"Stand Firm in Faith" Sermon: Isaiah 7:1-9

“Stand Firm in Faith”

[Isaiah 7:1-9]

May 27, 2018, Second Reformed Church

            Isaiah receives his call to the ministry:  he sees the holiness of God and God cleanses him of his sin and its guilt, and God gives Isaiah the call to preach the Gospel, and God tells him that the effect will be that no one will listen and God will severely discipline Judah by the hand of the Babylonians.  Still, God keeps His promises, a remnant will return, and from that remnant, the Savior will be born.

            King Uzziah dies, and his son Jotham, and then his son Ahaz ascends to the throne.  Ahaz is faced with threats of war, and he has to choose whether to trust God or not.

            First, we see, the fear of Ahaz.

“In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. When the house of David was told, ‘Syria is in league with Ephraim,’ the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.”

At this time, the two kingdoms of Israel exist:  Israel and Judah, and they occasionally went to war with one another.  Israel and her king made an alliance with Syria – just north of Israel – and her king – and they planned to attack Judah and Jerusalem, the capital city.

We may remember that Jerusalem is built on a mountain overlooking a cliff and it well fortified all around.  So, the only way someone can wage war against Jerusalem is to go uphill and straight ahead at the city – which is a difficult thing to do!

So, Jerusalem is very difficult to defeat, but when Ahaz heard that Ephraim – that is, the northern Kingdom of Israel – had made an alliance with Syria to wage war against Jerusalem, it seemed like a done deal.  With these two powers together, surely they would take Jerusalem.  And Ahaz and all the people of the city of David were terrified – their hearts shook with fear.

And we can understand that reaction, can’t we?  If the President announced that there was good intelligence that Russia and China had formed an alliance and they were going to bomb the United States out of existence, our hearts might shake like the leaves on the trees in the wind, right?

            But should we fear?  Do we ever have a reason to fear?

            God says we only have one reason to ever fear:

            Jesus says, “So have no fear of [those who persecute you for My sake], for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.  What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:26-33, ESV).

            Jesus says we are not to fear – we are not to be afraid of – anything or anyone who can only kill our bodies.  We are not to fear anyone who can only physically kill us.  We are only to fear God because He can send us – body and soul – to the torments of Hell. 

Rather, we are to fear God – we are to be in awe of Him – we are to respect Him – we are to obey Him – we are to submit to Him – we are to trust Him – no matter what anyone says or does – because God values His people – He loves us, and sent His Son for us, and will never lose us.

            Understand, I am not there yet either.  There are times when I have feared.  And I have repented of my sin.  If the Almighty God is truly Sovereign and has told me not to fear anyone, and has promised to always love me and value me and keep me – no matter what may happen – for the sake of the work of Jesus – someone may kill me – kill my body, but I have no reason to fear, because I will live again.

            Now, we should still be wise.  We should still use the knowledge we have to keep safe.  We should still avoid being in situations where we will be injured or killed.  We ought not to go down the alley where known muggers are – simply because we believe and trust God – no!  Avoid that alley.

            Ahaz should not have feared the combined forces of Syria and Israel coming against Jerusalem.  No, he should have gathered his generals and planned their defense.  He should have trusted God for his future and the future of Jerusalem.  He should have sought out Isaiah, the prophet, and prayed to God for wisdom.

            And I know there are some – in the light of recent murders – who have mockingly said, “thoughts and prayers, thoughts and prayers.”  What about that?  We pray when we hear about killings around our nation – is it just a lot of hot air?  Not if we really believe that our God is the Sovereign God Who controls all of Creation and all of history – if we are asking Him to intervene – to comfort – to do something – to guide our politicians in wisdom – this is the greatest thing we could ever do.

            And still, we shouldn’t stop at “thoughts and prayers,” because we have the privilege to elect our representative politicians.  We have the privilege to contact them and tell them that we think they are doing wrong – or have done well.  We ought to do whatever we can based on what we understand of God and His Will, even as we call on Him in prayer.

            And so, Ahaz should have gathered the generals and Isaiah for their wisdom, and Ahaz should have prayed for God’s intervention and wisdom having heard of the imminent attack on Jerusalem.

            Instead, Ahaz fears.

            Second, Isaiah tells Ahaz to do nothing.

“And the LORD said to Isaiah, ‘Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,’”

Since Ahaz doesn’t call for Isaiah, but stands there shaking, God sends Isaiah to Ahaz with a message from God – and God tells Isaiah to bring his son, Shear-jashub, with him.  Why?

We’re not told, but it could be to teach Shear-jashub about God.  But it could also have to do with his name.  Frequently in the Scripture, we find that people are given names for very specific reasons – having to do with what their name means.  The name, Shear-jashub, means, “a remnant shall return.”  Get it?

“King Ahaz, Isaiah is here, and he brought his son, ‘a remnant shall return’ with him.”  Poke – poke – poke – “a remnant shall return” – God is Absolutely Sovereign, Ahaz, there is nothing to fear.

And Isaiah meets King Ahaz at “the end of the conduit of the upper pool.”  We’re not told why Ahaz was there, but scholars explain that Jerusalem still received its water via aqueducts at this time – an underground water system would not be installed until King Hezekiah.  In looking at the aqueduct system, the end of the conduit of the upper pool was the most vulnerable spot.  This was the likely place that attackers would disrupt or poison the water system going to Jerusalem – so Ahaz is probably inspecting it and setting up tighter security in that area.

And Isaiah and “a remnant shall return” arrive and tell Ahaz that they have a word from God for him:  “Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint” – literally, “be careful to do nothing.”  Especially, do not form an alliance with another nation to fight this war.  Rather, trust God, do not fear, God will fight this battle for you and with you.

Trust God, don’t take any action unless God tells you to – against “these two smoldering stumps of firebrands.”  Isaiah – and God – are making fun of the leaders of Israel and Syria – this is belittling language – like calling someone, “little rocket man.” 

“The firebrand” was the piece of wood used to ignite a fire – it was the incendiary device used to set off an inferno – and God calls Israel and Syria, “smoldering stumps” – God belittles them and says that they are burnt out.  There’s nothing left to them.  There’s smoke, but that’s about it.  “Don’t be afraid of them – there’s nothing to them – there power has been squelched in My Sovereignty.”

God tells Ahaz not to be afraid of the evil they intend against him – specifically setting up the son of Tabeel as king.  Who was the son of Tabeel?  He is lost to history, but the point of the threat is that he is not of the line of David.  Israel and Syria were threatening to kill off the line of David – to end the Davidic kingship in Jerusalem.  And that terrified Ahaz.

But it shouldn’t have, should it?  Because God promised that that Savior would be born of the line of David, and God is utterly Sovereign over all of history and His promises never fail.

Do we believe God’s promises?  Do we believe that Jesus will return and restore the earth and bring His kingdom in its fullness to earth?  Do we believe that if we die first, we will be with Him eternally, and we will be changed – glorified – brought – body and soul – into that kingdom?

Do we trust God now?  Do we seek His wisdom?  Do we strive to obey Him?  Do we show thanks for the gift of salvation?

Are we willing to obey even when God says to trust and do nothing?

Third, we are to stand firm in faith, or we will not be firm at all.

“thus says the Lord GOD: ‘It shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. And within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered from being a people. And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.’”

God tells Ahaz it will not happen:  Rezin and the son of Remaliah will not conquer Jerusalem.  In fact, within sixty-five years, Rezin will be dead and Ephraim will be conquered.

The God of history tells Ahaz not to worry – not to be afraid – not to seek alliances with others nations – to wait, to trust, to do nothing – because what they are threatening will never happen.  God is very specific in what He wants Ahaz to do, and He is very specific in telling Ahaz when these things will come to pass.

And God warns Ahaz, “If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.”

If you do not receive the Word of God as true and respond to it by believing it and trusting it and obeying it, you will fall apart – you will begin to deny little things, and then greater things, and then you won’t believe anything God says – you will finds gods better to your liking.

Do you hear the Word of God read and receive it as God speaking – inerrantly and infallibly – everything we need to know for life and salvation?  Are you thankful to God and show your love through obedience?

Or do you think, “This is a two thousand year old ‘how to’ manual.  Of course it needs to be updated.  Of course there are things in it we now know are untrue.  Of course this book is full of errors that can’t be taken literally.”

One of the overtures sent to our General Synod is from a Classis that asks that the Reformed Church in America – our denomination – affirm that to be reformed is to recognize that the Bible is a living document and our understanding of it and its meaning continually changes through the ages.

Really?  If we affirm that, then there is no reason to believe anything in the Bible – we can just make up what we want and call it our “understanding.”  And we will pray for our General Synod today.

Ahaz hears the Word of God – “don’t do anything – believe the promises of God – a remnant will return” – but he is not firm in his faith.  He does not believe that God will keep His promises.

Ahaz turns to worship idols – false gods, and he even offers his son up as a burnt offering to Moloch.  Then we read:

“Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to wage war on Jerusalem, and they besieged Ahaz but could not conquer him. At that time Rezin the king of Syria recovered Elath for Syria and drove the men of Judah from Elath, and the Edomites came to Elath, where they dwell to this day. So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, ‘I am your servant and your son. Come up and rescue me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.’ Ahaz also took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD and in the treasures of the king's house and sent a present to the king of Assyria. And the king of Assyria listened to him. The king of Assyria marched up against Damascus and took it, carrying its people captive to Kir, and he killed Rezin” (2 Kings 16:5-9, ESV).

And:

“At that time King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help. For the Edomites had again invaded and defeated Judah and carried away captives. And the Philistines had made raids on the cities in the Shephelah and the Negeb of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages. And they settled there. For the LORD humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had made Judah act sinfully and had been very unfaithful to the LORD. So Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came against him and afflicted him instead of strengthening him. For Ahaz took a portion from the house of the LORD and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him” (2 Chronicles 28:16-21, ESV).

So, what does this mean?

Ahaz did not stand in faith.  He turned to other gods and made sacrifices to them, and when Syria and Israel attacked, he made an alliance with Assyria.  And Assyria swept in, and they slaughtered Syria and Israel, including Rezin – just as God had promised – and Tiglath-pileser took many captives from Syria and Israel and brought them to Assyria.

And Ahaz gave Tiglath-pilesar gold and silver from the Temple of the Lord and from the king’s palace, but that was not enough for Tiglath-pilesar, who demanded more and more tribute.  And Ahaz continued in his wickedness until he died at the age of 36, but he was not buried with the other kings, because he was so wicked.

Ahaz did not stand in faith and sold out the wealth of the nation and lived a life of wickedness and was cut off in the end.  If he had stood in faith, God would have saved him and Judah, and they would not have been financial slaves to Assyria.

What will you do when you hear the Word of God?  Will you stand in faith because it is the Word of God?

Let us pray:

Almighty God, we have many people around us – even in our church and pulpits, who deny that the Bible is Your Word – God’s Word – Holy and True.  Lord, fill us with God the Holy Spirit that we would stand firm in faith – that we would receive Your Word, obey Your Word, love You, and show our thanks.  Strengthen us and help us trust You and Your Word no matter what happens.  For it is in Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

At Today's "Open House"

Thursday Night Study

Last night we looked at the idea that Jesus ransomed us from the Wrath of God due for our sins in His death on the cross.  Have you been ransomed, or will you pay the debt to God yourself?  Join us Thursday nights at 7 PM to learn more.

"Without the Spirit" Sermon: Isaiah 6:8-13

“Without the Spirit”

[Isaiah 6:8-13]

May 20, 2018, Second Reformed Church

            Last week, we looked at the first part of Isaiah’s call to the ministry:  Isaiah sees the Lord high and lifted up in the Temple.  He sees the authority and the holiness of God, and Isaiah is undone, he is devastated by the guilt of his sin and that of the people in view of God’s holiness.  And if you have never felt like you could do nothing other than disintegrate before God, reconsider the holiness of God and the heinousness of your sin against Him.

            Then God, in His mercy, sends one of the seraphim, who brings a coal to the lips of Isaiah and says his sin and its guilt are forgiven – through the suffering life of Jesus – God the Son Incarnate – His death and resurrection – Isaiah – and anyone who believes the Gospel – the historical truth of Jesus – Isaiah is purified and saved from the Wrath of God.

            We continue this morning with Isaiah before the throne of God – in a state of amazed thanks for God delivering him from his sin.

            And we see, first, God looks for a messenger.

“And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here I am! Send me.’”

God asks what is surely a rhetorical question – God knows the answer – He has just saved Isaiah, and God asks, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”

Who understands that until one is confronted with the unplumbable depths of their sin, they can never be saved?  Who understands that the holiness of God must be brought before a person so he will understand that he is totally depraved?  Who understands that until the bad news of eternal torture is understood as the just sentence for sin against God, they cannot want to be saved?

In some sense, we must truly understand that sin has corrupted every part of our being, that we are inclined towards sin – and of ourselves don’t want God, we don’t want salvation – until that is firmly planted in our minds and hearts, the Gospel – the Good News of salvation through the Incarnate God cannot make sense – and it will not make sense.  If you think you are fine, if you think you are not that bad, if you think that your good will outweigh your evil, you will never believe savingly in Jesus.

But, here we have Isaiah, who felt as though he was coming apart cell by cell, and God knows that Isaiah is the man.  God knows Isaiah is the messenger to send “for us.”  And yes, that is a correct translation – we have a tiny glimpse into the fact that God is the Triune God in this question.

So, Isaiah, full of thanksgiving and zeal says, “Send me!  Here I am!”

And God sends him – God prepares him for his ministry.

Second, God tells Isaiah to preach repentance.

“And he said, ‘Go, and say to this people: “‘”Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’” Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.’”

God tells Isaiah to preach to the people, but know that they won’t understand.  Preach to the people, but know that they won’t perceive.  Preach to the people, but their hearts will grow dull.  Preach to the people, but their ears will grow heavy.  Preach to the people, but they will not see.

Have you ever talked with someone, and they didn’t want to hear or understand what you are saying?  So, they start talking back to you or even just say, “no, no, no,” and finally put their fingers in their ears and say, “la, la, la, la, la.”

God tells Isaiah to preach to Judah until they put their fingers in their ears and say, “la, la, la, la, la, la, I can’t hear you,” because in so doing, they will seal their fate and justify God’s discipline.

Calvin writes that it is as though God tells Isaiah, “You will indeed teach without any good effect; but do not regret your teaching, for I enjoin it upon you; and do not refrain from teaching, because it yields no advantage; only obey me, and leave to my disposal all the consequences of your labours.  I give you all this information in good time, that the event may not terrify you, as if it had been strange and unexpected” (Commentary on Isaiah, vol. 1. 214).

Does this sound like a call to the ministry you would want?  “Preach the Gospel for the next sixty to eighty years and, basically, not one will repent, no one will believe, and things will generally get worse.”

We don’t know how the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be met when it comes from our lips, do we?  But we are all called to tell everyone – if we love our neighbors as ourselves, we will tell that that God is angry with them and their sins and burning with an eternal wrath that can only be quenched by His Son.  Some people are clergy – like me – but all of us are called to tell others Who Jesus is and what He did.

Hear what Jesus says about preaching the Gospel:

“That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.  And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘A sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.’”

“Then the disciples came and said to him, ‘Why do you speak to them in parables?’ And he answered them, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: “’You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.’”  For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.”

“’But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.’

“’Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’”

Jesus says that He usually taught in parables to make sure that the people would not understand what He is saying.

Notice a few things about this parable:  in it the sower of the seed does so faithfully.  It is not a matter of the sower being unfaithful that the people do not understand and believe or that he is faithful and they do hear and believe.  People do not understand when the soil that the seed falls on is not good soil, and they do believe when the seed falls on good soil.

So let us ask ourselves, is Isaiah a faithful preacher – a faithful sower of seeds?

Is Jesus a faithful preacher – a faithful sower of seeds?

In Genesis, as God curses our first parents, we are told that the whole Creation is cursed along with us.  All of the soil is “bad” soil, and it will be difficult to work it and bring a crop to fruition.  So, how is “bad” soil made “good”?

How does the wicked heart of stone of a human ever receive the Good News of Jesus Christ?

Do we remember what Jesus says to Nichodemus?  “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:7-8, ESV).

In other words, without the work of God the Holy Spirit, no one will ever believe the Gospel.  Unless God the Holy Spirit intercedes and changes the bad soil to good soil, unless He changes the heart of stone to a heart of flesh, unless He opens their ears and eyes, they will neither hear nor see.

In other words, being a faithful preacher of the Gospel does not mean anyone will ever believe.

In other words, we are called to faithfulness, we are called to obedience, we are called to trust, we are not called to save anyone.  You can I cannot convert anyone.  You and I cannot cause a person to believe.  The greatest evangelist or preacher is merely faithful, the results of that faithfulness is God’s – whether many or few people heed the call to repentance and believe is up to God, not us.

This is important for us to understand for a number of reasons:

First, if we tell people about Jesus day after day and see no results, we can become discouraged and want to give up.  So, understand, we are called to faithfully, always proclaim the Gospel, but what happens after that is God’s work, not ours.

Second, we may never see results with any given person or even in our lifetime, but, if we are faithful in proclaiming the Gospel, God will use that faithfulness to accomplish His plan on earth.

Paul writes, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building” (I Corinthians 3:6-9, ESV).

Third, it should free us up from any sort of works righteousness based on our telling others about Jesus, or guilt about those who do no convert when we call them to.  We are called to faithfully tell others.  “God gives the growth.”

Jesus prays, “While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled” (John 17:12, ESV).

You and I are responsible to be faithful; we are not responsible to save anyone.  Jesus has already secured the salvation of everyone who will ever believe and not one will be lost – that is Jesus’ word!

Not long ago, a pastor was asking me about our church and my ministry, and he said to me, “Do you want to know why you are a failure as a minister?”

I can imagine him coming before Isaiah, “I’ve noticed you are not making converts, you don’t have a big following, you don’t have any money, people even hate you – do you want me to explain why you are a failure as a minister?”

Isaiah was faithful to God’s call on his life.  Isaiah faithfully lived out his call to ministry.  What God did with that is God’s business.

Isaiah understood that as God gave him his very heavy call to the ministry, still Isaiah loved his people.

Third, Isaiah asks, “How long?”

“Then I said, ‘How long, O Lord?’ And he said: ‘Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.’”

“How long will I preach the Gospel to such a barren response?”

“Until the cities are uninhabited – a wasteland.  Until the homes are uninhabited – a wasteland.  Until the land is desolate.  Until the people are taken off into captivity.  And the Babylonians will come back multiple times taking more people into captivity, burning the land, until there are so few people left in Judah, it will be like a stump amidst the scorched earth.”

Isaiah is to preach until Babylon has finished slaughtering the people and taking them into captivity; Isaiah is to preach until God has disciplined Judah to the extent in which He intends.

How much to you love your family and friends and neighbors?  It is worth it to you to tell them the Gospel?  Even if their response is the response of Judah?  Will you lovingly tell them again and again, even as they put their fingers in their ears and say, “la, la, la, la, la”?

Will you faithfully tell people that they need Jesus to save them – to cleanse them – to free them from their slavery to sin – and then trust God to send God the Holy Spirit as He wills?

Because there is hope:

Fourth, there is always a remnant.

“The holy seed is its stump.”

Have you ever cut down a tree or a big bush at the stump, only to find new growth coming up out of the stump?  I have.

God tells Isaiah that despite the true picture of doom and gloom that God is painting about the response to the ministry of Isaiah – and, after all, it is really about the response to the message of the Gospel – as Isaiah looks across the scotched land and sees one lone stump in the land – that stump with send up new shoots – God will always keep His promise – there is always a remnant.  There will always be a few who believe – who return.  Until Jesus returns, there will always be a few who truly believe in Jesus for salvation.

There is always hope, brothers and sisters – there is always hope in Jesus.

Let us pray:

Almighty God, when we hear the call given to Isaiah to preach for decades, largely be rejected, and to see the nation slaughtered and taken into captivity, it is easy to become depressed and miss the point that salvation is God’s work, while we are called to be faithful.  O Lord, raise us up and fill us with the Holy Spirit that we would be faithful and “tell the old, old story” that each one on this planet would hear that Jesus Alone is the Way to salvation.  And keep us trusting in You, knowing that You will always keep Your promises, that You will save to the fullest, and there is hope – always and forever there is hope, because You are the Sovereign God.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.