Vineyard Church North Phoenix | July 31, 2008

Isaiah 48

The overall mood of comfort is abandoned for a moment, for accusation. Israel has stubbornly resisted God, and pursued idols. This treachery forced God to defend His name by sending Israel into a “furnace of affliction” (48:1-11). Yet all this is a backdrop for grace. God presents Himself anew (vv. 12-16), expresses His yearnings for Israel (vv. 17-19), and dramatically announces the good news of coming redemption (vv. 20-22).

Credit (48:5). It was not enough that Israel stubbornly refused to respond to God. They tended to credit His works to other gods (see Jer. 44:15-19). Spiritual blindness persists, and today we may credit gracious acts of God in our own lives to luck or to our own genius or hard work. How important to sense God’s hand in our lives, to be responsive to Him, and to acknowledge His works for us.

“The Lord’s chosen ally” (48:14). The naming of Cyrus as the one to overthrow Babylon and free the Jews some 150 years before the event made it clear that God alone should receive credit for the return of the future captives.

“What is best for you” (48:17). What a vital insight into divine law and morality. God did not establish moral law to frustrate “natural” human desires. God sets standards to show us “what is best for you.” Man can be good and happy. Man cannot be bad and happy. Let’s let God direct us in the way we should go, and experience that “peace like a river” (see vv. 18, 22).

God’s servant. The “law of double reference” may apply in interpreting this prophetic passage, which may point in part to Cyrus, but certainly describes the mission of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Christ was called to His mission and named long before His birth (49:1). His first efforts were unrewarded (v. 4), but He is destined to bring Israel back to God (v. 5) and bring salvation to all peoples (v. 6). Although despised, He will ultimately be honored by all (v. 7).

Isaiah 49

Now the true Servant of the Lord, the Messiah, steps forward. He tells of His mission to Israel and to all humankind (49:1-7). He repeats God’s promises to Himself and to Israel (vv. 8-13). Israel may feel God has forsaken her, but the Lord can no more abandon the Jews than a mother can forget the babe at her breast (vv. 14-21). God will restore and exalt His chosen people. He will punish their oppressors, for God is the Saviour and Redeemer of His own (vv. 22-26).

“A light for the Gentiles” (49:6). Paul and Barnabas applied this verse to themselves (Acts 13:47), for their mission was in the spirit of the Servant. Israel had light, rejected it, and needed to be restored. The Gentiles needed light to see the nature of salvation.

There’s a lesson here for us. God has provided salvation for all. You and I need to hold up the light of God’s Word so others can see what He has done for them.

“Forsaken” (49:14). Anyone who is suffering feels forsaken. It’s a natural reaction to pain.

To us, love seems to demand expression in gifts and good things. We have a hard time seeing any painful experience as a love gift, even though a parent who spanks a young child for running blindly into the street hopes the momentary pain will protect the child from a future danger.

Here, when Israel complains, God does not explain again why He has disciplined His people. He simply says, I have not, I will not, forsake you. Let’s remember this the next time suffering comes our way. We may hurt. But we are not alone. God’s love is like that of a mother for her infant child. He has compassion for us. He really does care.

Isaiah 50

Isaiah 50 contrasts two servants. Here we meet the imperfect servant (Israel), who abandoned relationship with God (50:1-3, 11) and the perfect Servant (Christ) (vv. 4-10). This second Servant is sensitive to man’s needs and responsive to God (vv. 4-5). He suffers, but He relies on the Lord and remains committed to doing God’s will (vv. 6-9). Those who fear the Lord obey this Servant’s word (v. 10).

Isaiah 50:4. Because the Servant listens intently and obediently “morning by morning,” He has wisdom to “know the word that sustains the weary.” Obedience qualifies and marks the Servant as He pursues His ministry.

Isaiah 50:5. The open ear (to hear) comes with obedience. The Servant could hear God’s voice because “I have not been rebellious; I have not drawn back.”

Isaiah 50:6-7. The choice to obey God brought the Servant into conflict with men. But even the most degrading of insults failed to shame or deter Him. “I set My face like flint.” Total commitment rests on total confidence in God. “I will not be put to shame.”

Isaiah 50:8-9. Rather than react vengefully, the Servant waits for God’s vindication. Because the Sovereign Lord helps the Servant, no case against Him can stand. Every human opponent will “wear out like a garment,” while God remains forever the same.

Isaiah 50:10. The Servant’s obedience provided the example for Israel. All who fear the Lord will obey the word of the Servant and trust in the name of the Lord. Those who rely on God, as the Servant relied, will have deliverance.

Reflection

God wants us to be the light of the world. In what ways are you shinning God’s light into the dark places of the world? A flashlight shows its worth in the darkness.