God Will Surely Save (Isaiah 49:1-50:3)
The sermon outline can be found in the ministry guide.
Many of us turn to online shopping because of convenience and the ease of comparing prices. But at the same time, we are cautious because of the increase in scams and false advertising. Thus what is important to me is buying an item from a reputable platform that offers good guarantees.
I once bought a pushcart from Lazada. After waiting several weeks, I received a notification that my item had been delivered. But when I went to check my front door, all I could find was a large envelop. Inside was a piece of cardboard.
I submitted a claim to Lazada and they were quick to issue a refund. Their guarantee to watch out for consumers has given me much confidence to keep using their platform.
Guarantees or warranties are powerful tools that companies use to build brand loyalty. Once we know that a company or shop will not cheat us but provide a fair experience, we will return and even recommend them to others.
Similarly, God gives His people several guarantees that He will make good on His promises. God gives us numerous assurances to help us wait on Him even when it seems like He is silent. God gives us every reason to trust Him so that we will not waver in our faith but continue believing that at the right time He will do what He has promised. In particular, we shall study three promises God gives in Isaiah 49:1-50:3
The promises we are about to study were given to Israel when they were wavering in their faith. Although their forefathers had witnessed God’s power to deliver them from slavery and provide abundantly, the people had since strayed from the Lord.
Israel had committed spiritual adultery by forsaking the Lord and worshipping false idols. As a result, they were experiencing the consequences of sin. They were constantly facing threats from their aggressive neighbours.
Isaiah 49:14 says that many Israelites had felt that God had forsaken them. Their country had been ravaged by invaders. Town after town had fallen. Whole tribes had been lost. The people of Jerusalem knew that it was only a matter of time before the enemy would be at their gate again.
Some of them probably felt that they had sinned so much that they were now unworthy of God’s salvation. Others could have turned agnostic, thinking that the evil committed by the enemy must mean that there is no god.
Amidst this doubting, God offers His people three assurances of His commitment to save.
From Isaiah 49:1-7 we shall learn that the first assurance is found in God’s commissioning of His Servant to save. Isaiah 49:8-13 reveals that the second assurance is found in God’s compassion. Isaiah 49:14-50:3 helps us find a third assurance in God’s steadfast love
If you have been facing calamity after calamity and wondering if there is any point in waiting on God for deliverance, I pray that you will find comfort in God’s promises. The darkness you are experiencing may be overwhelming, but hold on to the hope that dawn shall come. God’s assurances give us hope that there will be deliverance from this broken world. God promises redemption from sin and death. Our God will surely save.
Be assured of God’s commitment to save so that we will keep trusting Him, even amidst suffering.
Therefore, the aim of today’s sermon is to be assured of God’s commitment to save so that we will keep trusting Him, even amidst suffering.
God commissioned His Servant to save (Isa 49:1-7)
Isaiah 49:1-7 is the second passage in Isaiah that scholars have called a Servant Song because the main subject is the righteous Servant whom God promises to send to offer comfort and redemption. Although many prophets and kings have functioned as servants in God’s great plan of redemption, none can compare to the ultimate Servant of the Lord who is described in Isaiah 49:1-7.
Here are 6 things God reveals to us about this special Servant.
Firstly, the Servant is commissioned by God. Isaiah 49:1 and 5 draw on the image of a baby being conceived in his mother’s womb to communicate God’s intentionality in commissioning His Servant. God did not look down from heaven and then select a good person to be His servant. Rather. God commissioned His Servant from the get go. The Servant had been chosen by God to carry out a special mission even before He entered the world.
God knew that ethnic Israel would fall short of His will to be a light to the nations. Hence, God prepared His Servant to carry out the mission He had given ethnic Israel. This is why the Servant is called “Israel” in Isaiah 49:3. God declares that The Servant shall stand in Israel’s place. The Servant will function as the perfect Israel who will bring God much glory.
Secondly, the Servant’s mission is to proclaim God’s truths. Because the land of Israel had been invaded by various superpowers, the people prayed for physical deliverance. They were probably looking for a warrior king like Cyrus who could wipe out their enemies and restore their city. But Isaiah 49:2 tells us that the Servant’s weapon is not a physical sword but his mouth. His ministry will be Word-based. The Servant of the Lord will accomplish his task by speaking God’s Word.
Thirdly, the Servant’s mission follows God’s timing. Although God has prepared His Servant from long ago, His Servant will wait on His timing. For the entire Old Testament period, the Servant of the Lord was hidden in the shadow of God’s hand. 49:2 likens the Servant to a special arrow or secret weapon that a general keeps until he decides it is the right time to take out the opposing king. Basically, the Servant of the Lord is on standby until God declares it is the time to execute the mission.
Fourthly, the Servant entrusts the success of the mission to God. Because the Servant is sent to call sinners back to God, Isaiah 49:4 describes a challenging ministry. There will be times when the faithful preaching of God’s truth seems to be in vain. Not everyone that the Servant ministers to will respond positively.
The Word that the Servant proclaims are like seeds that a farmer sows. Some will fall on the stony path and be eaten by birds. Others will fall on shallow soil. Still others will grow for a while only to be choked by thorns.
But the Servant of the Lord never loses hope. The Servant will press on in proclaiming God’s truths. Isaiah 49:4b says that the Servant is full of confidence that His recompense is with God. The Servant entrusts the success of the mission to God. At the right time, God will cause fruit to bear.
Fifthly, the Servant’s mission is to redeem God’s people. The nation of Israel had turned to idols and fallen by the wayside. They had rebelled against their Creator and Covenantal Lord. As a result, God had judged them by allowing their enemies to defeat them and scatter them abroad. But God says in 49:5 that He has sent His Servant to gather the children of Jacob back to himself. There will be redemption and restoration.
Sixthly, the Servant’s mission is global. Although people might initially think that God only cares about saving Israel, a complete reading of the Bible will show that God has always been concerned about saving every nation in the world.
In Isaiah 49:1, the Servant makes clear that His message is not only for the people of Israel. He exhorts the coastlands, which is a reference to those living outside of Israel to listen in. He urges people from afar to given attention to what He has to say.
Again in Isaiah 49:6, God says that it is too light a thing that His servant should only redeem Israel. No, that job scope would be too small. Instead, God says that He will make His servant a light for the nations that His salvation may reach to the end of the earth.
Back in Isaiah’s time, people used oil lamps that paled in comparison to the lighting we have in this sanctuary. Perhaps the biggest oil lamp could provide light for a hundred people. In contrast, God says that His servant is like a giant light source. Perhaps like the Sun whose rays can reach across nations.
Through the Servant, nations shall experience God’s salvation. And as a result, Isaiah 49:7 says that even kings and princes shall recognize the Servant as the Lord’s instrument of salvation. Instead of despising and persecuting the Servant, they will come to embrace the ministry of the Servant. They will appreciate the salvation that the Servant brings and bow and worship God.
The description of the Servant of the Lord in Isaiah 49:1-7 clearly expresses God’s commitment to save. In response to Israel’s doubts that God had forsaken them, God responds by telling them that even before they were in trouble, God had already raised up for them a Saviour.
God graciously exhorts His people not to waver in their faith just because things are not happening according to their timeline. They will witness and experience the Servant’s ministry at the right time.
Further, the Servant’s ministry of redemption shall be beyond their wildest imagination. Although the Servant’s ministry might initially seem to be in vain, God will ensure the success of the mission. At the right time, the servant will restore Israel and even enlarge the pool of God’s people. People and even leaders of many nations will come to trust in the Lord’s Servant and worship God.
Friends, Isaiah’s prophecy about the Servant brought comfort and hope to God’s people in the Old Testament. So how much more comfort and hope should we have when the New Testament tells us that God has since fulfilled His promise to send us His Servant.
Two thousand years ago, God sent His Servant, Jesus, into our world. Jesus proclaimed the gospel, calling people to repent and believe (Mk 1:14-15). Jesus offers forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all who believe in Him.
Although Jesus ministered to Israel, He also welcomed Gentiles like the Samaritans, the Syrophoenician and the Romans to experience His grace. And before Jesus ascended into heaven, he commissioned His followers to make disciples of all nations and empowered them through His Spirit to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
God has not only given us a prophecy about His Servant, but has since sent His Servant into our world. Jesus has already suffered in our place and died on the cross so that we can be reconciled with God. Because of Jesus’ finished work, we already have access to God and can even pray to Him.
Therefore, we who live in light of Jesus’ coming should have every reason to believe in God’s promises to completely deliver us from this present evil age. God has not only given us a prophecy about His Servant, but has since sent His Servant into our world. Jesus has already suffered in our place and died on the cross so that we can be reconciled with God. Because of Jesus’ finished work, we already have access to God and can even pray to Him.
Hence, we should have full confidence in God’s promise to redeem us from this broken world. As we experience suffering and endure the consequences of sin, let us resist the devil’s temptation to give up our faith. The devil wants us to think that God has abandoned us or that God does not exist. But that could not be further from the truth. God remains fully committed to saving us from eternal punishment. Therefore, let us not waver in our faith, knowing that God has already demonstrated His commitment in the sending of Jesus Christ.
Because Jesus kept God’s promise to come the first time, He will surely keep His Word to return. Jesus will renew the world and all who believe in Him will dwell with God for the rest of eternity. Even kings shall see and arise. Even princes shall prostrate themselves because the Lord is faithful and will fulfil His promise to save us from sin and give us a new and perfect life.
Besides looking to God’s provision of His Servant, we are to also look to God’s character for assurances of salvation. God is committed to saving because of His character. It is in His nature to save.
Hence the second assurance we have from Isaiah 49:8-13 is God’s compassion.
God is compassionate (Isa 49:8-13)
Let us read Isaiah 49:8-13.
One recurring theme in the book of Isaiah is that of the futility of worshipping idols. The carved images that humans make have eyes but cannot see what is going on in our lives.They have ears but cannot hear our cries for help.
In contrast, God is all knowing. He has seen our entire life and he knows exactly what we are going through in real time. This is why God could say to Moses in Exodus 3:7-8, “… I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them…”
Isn’t that comforting to know that our God sees and hears and hence, can know what we are going through.
Similarly, God was more than aware of the suffering His people were experiencing in Isaiah’s time. God felt the trepidation in Hezekiah’s heart when Sennacherib had encamped outside the city walls with 185000 soldiers. God heard Hezekiah’s cry for help when he prayed “Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see”
And God responded with great compassion. That very night, he delivered Hezekiah from the enemy.
With this kind of track record, God assures His people that He will have compassion on them whenever they experience tribulation. Although calamities will befall us because of sin, we should never lose heart and think that God is not present. God will continue to watch over us, and God will hear our cries for help.
More importantly, God assures us that He will not ignore our pleas or even say “serve you right for being disobedient.” Instead, God promises to answer His people favorably.
He declares in Isaiah 49:8-12 that the giving of His Servant will be a guarantee of His salvation. The Servant will serve as a sign that God will keep His promise to save. Through the Servant, God’s people will enjoy a covenantal relationship with the Lord and be established in the land. Light will dawn and God’s people will be freed from spiritual darkness.
Using the analogy of a shepherd leading a flock, God says that the path to paradise will be made smooth. His people will be pampered sheep who can feast to their hearts content. God’s provision will be so abundant that His sheep do not need to veer from the path in search of greener pastures. There will be so much food every step of the way that they will neither hunger nor thirst. Further God will shelter them and they will be protected from all the elements.
This stands in contrast to the walkway we have outside church. Even though we are partially shielded from the sun we still feel the heat. Even though there is some cover from the rain, we still get wet during a heavy storm. And if we are heading to the Circuit Road Food Centre for lunch, we have to veer off the sheltered path and cross the big grassy field, fully exposed to either the sun or rain.
The special highway that God has for his sheep is tons better. If I had to describe it in our terms, it would be having an enclosed walkway that is air-conditioned with free refreshment points along the way. Perhaps there would even be a travelator so that we can chill and enjoy the journey. But most importantly, the path God has for His people leads straight to Him. It leads straight to paradise where He will satisfy us fully with His love and provisions.
God basically promises to make smooth a path for His people to return to Him.
Why? Because God desires to comfort His people. God has seen the affliction of His people living in a sin-torn world. God has compassion on His children and He desires them to turn away from bondage to the devil and enjoy His blessings.
Hence God will not hold back His marvelous plan of salvation. Using language that would remind Jews of the year of Jubilee, God says that in a time of favour, God will empower His Servant to provide salvation. Prisoners shall be set free. The suffering that God’s people endure will come to an end and their mourning shall turn into dancing.
Hence Isaiah exhorts us in Isaiah 49:13 to sing for joy. The Lord has comforted His people with this promise and He will surely have compassion on us.
Friends, some of us may be going through a difficult time. Like the Psalmist, we may feel like we are in the valley of the shadow of death. Like the apostle Paul, we may feel struck down and pressed in on all sides. Like Job, we may feel unjustly persecuted despite doing all the right things. Your cries of “how long O God” may have ceased because you have given up waiting on the Lord for deliverance.
But God assures you in Isaiah 49:8-13 that He is aware of your struggles and He desires to comfort you. God is full of compassion.
He beckons us to “Come out” of the prison of your sins. He exhorts us to leave the darkness and appear before Him.
He promises to provide abundantly and satisfy us. He assures us of His protection and care. He desires to replace your mourning with dancing. He wants you to experience His deliverance so that you will be singing for joy.
And we know that God’s promises are not empty as He has already sent His Servant to secure our salvation. God has already established a highway that leads straight to Him. God promises to give us a new and lasting home where there is no more suffering. No more tears. He promises to feed us abundantly and to dwell with us for eternity.
So let us hold fast our confession and trust God to deliver us from our present trial. God has prepared paradise for us, and when we reach there and see God face to face, the trials that are so crushing will fade away.
Besides finding comfort in God’s compassion, we can also rest in God’s steadfast love.
God’s love towards us is steadfast (Isa 49:14-50:3)
In Isaiah 49:14-50:3 God gives Israel three examples of His steadfast love.
The first is found in Isaiah 49:14-23. Referencing the special bond a mother has with her newborn, God addresses His people’s claims that they have been forsaken and forgotten. God is not simply likening Himself to a mother who will have compassion on the baby she carried in her womb for 9 months.
Rather, God says that He is so much greater than the best mother in this world. Whilst some mothers may fail their children at times, God will never forget his children. He has an unbreakable bond with them. So much so that they are always on His mind.
For those of you who still carry wallets, you may have a picture of a loved one tucked inside. Those of us with phones might have a wallpaper with the faces of our significant other or kids. We place pictures of our loved ones close to us to keep them on our minds as we go about our daily tasks.
Similarly, God says in Isaiah 49:16 that He engraves His people on the palms of His hands. This imagery conveys how precious we are to Him and tells us that we are never far from His thoughts.
Friends, never think for a moment that you are unloved. You are precious in God’s sight and He keeps you close to Himself. He may not carry a wallet or a phone, but He keeps you close to Himself.
With this picture of fatherly love in mind, God assures His people that although Zion was the last standing city in the land, they have not been abandoned. Although they may feel forsaken, they are on His mind.
God promises that the destruction of Zion will end. The city shall be rebuilt. The citizens of Zion will return from afar and will feel that the city is too crowded. The city’s population was not decimated by the invasion and exile. Rather the opposite has happened. There will be more citizens than ever before. Hence people will wonder in their heart who has grown their nation?
Isaiah 49:22-23 make clear that God is the one who will bring about such amazing salvation. God will cause the nations He once used to discipline Israel to bring His children back to the holy city. Kings and queens of other nations will serve God’s people and give them the resources they need to multiply and be fruitful.
All these wonderful things will happen so that God’s people will never say that God has forsaken them. Instead, they will know He is the Lord and will be assured that all who wait for God will never be put to shame.
Friends, do not lose hope. All who keep trusting in God will know that He is the Lord. Those who wait for God shall not be put to shame.
On the day of salvation, God’s people will join the Psalmist in saying “It is he who remembered us in our low estate, for his steadfast love endures forever” (Ps 136:23).
The second example of God’s steadfast love is found in Isaiah 49:24-26. During Isaiah’s time, it was not uncommon for people who were captured by the enemy to be abandoned. This is because their king might feel that it is pointless to fight with a more powerful enemy. Rescuing captives from a more formidable enemy just seems so futile.
But God is no ordinary king. God is the Mighty One of Israel. He has the power to cause nations and kingdoms to rise and fall. No one can stand against Him, not even the most powerful army that has taken Israel captive.
Therefore, God declares in Isaiah 49:25 that even the captives of the mighty shall be taken. Even the prey of the tyrant will be rescued. God himself will fight against Israel’s enemies. God will launch the rescue operation on His own. God will go behind enemy lines and liberate His people. God will turn the tables around and Israel’s oppressors will be at war with themselves.
Then all flesh shall know that Israel was never abandoned. Even though Israel was in captivity, it was not because God had forsaken them. No, God had allowed Israel to be disciplined. But He had never left them.
God’s love towards Israel is steadfast. At the right time, God will redeem His people.
In this manner, all shall know that the Lord is Israel’s Savior. Nations shall see that the Mighty One of Jacob is the Great Redeemer.
Friends, this short description of God’s might coupled with God’s steadfast love should offer huge comfort and hope when we are experiencing a dire situation. Even though we have exhausted every means humanly possible, we can turn to God, knowing that He can do the impossible.
Although our strength fails, God never grows weary. Even though the walls that have been erected around us seem unshakable, God can break them with His command. Even though Satan has such a stronghold over our lives, causing us to fall into the same sin time and time again, God can liberate us.
Even though our loved ones may have chosen to dwell in darkness, God can redeem them. The Lord can free them from the bondage of sin. God can remove the scales from their eyes. God is the mightiest person in the world and no one, not even Satan, can withstand Him.
Therefore, we can have every confidence that God’s steadfast love will lead to the salvation of His people. As the apostle Paul declares in Romans 8:38-39, “neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
The third example of God’s steadfast love is found in Isaiah 50:1-3. When Israel sinned greatly by worshipping idols, God put her away. Using the analogy of marriage and divorce, Jeremiah 3:8 states that God gave Israel a certificate of divorce.
As a result, Israel thought that God had forsaken them. But God clarifies in Isaiah 50:1-3 that being sent away did not mean that He had ceased loving them. The “divorce” that God initiated is not the same as our practice of divorce where people separate without any intention to get back together.
Thus God asks His people to furnish the nation’s certificate of divorce. Why? Not because God is doing an audit and wants Israel to furnish a legal document. Rather, God wants Israel to assess if God really sent them away because He had given up on them. The lack of an official certificate told Israel that their divorce was not final.
God did not divorce Israel because He had run out of love and had cast them away. God did not sell Israel into slavery because He owed people money.
Rather, the Lord declares in 50:1, ”Behold, for your iniquities you were sold, and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.” The sending of Israel into exile was not because of a lack of love or a loss of power. Rather, it was because of Israel’s sins. Because God is holy, He had to punish Israel.
The Lord helps Israel see her sins by telling her in Isaiah 50:2 that even when He went to call them back to Himself, no one answered. God was not the unfaithful one. Israel was the one who had chased after false gods.
God was not the one who stopped loving Israel. Rather it was Israel’s heart that had grown cold.
God was not the one who had given up on pursuing Israel. Rather it was Israel who did not even respond to God’s call to return.
Thankfully, the passage ends on a note of hope. Although Israel deserved to be sent away permanently, God’s steadfast love never ceases.
God will use His power to draw Israel back to Himself. God’s hand is not shortened that He cannot redeem an obstinate people. God has the power to soften Israel’s hard heart. By His rebuke God can dry up the sea and make the rivers a desert. God can stop the sun from rising and cover the sky in darkness.
Therefore, God can do the impossible and redeem Israel. Because of His steadfast love, He can transform their stubborn hearts. He can make an adulterous nation faithful.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, even when we have failed.
O what comfort it is to know that the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, even when we have failed.
Friends, the penalty of sin is death and it is true that we should be separated from God for eternity. But it is also true that God’s love is steadfast and He desires to redeem us. No matter how grievous your sins maybe and no matter how many times you have failed to break those sinful habits, know that your heavenly Father stands waiting to receive you back into His arms. God beckons you to experience His salvation today.
God already sent His Son Jesus to die in your place so that you can be reconciled to Him.
Even though we are undeserving, God does not abandon us. He has engraved us on His palms. No matter how strong the enemy may be, God will deliver us. No matter how grievous our sins, God is able to forgive us and calls us back to Himself.
When we are walking through the valley of the shadow of death, it is easy to feel all alone and defeated. It is easy to feel abandoned by God. It is easy to doubt His power to save.Hence we may start looking elsewhere for help. Some of us may even give up and wish for a quick escape from this life.
If you are thinking of harming yourself, please talk to someone today. Please listen to God’s Word to you from Isaiah 49:1-50:3. Those who wait on the Lord shall never be put to shame.
The Lord wants us to have hope. He assures us of His commitment to save. He tells us in Isaiah 49:1-7 that He has raised and sent His Servant to save us from our sins.
God wants us to know from Isaiah 49:8-13 that he hears our cries and has compassion on us.
God assures you in Isaiah 49:14-50:3 that His love is steadfast. He will never forsake you.
Therefore, let us cast away our doubts and keep putting our faith in God. Let us make every thought captive and fill our minds with God’s promises. Let us invite fellow Christians to keep reminding us of God’s truths and the reality of Jesus Christ. Let us trust God and His Servant to deliver us from this present evil age.
If you are exploring the faith, I encourage you to reflect further on God’s compassion and steadfast love. God genuinely cares about you and He desires to lavish you with His love. God invites you to rest from your labors and find comfort in Him. Please chat with us after service and we would be happy to answer your questions.
Friends, having been assured of God’s commitment to save, let us face the coming week with full trust in God’s Perfect Servant, Jesus Christ. Let us find comfort in God’s compassion and delight in His steadfast love.
Let us pray.