“Time to Decide”
[Isaiah 9:8-10:4]
July 29, 2018, Second Reformed Church
Last week, we turned to the future promise
of the Savior – the hope of a Child Who would be given by God. A Child Who is God Himself in human flesh,
Who ushers in the kingdom of peace for all those who are right with God.
After the message of being cast into
utter darkness – of being spiritually blinded – God gives the hope through
Isaiah that there is One Way of Salvation, through a Child. And He remains our hope today – if we believe
in Jesus and what He did on earth to make us right with God, we will be
eternally saved and brought into the fullness of the kingdom at the end of the
age. We will be perfected and made holy
– like Jesus.
This morning, we return to the Word
of God to Israel – while Israel is threatening Judah – before Judah’s alliance
with Assyria. And we see God justify His
chorus against Israel: “For
all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”
First, Israel is arrogant.
One commentator (J. Alec Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, 106) calls this
section, “national disaster.”
“The Lord has sent a word against
Jacob, and it will fall on Israel; and all the people will know, Ephraim and
the inhabitants of Samaria, who say in pride and in arrogance of heart: ‘The
bricks have fallen, but we will build with dressed stones; the sycamores have
been cut down, but we will put cedars in their place.’
God warns Israel again and again to
stop her sin – to repent and turn back to God.
God brings His Hand of discipline against Israel. But rather than receive this discipline and
respond to it rightly, Israel says to herself, “Oh, well, if God destroys the
houses we have, we can always rebuild even better houses!”
“Sure, we understand God has to vent
now and then, but we’re humans. God
understands that. We sin. Once God cools off, we will be blessed and
better off than we were before.”
Israel as a nation has no
understanding of the sinfulness of sin.
They do not understand how deeply, violently vile the smallest sin is
against the Holy God – and all sin is ultimately against God.
And what do we say? “Other nations are worse than ours. At least the Democrats are trying – I can’t
say about the Republicans. Or, the Republicans
are trying to shore up the Judo-Christian heritage of this country, while the
Democrats are leading us into atheism.
But God will never really bring His Hand down on us – God bless America
– and even if He does – everything will be better afterward – we can rebuild
bigger and better.”
Israel doesn’t understand that God
uses nations to punish nations – to show His Wrath and Fury for sin.
“But the LORD raises the adversaries
of Rezin against him, and stirs up his enemies. The Syrians on the east and the
Philistines on the west devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his anger
has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”
God tells Israel that their
neighbors are going to attack them – they are going to come like a creature
with a giant, open mouth to devour them.
God takes our sin as a nation
seriously. Who will God sent to be His
Hand against us?
The answer to God’s discipline of us is
not arrogance. It is not to try to pull
ourselves up by our bootstraps. It is to
repent and to beg for God’s mercy – that He would intercede in our lives and
change us and make us all into the Image of His Son. It is to go further than “God bless America”
and to say, “America, there is only One Way to be saved and that is through the
Person and Word of Jesus Christ.”
We can look forward in the history of
Israel and see God’s threat fulfilled:
“In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of
Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and he
reigned nine years. And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, yet not
as the kings of Israel who were before him. Against him came up Shalmaneser
king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. But the
king of Assyria found treachery in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So,
king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done
year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in
prison. Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and
for three years he besieged it.
“In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of
Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and
placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities
of the Medes” (2 Kings 17:1-6, ESV).
Second, Israel does not turn to God.
Or, we can call this, “political
disaster.”
“The people did not turn to him who
struck them, nor inquire of the LORD of hosts. So the LORD cut off from Israel
head and tail, palm branch and reed in one day—the elder and honored man is the
head, and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail; for those who guide this
people have been leading them astray, and those who are guided by them are
swallowed up. Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men, and has
no compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is godless and an
evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this his anger has not turned
away, and his hand is stretched out still.
If I were to smack Trevor across the
face, I would think that he would ask, “Why did you do that?” He would address his distress and concern and
confusion to me – or, perhaps, if he knew why I hit him, he would respond by
saying something else.
The Hand of God came down in
discipline on Israel, and they did not inquire of God – they didn’t ask God
what they had done wrong or how to make things right.
So, God responds by taking away the
elders and the prophets – He takes away all the people with wisdom and the
Truth – the Word of God – the political leaders of Ancient Israel. If they are unwilling to inquire of God, God
will leave them unable to inquire of God.
And God will not have mercy on the widow or the orphan or the
child. Because everyone is godless and
an evildoer and a fool.
That sounds rather harsh – even if
it is a generality, doesn’t it?
We think of Abraham and the cities
of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18, when God tells Abraham He is going to
destroy the two cities because they are wicked.
And Abraham says, “Wait a minute, God, don’t be hasty – You don’t want
to kill the righteous along with the wicked.
You really must think these things out, God, and take a survey. After all, You wouldn’t kill everyone if
there were fifty righteous, would You?
Forty-five? Thirty? Twenty?
Ten?” But there weren’t even ten
people in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah who turned to God for their
righteousness.
No, no one is exempt from punishment
or discipline, because everyone has sinned.
And if we recognize that God is punishing us – or we believe we may have
done something God disapproves of – we ought to turn to God – we ought to pray
and ask Him to forgive us and change us – we ought to look to His Word – or ask
our Christian friend or our pastor to help us find what we need to hear from God
in His Word. Denying the problem or
ignoring it will not please God – it will not solve the problem.
We are to fear the Lord – to be in
awe of Him – to seek Him and be humble before Him. Hear the Word of God:
“The fear of the LORD is hatred of
evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate” (Proverbs
8:13, ESV).
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of
knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7, ESV).
“Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the
LORD, and turn away from evil” (Proverbs 3:7, ESV).
“The fear of the LORD is a fountain of
life, that one may turn away from the snares of death” (Proverbs 14:27, ESV).
Of course, we have no need to fear as the
unbelievers fear.
“If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, ESV).
If we confess our sins – if we
repent and strive to stop sinning, Jesus will forgive us – God will forgive us
– and He will work in us to cleanse us from all unrighteousness – from all sin
– the process of becoming holy – sanctification – will continue until we do not
sin, but joyfully obey all that God says.
Third, Israel increases her sin.
Or, “social anarchy.”
“For wickedness burns like a fire; it
consumes briers and thorns; it kindles the thickets of the forest, and they
roll upward in a column of smoke. Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts the
land is scorched, and the people are like fuel for the fire; no one spares
another. They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry, and they devour on
the left, but are not satisfied; each devours the flesh of his own arm, Manasseh
devours Ephraim, and Ephraim devours Manasseh; together they are against Judah.
For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out
still.”
Israel arrogantly thinks that they
can survive God’s Hand and not respond by changing – repenting – becoming
faithful and obedient people. Instead,
they figure that the discipline is over and they can continue in their sin and
even follow after worse sin – after all, if you’ve gone this far and been
caught, why not go all the way?
Social anarchy, as one commentator
describes the continuance and increasing in sin, is doing whatever you want –
not recognizing any authority or government above you – you are the sole
government – the definer of right and wrong – you live for yourself – however
you choose to want to be.
God paints a horrifically comic
portrait of Israel, who (symbolically) turns to cannibalism, eating their neighbors
– slicing off pieces of meat and eating them until there is no more to eat, but
they are so far gone, that, when they finish eating their neighbors, they begin
to eat their own bodies. Each person
slices off the flesh of their neighbors to eat and then eats their own
flesh. This is insanity – God is saying
that Israel has continued in sin to the point of insanity.
And this is where we end up as we
continue to follow after sin and disregard God’s Law and discipline.
Paul tells us this is the way of all
humanity after the Fall – in general: “And
since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased
mind to do what ought not to be done” (Romans 1:28, ESV).
This is very much the way of an
addict – whatever one might be addicted to.
If you are a recovering addict or know anyone who is – the thing someone
becomes addicted to seems wonderful – pleasant – at first, but as time goes by,
it takes over and puts the addict in chains – what was once a pleasure is now
something that he has to do or have – and even as he sees his body and mind
collapsing under the whip of the cruel master that his addiction has become,
there is nothing he can do – and eventually madness and, even, death, follow.
Still God says to those who continue
after sin unrepentantly, “And if in spite of this you will not listen to me,
then I will discipline you again sevenfold for your sins, and I will break the
pride of your power, and I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like
bronze. And your strength shall be spent in vain, for your land shall not yield
its increase, and the trees of the land shall not yield their fruit” (Leviticus
26:18-20, ESV).
Of course, we know we can be freed –
the only people who are truly eternally freed of their addictions – on that
final day – are those who believe in Jesus savingly. We still sin, but we are no longer slaves to
sin – we are no longer imprisoned – in bondage, and we strive towards holiness.
Understand, I am not saying that
breaking an addiction is as simple as just believing. Breaking an addiction and keeping sober is a
lifetime battle. But freedom from
slavery to sin is found in receiving Jesus as God and Savior.
Charles Wesley wrote the hymn “And
Can It Be?” just days after his conversion, and he expresses this freedom in
the stanza:
“Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
“Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
“Thine eye diffused a quick’ning ray
“I woke; the dungeon flamed with light;
“My chains fell off, my heart was
free,
“I rose, went forth, and followed
thee.”
“Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly,
I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not
remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you
free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:34-36, ESV).
Fourth, Israel has nowhere to run.
Or, “moral perversion.”
“Woe to those who decree iniquitous
decrees, and the writers who keep writing oppression, to turn aside the needy
from justice and to rob the poor of my people of their right, that widows may
be their spoil, and that they may make the fatherless their prey! What will you
do on the day of punishment, in the
ruin that will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help, and where will
you leave your wealth? Nothing remains but to crouch among the prisoners or
fall among the slain. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand
is stretched out still.”
As Israel continues in arrogance and
sin, refusing to turn and repent to God, morality is perverted – justice is
perverted – the weak are used and abused.
The society becomes one ruled by those with wealth and power, not by the
judicial system and truth. This is an
outgrowth of a society that embraces anarchy.
As we see in the book of
Judges: “In those days there was no king
in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25, ESV).
Laws are passed to benefit the rich
and powerful to the detriment of the weak and poor.
The rights of the widow and the
orphan and the poor are taken away.
Judges become corrupt and look
forward to punishing those who have no way to fight back.
If you want what someone else has
and you have the ability to take it from them, well, that’s just alright, isn’t
it?
Yet God describes Himself like this,
“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation”
(Psalm 68:5, ESV).
When people – a society – continue
down this path, lust and idolatry take over and love of neighbor is totally
discarded.
In addition, God asks Israel three
questions:
“What will you do on the day of
judgment?”
“Where will you run when I come to
pass sentence?”
In addition, “Where will you leave
your wealth to?”
When Jesus comes on that final day,
there will be nowhere to run. The books
will be opened, and Jesus will judge the living and the dead. And, you and I will be faced with a debt to
pay – how will we pay that debt? And
think about your wealth – when you die – all your stuff – where will it
go? Is that the best place for it to go
to show yourself a good steward – to show love to God and neighbor?
Daniel Amos, in their song, “Hound
of Heaven,” sings:
“He got lost among the stars
“Hollywood flash, cash, mansions and
cars
“Deep-sea divers, Lear-jet flyers
“Will this thing go to the moon? Oh
yeah
“ “Give me elbow room
“And for heaven's sake, take this
aching away
[Chorus]
“You can't run
“You can't hide from the Hound of
Heaven
“You're free to choose
“Can you refuse the Seeker of Souls?
“Hobo's sleeping alone, he's in a
dirty boxcar
“He dreams of sailing to tropical
islands one sweet day
“Now the thrill awakes him, there is
no sunshine
“This old train ain't really going
there, oh no
“Now does anybody care?
“And for heaven's sake, take this
aching away
[Chorus]
“You can't run
“You can't hide from the Hound of
Heaven
“You're free to choose
“Can you refuse the Seeker of Souls?
[https://genius.com/Daniel-amos-hound-of-heaven-lyrics]
No one can run from our God and
Savior and Judge. But now, we have time
to decide – we have time to tell those who have not received Jesus that there
is One Way to be right with God. Tell
them that being arrogant in response to God is foolishness; not turning to God
is a death sentence, spiraling down into the depths of sin until that day when
Jesus comes to judge the world. Tell
them to flee to Jesus Who Alone can save them from the Wrath of God.
Only Jesus can save you from the
Wrath of God.
Now is the time to decide.
“For all this his anger has not
turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”
Let us pray:
Almighty God and Father, forgive us
for being arrogant children. Forgive us
for turning our face against You – thinking we can get away with sin because we
have received Your Son as Savior. Oh,
Lord, send the Holy Spirit to tear deep into us that we would be offended and
outraged by our sin, and flee to You, our Loving Father. Soften our hearts and help us to go forth to
tell others that Your Son has paid the debt for the sins of everyone who ever
believes – they don’t have to suffer the Wrath of God. Help us to love our neighbor. Cause us to bear fruit one hundred fold. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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