Sunday, July 13

In a minute, what that means is everything kind of shuts off between this screen, which lets me see what's happening, and this screen, which lets you see what's happening. If I had my preference, I would prefer to lose this screen before that screen, because I can kind of fake it, but the rest of you, it's easier when you can see things. I'm going to go ahead and read our text this morning, and we'll pray, and then we'll dive right into it. Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up. If you're not, say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God." Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him. Behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense is before him.

He will tend his flock like a shepherd. He will gather the lambs in his arms. He will carry them in his bosom, and he will gently lead those that are with young." This is the word of the Lord. Father in heaven, be with us this morning as we look at this wonderful and powerful picture of your presence, of your power, and of your tenderheartedness toward weak and hurting people. May you encourage us, and may we be transformed, that we may boldly proclaim your goodness to this world. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. I think I might be getting a little bit older, because I find myself from time to time talking about the good old days. Probably others of us have as well. We look back on something, and you say, "Well, this is different now. Remember how it used to be way back when?"

And sometimes I think that happens not because they really were that much better. We just simply seem to think that they were that much better. Because I think sometimes we don't realize how easy life has become. This past week, one of the things that I had to do in terms of our family and house is I needed to order a replacement net for our trampoline. Back in the good old days, my days, there's no nets. The trampoline decided who lived and who died. We were just out there living life without a safety net. Most of us made it safely through to adulthood. But it's not just about how things maybe have gotten, in some cases, safer. Sometimes maybe people will say more boring, but it's about ordering that replacement trampoline net. And so as I'm ordering this, and it was on sale because it was Prime Week, and I was like, "Oh, good. We have a great deal."

And I went to order it, and it said, "Well, it's not going to be here until the 23rd." And my response was, "How dare they make me wait a week and a half to get something that I had ordered?" And then I began to think back to when I was a kid. And I remembered if I wanted something, in this case it was specifically something I saw in the back of "Boy's Life" magazine. I had to make sure I had the cash, and then I had to talk my mom into writing a check for that. I had to get a stamp and an envelope also for my mom, fill out the little order slip, put the check in there, put a stamp on it, put it in the mail, and you never realize, you never know if they got it or not, right?

There's no tracking, right? And in those days there's no online banking, so you can't see if your check was cashed, right? The way that you know that your order was successful was six to eight weeks like your order shows up in the mailbox. No tracking, no the Amazon driver is ten stops away, the pizza has entered your neighborhood, right? It was just put it in the mail and hope for the best, and now here I am like 30 some odd years later, or like 35 some odd years later, complaining that this trampoline net is going to take a week and a half to get there. And it began to put things into perspective for me, and one of the things that I think is very healthy for us in life is that we need to continually put things into perspective.

Because otherwise, things that are maybe relatively small can become very, very big. And sometimes things that are very, very big can become very, very small. And what you see is that perspective helps us to see the truth. And that's true spiritually as well. And one of the wonderful things that the 40th chapter of Isaiah does for us is it helps us shape how we look at the world by putting things into the proper perspective. And the center of this entire chapter, not necessarily the physical center, the middle between the beginning and end, but the spiritual center of this chapter is found at the end of Isaiah 40:9. So you hear this proclamation, "Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, fear not, say to the cities of Judah."

Now here's the center of this chapter, "Behold your God." The call of this entire chapter is to behold or to see God, and when we behold Him and see Him, it leads us to comfort. We've seen this in the beginning verses of the chapter. As you have a people beset with sin, we hear that sin has a price, and immediately there is this prophecy about one who would come to prepare the way. Recorded in all the four Gospels is John the Baptizer, the one who directs us to the Lamb of God who ultimately pays the price for all that sin. Or if you go back to the verses that are just prior to this, in a world where everything disappears, wears out, and fades, there is something that endures forever. And it is the Word of God that directs us to a God who is eternal. And so in our sin and in our brokenness and in the temporary difficulties and troubles and everything that does not last, by beholding God's eternal nature and beholding the fact that He is both judge and the deliverer, we are brought to comfort.

So three things I want us to see from this text this morning. We're going to start at the end of verse 9, go into verse 10, verse 11, and then come back to the beginning of verse 9. And I want us, first of all, to behold the presence of God. Secondly, I want us to behold the power of God. And third, I want us to behold the tenderness of God. And so maybe to state those in a different way so that we can be absolutely clear at what we're seeing, I'm going to restate them as a negative. And this is how I would do that. That first of all, God is not distant. Secondly, that God is not weak. And that third, God is not harsh with his people. And so we're going to start at the end of verse 9. We're going to start by beholding the presence of God. We'll read the end of verse 9, the beginning of verse 10.

"Behold your God." "Behold the Lord God comes with might." And I want us to think, just for a moment, about how we care about things. Because there's different levels to how we care. And so, some cases, we sort of intellectually acknowledge that we should care, or that this was bad, or that this was good. The reality is, it's simply a thought that says, "Yes, this was bad. This was good." Then there's a way where things get a little deeper, and we care, maybe in an emotional way. And what I mean by that is that acknowledgement that this thing that was good or bad that happened, elicits a reaction that makes us feel something. And in some cases, it's a feeling of sorrow. In some cases, it's a feeling of joy. But there is a reaction. And then there's a way in which we care that we sort of help from a distance, right?

So maybe we'll donate, or in the past, when hurricanes have hit land south of us, we can fill up a truck with cleaning supplies or bring in food, those kind of things. And I'm not saying these three reactions are bad and wrong. The intellectual acknowledgement of joy or sorrow, the feeling of joy or sorrow, or sort of the distant help, they're not necessarily bad or wrong. God didn't create us to feel and to have to carry every burden in this world. What I want us to see is there's a more wonderful way of caring and helping. You see, there's a kind of caring and helping that comes close, that gets dirty, that doesn't simply acknowledge from a distance or feel or help from a distance, but that comes down near to us and in our hurt and in our brokenness lifts us up. And what we find in Isaiah 40 is Isaiah says, "Look and see. Behold your God."

The picture here is that God is not just simply acknowledging something about his people. It's not even simply that he has a reaction about it or that he sort of can distantly help. But the reality of this picture is that God is with his people, that God is not distant. And this theme is echoed, not just throughout Isaiah, but through the entire Bible. I'll just give you one example from Isaiah. It says how this, quoted in Romans as well, "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings the good news, who publishes peace, who brings the good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, your God reigns." And the picture, not just in this verse, but in the context of these chapters of Isaiah, is that God is not sort of distantly on a throne,

maybe remotely manipulating events or forces for our good, but that he is personally present in power. That he doesn't just watch over his people in some sort of general way, but he's personally present in their lives and situations. And what this practically means for us is that God knows, God cares, and God acts. If you want to see a real-life example of this from the Old Testament, you take a look at the place where Elijah challenges the prophets of Baal. And they're standing there, and they're calling down fire from heaven, the prophets of Baal. And they do it all day long, and they get louder, and they get more intense. They begin to cut themselves, trying to get a reaction from their God. And then the prophet of God, what does he do? He stands up, and he simply prays.

And the power of God descends in the form of fire upon the altar, without doubt showing the people that God is here. He is present. He listens to the prayers of his people. What you find when, in Isaiah 40, you read to look and to behold what the prophet Isaiah is saying is that it's right here. It's not distant. It's not far away. And the first thing we must realize is that we must behold the presence of God. And then next, in verse 9, we see that we are called to behold the power of God. Listen to this. "Behold, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him. Behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense is before him." There's an interesting thing that happens in our world when things go wrong. I saw a great example of that this week.

If you're on Facebook and you're in any of the Winchester news groups, it was either yesterday or the day before. A car caught fire on Pleasant Valley Road. Right in the middle of the road, I think they ended up dragging it into the Best Buy parking lot. And there's a picture there that if you look at it real closely, you know, the car is still smoking. It's just a burnt-out hulk. And there's firemen going around trying to make sure that it's out. They've been actively fighting. And then right behind these guys, like here's the firemen fighting the fire or what's left of it. And then right behind is this massive crowd of people who are just like, "Well, will you look at that?" Right? Let's take a look at it. Cars on fire. I'm sure it's not going to in any way cause any harm to us.

Let's get as close as we can and just look at it. We're really good that when something goes wrong, we like to just sort of stand around and look at it, right? You watch a group of guys and somebody's car doesn't start. What do we do? We pop the hood and we all stand there going, "Yep. Yeah. Looks like it might be this. Might be that." Right? We like to take a look at what is happening. And what you find in this text is not that God is just simply present. He's not just sort of standing there going, "Well, will you look at that?" But that He is active in what He is doing, right? This is the transforming power of God that He is coming with might and strength. His arm is a picture of strength in action. It's throughout Scripture.

He's not just standing there, but He's actively involved, and in His power, He can do it. That He is strong to save, that He is unshakable. And then if you ask this question, "Why is God here?" This is where, for some of us, it might sound a little scary. It says, "God comes with might. His arm rules for Him." We say, "Great. God is present." And we behold His power. But then we hear, "Why is He here?" And it says this, "His reward is with Him, and His recompense is before Him." Especially that word "recompense." It's just a rewording or a parallel, very similar to the word "reward." But it sounds like, as we read this, right, it's like, "Wait till your father gets home." Right? "His recompense is before Him." One of the wonderful things about Scripture, in general, and in Isaiah specifically,

these themes are woven together throughout this book. Isaiah 62:11 says almost the same thing, but it adds one little detail that I think is so important. "Behold, the Lord has proclaimed the end of the earth, say to your daughter of Zion, "Behold, your salvation comes. Behold, His reward is with Him, and His recompense is before Him." In Isaiah 62:11, we get this additional detail that for God's people, that if you are a part of God's people, that this reward and this recompense is salvation. That's why it's good news. And you might say, "Okay, He comes with salvation. It's great. God's going to do something." How do I know that God can do something? How do I know that He has the strength to do what He has promised? I love how this chapter is written. The very next verse, Isaiah 40:12 says this. It's like we get a pop quiz from Isaiah.

Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand? Who has marked off the heavens with a span, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure, weighed the mountains in the scales, and the hills in the balance? And what Isaiah inspired, prophesying on behalf of God, says to those who say, "Can God really save me? Can God really help me?" How strong is His arm? He goes, "Who can take all the water on earth and put it in the palm of their hand?" Who can look at the sky and measure it with a span, an ancient measurement between the thumb and the pinky finger?" And God looks at the universe and goes, "Yeah, that's about how long that is." Who can weigh the dust in a measure? Who can put the mountains on a scale?

And you get a glimpse here of the power and the greatness of the God who is present and at work in our lives. I want you to see that God is not distant and that God is not weak. But that's not necessarily good news for us, is it? Because I know people who are not necessarily far away, and they're not weak, but I don't necessarily want to be around them. Right? These two things, God's presence and God's power, don't necessarily mean that it's something that is good for us. But we have one more verse. Look at what is said here. I want you to behold the tenderness of God. He will tend his flock like a shepherd. He will gather the lambs in his arms. He will carry them in his bosom and gently lead those who are wrong.

You see, God's not distant. He's not weak. And here, for his people, he is not harsh. Think about what a shepherd does. He feeds, he leads, he protects, he cares for his sheep. And notice, specifically in this text, it says he will gather the lambs in his arms. Right? The weakest and the smallest and the most helpful. He reaches down and he picks them up. And notice what it says. He doesn't just throw them over his shoulder and be like, "All right, let's get you to where you need to go." It says this, "He will carry them in his bosom." That when God picks up the weakest, he doesn't sort of treat them as a burden. Well, now I've got to haul you over here. But he carries them like we would carry a baby.

Close to his heart. And then look at what he says, "He will gently lead those who are with young." He's not leaving anybody behind. Doesn't matter how slow. And this deep and abiding picture of comfort rates echoed in the 23rd Psalm. "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." And in addition to the fact that God is present and that God is powerful, we seek God's tender-hearted care for his people. That he is a present shepherd, a strong shepherd, and he is a loving shepherd. And so here's the question: How do we respond to beholding God's presence? How do we respond to beholding God's power? And how do we respond to beholding God's tender-heartedness? Take a look at Isaiah 40:9. Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news.

Lift it up. Fear not. Say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God." So the response to beholding God is sort of this public, loud, strong, fearless declaration of who God is. When we see God, it changes things, and it should overflow out of our hearts and our souls and the world around us. And so if we have truly beheld God's presence, His power, and His tenderheartedness, if we knew that God is not distant, that He is not weak, and that He is not harsh with us, let me give you three questions to sort of evaluate where it is we're standing, right? The first question is this, and it may seem a little strange, but it's just this: How's your face? So the word here is herald of good news, repeated twice. And one of the lessons we've had to teach our kids, and I don't know if you've had to experience this as well,

right? Some people's face is a whole lot louder than their words, right? You can say something to them, and they may say one thing with their words. Their face has a very, very different tone, right? What you find in these words, in this herald of good news, in the heart of the Word, there's a picture there of smoothing it over, right? The picture is not a people who brows are furrowed, whose eyes are hard, whose jaw is set, but the picture then becomes those who are joyful, whose faces have been smooth, whose eyes are full of light and life because they see the wonder of God. And so the answer, in part, to fixing your face is to behold your God when you are weak, to behold the God of strength when you feel alone, to be reminded that God is present when you feel weak,

to know that He is strong when everything is harsh around you, to know that you have a gentle shepherd, the one who is near with all his strength and loves you like a shepherd loves his sheep. And the first answer to beholding God is to fix your face, to be comforted, and to be brought to joy. The second question that we have to ask ourselves about this is how is our voice? I was one of those kids, maybe still a little bit, who really likes to make under their breath comments. It definitely did not get me into trouble at school at all. It definitely has not rubbed off on my children at all. But you know those situations where maybe your mom says to her oldest son, "Apologize for calling your sister stupid," and I'm like, "I'm sorry that you're stupid," right?

Under the breath. God's people don't speak under their breath. And I don't necessarily mean that in terms of putting an asterisk on what we're saying, but sometimes we can't speak loudly because we're weak. Have you ever lost your voice? And then you try to yell and get somebody's attention, and it just comes out as a hoarse croak? Sometimes as Christians, that's where we find ourselves. Our voice barely works. It's so quiet and so weak. And the picture here is a voice that has strength. Not because the people are strong, but because their God is strong. And our voice, I think, is both in our words and our actions. Just like our demeanor, our face can impact our words, so can our actions impact our message. And as you look at your life, just like your face talks, what do your actions say?

And the answer is to behold God, and in beholding Him, we are able to lift up our voice with strength. We don't lose it, but it becomes strong. So the first question is, "How is your face?" The second question is, "How is your voice?" And the third question is, "How is your art?" Right? Sometimes we're quiet because we're weak. Sometimes we're quiet because we're uncertain, right? We're asked for an answer, and we don't know, and so we just kind of avoid eye contact, maybe don't say anything. Maybe we're afraid. So listen to this. There's a herald of good news. People with joyful faces, who are lifting up their voice in strength, lift it up, and fear not. Right? At the center of our being so many times is fear. Afraid that we're not good enough, or we're not strong enough,

or that we're too broken, or we're too hurt, or that nobody will care about us, or if they knew this, they would never speak to me again. Maybe we're afraid of the consequences of our actions. As we just sang a few minutes ago in Hosanna, "In your presence, all our fears are washed away." You see, your face, your voice, and your heart, they're all transformed by beholding God. And the problem is, is that a lot of us aren't looking where we're supposed to be looking. And so in some cases, it's distraction, right? Something flashy has caught our eyes, and we run after that distraction, and we stop beholding the glory of God, and our demeanor changes, and our voice changes, and our courage dissipates. And so in part, God's people have to be continually coming back to what is most beholden, most important, beholding the glory of God.

Because it's through that glory we're transformed. But then sometimes, right, it's we're discouraged. And it's because we're looking at all the brokenness that's in front of us, and we pile it up, all of our problems. And the only thing we look at is our problems. And this is wrong, and that's wrong, and this is wrong. And all we see on the road ahead of us is this pile of brokenness that will never make it over, and we can't go around. It's why the psalmist in the 121st Psalm says, "Lift your eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from?" He says, "Instead of looking at all the brokenness that surrounds you, lift your eyes and behold the strength and the power and the goodness of God." But then there's another thing that happens. Sometimes we're looking at our sin.

And maybe it's the sin that separates us from God. Maybe it's the sin that is in our past. And the call in that is to once again lift our eyes to God, the one who provides our salvation, who pays the price. And as David says in the 51st Psalm, as he writes this song about his repentance and he says this, "Restore to me the joy of my salvation." And what he is saying is that in that moment he's joyless because sin has taken him down the road and he has willingly walked behind it. And he seeks to be restored and healed and to have joy brought back. And so whether it's distraction, whether it's the pile of your troubles, maybe it's the sin that needs to be repented of. Right? The call this morning is to behold your God. Right? It's very clear here. Behold your God. Right? Not somebody else's God.

Not your idea, but behold God in his presence and in his power and in his tenderheartedness and in that you will find your comfort. Right? This is written to God's people. Those who worship the one true God. But it's also good news. Because the God that we behold that brings comfort is also the God that invites you to come to him when you're weary and you're heavy laden. And he is the one who will bring rest to your soul. Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you for your word. We thank you for these promises to hurting and uncertain people. And we thank you that they come to us in the middle of our hurt and uncertainty and sin. And so may you strengthen our faces. Make us joyful. May you lift our voices in strength. And may you remove the fear from our hearts.

May we not be distracted by all the passing shiny things. May we not be discouraged by the obstacles that are ahead of us. And may we not be waylaid by our sin.