By Grace: Sovereign Grace
Isaiah 44;
Matthew 13:20
"I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you. Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this..." (Isaiah 44:22-23a)
Isaiah 44 begins with five verses affirming Israel's election as God's people by sovereign grace. Then, for the next fifteen verses, Yahweh mocks the idols of men. With a holy sarcasm, He parodies what Dr. R.C. Sproul humorously calls "the Fig Newtons" of human imagination. A man cuts up a piece of wood. Half he uses to cook his food, and the other half he bows down to and worships! He "bow[s] down to a block of wood" (v. 19)! Can a block of wood help him? "Is not this thing in my right hand a lie" (v. 20)?
Yahweh - the LORD God - is sovereign over His creation. He not only has all power, but also has the will to exercise it. No other "gods" exist! They are but out-workings of sinful man's desire to be autonomous - to be in control of his own circumstances, and to be a law unto himself. Only Yahweh, and neither human effort nor idol, can meet mankind's greatest need - to sweep "away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist" (v. 22). Only the sovereign grace of God can do it.
INSIGHTIf God isn't sovereign over everything - even the election of His Church - He isn't sovereign at all.
READ THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEARGenesis 43-44 Psalm 22 Mark 2
Isaiah 44; “But now, listen to me, Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. 2 The LORD who made you and helps you says: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, O dear Israel,[a] my chosen one. 3 For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children. 4 They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank. 5 Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the LORD.’ Others will say, ‘I am a descendant of Jacob.’ Some will write the LORD’s name on their hands and will take the name of Israel as their own.” The Foolishness of Idols6 This is what the LORD says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies: “I am the First and the Last; there is no other God. 7 Who is like me? Let him step forward and prove to you his power. Let him do as I have done since ancient times when I established a people and explained its future. 8 Do not tremble; do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago? You are my witnesses—is there any other God? No! There is no other Rock—not one!” 9 How foolish are those who manufacture idols. These prized objects are really worthless. The people who worship idols don’t know this, so they are all put to shame. 10 Who but a fool would make his own god— an idol that cannot help him one bit? 11 All who worship idols will be disgraced along with all these craftsmen—mere humans— who claim they can make a god. They may all stand together, but they will stand in terror and shame. 12 The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool, pounding and shaping it with all his might. His work makes him hungry and weak. It makes him thirsty and faint. 13 Then the wood-carver measures a block of wood and draws a pattern on it. He works with chisel and plane and carves it into a human figure. He gives it human beauty and puts it in a little shrine. 14 He cuts down cedars; he selects the cypress and the oak; he plants the pine in the forest to be nourished by the rain. 15 Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire. With it he warms himself and bakes his bread. Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it and makes himself a god to worship! He makes an idol and bows down in front of it! 16 He burns part of the tree to roast his meat and to keep himself warm. He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.” 17 Then he takes what’s left and makes his god: a carved idol! He falls down in front of it, worshiping and praying to it. “Rescue me!” he says. “You are my god!” 18 Such stupidity and ignorance! Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think. 19 The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, “Why, it’s just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?” 20 The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He trusts something that can’t help him at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, “Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?” Restoration for Jerusalem21 “Pay attention, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I, the LORD, made you, and I will not forget you. 22 I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free.” 23 Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done this wondrous thing. Shout for joy, O depths of the earth! Break into song, O mountains and forests and every tree! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob and is glorified in Israel. 24 This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer and Creator: “I am the LORD, who made all things. I alone stretched out the heavens. Who was with me when I made the earth? 25 I expose the false prophets as liars and make fools of fortune-tellers. I cause the wise to give bad advice, thus proving them to be fools. 26 But I carry out the predictions of my prophets! By them I say to Jerusalem, ‘People will live here again,’ and to the towns of Judah, ‘You will be rebuilt; I will restore all your ruins!’ 27 When I speak to the rivers and say, ‘Dry up!’ they will be dry. 28 When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’ he will certainly do as I say. He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’; he will say, ‘Restore the Temple.’” Footnotes:a. Isaiah 44:2 Hebrew Jeshurun, a term of endearment for Israel.
Matthew 13:20The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy.
GOD-GIVEN COURAGE ... JOSHUA'S STORY
Joshua was a warrior and the head of Israel's army, but when he met the commander of the Lord's army he fell on his face in reverence. What does this unusual story teach us about courage?
Isaiah 44 begins with five verses affirming Israel's election as God's people by sovereign grace. Then, for the next fifteen verses, Yahweh mocks the idols of men. With a holy sarcasm, He parodies what Dr. R.C. Sproul humorously calls "the Fig Newtons" of human imagination. A man cuts up a piece of wood. Half he uses to cook his food, and the other half he bows down to and worships! He "bow[s] down to a block of wood" (v. 19)! Can a block of wood help him? "Is not this thing in my right hand a lie" (v. 20)?
Yahweh - the LORD God - is sovereign over His creation. He not only has all power, but also has the will to exercise it. No other "gods" exist! They are but out-workings of sinful man's desire to be autonomous - to be in control of his own circumstances, and to be a law unto himself. Only Yahweh, and neither human effort nor idol, can meet mankind's greatest need - to sweep "away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist" (v. 22). Only the sovereign grace of God can do it.
INSIGHTIf God isn't sovereign over everything - even the election of His Church - He isn't sovereign at all.
READ THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEARGenesis 43-44 Psalm 22 Mark 2
Isaiah 44; “But now, listen to me, Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. 2 The LORD who made you and helps you says: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, O dear Israel,[a] my chosen one. 3 For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children. 4 They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank. 5 Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the LORD.’ Others will say, ‘I am a descendant of Jacob.’ Some will write the LORD’s name on their hands and will take the name of Israel as their own.” The Foolishness of Idols6 This is what the LORD says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies: “I am the First and the Last; there is no other God. 7 Who is like me? Let him step forward and prove to you his power. Let him do as I have done since ancient times when I established a people and explained its future. 8 Do not tremble; do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago? You are my witnesses—is there any other God? No! There is no other Rock—not one!” 9 How foolish are those who manufacture idols. These prized objects are really worthless. The people who worship idols don’t know this, so they are all put to shame. 10 Who but a fool would make his own god— an idol that cannot help him one bit? 11 All who worship idols will be disgraced along with all these craftsmen—mere humans— who claim they can make a god. They may all stand together, but they will stand in terror and shame. 12 The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool, pounding and shaping it with all his might. His work makes him hungry and weak. It makes him thirsty and faint. 13 Then the wood-carver measures a block of wood and draws a pattern on it. He works with chisel and plane and carves it into a human figure. He gives it human beauty and puts it in a little shrine. 14 He cuts down cedars; he selects the cypress and the oak; he plants the pine in the forest to be nourished by the rain. 15 Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire. With it he warms himself and bakes his bread. Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it and makes himself a god to worship! He makes an idol and bows down in front of it! 16 He burns part of the tree to roast his meat and to keep himself warm. He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.” 17 Then he takes what’s left and makes his god: a carved idol! He falls down in front of it, worshiping and praying to it. “Rescue me!” he says. “You are my god!” 18 Such stupidity and ignorance! Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think. 19 The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, “Why, it’s just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?” 20 The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He trusts something that can’t help him at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, “Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?” Restoration for Jerusalem21 “Pay attention, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I, the LORD, made you, and I will not forget you. 22 I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free.” 23 Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done this wondrous thing. Shout for joy, O depths of the earth! Break into song, O mountains and forests and every tree! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob and is glorified in Israel. 24 This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer and Creator: “I am the LORD, who made all things. I alone stretched out the heavens. Who was with me when I made the earth? 25 I expose the false prophets as liars and make fools of fortune-tellers. I cause the wise to give bad advice, thus proving them to be fools. 26 But I carry out the predictions of my prophets! By them I say to Jerusalem, ‘People will live here again,’ and to the towns of Judah, ‘You will be rebuilt; I will restore all your ruins!’ 27 When I speak to the rivers and say, ‘Dry up!’ they will be dry. 28 When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’ he will certainly do as I say. He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’; he will say, ‘Restore the Temple.’” Footnotes:a. Isaiah 44:2 Hebrew Jeshurun, a term of endearment for Israel.
Matthew 13:20The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy.
GOD-GIVEN COURAGE ... JOSHUA'S STORY
Joshua was a warrior and the head of Israel's army, but when he met the commander of the Lord's army he fell on his face in reverence. What does this unusual story teach us about courage?
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