Extreme Makeover: Earth Edition--Isaiah Series

            Call me biased, but I don’t understand why some people can’t appreciate the beauty of Kansas. People who say, “there’s nothing to look at,” just don’t get it! When you can see for miles around you in every direction, there’s too much to look at, and that’s part of the beauty—being able to take in so much at once.

            Honestly, we can see beauty all over our planet—awe-inspiring, breath-taking beauty! But let’s pause and remember that our planet is under a curse from God. The same sky that gives us sunsets gives us tornadoes. How amazing is it that we still see such beauty in our planet even after it has been blemished because of mankind’s sin!

            As we have worked through the book of Isaiah, we have read numerous prophecies about a future kingdom in this world in which the effects of The Curse will be almost completely scaled back. Mankind will once again live at peace with God, each other, and the even the animal world, and we will behold this planet in all of the glory which God created for it. How amazing to think that the beauty of this world could get even better!

            As we close our study of Isaiah today, we will read one more prophecy about this extreme makeover along with one final warning about embracing God by faith before it is too late.

1. What’s the purpose of a kingdom of peace in this world?

            Before we jump into the text this morning, I’d like to briefly follow a rabbit trail and answer a question that may have come to your mind as we’ve been studying Isaiah. Over and over again, we have read prophecies about a time of blessing which I have interpreted to refer to a future kingdom that will be established in this world. We often refer to this kingdom as the “Millennium,” or the “1,000-year kingdom of Christ.” But not all Christians have interpreted these prophecies in the same way. Some groups and denominations have interpreted these prophecies as metaphors which refer to the spiritual blessings that we enjoy through Jesus Christ. So for example, they might interpret prophecies about peace among the nations to refer to peace among Christians today, or a prophecy about Israel being re-gathered to the Promised Land might be interpreted as a prophecy of God’s people being taken to their home in heaven. And so, some people have questioned what the purpose of a Millennium in this world would be. I would like to briefly give two answers to that question.

            A. To prevent Satan from having the final victory over Planet Earth

            As history stands today, Satan has delivered quite a blow to God’s creation by introducing sin into this world through mankind, which caused God to place a curse upon humanity and the planet in which we live. Now, if the history of our planet were to end this way, then Satan would have scored a final victory over Planet Earth by permanently disrupting God’s original plan for it.

            I don’t think the Lord has any intention of giving Satan the last laugh over this planet. That is part of the reason that I think these prophecies that we have read should be interpreted literally and not as metaphors. By establishing a kingdom of peace and righteousness in this world, God will fulfill His original plan for it and prevent Satan from having the final victory.

            B. To demonstrate God’s faithfulness to keep His word

            There can be little doubt that believers in the Old Testament expected God’s promises of blessing to be fulfilled literally. Thus, they were looking forward to a kingdom of peace and righteousness in this world. This was their hope for the future, but if the Old Testament prophecies were actually metaphors, then we must conclude that God allowed Old Testament believers to persist in believing something that was actually a false hope.

            In my opinion, this idea casts doubt upon God’s New Testament promises as well. If the Old Testament prophecies were metaphors, what guarantee do we have that New Testament prophecies are not actually metaphors as well? How would we know that statements about heaven aren’t really metaphors for simply ceasing to exist after we die?

            For the sake of God’s faithfulness to keep His word, I believe that the hope of Old Testament believers will be fulfilled literally; thus, there will be a kingdom of peace and righteousness in this world. Moreover, when we look at the prophecies of Jesus’ first coming into this world, we find that they were fulfilled literally. I believe this observation gives us every reason to think that prophecies about Jesus’ second coming will be fulfilled literally as well.

So with those thoughts in mind, I believe the description that we read in the latter half of chapter 65 is a description of a time that will literally come to pass in this world.  Let’s take a look at this description.

2. God will roll back the effects of The Curse in almost every way (65:17-25)

            The Lord begins v. 17 by saying, “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth.” That phrase might sound familiar, especially if you have read the book of Revelation. The apostle John uses the same phrase in Revelation 21:1 as he starts to describe our eternal home with God. However, John and Isaiah must be describing two different points in the future because in Isaiah’s description, as we’ll see, there is still the life cycle of people being born and people dying. Birth and death will not occur in our eternal home with God, so Isaiah is apparently describing “phase one” of a two-part reconstruction of our world. This first phase will occur during Christ’s kingdom on earth as virtually all of the effects of The Curse will be removed. Let’s highlight a few parts of this description.

            A. Humanity will enjoy peace and gladness (65:18-19, 21-23)

            Human beings were not created to be at odds with each other, and we see here that peace will prevail during this time [READ 65:18-19, 21-23].

            B. Long life spans will be the norm (65:20)

            This future kingdom will present an interesting situation. We will live in this kingdom, but we will already have our heavenly bodies—the same kind of body that Jesus had after He rose from the grave. If you remember our study from a few weeks ago, we noted that we will be taken out of the world at the Rapture and given our heavenly bodies at that time. Later, we will come back to the world with Jesus to live here with Him during this kingdom.

            So we will no longer face death, but there will be some people who have lived on earth right up to the start of Jesus’ kingdom. These people will still have their earthly bodies, so they will continue to have children and they will continue to die. But apparently, long life spans will once again be the norm, as they were in the early chapters of Genesis [READ 65:20].

            C. People will enjoy close communication and fellowship with God (65:24)

            In Genesis 1-2, we read about Adam and Eve enjoying unhindered fellowship with God. This kind of intimacy will exist between God and man once again [READ 65:24].

            D. Peace will reign among animals and between animals and men (65:25)

            We read a virtually identical prophecy back in chapter 11, and now the Lord restates it through Isaiah here at the end of the book [READ 65:25].

Once again, we find so much to look forward to as we contemplate this future kingdom which Christ will establish in this world.  We will bask in all that is good about this world with virtually none of these things which are bad! This time will be a thorough foretaste of our eternal home with God, but as the Lord has repeatedly warned us, we must embrace Him from the heart by faith if we want to enjoy these blessings. The fate of those who reject Him will be far different, so in chapter 66…

3. God issues a final warning and promise of blessing (66:1-24)

            In the first part of this chapter, the Lord issues a final warning against the idolatry and hypocritical worship of some of the people. He warns them that they better not think of Him the way they think about their idols [READ 66:1-2a]. These verses are a subtle jab against the mindset of idolatry. Idol worshipers approached worship with the idea that they were doing favors for their god. It was an “I’ll scratch your back, you scratch my back” kind of mindset. But God goes on to stress that such a mindset doesn’t fly in true worship of Him [READ 66:2b].

            The Hebrew term for “humble” in this verse conveys the idea of spiritual poverty. This is the humility that acknowledges that I have absolutely nothing I could use to gain God’s favor. This attitude says, “I am spiritually bankrupt;” I have no spiritual “currency,” so to speak, that would allow me to get anything from God. This is the attitude of the person who truly embraces God by faith. As the hymnwriter put it, “nothing in my hands I bring; simply to Thy cross I cling.”

            God makes it clear that anyone who would worship Him with the attitude that he is doing God a favor which God must then repay is actually offering God something that is offensive to Him [READ 66:3-4].

            My friends, we must understand that God is not fooled by hypocritical worship. If we think that we are doing God a favor by showing up at church or putting Him under obligation to us by putting some money in the offering plate, we better think again! True worship of God flows from the understanding that I am in complete spiritual poverty, yet through Christ, God has lavished upon me the riches of His grace.

            So much more could be said about this marvelous book of Scripture. Even in this long series of sermons, we have barely scratched the surface of the depths of insight in this book. Perhaps the central lesson that we should take with us from this study is that a vastly different fate awaits those who embrace God through Jesus by faith and those who do not. Some of the people in Israel thought they were okay with God because they were born in the right family or because they did the right religious activities. We must not fall into the same error! Being born into a Christian family does not make you right with God; attending church every Sunday does not make you right with God. We can only become right with God by confessing that we are sinners who deserve His wrath, and expressing our faith in Him by believing that Jesus paid the full price for our sins through His death on the cross and proved it by rising from the grave. We must each personally embrace that gift of salvation in order to be right with God. I urge you to do so today!

When the Saints Go Marching In--Isaiah Series

            Over the last two weeks, the nations of the world have been battling in London for athletic supremacy. Countries take great pride in their success at the Olympics. I’ve even heard that some countries are planning to form commissions to investigate why they didn’t win more medals!

            This competitive spirit shouldn’t surprise us, because its characterized the history of our race. Ever since human beings were dispersed by God from the Tower of Babel, our history has been marked by competition and conflict. Sometimes that conflict has been waged on the ballfield, and sometimes it has been waged on the battlefield, but the goal has always been the same—supremacy.

            According to the Bible, history is moving toward a period of time in which the nation of Israel will be exalted over all the other nations of the world—not because there’s anything particularly special about Israel, but simply because God has chosen to stake His reputation upon her destiny.

            If we are to take God’s promises in the Old Testament at face value, then we must conclude that there are glorious days ahead for the nation of Israel—not because of anything they will accomplish, but because of the king who will one day reign over them: the Lord Jesus Christ!

            The final chapters of Isaiah describe the climax of human history in which Israel will play a leading role because of her coming King. This may seem like an odd step for studying Isaiah, but I’d like to direct your attention first of all to the last chapter of Zechariah. Zechariah 14 describes in very straightforward terms the same events that Isaiah describes in more poetic terms. Sometimes, with poetic language, its tricky to discern a precise sequence of events, so Zechariah will give us the framework that will help us understand the prophecies of Isaiah [READ Zechariah 14:1-19]. Let’s make sure we grasp the broad outline of these verses. They describe a time when the Lord will physically appear in Jerusalem to defeat some armies that are gathered there against the people of Israel. The Lord will then become king over all the earth, and all the nations will become subservient to Him. These are the events that we usually call the Second Coming and the Millennium, and you can read more about them in Revelation 19-20.

            So with this outline of events in mind, let’s look at Isaiah’s description of these events in chapters 59-62. Our main points this morning focus on the metaphor of a change of wardrobe that these chapters describe—first for the Lord, then for His people.

I. The Lord puts on His battle armor to come as a Savior to Jerusalem (59:14-21)

            The prophecy in Zechariah focused on the external threat to Jerusalem from foreign armies. Isaiah focuses on the internal spiritual condition of Israel, and we see that it will not be universally pleasing to the Lord [READ 59:14-20]. These verses describe the coming of the Lord that we read about in Zechariah, when the Lord will come with deliverance and protection for those who are in God’s family, and vengeance against those who are not.

            The Lord will then establish His kingdom in Jerusalem, as Isaiah had already prophesied in chapters 2, 9, and 11. Isaiah poetically describes this time as a change to garments of praise rather than garments of mourning.

II. The Lord gives His people garments of praise rather than mourning (60:1-62:12)

           

            A. The nations will be drawn to Israel with offerings and praise for her God (60:1-9)

            B. The children of Israel will be gathered to the homeland that God promised to their ancestor, Abraham (60:1-9)

            These first two points are both characteristics of this time that Isaiah describes in 60:1-9 [READ 60:1-9]. Verse 9 offers an important point of emphasis. This passage describes a parade of people coming to Israel with their wealth, but v. 9 emphasizes that these gifts are “for the name of the Lord your God, and for the Holy One of Israel.”

            Israel will be blessed, however, because of their association with Jesus, their King. Think of the way that friends and relatives of famous people tend to get special treatment—that’s the basic idea.

            C. The children of Israel will enjoy peace, blessing, and security (60:10-12, 18)

            [READ 60:10-12, 18] Since the time that the Jewish people first settled in the Promised Land, it has hardly known a time of extended peace, but such is the Lord’s promise for the time of His kingdom.

            D. The children of Israel will all embrace righteousness (60:21)

            [READ 60:21] Notice again that all of this is for the Lord’s glory. This point highlights the reason that this kingdom on earth has been delayed for so long—the Jewish people as a whole have never embraced the righteousness of God; they have never embraced His plan of salvation. When Jesus first began to preach in the Gospels, His message was “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” The king was here, and I believe He was genuinely offering to establish His kingdom, but the people were not spiritually prepared for it, so He called them to repent. By and large, however, Jesus was rejected by the Jewish people, but this rejection only served to further God’s plan to provide forgiveness for sins by sending Jesus to the cross. But when Jesus returns, there will be Jewish believers waiting to greet Him, and they will be the foundation of a righteous remnant who will live in Christ’s kingdom.

            E. Mourning and oppression will give way to comfort, gladness, and praise (61:1-4)

            [READ 61:1-4]

            F. Jerusalem will be honored throughout the Earth (62:1-12)

            [READ 62:1-7]

            And so, in the kingdom of Christ, God will finally fulfill all of the promises that He made to the people of Israel—first to Abraham, then Isaac and Jacob, then to all the people through Moses, then to King David, then to all the people again through the prophecy of the New Covenant that Jesus referred to during the Last Supper. But how does all of this apply to you and me—children of God living in the here and now? Will we live in this kingdom on Earth? We certainly will!

            When Jesus returns to set up His kingdom, you and I will have already been taken out of the world at the Rapture, but we will accompany Christ when He comes back into this world. Zechariah 14:5 said that after the nations have gathered against Jerusalem to battle, “then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.” So a group referred to here as “the holy ones” will be coming with Christ.

            When we compare this verse to the description of Christ’s coming in Revelation 19, we can see that “the holy ones” are you and me! Turn with me to Revelation 19 [READ Rev. 19:11-14] Now these clothes of fine linen were just mentioned in vv. 7-8 [READ Rev. 19:7-8]. So the clothes of fine linen represent righteous deeds done by the saints who are part of the bride of Christ. And according to Ephesians 5, the bride of Christ consists of believers from today—those who are living in what we call “the church age.”

            So when Jesus returns to establish His kingdom, you and I will be in the cavalry right behind Him! What an honor—to join our Lord in His glorious return and triumph! We will be given a role to play in His kingdom based on our obedience to Him today, and we will enjoy the blessings of that time when Jesus—the head of the church—will be King and Lord over all things.

            If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior from your sins, welcome to your destiny!! Someday, we will see this world the way that God created it to be in almost every detail. Doesn’t it thrill your heart to think about it? It should, and thinking about this glorious destiny can keep your joy from eroding today as you face the temporary pressures of this world.

The One True Fairytale--Isaiah Series

In recent years, The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings trilogy have gained immense popularity after they were adapted into movies. These stories—which were each written by Christian men—touch on timeless themes such as good versus evil, the hope of a golden age in which good triumphs, and the promise of a chosen one who will lead the world into this golden age. I have to think that these stories have gained their popularity because their broad outlines tell the real story of mankind according to the Bible. In the Bible we read that mankind was created by God and placed into a paradise to rule over it with loving care, but we lost our position in this paradise after joining up with a rebellion against our Creator led by Satan. Ever since, mankind has been engaged in a struggle of good versus evil, with God giving us the promise that His Chosen One would come to defeat evil once and for all and lead mankind back into paradise and the honored position of rulership which we once held. Now if all of this sounds a bit like a fairytale, it’s because fairytales have freely borrowed from the storyline of the Bible for centuries. This storyline has been so captivating to us because it is true! C. S. Lewis called Christianity “the one true fairytale,” and I think that is a great description. The message of Christianity may appear too good to be true, but that is only an appearance, because the awesome reality is that it is true! In Isaiah 32-35, we read more about this Chosen One whom God has promised to send and how He will bring the world into a Golden Age that will restore so much of what we lost from the Garden of Eden. Let’s allow our hearts to rejoice and our imaginations to soar as we learn more about the coming kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. In what ways will God’s original design for the world be restored during the kingdom of Christ? 1. Mankind will rule over the world in righteousness and justice (32:1-8; 33:5-6; 33:17-22) According to Genesis 1, this is why God created us in the first place. He used Himself as the blueprint to create us so that we could be like His princes and princesses in this world by taking care of it and ruling over the other creatures within it. We strayed from God’s design for us when we sinned, but God has never given up on His original plan for us. Mankind will one day fulfill the role for which we were created, and this will be primarily through the reign of the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will rule over this world as the perfect expression of what mankind was meant to be. Let’s read a bit about His reign [READ 32:1-8]. I think v. 5 of that passage is so encouraging—“the fool will no more be called noble, nor the scoundrel said to be honorable.” Think of how much suffering has been unleashed in this world through fools and scoundrels who have gotten into positions of power. Think of the people in North Korea today; think of the people of Cuba; think of the policy of infanticide in China. But when Jesus reigns, fools and scoundrels will never again be in positions of power, because Christ Himself will be our King. Now please follow with me as I read 33:17-22 [READ 33:17-22]. Notice in v. 22 that Jesus will fulfill all three of the tasks that our government has assigned to different branches. The Lord is our judge—there’s the judicial branch; the Lord is our lawgiver—there’s the legislative branch; and the Lord is our king—there’s the executive branch. Now at the present time, it is wise for us to divide those powers because of the possibility of government corruption and abuse, but when Jesus reigns, we won’t have to worry about that problem anymore! So Jesus will be Lord over all in His kingdom, but notice that Isaiah 32:1 also mentioned princes who will rule. These princes could be you and me depending on the rewards we receive from Christ. This idea corresponds to what Jesus told the Apostles in Matthew 19:28—“Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” This reward is held out to all followers of Christ in verses like Revelation 2:26-27, where Jesus states, “The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father.” So one day—led by the Lord Jesus as King—mankind will rule over the world as God has always intended. According to the Bible in the Gospel of John (12:31, 14:30, 16:11), Satan is the ruler of this world today because he has deceived us all into rebelling against God. But when Jesus takes His throne in this world, mankind will have a kind of second chance to do what God created us to do in the first place. 2. The Earth will be abundantly fruitful and productive (32:9-15; 35:1-2, 6b-7) Around here, we know what it’s like to struggle with the Earth to make it fruitful and productive. We battle weeds that threaten to dominate and choke out our crops. We feel the effects of droughts and severe storms. But the Earth has not always been this way. Adam had been given the task of working the ground in the Garden of Eden, but his efforts were not resisted by thorns and weeds until after he had sinned. When God spoke to Adam after his sin, He said, “cursed is the ground because of you” (Gen. 3:17). When mankind began to suffer the effects of sin, so did the Earth over which he had been made to rule. But Scripture tells us that this situation will be reversed when the Lord Jesus reigns in this world. Look at a couple of passages with me [READ 32:9-15; 35:1-2, 6b-7]. Imagine what it will be like to work the ground without having to battle weeds, to have the satisfaction of an abundant harvest from your efforts! Now notice that Isaiah 32:15 tied the renewal of the Earth together with a spiritual renewal for mankind. That verse stated that the present conditions would continue, “until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high.” Since the Earth is suffering because of our sin, its suffering will end when righteousness reigns during the kingdom of Christ. Paul described this connection between the Earth and mankind in Romans 8:19-21—“For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” So just as the rule of mankind will be restored to what it was meant to be, the Earth will be restored to what it was meant to be as well. 3. Mankind will live in peace with each other (32:16-18) Hostility came into the human race as a result of sin, and hostility was only magnified after our race was divided at the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11. The threat of violence from other people is one of the worst things that we have to live with today. Some people face the threat of violence from their own parents or their own spouse. Many more people face the threat of violence from their neighbors, and even more people face the threat of violence from their own government or from the people of a neighboring country. But friends, Jesus ain’t called the Prince of Peace for nothing! His kingdom will be characterized by peace and quiet [READ 32:16-18]. I know we think we have it good around here, where we can get away with leaving our doors unlocked, but even Montezuma isn’t totally untouched by the threat of violence. But one day, Jesus the King will bring about true world peace, which people have only dreamed about for so long. What a time to look forward to! 4. Human suffering of every kind will be eliminated Suffering in our lives can take several different forms because of the different aspects of our humanity. We know that we have a physical aspect to who we are, an emotional aspect, a spiritual aspect, and a mental aspect as well, and we can face suffering in each of these different areas. But when Christ sets up His kingdom, He will address all of these areas of suffering and alleviate them: • Physical (33:24, 35:5-6) • Emotional (35:10) • Spiritual (33:24) • Mental (35:3-4) The Old Testament consistently describes the promised kingdom as a time when human suffering will be alleviated. That’s why Jesus gave the answer that He did when John the Baptist had a moment of doubt about whether Jesus was truly God’s chosen one. John had sent messengers to Jesus to ask Him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” Jesus said, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.” To a Jewish person like John the Baptist, this was the clearest answer that Jesus could give—I am relieving human suffering! And the Lord Jesus will do so again when He once again walks on this Earth. Make no mistake, my friends—Jesus is coming again! Isaiah makes it clear in chapter 33 that this fact should be a source of fear for those who reject God, but He also describes for us the kind of person who has no need to fear the return of Christ. Let’s consider what Isaiah wrote in 33:13-16 [READ 33:13-16]. Notice that the person described in vv. 15-16 has a proper concern for God and a proper concern for others. These attitudes are consistent with what Jesus called the two greatest commandments—to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. This person’s concern for God is shown by the fact that he “walks righteously and speaks uprightly.” In both his conduct and his speech, he is mindful of God’s commands. His concern for others is seen in that he “despises the gain of oppressions.” He does not oppress others just to get something for himself, as we see in the fact that he also refuses to take a bribe. Isaiah also writes that he “stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil.” Now this statement does NOT mean that he ignores violence committed against others—it means that he will not listen to temptations to do violence himself. He guards the points of entry where suggestions can enter the mind—namely, the eyes and the ears. Now as anyone knows who has ever tried to live this way, we simply cannot produce this kind of behavior ourselves. As we’ve been reminded this morning, our hearts are tainted by sin, but Jesus made a way for us to be forgiven during His first coming to the Earth. Jesus offered himself as a sinless sacrifice for us by dying on the cross in our place to pay the price for our sins. Then He rose from the grave, and 40 days later He returned to heaven to wait until God the Father would send Him back into this world to establish His kingdom. His sacrifice for us makes us fit to enter His kingdom if we will confess our sin to God and believe that Jesus has paid the full price for our sins so that we can be saved.

A Leader Who Will Deliver on His Promises--Isaiah Series

You may not have heard this little piece of news yet, but we are in the midst of a presidential election. We only have one party that is heavily involved in campaigning at this point, but already we have heard a long list of promises that just sound too good to be true—promises like instant reduction in our nation’s budget deficit, immediate savings at the gas pump, and jobs for everyone who desires to work. All of the candidates paint a picture of glorious days for our country and our world if they are elected as president.

We can easily become cynical about promises of better days ahead when we look at the problems that exist in our world today. We frequently express this cynicism toward our politicians, but if we are not careful, we could express this kind of cynicism toward the Bible as well, because the Bible also gives us promises of glorious days ahead. I hope we will see this morning that we don’t need to reject the idea of one day seeing heaven on earth—we simply need to place our hope in the only one who can truly bring it about.

In our study of Isaiah today, we will read a prophecy about a coming world ruler who will bring justice and peace to the world. With the complete Bible in our hands as we have it today, we know that this prophecy refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, and it tells about conditions that He will establish in the world after He comes back. Today, let’s our allow our hearts to celebrate and rejoice as we read about the glorious days ahead for our world, and let’s take Isaiah’s words to heart as he tells us how to respond to the Lord Jesus Christ.

1. God’s Preservation of His People, Israel (10:28-34)

Last week, we read that the northern kingdom of Israel was facing a threat from their neighbors to the northeast, the Assyrians. Both Scripture and the history books tell us that Assyrians did in fact conquer the kingdom of Israel and take the people into exile. But God would not allow the Assyrians to completely conquer the Jewish people, for when they continued their march into the southern kingdom of Judah, they went a step too far.

In 10:28-34, we read a prophecy about the Assyrian army advancing to the very outskirts of Jerusalem before they are destroyed by the Lord of hosts. Isaiah will record the fulfillment of this prophecy in chapters 36-37, but for now, let’s read the prophecy of this great deliverance [READ 10:28-34].

Ever since God told a man named Abraham that He would make a great nation out of his descendants, the Lord has had a special plan for the nation of Israel to make them a blessing to all the world. Various enemies have threatened the people of Israel from time to time, but God has often miraculously delivered them from danger so that His plan would not be thwarted. In chapter 11, Isaiah writes of a ruler who would come from the Jewish people to bring peace into the world. This ruler came to be known as the Messiah, and we know Him today as the Lord Jesus Christ. Let’s see what Isaiah has to say about His future reign.

2. The Character and Accomplishments of the Messiah (the Lord Jesus Christ)

a. He will have a human origin with divine empowerment (11:1-2)

In v. 1, we read that the Messiah will come from the family of King David [READ v. 1]. This is an interesting picture of the Messiah’s human origin. He is said to be like a small sapling coming up out of a stump—something that is a mere remnant of the tree that used to stand there. The royal dynasty of King David is in this “stump” phase today. There is no Jewish king today, and for all intents and purposes, it appears that the royal line of David has been cut off from the world, never to flourish again. But this sapling—the Lord Jesus Christ—has already grown in this world, and some day He will return to produce the fruit that is described in this prophecy.

Although the Lord’s human origin is emphasized in v. 1, we see in v. 2 that the Lord was predicted to have divine empowerment [READ v. 2]. This verse describes the ideal characteristics of a godly leader, and we see next how the Lord will put these characteristics to use.

b. He will carry out true justice (11:3-5)

Without true justice from our leaders, there can be little hope for peace in the world. People will always seek to overthrow an unjust leader, and laws will be unenforced and ignored. Justice is the foundation for a flourishing peace, and we read here that the Lord will rule His kingdom with justice [READ vv. 3-5].

Now, it seems strange to read that the Messiah would delight in the fear of the Lord, because, after all, what does Jesus have to fear from God? This statement actually helps us clear up a misunderstanding of the important biblical concept of fearing God. We learn from this statement that fearing God is not a fear of being harmed by Him, because Jesus had no reason to fear that. Rather, it is simply an attitude of humble obedience. It is a fear of stepping outside of His will and thus being found unfaithful. And it is an attitude in which we can delight, not an attitude that is unpleasant.

We see next that the Lord’s reign will even bring about peace in the animal kingdom.

c. He will restore peace among animals and between animals and humans (11:5-9)

In our little corner of the world, we deal with animals quite a bit. We handle domesticated animals, which may be tame, but they’re still just barely under our control. We also live with wild animals that may be a threat to us and our crops. But you may remember from the book of Genesis that God never intended for there to be animosity between animals and humans. He created animals to live peacefully with us under our compassionate care for them. We see in the next few verses that these conditions will exist once again during Christ’s reign on earth [READ vv. 6-9]. It is unclear just how the “knowledge of the Lord” mentioned here will change animal behavior, but how exciting it is that we will have another opportunity to live under those conditions!

d. He will unite humanity and exalt His people Israel (11:10-16)

Humanity has been sharply divided ever since God divided our languages at the Tower of Babel to halt our rebellion against Him. We have lived with the bitter fruits of our divisions ever since as we have dealt with racism, nationalism, and war. God’s covenant people, Israel, have been a particular target for oppression, but we see that during Jesus’ reign in this world, humanity will be united and Israel will be exalted [READ vv. 10-16].

If you like to make note of encouraging passages of Scripture to read when you need a little “pick-me-up” for your faith, I would encourage you to bookmark Isaiah 11. This chapter describes a nearly complete reversal of the problems that we face today in a fallen world. After Jesus returns, He will restore this world to what it was meant to be in virtually every respect. So better days are ahead for us; better days are in store for our world after Jesus returns. In the next chapter, Isaiah describes the proper way to respond to God in that day, but we don’t have to wait until then. We can learn some lessons from this chapter about how we should respond to the Lord today. Let’s read this chapter, and then I’ll point out some specific thoughts [READ Chapter 12].

II. Our proper response to the Messiah (Ch. 12)

a. Thankfulness (vv. 1, 4)

Thankfulness is such a healthy attitude because it reminds us that we are dependent upon God, and it reminds us how abundantly God has come through for us. Verse one calls us to thank God for turning His anger away from us, and verse four calls us to thank God for His deeds. We can thank God for each of these things every day.

When the Lord Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, He appeased the anger that God appropriately felt toward our sin. So now, if you know Jesus as your Savior, you don’t have to fear God’s anger. Verse one says that you receive God’s comfort instead. We can thank God with every breath that we take for saving us from His wrath.

We can also have a continual reason to thank God if we will just stop and think about His work in our lives. Just think about all that you have—family, friends, possessions—and remember that none of it is deserved. It is all a gift from God. Think about times when He has protected you, and times when He has soothed your wounded heart. We don’t have to wait until Christ returns to be thankful—we would just have a lot of catching up to do at that point!

b. Trust and a lack of fear (v. 2)

The phrase “do not fear” could practically be a subtitle for the Bible. You could print it right on the cover: “The Holy Bible: Do Not Fear!” So many times we are told not to be afraid because God loves us, He knows everything about our lives, He is always with us, and He’s in control. If you have embraced Jesus by faith as your Savior, you have nothing to fear. You can trust Him at all times and for all of your needs.

So often we act like we can trust God with our souls but not our stomachs! “Sure, God—I trust you to take care of my eternal destiny, but I’m not sure about breakfast tomorrow!” That doesn’t make any sense! We can trust God for ALL of our needs, and we truly can live free from fear.

c. Confidence and Contentment (v. 2)

Verse two says, “the Lord God is my strength and my song.” That is a beautiful statement! We can draw confidence through the strength that God provides, and we can know true contentment that brings a song to our hearts. Think about the times when you are mostly likely to find yourself singing. Its when you’re content, right? When you feel like everything is okay, and for even just a brief moment you feel care-free. We can find that kind of contentment in the Lord.

A desire for contentment just might be the universal motivation behind everything we do. I think this is why the drug addict takes one more hit, and why the workaholic works through one more sleepless night. I think the desire for contentment is in the back of our minds with every choice that we make. But if you know the Lord, you don’t have to look any further to find contentment. As we make the choice every day to place ourselves under His yoke and learn from Him, we will know true contentment that satisfies our hearts.

d. Rejoicing and praise (vv. 3, 5-6)

Rejoicing is the idea of celebrating, and praising God is the idea of declaring his value and why He has that value. Think of getting an appraisal on your house—it’s the same root word. An appraiser declares how much your home is worth. Praising God is truly a very similar idea, though it also carries the thought of devoting yourself to God because of His matchless worth.

e. Telling others about His glorious works (vv. 4-5)

Verse four tells us to “make known his deeds among the peoples,” and verse five says to let His glorious deeds be made known in all the earth. Think about this for a moment—if there is something in your life that causes you to be thankful, fearless, confident, content, and in a mood to celebrate, don’t you naturally share that with other people? We share YouTube videos with each other so we can all laugh about the talking dog!

It is only natural to tell others about something that you’re thankful for, something that is tremendously valuable to you, or something that brings you contentment. Telling others about what God has done for you is just a natural response. And that’s all you need to focus on—just talking about what God has done for you! You don’t have to memorize 57 reasons why God exists; if that sort of thing fits your interests and your gifts, then fine—you can memorize things like that! But we are all capable of just telling others about what God has done for us, and this is a fitting and natural way that we should respond to our Lord.

As we look forward to the glorious days ahead during Christ’s kingdom on earth, we can keep ourselves busy today by thanking God, trusting in Him, finding our contentment in Him, praising Him, and telling others about Him.