Behold Your God, Isaiah 43, Part 2

Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. God is the greatest and most important reality. It's only in submitting ourselves to His authority that we'll find our own freedom. And we can find our story, our own purpose clearly brought to life in light of His character and plan.

Isaiah 43 gives us another look at our great Creator-Redeemer as we continue our series through Isaiah, titled Behold Your God. This is the second part of a message first preached at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem on April 21, 2013. God is in the business of restoration. God is in the business of bringing mankind back to Himself as the tree branch has severed itself from the tree.

And when it lies there on the ground apart from the tree, the only thing it can do is die. But God is in the business of bringing that tree branch and grafting it into the tree, reconciling it to the tree so that that branch can live and produce and do what it was designed to do. That's God's business, the reconciliation of man. Verse 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, everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for my glory. I have formed them.

Yes, I have made them. Skip down to verse 10 since we already read verses 8 and 9. You are my witnesses, says the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am He. Before me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after me.

I, even I, am the Lord, and beside me there is no Savior. God's business is the reconciliation of man. And that, ladies and gentlemen, that is the purpose behind all that goes on.

All of it. God's purpose is to bring mankind back to Himself. He's not in the business of separating. He's in the purpose of restoring and reconciling. That is the purpose behind all that is going on.

This is how God manifests Himself. Now, because that is God's purpose and we see that and we find that throughout the scriptures as it is even manifested here in this prophecy. In fulfilling this purpose, God has an instrument of choice to accomplish this purpose. And what is God's instrument of choice to accomplish His purpose? He calls it my people whom I have chosen. Remember, God's purpose is the reconciliation of man.

In that purpose, He has an instrument of choice to accomplish that purpose, which is my people whom I have chosen. I am not a golfer. I have attempted. When people ask me, Rich, do you golf?

I say, well, I attempt, and that's the best I can do. Every once in a while, I do get to get out there, but I love to watch golf. My family can't understand this. My wife just mocks me about this, that I watch golf. She said, Rich, you should do something more exciting like watch tennis because it's more exercise. But anyway, last weekend we got to watch the Masters. I love watching that. It's just the skill that it takes, the strategy that it takes. And you watch these golfers, and they have the caddy with them, and the ball is on the fairway. They've already teed off now. The ball is on the fairway. They have maybe 150, 200 yards to go to get on the green. And on the green is where you put it, like this. But now they have to go like that to get it up on the green.

Now, they have, depending on how far it is and what the conditions are, they have a certain club that they want to choose to get that ball up to the green. He goes to his bag and he pulls out a specific club because he has a specific job to be done. My people whom I have chosen to do a job, to do a job. What is the job? Because God is in the business of reconciling people to himself. What is our job? What is the job of God's chosen people?

Let me use the example that C.S. Lewis started off with. He says, God invites us to a holiday at sea. That is a UK way of saying a vacation at the beach. Now, that doesn't mean that God invites us away from all hardship and stuff because there are still hurricanes at the beach. But anyway, in other words, he is inviting us to satisfaction. He's inviting us to his satisfaction and his pleasure because God is the greatest thing for us. And we who are his give testimony to the fact that God is our source and our satisfaction, our sustenance.

That's our job. He says, but the problem with people is that while God has invited us to a holiday at sea, mankind is willing to settle for the mud puddles. Another illustration that I like to use is God has invited us to his banquet feast.

But far too many people are willing to settle eating out of the dumpster in the alley. Our sights are set way too low. The job of God's people is to point to God as our source and our satisfaction. That he is the greatest thing for us, that he is the greatest and most important reality.

This is last week's theme. And that in submission to him, we find our freedom. We find our satisfaction. That's the job of God's people. That is the job of my people whom I have chosen.

That is the purpose. And so God's chosen have God's purpose. God's chosen have God's purpose. God is in the business of reconciling mankind to himself.

We who are his are in the same business. And so God has put upon us the same purpose that he has. And we are his instruments of choice in that purpose.

Verse 7, I created you for my glory. Do you remember what it means to glorify God? To glorify God, that's a phrase and that's terminology that we speak of all the time.

It's good church language, good church lingo, isn't it? What's the chief end of man? But to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

Well, think about that. What does it mean to glorify God? To glorify God means to point to God and look how great and awesome he is.

That he is in fact the greatest and most important reality. And that in our submission to him, we find our satisfaction. That's pointing to God. That's glorifying God.

When one interacts with me and they walk away, will they walk away with a sense of the greatness and goodness of God and that I find my satisfaction in him? You see, that's my job as one of his. He says, you are my witnesses, my servant. In Isaiah chapter 42, the servant was the Lord Jesus Christ, my elect one.

You see, he has the same job. And we who are in Christ have that same job. Now, my servant, whom he's referring to right here, is specifically Israel. And their job was to point to Jehovah God of Israel and say, he is the creator redeemer. He is your satisfaction come to him. That's why he says in verse 21, they shall, my people, they shall declare my praise.

That's our job. That is God's purpose. Now, as God has granted and this is he is speaking to Judah here. Remember the context of this prophecy written about 700 B.C. Isaiah is telling them about things that are going to happen in the future. They haven't happened yet.

Specifically, what? That Babylon is going to come and they are going to take Judah captive. They will be captive for seven years and then God is going to bring them back and restore them to the land. And it hasn't even happened yet.

It's almost a century before it's even going to happen. In that context, he is telling them these things. You are my people. You are my servants. You my people whom I have chosen.

I have a job. This is my purpose in the world. This is my purpose in humanity.

Now, understand this. As you are my people who have my purpose as my chosen people, I will also give you my protection to accomplish that purpose. Look what he says in verses two and three. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.

For I am the Lord your God. At the end of verse two there, when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned. You think maybe Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were thinking of that promise? When they made that bold assertion to Nebuchadnezzar, we will not bow down before your image, because God can deliver us. You see, God's chosen have God's purpose, and they also have God's protection to accomplish that purpose.

What else do they have? God's chosen have God's purpose and his protection to accomplish it, but they also have God's privilege in accomplishing that purpose. Look at verses four to seven. Since you were precious in my sight, you have been honored. And I have loved you, therefore I will give men for you and people for your life.

Fear not, I am with you. Look at verse seven. Everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for my glory.

What is that? That is a position of privilege. God says to his people, you are precious, you are honored, you are loved. And as you are precious and honored and loved by me, you are my instrument of choice to communicate to the world that I am the greatest, the most important reality, and people will find their freedom and their satisfaction in their submission to me. That's our job. And we have God's protection and privilege in accomplishing that job.

Not only do we have his protection and privilege for the purpose, but we also have his power. Turn with me over to verse 19, verses 19 to 21. Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth, shall you not know it? The beast of the field will honor me, verse 20, and the jackals and the ostriches, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Thanks for joining us here at Delight in Grace. You've been listening to Rich Powell, the lead pastor at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Delight in Grace mission is to help you know that God designed you to realize your highest good and your deepest satisfaction in him, the one who is infinitely good. We hope you'll join us again on weekdays at 10 a.m.