ALL THINGS NEW: New Year, New Hope January 13 – February 3, 2019 Richard Leslie Parrott, Ph.D. JANUARY 13 NEW THINGS EMERGE FROM FORMER THINGS! Page 2 Isaiah 43:11, 13, 15-21 JANUARY 20 NEW CREATION RISES FROM CRISIS TIMES! Page 13 Isaiah 65:1-5, 8-10, 16-25 JANUARY 27 NEW PEOPLE FORMED FROM TRANSFORMING GRACE! Page 23 Colossians 3:1-17 FEBRUARY 3 NEW REALITY CREATED WITH ALL THINGS NEW! Page 32 Matthew 19:23-30; Revelation 21:1-7 JANUARY 13 NEW THINGS EMERGE FROM FORMER THINGS! Isaiah 43:11, 13, 15-21 Pastor Ulmet: Isaiah 43:11, 13, 15-21 Key Passage 1. LET GOD BE GOD – He Creates! It is a key aspect of the ongoing Creative natUre of the Almighty: He creates new from old. He begins where things and people are, and makes it new! The foundation of this is GOD HIMSELF – Verses 11, 13, 15! 2. REMEMBER GOD IS GOD – He Delivers! Verses 16-17 3. TRUST GOD WILL BE GOD – He will create new! Verses 18-21 The classic Isaiah commentary by F. C. Jennings writes: Another intervention is promised her (Israel) that, in its glory, will eclipse that of the past. His mercies are never exhausted. His powers are not enfeebled by centuries; nor does He ever thus repeat Himself, as if the past evidenced the limit of either His power or grace. He always adds some ‘better thing.’ The same mighty Worker will always do a new thing; and even now if His people will look closely at the present conditions they may discern that new thing beginning to sprout, even as a gardener discerns the ripe and perfected fruit in the bud…F. C. Jennings, Studies in Isaiah* *http://www.plymoUthbrethren.org/series/6100 INTRODUCTION: In Isaiah 43, as forcefUlly as anywhere in the Bible, God articUlates his Uncompromising love for Israel. To understand the context of God’s prodigal expression of love, we must understand that God and the Nation have a Master/Servant relationship. This is clearly defined in in the previous chapter, Isaiah 42:1, 6-7. “Here is my servant*, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. ++++++++++++ I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, 7 to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. *The passage refers to Israel at one level; at a greater level, the passage describes the life and mission of JesUs. 2 QUESTION: when released from their Babylonian captivity, God’s people failed at carrying out their calling to be a light to the Gentiles. Jesus fulfilled the calling and has passed the mission to us, his church. Explain why Israel failed and why God expects Us to sUcceed in carrying oUt the mission? The call of the Servant is transformational. However, the Servant, Israel, has failed. Rather than opening the blind eyes of the Nations, rather than freeing captive people, Israel’s sin and failure has resulted in Israel’s captivity. God calls them oUt for their failUre; Israel, the one who was called to hear and speak God’s words, is deaf; Israel, the one who was commissioned to guide the Nations to God, is blind (Isaiah 42:18-20, Note: this image is repeated in 43:8-10). “Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! 19 Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one in covenant with me, blind like the servant of the LORD? 20 You have seen many things, but you pay no attention; your ears are open, but you do not listen.” What happens next? We know the answer because we know what happens in our world. If employees fail in their assignments, they get the boot, a pink slip, and are shown the door. The competent employer (Boss) says, “I have made a bUsiness decision. It involves yoU, and it is irrevocable. We can no longer be in bUsiness together.” Or, the boss may Use a simpler form of the message, “YoU’re fired.” There is something Unexpected when we examine the relationship between the Lord Almighty and Israel. God is not a competent boss; he is a compassionate Father. If Israel fails on her side of the relationship, God will not fail in His part. In our text for today, Isaiah 43:1-21, it is as if God is saying, “I have made a salvation decision. It involves yoU, and it is irrevocable. I must save yoU so that yoU can join me in saving the world.” GOD’S RESPONSE IS SOMETHING NEW! This is newness coming to birth out of tough times, changing dynamics, and broken dreams. It is ALL on God to do it. Here is the starling and wondroUs word from God in our text for today passage (Isaiah 43:19): “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Part 1: A NEW THING BEGINS IN THE PAST: God Loved Israel From the Beginning (Isaiah 43:1-7) God’s love is expressed by redeeming, calling, and sacrificing for the people he loves. It is God’s consistent love for Israel across the centuries that opens the way for “a new thing.” 3 SOMETHING NEW Requires Putting Away Fear. This beautiful song of love strikes a familiar cord, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you” (vs. 1). When God says, “fear not” (over 100 times in the Bible), he gives Us a word from Heaven to replace oUr fearfUl thoUght. In this case, he tells Israel not to fear, “. for I have redeemed you.” the word, “redeem,” was a family term in which a stronger member of the family intervenes to rescUe a weaker member of the family. For example, “YoUr big brother is looking oUt for yoU,” or “Mom will fix this,” or “Dad will take care of it.” [Here are 33 verses that challenge or fear by providing an alternative thought. https://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/debbie-mcdaniel/33-verses-to- remind-us--we-do-not-have-to-fear.html] QUESTION: How does the Bible help yoU replace fearfUl thoUghts with calming thoUghts? Are their particUlar verses or stories that help yoU? 4 SOMETHING NEW Means Returning to Your Calling. Redemption is one antidote for fear, and God has another, “I have called you” (vs. 1). Israel’s calling is not the new thing. God has called Israel from long ago. God reminds his people that the call remains intact. This intimate and nonnegotiable relationship is Israel’s soUrce of confidence and calm in the face of imminent dangers of flood and fire. There is no “if” here. There is God’s presence: 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze (Isaiah 43:2). QUESTION: These verses are well known and have provided comfort for many people across the centuries. Has this short passage of Scripture been of special help to you? When and how? These words (Isaiah 43:2) retrieve the memory Israel’s Exodus; “all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left” (Exodus 14:21-22). Water is the symbol of chaos going back to the moment the “Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). God defeats chaos and create a new thing, a NEW EXODUS. The recent memory of chaos sweeping over Israel was the defeat of the Nation, the burning of JerUsalem, and destruction of the Temple. There were people reading these words of the prophet who had a living memory of the catastrophe. Fire was an image of jUdgment; God “poured out his wrath like fire” (Lamentations 2:4). Now, God would save his people from fire; “you will not burned; the flames will not set you ablaze” (Isaiah 43:2). Perhaps the presence of chaos is a prereqUisite for something new. QUESTION: How do you respond to the thought, “the presence of chaos is a prerequisite for something new”? Have yoU seen this dynamic in yoUr life? SOMETHING NEW Requires God’s Ransom. The following verses (43:3-4) present something new we do not find anywhere in the ScriptUres bUt here. 3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, 5 nations in exchange for your life. QUESTION: Does authentic love require sacrifice? How does this apply in our relationships? Here is a strange picture for us, God negotiating a prisoner exchange on behalf of his people. The Lord is prepared to trade citizens of other nations for the liberty and restoration of Israel. It sounds crass in oUr modern ears, bUt Israel Understood the image.