The Saving King – Part 1
Isaiah 11:1-16 (1-2a)
May 28, 2023
This morning we come to one of the finest chapters in the Old Testament.
I can’t help but imagine that this is information
That Isaiah could not wait to get to.
I WOULD REMIND YOU THAT Isaiah’s entire ministry was prompted by and focused on the Holy One that He saw that day in the temple.
• We of course remember that Isaiah was a self-professed hypocrite, he called
himself “a man of unclean lips”
• And we remember that Isaiah saw the same sin in all of his contemporaries
saying, “I dwell among a people of unclean lips”
Isaiah, like his culture, had totally disregarded God.
In fact, let me bring back to your mind one of the first statements Isaiah made as he began his public ministry.
Isaiah 1:4 “Alas, sinful nation, People weighed down with iniquity, Offspring of evildoers, Sons who act corruptly! They have abandoned the LORD, They have despised the Holy One of Israel, They have turned away from Him.”
Isaiah wasted no time in confronting the people with their terrible sin.
• “abandoned the LORD”
• “despised the Holy One of Israel”
• “turned away from Him”
IT WAS ACTUALLY UNTHINKABLE SIN,
That these people would seek to remove God from their lives.
Now again, that DID NOT mean that they had rejected religion
• They were still very devoted to all their religious traditions including sacrifices
and feasts and prayers.
THE PROBLEM, as you will remember, was that
Because they did them without any concern for God,
He was not pleased by them. In fact, they were repulsive to Him.
Isaiah 1:14 “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them.”
This was Israel, and this was Isaiah.
They were phonies and imposters who cared nothing for the LORD,
And therefore their religion was not pleasing to Him.
But something changed all that for Isaiah.
Isaiah said, “I saw the Lord”
He was holier than anything Isaiah could have ever imagined.
• Isaiah prepared himself for death
• But the LORD instead showed him mercy.
Isaiah learned two vitally important things on that day.
1) I am a great sinner
2) God is a greater Savior
That vision prompted Isaiah’s ministry.
• He would from then on out go to the people of Israel
• And not only tell them their sin,
• But also tell them to trust this great God who saves.
He would call them to return to God
And he would reveal God’s plan to draw His people back.
Initially all we knew is that God’s plan of drawing His people back to Himself included extreme discipline.
Isaiah 1:7-9 “Your land is desolate, Your cities are burned with fire, Your fields—strangers are devouring them in your presence; It is desolation, as overthrown by strangers. The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, Like a watchman’s hut in a cucumber field, like a besieged city. Unless the LORD of hosts Had left us a few survivors, We would be like Sodom, We would be like Gomorrah.”
Isaiah 1:24-26 “Therefore the Lord GOD of hosts, The Mighty One of Israel, declares, “Ah, I will be relieved of My adversaries And avenge Myself on My foes. “I will also turn My hand against you, And will smelt away your dross as with lye And will remove all your alloy. “Then I will restore your judges as at the first, And your counselors as at the beginning; After that you will be called the city of righteousness, A faithful city.”
We knew God’s plan included discipline.
RECENTLY WE HAVE SEEN THAT PLAN.
God used the Assyrian Rod to punish the wicked and save the remnant.
• We saw how Aram and Israel made and alliance that terrified Judah.
• We saw Isaiah beg Ahaz to trust God
• We saw how Ahaz refused and instead called on Assyria for salvation
• We saw how that backfired as Assyria eventually invaded Judah too
• We saw how God used Assyria to draw the remnant back to Himself
• We saw the remnant repenting and returning to the LORD
• We saw how just before Assyria dealt the death blow to Judah God intervened to save His remnant.
Isaiah 10:33-34 “Behold, the Lord, the GOD of hosts, will lop off the boughs with a terrible crash; Those also who are tall in stature will be cut down And those who are lofty will be abased. He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe, And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.”
• Jerusalem was on the brink of destruction,
• They had been severely disciplined by the LORD.
• But at the last minute God intervened and stepped in to save them.
And the question now must be:
WHO IS THIS SAVIOR?
AND THE ANSWER IS, it is THE HOLY ONE whom Isaiah saw!
If you fast-forward to the end of this section, after the Savior is revealed.
In chapter 12 we see the response of the remnant to the salvation they have just experienced.
You get strong statements of praise like:
Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.”
They see God as their salvation, but again, who is He?
Isaiah 12:6 “Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”
DO YOU SEE THE FULL CIRCLE?
• In Isaiah 1:4 Isaiah announced that they had “despised the Holy One of Israel”
• In Isaiah 12:6 their tune has changed and they rejoice for “great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel”
They learned that the One they had despised
Was in fact the only One who could save.
(Surely you see the gospel ramifications here)
“The stone the builders rejected; He has become the chief corner stone”
WE ARE LEARNING:
Isaiah’s Holy One is not a God to reject, He is a God to trust.
• Yes He is Holy
• Yes He will expose your sin
• But He is also a Savior of sinners
And I would remind you also, as we saw, that this Holy One Isaiah saw was none other than the Lord Jesus Christ.
John 12:41 “These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him.”
I just want you to see THE JOURNEY WE ARE ON.
• It is a journey to move sinners from rejection to trust.
• It is a journey of God saving His remnant.
• Isaiah was an offensive sinner who was shown mercy by the Holy One
• Now Isaiah is preaching to offensive sinners that they might trust the Holy One too.
Well THIS MORNING Isaiah finally gets to show us this Savior!
It must have been the most anticipated message he ever preached.
• FINALLY, let me describe to you the Savior that I saw!
• FINALLY, let me describe to you the effect He can have on your life!
• FINALLY, let me describe to you what a wonderful Savior He is!
You wouldn’t listen before, but now, having seen His deliverance
You are ready to hear about THE SAVING KING.
So let’s begin looking at Isaiah 11
And see this Saving King that Isaiah has so longed for us to see.
We’re going to break this chapter down into 5 points.
#1 HIS REPUTATION
Isaiah 11:1-2
Really, the word reputation here is not a complete word.
• This is not just who we say He is, THIS IS WHO HE IS.
• This is His character, His essence, His nature.
Isaiah is giving you a complete description of who this Saving King is.
It is really quite remarkable and one of the most enlightening passages in Scripture on THE QUALITY OF the Messiah.
Let’s start by looking simply at HIS PROPHESIED LINEAGE.
(1) “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.”
This qualification is really first a technical one.
This is a criteria which had to be fulfilled.
If the Messiah doesn’t fit this characteristic
It doesn’t matter how qualified or competent He is.
This is a monarchy and blood lines matter.
• The Messiah must be “from the stem of Jesse”
• You know who “Jesse” is, it is David’s father.
This Messiah has to be from David’s line.
God had promised David that his line would never end.
2 Samuel 7:12 “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom.”
2 Samuel 7:16 “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.”’”
Psalms 89:35-37 “Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David. “His descendants shall endure forever And his throne as the sun before Me. “It shall be established forever like the moon, And the witness in the sky is faithful.” Selah.
We understand that any would-be Savior King must be from David’s line.
• This is a deal-breaker.
• This is a non-negotiable.
And certainly you know that we are speaking here of Jesus Christ
Who did indeed fit this bill perfectly.
The very opening of the New Testament starts with these words:
Matthew 1:1 “The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:”
WE UNDERSTAND THE NECESSITY OF THE KING BEING DAVID’S SON.
BUT THIS IS MORE THAN JUST A LINEAGE.
We already knew He would be a son of David.
We had already seen that
Isaiah 9:6-7 “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.”
We already knew He would be a child, a son,
Who would reign forever on David’s throne.
But Isaiah doesn’t use the word “child” or “son” here.
Here Isaiah calls Him “a shoot” and “a branch”
This is somewhat familiar language to us.
Later in Isaiah:
Isaiah 53:2 “For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.”
There also Isaiah refers to the coming Savior King as
“a tender shoot” or “like a root out of parched ground”
He was a “shoot”
He was a “root”
Certainly a disregarded and disrespected “shoot” but one none the less.
And we have learned that it would be the discipline of the LORD
That would cause the disregarded and rejected Branch
To finally become beautiful to the people.
Isaiah 4:2 “In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel.”
BUT WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE?
It is MORE than just saying, “Jesus is from David’s family tree”
Jeremiah 23:5-6 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land. “In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The LORD our righteousness.’”
Jeremiah 33:15-16 “‘In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth. ‘In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.’”
The term “branch” has more weight to it
Than just to identify what tree He is from.
IT ALSO SPEAKS OF SOMETHING HE SUPPLIES.
It’s not just that the branch is from the right tree,
It is that the Branch also produces the right fruit.
We gain something from this Branch.
We receive something from this Branch.
Jeremiah said that we will gain righteousness from Him.
HE IS A PROVIDER.
HE IS THE SOURCE.
Satan assured Eve that if she ate from that tree in the garden
• That she would be like God and that was a lie.
But when one eats from this Branch
• We do receive the righteousness of God.
JESUS IS GOD’S BRANCH AND THE ONE WHO SUPPLIES
THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD TO SINNERS.
John 15:1-4 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.”
THIS IS THE ONE ISAIAH SPEAKS OF.
“Then a shoot will spring forth from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.”
The Savior King is not only One who holds the proper pedigree,
He is the One who comes to produce the fruit which God requires.
Do you remember what fruit is in the book of Isaiah?
Do you remember that parable of the vineyard?
Isaiah 5:7 “For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel And the men of Judah His delightful plant. Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.”
You remember: The fruit God demands is “justice” and “righteousness”.
THIS KING PRODUCES IT.
THIS KING ALSO SUPPLIES IT.
He is not just “a child” He is also “a root”
He is not just “a son” He is also “a branch”
He is perfect in all His ways
And He supplies perfection to those who abide in Him.
• He is NOT JUST a role-model King.
• He is NOT JUST an example King whose behavior is meant to inspire us.
He is the SOURCE, He is the BRANCH, He is the FOUNTAIN
That provides justice and righteousness to all who trust in Him.
Isaiah experienced this first hand that day in the temple
When his own iniquity was atoned for and his own sin was taken away.
He had been despised by Isaiah.
He had been rejected by Isaiah.
But when Isaiah was at his most desperate point
He proved to be the only One who could save.
Isaiah couldn’t wait to tell you about Him.
BUT THERE’S MORE!
Verse 2 is one of the most comprehensive verses in Scripture
Regarding the overall qualifications of this coming Saving King.
(2) “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.”
Let’s start with that first statement.
“The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him”
What does this mean?
IT MEANS that He has the LORD’S anointing and thus His APPROVAL.
DO YOU REMEMBER when Saul fell out of favor with the LORD?
• It is when Saul disobeyed God’s command to kill Agag.
1 Samuel 15:22-23 “Samuel said, “Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. “For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king.”
And then we read:
1 Samuel 16:14 “Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him.”
It was the ultimate picture of God’s displeasure.
• God repealed His anointing of Saul.
• Saul no longer operated with God’s favor.
In that same understanding, DO YOU REMEMBER when David sinned with Bathsheba?
• In David’s prayer of repentance in Psalms 51 do you remember what he
prayed?
Psalms 51:11 “Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.”
• David wasn’t talking about losing his salvation.
• David was talking about losing God’s favor as King.
• He feared that God would remove His anointing as He had done to Saul.
When we read here that “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him”
We are talking about God’s DIVINE APPROVAL of this King.
And we think about:
Psalms 2:7-8 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.”
Or
Matthew 3:16-17 “After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”
Or
Matthew 17:5 “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”
Or
Romans 1:3-4 “concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,”
We are talking here about the King who has God’s divine approval.
He has been anointed and coronated as God’s king.
He is total acceptable to the Father.
AND THIS IS SO IMPORTANT SINCE
He is the One who will plead with the Father on our behalf.
If He does not have God’s approval, He cannot be the Saving King.
That is a very important reality.
And then we begin to see something of HIS QUALITY
Isaiah speaks actually of 6 unique qualities He possesses.
Each of these are fruit of being anointed with God’s Spirit.
It is as though Isaiah speaks of this Saving King
Who is anointed with God’s Spirit and then says,
“And here is what that means”
Because “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him” you can expect this from Him:
We notice that at least 4 of the 6 seem to deal with INTELLECT.
“wisdom” – “understanding” – “counsel” – “knowledge”
Clearly we are dealing with an intelligent King.
But let’s look at them each a little deeper and see if we can’t
Fill in the picture even more about what we can expect from this King.
1) COMPETENCE
“The spirit of wisdom”
The Hebrew word for “wisdom” here is: (KHOK-MAW)
It can speak of wisdom or skill in war.
It can speak of shrewdness.
It is the very thing that Solomon prayed for:
1 Kings 4:29-30 “Now God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment and breadth of mind, like the sand that is on the seashore. Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the sons of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.”
When we speak of this “wisdom”,
We are NOT talking about simple knowledge or education here.
It is very much related to one’s COMPETENCE.
For example, this same word (KHOK-MAW) is also translated as “skill”
When God was giving Moses the specifications for building the altars and the tent of meeting and things like that:
Exodus 31:1-6 “Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. “I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship. “And behold, I Myself have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all who are skillful I have put skill, that they may make all that I have commanded you:”
God told Moses, “in the hearts of all who are skillful I have put skill, that they may make all that I have commanded you:”
That word “skill” is (KHOK-MAW)
It is not just “know how”, it is ABILITY.
1 Chronicles 12:32 “Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command.”
There (KHOK-MAW) is translated as “understood the times”.
And this is the word that is applied here to the Savior King.
• He is a man of wisdom.
• He is a man of skill.
• He is a man who understands the times.
You put it all together and we call Him competent.
Anyone who has ever languished under an incompetent ruler certainly understands the value of this.
• Just because a man has an education…
• Just because a man has a degree…
• Just because a man had a position…
DOES NOT MAKE HIM COMPETENT.
That does not mean he is able to do the job and do it well.
But this King is competent.
He can rule and rule well.
AND WE THINK OF JESUS.
Remember Him feeding the 5,000?
The people were so enamored with His competent ability that they immediately tried to make Him king.
John 6:15 “So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.”
The Pharisees certainly recognized His competence and how appealing He was to the people.
John 11:47-48 “Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. “If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
John 12:19 “So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are not doing any good; look, the world has gone after Him.”
Or perhaps you remember when John the Baptist had his doubts about Jesus because he didn’t expect to be in prison.
• He sent word to Jesus to see if He was really the Expected One.
• Jesus’ answer:
Matthew 11:4-6 “Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. “And blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.”
WHAT DO WE MAKE OF ALL THIS?
He is a man of wisdom, skill, and understanding of the times.
He is a competent King.
He can do what He sets out to do.
We never find Him seeking to do something, but unable to accomplish it.
• There is never a sickness He can’t heal.
• There is never a hunger He can’t satisfy.
• There is never a debate He can’t win.
• There is never a demon He can’t dominate.
• There is never a problem He can’t solve.
The Spirit of the LORD rests upon Him and He can do anything.
He has “The spirit of wisdom”
Competency
2) COMPREHENSION
“The spirit of…understanding”
In a lot of ways “understanding” sounds like “wisdom”
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?
“understanding” is the Hebrew word (BEE-NAW)
And it speaks on sort of that inner guide
By which you intuitively know what to do.
Your most familiar use of the word comes in:
Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.”
Your “understanding” there would be that which seems right to you.
We learn from that verse that our “understanding” is fallen and flawed
And we should never trust it, especially when it contradicts God’s word.
BUT THIS KING’S “understanding” IS FLAWLESS.
• He always thinks right.
• He intuitively knows what to do.
This always blows my mind in regard to how Jesus knew how to handle every situation.
• He knew when someone needed a rebuke…
• He knew when someone needed encouragement…
• He knew when someone needed consolation…
• He knew when someone needed instruction…
HE ALWAYS KNEW WHAT TO DO IN EVERY SITUATION.
I sometimes think I know what to say, but then I end up regretting it.
But Jesus always spoke and responded perfectly to every situation.
And this even from childhood.
Luke 2:47 “And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.”
THAT IS OUR KING.
That is Isaiah’s Holy One
Psalms 147:5 “Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.”
Jeremiah 10:12 “It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens.”
And because our King has “The Spirit of the LORD”
His understanding is infinite as well.
He always knows what to do.
His instincts are flawless.
Competency, Comprehension
3) COUNSEL
“The spirit of counsel…”
This is the Hebrew word (AY-TSAW)
And it speaks of counsel or advice
Psalms 20:4 “May He grant you your heart’s desire And fulfill all your counsel!”
Psalms 53:11 “The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation.”
It is even translated “strategy”
We think of how Solomon excelled in this area
How kings and peoples came from all over the world to hear his counsel.
But not even Solomon compared to this King.
FOR THIS KING NEVER GIVES BAD COUNSEL.
We marvel in the Sermon on the Mount
• When He puts His counsel as equal to the very words of God.
• For He says repeatedly, “You have heard that it was said…but I say unto you.”
And certainly the crowds picked up on this.
Matthew 7:28-39 “When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”
JESUS COUNSEL IS SECOND TO NONE.
Listen to Him counsel Peter about forgiveness.
Matthew 18:21-22 “Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”
Listen to Him counsel the man about money.
Luke 12:13-15 “Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”
Listen to Him counsel the religious leaders about paying taxes.
Matthew 22:17-22 “Tell us then, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?” But Jesus perceived their malice, and said, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? “Show Me the coin used for the poll-tax.” And they brought Him a denarius. And He said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s.” And hearing this, they were amazed, and leaving Him, they went away.”
And we haven’t even gotten into the realm of His parables
OR OTHER SERMONS
• Like the Olivet Discourse
• Or the Upper Room Discourse
• Or all the debates He had with the religious leaders in the temple.
HIS COUNSEL IS SECOND TO NONE.
Now there are 3 more listed here, which we’ll come back to tonight,
But let’s just stop here and think on this for a moment.
We have a King here who had been widely rejected by the people.
• They despised Him and turned away from Him and abandoned Him.
• They didn’t like Him because He was too holy.
And instead of trusting in this competent King
Who comprehended all things and whose counsel never failed
They decided it would be better to go and trust the king of Assyria.
They ignored this King to trust that one.
And it turned out exactly as you’d think it would turn out…TERRIBLY.
When you look at it from the benefit of history we can see that it was an incredibly foolish thing for them to reject this King in favor of Assyria.
But look at it through the lens of your life.
HOW NEAR DO WE DRAW TO THIS KING?
• When we are in need of a Savior…
• When we are in need of counsel…
• When we want to talk to someone who comprehends…
• When we look to follow someone who is competent…
WHERE DO YOU GO?
Do you know any other man who compares to Him?
Do you know any other Savior who has His credentials?
OF COURSE NOT!
And this is Isaiah’s point.
• You went through a period of life where you trusted the wrong saviors.
• You actually rejected the Holy One because you loved sin.
But can you not see that He is the Only Savior?
• Can you not see that He is the One you need?
• Can you not see that He knows?
• Can you not see that He understands?
• Can you not see that He can fix it?
DON’T REJECT HIM, HE IS THE SAVING KING!
Isaiah 45:20-25 “Gather yourselves and come; Draw near together, you fugitives of the nations; They have no knowledge, Who carry about their wooden idol And pray to a god who cannot save. “Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me. “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. “I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance. “They will say of Me, ‘Only in the LORD are righteousness and strength.’ Men will come to Him, And all who were angry at Him will be put to shame. “In the LORD all the offspring of Israel Will be justified and will glory.”
And I would just leave you with that this morning.
I WOULD REMIND YOU THAT
• Only Jesus Christ is a competent Savior.
• Only Jesus Christ comprehends the problem.
• Only Jesus Christ can give you the counsel that will lead to life.
If you are listening to any other Savior you won’t like how this plays out.
This is the Holy One.
This is the Savior.
Trust Him.
