The Arrival of our Glorious King
Isaiah 4:2-6
This is the 9th sermon in the book of Isaiah, all built on 1 core principle: “God’s Unfolding Plan”
*Isaiah lived in times like ours, full of personal sorrow, national corruption, political instability.
*Impeachment was the cry of the day…and the leader Israel was trying to impeach: The Lord.
*But even as the people tried to impeach God, Isaiah stood to announce God’s Word. He diagnosed the problem of sin, called the people to change, promising blessing if they obey, judgment if not.
*The core of Isaiah’s confidence in the Lord is best summarized in Isaiah 46:8-10:
8 “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, 9 remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
*It’s a great reminder that no matter what sorrow we endure, what loss we suffer, or what happens in T.C. or D.C., we serve a Sovereign Lord who will accomplish His plan and nobody can thwart it.
Recap our 1st Theme in Isaiah (6 sermons – all available online) was: “The Problem of Sin”
• Open Rebellion. (Isa. 3) God disciplines Israel & says He will “take away support and supply” • Wild Living. (Isa. 5) “What more was there to do for my vineyard that I have not done? • National Defiance. (Isa. 9) The people are defiant against God and say, “We will rebuild!” • Religious Hypocrisy. (Isa. 29) God calls them out: “They honor me with lips, but their hearts…” • Spiritual Stubbornness. (Isa. 30) “Ah, stubborn children who carry out a plan, but not mine.” • Persistent Backsliding. (Isa. 57) No matter how bad things got, they “went on backsliding.”
In light of their sin problem (and ours), how many agree that humanity is in need of a Savior?
*This is the purpose of Christmas. John the apostle gives two reasons for Christmas:
“He appeared to take away sins…He appeared to destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John)
*IOW: Christmas celebrates the Arrival of a Messiah who comes to deal with 2 massive problems.
*He comes to deal with the problem of sin…and comes to conquer the power of the enemy.
*And Jesus does all of this through His death on the cross and by the power of his resurrection.
*Much of Isaiah’s 66 chapters are foreign territory; an untouched wilderness waiting to be explored.
*But a few chapters in Isaiah are quite familiar, especially the ones that are often quoted at Christmas time that prophecy the Arrival of Messiah.
*It is those 4 chapters that provide our roadmap for the next 4 weeks.
Summary of Isaiah 4: The Arrival of Messiah. • His arrival. One is coming who is beautiful and glorious; a life-giving Branch who bears fruit. • His work. His work will be to wash away sin and cleanse His people from stain & guilt. • His impact. The people who are cleansed will be forgiven, called holy, and recorded for life. • His dwelling. God will dwell (tabernacle) with His people; providing refuge & safety.
1. A glorious King will arrive, (v.2-3) “2 In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel. 3 And he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy, everyone who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem
*Isaiah announces a day “the Branch of the Lord” comes, describing him “beautiful and glorious.”
*Is there anyone more beautiful than Jesus our Lord, who…
*Is there anyone more glorious than Jesus our Lord, who…
*This Branch is Life-Giving, one who causes fruit to grow and brings great benefit to his people.
*Through him, people (fruit) will be “called holy” and their names will be “recorded for life.”
*IOW: The Branch has so much life within Him, He is able to infuse His life into His people, making them holy, and giving them hope that their names are recorded in a book of life.
*If you have been born again into a living hope, you know the joy of being connected to the Life-giving power of Jesus. What else can we do except testify of His great love?
*This imagery of Branch/Fruit is perhaps what Jesus had in mind when he spoke of Vine/Branches.
“I am the Vine, you are the Branches…whoever abides in me will bear much fruit…” (John 15)
*IOW: The one hope we have in life is being connected to the Life-giving power of Jesus Christ.
*One of the great joys of ministry is watching the Life-giving power of Jesus being infused into people.
*One mom at New Hope wrote me this week about how God has renewed and revived her life.
“I grew up in a Christian home and had accepted God into my heart at a young age. However as I got older, my life drifted from God and church until February 2018....when I hit rock bottom. Prior to that I wasn’t attending church regularly, wasn’t walking close with God, and God wasn’t a priority… When my life completely unfolded, I had nowhere to turn but God. I cried and prayed and wept - was angry, in shock, embarrassed, deeply hurt and didn't know what to do. So, I prayed and prayed and prayed some more…my family prayed, my friends prayed....and I saw God work.
God provided for me and my children. God comforted me. God gave me the courage to get out of bed and face the day. God made me feel safe in a situation and place where I was fearful and scared…By the time I moved back up, my life revolved around God, and Church was a must! I was sad about leaving my church downstate but so grateful I found New Hope…I was welcomed with open arms. So many people that heard my story hugged me, told me they were praying for me and I felt yet again...we were right where God wanted us to be. Since then, I volunteer in the kidzone, am attending divorce care, have spent time with fellow worshipers outside of church and I really feel a part of New Hope. Thank you and the church for being so awesome!”
*Dedication of Adriana and Aleksander. (Praying for God’s Life-Giving power)
2. …to wash away sin and guilt, (v.4) 4 when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning.
*What will this Branch do? How will the Fruit be changed?
*Up until now in Isaiah, we have seen what condition the people of Israel are in.
*Summary of the Rotten Fruit - 6 sermons that confront the Fruit of Israel
✓ Open Rebellion. ✓ Wild Living. ✓ National Defiance. ✓ Religious Hypocrisy. ✓ Spiritual Stubbornness. ✓ Persistent Backsliding.
*IOW: the people of Israel, not unlike America, is rotten fruit; filthy; stained with sin.
*How can such a rotten people be called holy and recorded for life?
*Consider the context of where Isaiah 4 is located.
Before Isa. 4 is…Chapter 3 – Titled: “God’s Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem.”
After Isa. 4 is…Chapter 5 – Titled: “The Vineyard of the Lord Destroyed.”
*Between chapter 3 & 5, is…Chapter 4 - Titled: “The Branch of the Lord Glorified.”
*Think of it: on both sides are tough sermons that deal candidly with sin, warning of judgment.
*In between, Isaiah proclaims a message of Hope of what God himself will do.
*And what is that message of Hope? God will do something that takes away filth and guilt and sin.
*What is His work? “Washing and Cleansing.” The Branch will do something that washes and cleanses the Fruit of all that is wrong. It is a work of forgiveness.
*What will He cleanse? “Filth…and bloodstains.” It is graphic language which shocks the senses. A picture of “polluted garments, menstrual clothes stained by blood.”
*But the Life-Giving Branch has so much power to cleanse that He is able to remove all our guilt and declare us holy.
*1 John 1: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful…to forgive us our sins and cleanse us…” *How do we receive it? “By a spirit of judgment…and burning.” IOW: Purging! The way the fruit is changed is through a deep, inward work of the Holy Spirit.
*These are moments in life when God is at work so intensely, you feel your heart on fire, burning within, calling you to repent, convicting you, drawing you to change.
*A former pastor: “The moment of conviction is the moment of decision.”
*What about you? Perhaps you have filth that needs washing. A stain that needs cleansing.
3. ...and dwell among His people. (v.5-6) 5 Then the Lord will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory there will be a canopy. 6 There will be a booth [tabernacle] for shade by day from the heat, and for a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.”
*Now, we are getting close to the imagery of Christmas and what Messiah’s arrival meant.
*In v. 5-6, the imagery Isaiah gives is that of God’s presence dwelling with His people.
*The reference of “cloud by day & fire by night” is the OT imagery of God dwelling with people
*In the OT, when the presence of God descended to fill the tabernacle and temple, the Lord was literally invading the cosmos and He “tabernacled” among them.
*Israel’s Hope: “God WITH us.”
*Isaiah looks to the future (The Lord will…there will be…there will be…) and promises when God will do it again, but even in greater ways.
*God will descend and fill the entire universe. God will descend and cover His people like a canopy. God will descend and tabernacle among His people.
*This is what happened at the 1st Christmas:
*The birth of Christ was that pivotal moment in history when God descended in the fullness of His Son and God dwelt with his people.
*This is how the apostle John saw the birth of Jesus:
“The Word became flesh and dwelt [tabernacle] among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)
*And this is still great Hope of believers today – a day that God dwells with us.
*The last imagery in the Bible…is not us ascending to dwell with God…but rather God descending to dwell with us.
Rev. 21:3 “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place [tabernacle] of God is with man. He will dwell [tabernacle] with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore…”
*No biblical promise is more essential than the hope of God dwelling with us.
*Where else can people like Isenharts look, who today would have celebrated Reece’s 27th BD…other than a day of hope when God dwells with His people?
*Where else can believers in TC look when the life of one of their pastors ended this week, other than a day when the glory of God dwells again with His people?
Action Steps:
• Is your name recorded for life?
*The way the fruit is “called holy” and is “recorded for life” is by our connection to the Branch.
*Have you trusted Christ as Lord? Have you repented of sin? Have you received His Spirit?
*It matters not if you grew up in church, or were raised in a Christian home, or were baptized as an infant. What matters is: Are you connected by faith to the risen Savior?
• What sin needs to be cleansed?
*Is there a stain in life that needs to be washed? Is there a sin that needs to be confessed? Is there a pattern of life that God is calling you to change? This is why Christ came.
• What conviction is the Holy Spirit burning within you?
*What does He want to purge? What needs to be purged?
*Is there something God is stirring within you? A conviction of spirit? A holy calling?
• What “gift” could you give the Lord this year?
*Have you ever wondered what you could give Jesus for Christmas?
*More than anything, The Branch wants more time with you.
*I wonder: what daily distraction could you eliminate to give time to the Branch?
*How could you curb frivolous technology habits; or minimize social media?