Resolving Failures (Part C)

We're talking about they should have known better. It wasn't, you know, I told you so kind of thing, but you can't dismiss the scripture just because it's painful to see it being fulfilled. So to counter these things, we follow what the scripture says. Pray for Jerusalem. We're going to get to some of those promises of God's care for His people and His judgment against those who mess with Israel. This is Cross-Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel in Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of Isaiah.

Please stay tuned with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross-Reference Radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. Isaiah chapter 49 is the text Pastor Rick will be teaching from today on this edition of Cross-Reference Radio. Kings shall see and arise, princes shall also worship.

Well, he is the ultimate and at his triumph all this will change moving forward because there's so much information here. Verse 8, thus says Yahweh, in an acceptable time I have heard you and in the day of salvation I have helped you. I will preserve you and give you as a covenant to the people to restore the earth to cause them to inherit the desolate heritage. Well, at the right moment I will act in an acceptable time.

Acceptable to who? Well, to God of course, 2 Corinthians. So he says in an acceptable time I have heard you and in the day of salvation I have helped you behold now is the acceptable time behold now is the day of salvation. So there's a sense of urgency in these words quoted in 2 Corinthians which are built on these words here in Isaiah 49 that now is the acceptable time when it comes to receiving Christ as Lord and the day of salvation I have helped you.

Well, he expressed full throttle his work against sin and his whole life is about that. The cross of Christ speaks of this. To restore the earth? Well, who but God could do that? And this is Messiah of course and he is going to restore the earth to that Eden like environment to cause them to inherit desolate things. Well, this I think goes beyond the Jews and the promised land which was their inheritance but it does not rule it out in the millennial age there will be radical geographical changes to Jerusalem. All improvements that will be done by the Lord and the whole worth the desert world the desert will bloom again.

Radical environmental changes are coming and they will not be man-made. Verse 9 that you may say to the prisoners go forth to those who are in darkness show yourselves they shall feed along the roads and their pastures shall be on the desolate heights. He's giving a little bit more detail about what's going on. Verse 10 they shall neither hunger nor thirst neither heat nor sun shall strike them for he who has mercy on them will lead them even by the springs of water he shall guide them verse 11 I will make each of my mountains a road and my highways shall be elevated. Well none of that's happened yet that's still to be to take place and it will take place when he returns these these promises exceed anything that took place from the captives were repatriated to Israel. Revelation 7 verse 16 they shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore the sun shall not strike them nor any heat. So there John is referencing this verse and applying it to the age the great tribulation age and beyond. The apostles did not understand any of this as we do by simply reading it and neither do you and I. The Holy Spirit taught them after Jesus opened their eyes to understand so we read in Luke 24 verse 45 he opened their understanding that they might comprehend the scriptures. Well if he doesn't still do that then we're not going to figure it out we are dependent on God to help us so when you have your morning devotions or whenever you have your devotions we pray Lord can you open this up for me and acknowledging that if I am left alone to this I'm going to make unnecessary mistakes. My prayer you know after all these years and all the study is not so much can you give me the understanding not that it doesn't mean I'm now pompous or anything though it might be now I ask God can you keep it fresh for me because after you've been through it you know the danger is now you know okay I read that you saw it you know the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want and it just loses you if you're not careful but not if you love it though the Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want I believe that and just getting it done sometimes a challenge to be content with his provision. John chapter 14 verse 26 but the helper and this is the Holy Spirit because he says it but the helper the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you now that teaching you all things is not an instant thing all the time it takes years and just constantly you know so some even now verses dawn on me that's it I just had one the other day from Revelation and I hope I can get to preach it it's like that's that's it that's what that's always bugged me that thing now I got it you said what is it I can't tell you because then if I preach it you'll be oh I heard that Alan red path you know looking at this verse he has commentary on Isaiah he says which says I will make each of my mountains a road and my highway shall be elevated red path says if I can see only a mountain filling my whole horizon when I reach its foot I will discover there is a path well I agree with that you know God prepares the paths ways of our lives but we're not we cannot take those pathways if we don't want to verse 12 surely these shall come from afar look exclamation those from the north and the west and these from the land of sign them well now he's talking about Israel being continuing to talk about Israel being restored but now he's talking about repatriation now some think sign them is as one Egypt but it really is more likely China although you can't be a hundred percent sure and that we just don't have enough information but we can safely say that verse 12 foresees converts drawn from far places distant lands coming back to Israel so these verses of course are going beyond Babylon in fact we're living the prophecy now we're living the fulfillment of God repatriating the promised land with his Jews from all over the world it's exciting that we're in the days of that there's prophecy being fulfilled right before our our eyes and mainly in Israel as the nation verse 13 single heavens be joyful or earth Oh earth and break out in singing Oh mountains for Yahweh has comforted his people and will have mercy on his afflicted this must have been really tough stuff to go through you know what the Jews have gone through over this millennium just to hear these verses of God's care and yet suffering so much and it's just because you know it's a it's there in the Bible doesn't mean it's easy to point out as last Wednesday we were talking about they should have known better and wasn't you know I told you so kind of thing but you can't dismiss the scripture just because it's painful to see it being fulfilled so to counter these things we follow what the scripture says pray for for Jerusalem we're going to get to some of those promises of God's care for his people and his his judgment against those who mess with Israel anyway God God as I said before God warned Israel they would suffer for disobedience and he warns the church that you will suffer for obedience verse 14 but Zion said Yahweh has forsaken me and my Lord has forgotten me so now the Zion is personified in contrast to Israel same thing but it's just a conversation flows God says rejoice and they say why you forsaken me Isaiah mentions Zion 47 times in his writings more than anybody and the evolution of Zion started out you know the word is barren place it became a stronghold of David the survivors in Jerusalem and finally we talk of Zion we speak of Israel though there are Jews there are religious Jews that believe that the Jews should not be in their Israel that only Messiah you should be able to put them and that's why you may be seeing Jews not supporting Israel I know you just shake your head and religion is dangerous stuff if you do is it's like it's gasoline with fire if you're not careful anyway instead of rejoicing they're lamenting with accusations and then God responds back to them verse 15 can a woman forget her nursing child and not have compassion on the son of her womb surely they may forget yet I will not forget you so here is his answer it's interesting that instead of rebuking that sentiment you've given up on me God maybe you've been there maybe you've gotten some some to a place in life where you just feel God has abandoned you and you feel you know you want to you know strike out at him and so you forsaken me you said you'd never forsake me and you did well God is saying I'm not I have not forsaken you but this is the part I want to bring out he doesn't rebuke them he assures and consoles them here's a wonderful opportunity where he could have turned legalistic on them and said what after all I've done for you given you the prophecy and sometimes he does kind of ramp it up like that but here he says no I I'm not gonna give up on you the only thing that God forgets is sin that has been washed away by the blood of the Lamb that is Old Testament and that is New Testament theology Psalm 103 verse 12 Micah 7 19 anyway of course God emphasized as the father in scripture but here there's the he identifies with a loving mother verse 16 see I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands your walls are continually before me the inscription on the hands well whatever else that might mean a New Testament Christian will immediately think of the cross and I don't think they'll be out of bounds what God is saying to his people at this time is that you you are inscribed this is you know carved in stone my care for you I'm not going to ever let you be destroyed completely his death on a cross vanquished sin of course but that story has to be rolled out to to sinners they just you know to let them know how God forgives why he forgives how he works with us what he is after what is the purpose of life when Paul got saved he said who are you Lord he wanted to know the character of God identity his identity and then he said what do you want me to do well he needed God to tell him those two things and because the Lord gave it to him in steps go to the street you know on the street straight go to the house that he marked out for him and then you unfold the next phase to him and then he continued to do that until he called him home your walls he said are before me interesting that he doesn't say your ruins are before me God is always looking beyond what's going on verse 19 your son shall make haste you your destroyers and those who laid you waste shall go away from you again that flair for understatement Nehemiah when he led a group back to Israel to rebuild the walls we read this simple verse in Nehemiah 6 so the wall was finished in 52 days yeah but in those 52 days he was bombarded with death threats resistance with a we can't do it I mean he just he's a consummate leader Nehemiah he just cool as a cucumber no nonsense my my favorite thing probably in in the book of Nehemiah maybe I can just find it and read it why don't we got a few minutes and I'm almost said everything I need to say so this is when he had come back to Jerusalem and he realized that they were just breaking God's Word all over again and Nehemiah was going to deal with them and so he says so I contended with them and cursed them struck some of them and pulled out their hair and made them swear by God saying you shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons or take their daughters for your sons or yourselves you know we've been through this this is what got us in this mess the whole collapse of Jerusalem did by just mocking God's Word he pulled out their hair I think that that that should have been in the New Testament it should have been he has given some to be a possible pastor for the work of ministry for the pulling out of hair and they're looking at me looks like I'm a victim of Nehemiah but anyway it just lessons there to be had now we come to verse 18 lift up your eyes look around and see all these gather together and come to you as I live says Yahweh you shall surely clothe yourselves with them with them all as an ornament and bind them on you as a bride does for your waste and desolate places and the land of your destruction will even now be too small for the inhabitants and those who swallowed you up will be far away verse 20 the children will have the children you will have after you have lost the others will say again in your ears this place is too small for me give me a place where I may dwell so this of course is beyond the exiles returning from Babylon this is the restoration of Israel in the millennial kingdom and he's just sort of painting a picture for us for what's going to happen with the future generations coming back to Israel Jerusalem will be inhabited because Jerusalem will not be forgotten Judah will be rebuilt the promised land will be expanded verse 21 then you will say in your heart who has begotten these for me since I have lost my children and am desolate a captive and wandering to and fro and who has brought these up there I was left alone but these where were they thus says the Lord Yahweh verse 22 behold I will lift my hand in an oath to the nations and set up my standard for the peoples they shall bring your sons in their arms and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders and so Zion is astonished that they survived that they have been restored and that the population is exploding and people Jews are coming from all over earlier he referenced you know you're going to say again it's not enough land for us well that goes back to Joshua chapter 17 when the tribe of Ephraim the strong one of the stronger tribes said you know the land we have is not big enough for our tribe and Joshua said yeah it is in the hill country go up and take it so well they have iron chariots in the valleys and we can't do this and he said well you said you were strong here go take it and that was that well that's a reference here to those days where they said wait we don't have enough land in in the millennial kingdom they will get their land and there will be that many people in the promised land so Jerusalem is astonished Zion is personified again Isaiah 43 6 I will say to the north give them up and to the south do not keep them back bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth verse 23 King shall be your foster fathers and their queens your nursing mothers they shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth and lick up the dust of your feet you then you will know that I am Yahweh for they shall not be ashamed who wait for me well of course that's still future but what he's saying is the world will adore Israel stop ganging up on them I mean we just see this crazy stuff Israel is attacked in a merciless way and you got these you have Turkey saying oh yeah well we're going to come to the defense of the people who are trying to kill you are you out of your minds we have no don't we have a right what are we did that to you good idea yeah you'd be good and bothering us it's demonic it's demonic the treatment of Israel by kings by leaders heads of state but the time is coming where it's going to be a complete reversal the enemies will be vanquished and humbled and and converted those who survive the judgment of Christ because when he comes back he's going to dole out a lot of judgment and it's going to be a thinning of the herd but there will still be appointed leaders there will still be cities there will still be construction there will still be commerce and trade and things like that there will still be farming things will be much better though this reference to them bowing down and you know the dust and all that that's that's how the vanquished treated those who conquered them and it's a picture that they would have understood verse 24 shall the prey be taken from the mighty or the captives of the righteous be delivered verse 25 but thus says Yahweh even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away and the prey of the terrible will be delivered for I will contend with him who contends with you I will save your children so he this question you know he puts out bottom line is no I'm going to protect the whole book of Esther is about God protecting his people and as a prelude to the ultimate rescue and restoration of Israel so we go back to Genesis now in the beginning God speaking to Abraham the patriarch of the Jews because you remember Isaac was the child of promise not Ishmael the eyes are on Isaac and his descendants Jacob not Esau and then the descendants of Jacob the 12 sons so Genesis I will bless those who bless you I will curse him who curses you and in all the families of the earth in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed well that's Messiah he has come as a Jew which is just thought of what why you find some professed Christians anti-Jewish when the Messiah came as a Jew this is a crazy people that come up with these things Zechariah 2 8 did I look angry for thus says Yahweh of hosts he sent me after glory to the nations which plunder you for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye you mess with Israel you instantly I'm again you have to separate you have to understand if a Jewish guy is is going around trying to shoot people it is totally right to shoot him if he's committing crimes but what we don't do is mess with the nation and you know try to get rid of them and you know push them into the sea like Islam wants to wants to do make no mistake that's what they all want to do Zechariah 12 to behold I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem and it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces though all nations of the earth are gathered against it well I believe that I believe in the salvation that the Bible offers me and I believe everything else the Bible says and so I'm not going to say well I don't like that one so I'm just going to try to change it oh he's not talking about the Jewish people that's really the church no that's the Jewish people the ethnic Jews the descendants of Jacob and so yeah pray for Jerusalem because we understand that it is Satan who targets them verse 26 I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine all flesh shall know that I Yahweh am your Savior and your Redeemer the mighty one of Jacob so there the resolving their failures to bring the light and close with two verses and one comment Psalm 40 verse 2 talking about resolving failures he also brought me up out of the horrible pit out of the miry clay and set my feet on a rock and established my steps that's what God has done for me only the true church sees this only the true Christians to see this in scripture for what it is Zechariah 14 16 and it should come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the king which would be Christ because it says it to worship the king Yahweh of hosts and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles and so Yahweh is God we find him treated as God in the Old Testament there we find him reigning in Jerusalem and we find the world celebrating there at the religious Feast of Tabernacles which was the big feast of the Jews which which came after the Yom Kippur and the Day of Atonement there was this sort of this festival for a whole week well it was a festival let's pray our father so many things in your word difficult to bring many of them out and yet they all they all contribute to strengthening us as believers we thank you for leaving us these scriptures we pray you find us always getting better at applying them in Jesus name amen 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.