not going to have this stuff. This kind of stuff will stop. Corrupt people will not get away with their corruption. They'll be intercepted early on and their wickedness dealt with.
Crime will not be worth it in the millennial age. Now, human nature is such, of course, if it is allowed to get away with wrong, it just gets stronger. It's like the Borg.
It just gobbles up more and gets stronger. So, look at the guy on the Asian airline last week, I think it was. He opens the door in flight. They were coming down, you know, they were making the approach to landing so that he could pull this off, no pun intended.
And he opens the door and he says, well, I was uncomfortable. You see, in life, he didn't get the beating he needed at the right time and it just kept getting dumber and dumber. Well, wicked people get more wicked and more wicked because someone didn't check them. And Isaiah said, you know, I'm fed up with this kind of stuff too. And if you don't hold them accountable, you're going to have evil and thus the world. Well, in the millennial age, we're going to rule with a rod of iron. It's not going to happen. When someone's at the workplace and they decide they're going to steal something and you better not tell, well, those days will be gone.
You will tell and they will be dealt with. Anyway, verse eight, but a generous man devises generous things and by generosity, he shall stand. And so here's the contrast. Isaiah always, the pastors, trying to always keep everything in perspective is not an easy thing to do because it's just so many moving parts to life. But here he just, you know, reminds his congregation that there are righteous people and they are not the same in the same category. Category verse nine. Rise up, you women who are at ease.
Hear my voice, you complacent daughters. Give ear to my speech. Thanks for tuning in to Cross Reference Radio today. Cross Reference Radio is a ministry of Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia. If you'd like to learn more about this ministry, we invite you to visit our website, crossreferenceradio.com.
You'll find a number of teachings from Pastor Rick available there. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast. When you subscribe, you'll be notified of new editions of Cross Reference Radio. Just search for Cross Reference Radio on your favorite podcast app. You can also follow the links at crossreferenceradio.com. We're glad we were able to spend time with you today. Tune in next time to continue learning from the book of Isaiah with Pastor Rick right here on Cross Reference Radio.
