Alright, turn back this morning
in your Bibles where we read that 40th chapter of Isaiah. Isaiah 40, and I'll read again. those first two verses. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people,
saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished. that her iniquity
is pardoned, for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for
all her sins." When I read those verses, I hear
a specific command of God. to me as a preacher. He says, comfort ye my people. I thought about it this week,
wonder would anybody here today need comforting? And is there any comfort to be
had for sinners like us. I thought, would anybody find
comfort in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ? And I asked myself this question,
where does real comfort lasting comfort come from? And it came to my mind a phrase
in Scripture wherein God says this of Himself in describing
Himself. He says, I'm the God of all comfort. So it sounds like to me, if we
get any real comfort, it will have to come from the God of
all comfort. And this is God speaking in these
verses. And He is speaking to an earthly
people, first of all, who would go into the captivity of Babylon. But you know what God says happened
to them. What happened and therefore was
written is all for our admonition. It has to do with the people
that they picture, that they are a type of. Because all of our race, all
of God's people, along with all of our race, went into captivity
in Adam. They went into captivity, and
there they remain just as Israel did in Babylon unless God brings
about a deliverance. We are said to be taken captive
by Satan at his will. But what we have here in these
verses is comfort or consolation from God. And God commands His servants
to continually speak or to cry out and to comfort. He says, Comfort ye, comfort
ye, O ye prophets, prophesy comforts concerning my people." Some translate it like this,
speak ye comfortably, or speak to the heart. And at the root of that word
comfort here, it means something like this, to cause to breathe
again. You know how it is when you're
anxious or fearful or whatever it is that causes us to be discomforted. We describe them as things that
hold our breath. He says comfort or cause to breathe
again. And yet I'm afraid that preachers
and religionists of all kinds are just like those friends of
Job's." This is what he said concerning
them. He said, I've heard many such
things. and miserable comforters are
ye all." That certainly could be said for all of false religion. Miserable comforters are ye all. And as a result, people are left,
they are not comforted, they are confused. And they're not comforted, but
they're criticized. They're not comforted. They're
told something to do to please God, which they cannot do. And when he speaks here in these
verses of my people, the very first thing that I believe we
have to notice and confront in this is that which is known by
everyone that has been taught of God, everyone that has learned
of the Father, everyone who believes the Word
of God. God has a people. You've read that old sermon by
William Tiptaff. I've got some copies of it there
in the tape room. A sermon that he preached concerning
Matthew 1 and verse 21. He stood before a group of prominent
people and many religious leaders, and he preached this sermon,
a part of which was the declaration of this very truth God has a
people. He got in a lot of trouble for
it. Got in a lot of trouble. Because
when you say that, especially in our day, when you say God
has a people, somebody automatically responds in this way. They say,
but God loves everybody. God loves everybody. We know that. You can say what
you want to, but we're sure of that. But if that is the case,
if God loves everybody, then what in the world does His love
have to do with the salvation that is spoken of here in this
book? You see, if the Bible says that,
I want to know about it. But what I find in the Bible
is such as you find in Romans chapter 9 and verse 13 where
the Apostle Paul says the same thing that God said through Malachi
in Malachi chapter 1. He said, as it is written, Jacob
have I loved, but Esau have I hated. And it makes me wonder about
passages like this in Psalm 5, where he says, The foolish shall
not stand in thy sight, thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Not that they love or love less,
but he says, Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. And what does he mean by this
when in the wisdom that God gave him, being led by the Spirit,
Solomon in Proverbs 6 makes these statements. He says, These six
things doth the Lord hate. Yea, seven are an abomination
unto him." And then he gives a colon which, following that,
is exactly what he hates. A proud look. Somebody can say,
well, that's kind of an abstract thing. A lying tongue and hands
that shed innocent blood. an heart that deviseth wicked
imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false
witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among
brethren. He, or the false witness, Or
these that the heart, the tongue, the look are on, says he hates. What about this? What Christ
says in Matthew 7, if He loves everybody, He says to these that
there on that day of judgment, when they are cast into outer
darkness, He said, I'll say, then will I profess unto them,
though they prophesied in My name, did many great things in
my name, cast out devils, then will I profess unto them, I never
knew you, I never loved you in redeeming
love. Depart from me, ye that work
iniquity." And what about Psalm 11, where it says, The Lord try
the righteous, but the wicked, and him that loveth violence
his soul hates. And that's just a few. That's
just the other side of God. that men, apart from grace, will
never want to believe and surely not want to preach. But that's what this book says. No, this book says, the Lord
loveth the righteous. And I read a verse to you last
week, but I want to read it again today along with the verse that
follows after that. And it's in this same book, Isaiah
32 and verse 17 and 18, where he says, And the work of righteousness
shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness quietness and
assurance for ever. And then there is a conjunction
that joins to that very statement, and these words follow. And my
people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings,
and in quiet resting places. Who is going to dwell that way? people. And so this word here,
by the Spirit of God, speaking as God to the prophet and to
every true preacher of the gospel, is that this comfort is for my
people. My people. And it is a people
that are a spiritual people of which this earthly people were
a type. They are God's particular treasure. They're called His elect. They're described as My sheep. They're referred to as His bride. He chose them to salvation in
Christ in the everlasting covenant. And it is these people, he says,
that he has blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ. As a matter of fact, they are
said to have been given to Christ. And he was made responsible for
this people. He redeemed them. He ransomed
them by His blood. It says that He came not to serve,
but to give Himself, His life, a ransom for many. Who are they? He said, all that the Father
giveth me. God has a people. And He loved
them with an everlasting love, as He said to Jeremiah, And he
calls them unto himself. And you know what? He can do
that. As a matter of fact, he has done
that. And so what men fight over and
clamor against and rebel against and refuse to believe is already
a done thing with God. It's something already he has
done. because he does all things according
to his own purpose and will. Do we believe that? How many
times does it say in this book that he does, that he works all
things after the counsel of his own will, and there isn't anybody
who can stop him? And concerning this people, it
says that they shall never perish, that it is His will and His promise
that they shall all be saved, that they shall all be comforted. He said, speak comfortably to
My people. And the reason is because God
not only has loved them and chosen them, God has done something
that will bring comfort to them, something that will be what are
described in Scripture here as good news, glad tidings. That's who the good news goes
to, God's people. That's who the gospel is designed
to call out by the purpose of God. And even though He commands
us to preach it to every person, it is for the purpose of calling
out His people. It's for their comfort. He says,
comfort my people. And this is the message, and
it will prove true that all of them through this message they
will every one be comforted." They may hear it at a young age.
It may have been His will to call them out at a young age. They may hear it at the early
stage of their adulthood. It'll be the same. It may be
that He calls them in old age. It may be that He calls them
in the last hours of their life as He did that thief on the cross.
And when he heard it, when God revealed to him who it was hanging
on that tree and why he was there, he was comforted. And they'll
all be comforted. when they are brought to hear
this gospel, when they hear the gospel of their salvation. Paul writes in I Corinthians,
he says, but he that prophesied, or he that preaches, speaks unto men to edification
and exhortation and comfort. He has a message that comforts
the people of God. And so what we read in Isaiah
61 of the Christ, the Messiah, and what we find Christ saying
is fulfilled in Luke chapter 4 when He stood there in the
synagogue of Nazareth, He has come to proclaim the acceptable
year of the Lord and to comfort all that mourn." This is the gospel of God. Who is He? The God of all comfort. And they will be brought, not
only to the conviction of their sins, and humbled before God,
and made to know their circumstances before His justice, and their
dangers and their fall in Adam and their need, but also this comfort. This is
a particular comfort for a particular people. And here are a multitude
of people who live on this earth And they are full of needs. You hear them. Most of them are
victims. They're in need of a multitude
of things. They need money. They need healing. They need help. They need comforts
in this world. They need jobs. They need all
these things. But they don't need this comfort. But when God the Spirit begins
to work in the hearts of God's people. When He begins to bring
us to see what we are as sinners in the sight of a holy God, when
He begins to bring us to spiritual life and gives us faith, then
we're enabled out of this desperation to call out to God and to receive
as a blessing from God this comfort. He says, comfort ye my people. And every one of them will be
like old Simeon that we read about in Luke chapter 2. It says
that he waited for the consolation of Israel. He waited for the
only one that can comfort God's elect. He waited for the consolation
of Israel. And that day when Mary and Joseph
brought Christ into that temple, and He saw Him, He said, Lord, now let Thy servant depart in
what? Peace. For I have seen Thy salvation. You see, the psalmist says, the
Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, and saith
as such as be of a contrite spirit. They're going to, because this
is the work of God's Spirit, they're going to know his salvation.
They're going to hear this message. He that is of God, loved of God,
chosen of God, redeemed of God, and called by the Spirit of God.
He that is of God, what? Hears God's words. They'll hear this comfort. Christ
said concerning that people, He described also as My sheep. He said, My sheep, hear My voice. And they follow me. He said, Thy people, they shall
be willing in the day of thy power. They'll believe. They'll
believe the gospel. And Peter calls them in his epistle
a peculiar people. He describes them as these elect
strangers that are scattered abroad. They are in this text
as well as they are also described as Jerusalem or Zion. He says, this is my people. They are the heavenly Jerusalem. They are that Mount Zion in which
God dwells. And this is the message that
is to be continually preached in this gospel age from the coming
of John the Baptist, who is spoken of in our chapter, to the very
second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in glory. Look down at
verse 3. He says, "...the voice of him
that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God." That's what John
came preaching. He said in John 1, I am the voice
of one crying in the wilderness, make straight the way of the
Lord, as he said the prophet Isaiah." That's him. He had a message of comfort.
And every obstacle shall be removed. Everything will be overcome by
God in order to bring this to pass. It doesn't matter what
it is, not only in the matter of their sin in Christ's death
is coming into this world, but whatever obstacle might rise
up to keep His people from hearing and rejoicing in and delighting
in this message of comfort. He said, I'll overcome it. Verse 4, every valley shall be
exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the
crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain, and
the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall
see it together, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." You can't hinder his gospel.
Everything that men do to hinder the gospel, the promotion, the
proclamation of this message, this comfort of the Lord Jesus
Christ, everything that men do to hinder it and stop it, God
uses that to spread Him. They'll cast somebody like the
Apostle Paul down into the prison. He says, I want you to know this,
that the things that have happened to me have fallen out to the
furtherance of the gospel. In other words here, All of these
things take place because the mouth of the Lord has spoken
it, and when this message is proclaimed by His prophets and
preachers, it is God Himself proclaiming this message of comfort
to His people. And what will comfort? What will comfort God's people? What does He say? Does He say,
give them this natural feel-good message? Don't talk anything
about sin or death or hell or any of the consequences of sin
against God. Don't call them sinners or anything. He doesn't say that. What does
He say to them? He says, Speak ye comfortably
to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished,
that her iniquity is pardoned, for she hath received of the
Lord's hand double for all her sins. Now, it sounds like to me this
is a message of comfort for the Lord's people who are obviously
sinners. As a matter of fact, there is
no good news. There is no comfort for anybody
in this book who is not such. This has to do with that message
that involves Christ's finished and accomplished and successful
work, the fact, the heart of the gospel, as God declares it,
that God has reconciled His people to Himself. You know what to reconcile something
is? It means to make peace. And this book says that Christ
has made peace by the blood of his cross. Let me tell you what
a miserable comforter is. It's one who tells you, you make
your peace with God. Now, that's a miserable comforter. You see, the comfort of the gospel
is God has reconciled all His people unto Himself. Why? Because we were the ones fighting
against God. We were the ones that were enemies
in our minds, but He was the one who was always loving us
and blessing us and saving us and keeping us in Christ, and
that is our comfort. Paul writes to the Corinthians
and he tells us this in 2 Corinthians 5. He says, and all things are
of God. I can't remember exactly the
moment that the Lord enabled me to believe that. I couldn't tell you exactly when
that was, but I could tell you I remember feeling the comfort
of that. You mean it's not up to me to
save myself? You mean it's not up to me to
keep myself safe? You mean it's not under me to
do something that God will accept? And all things are of God. That means all things in providence. That means all things in the
creation. But it means all things in salvation
too, especially in salvation. All things are of God. who hath reconciled us to himself
by Jesus Christ." All things are of God who Himself has reconciled
us. He didn't need reconciling to
us. We did to Him who has reconciled us unto Himself by Jesus Christ. by that peace He made by the
blood of His cross. And He's given to us the ministry
of reconciliation to wit that God was in Christ reconciling
the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and
hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. It's a word
of comfort to His people as they believe it. It's a word that
they, along with every other believer, pass on to others of
the Lord's people. We're in a state already in Christ
of being reconciled to God, of being justified before God. And all of this is of God. That's
why it's of his glory. Paul says to those Colossians,
and you that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked
works. What works were that? All those
works we held up to God and say, look, God, look what we've done
for you to accept us. But he says, now hath he reconciled. Long before this chapter in Isaiah,
in Isaiah 12, he says, And in that day thou shalt say, O Lord,
I will praise thee, though thou wast angry with me. Thine anger
is turned away, and thou comfortest me. He says, say unto my people that
our warfare is accomplished. And I'm not giving them words
of supposed comfort, telling them to somehow get the victory,
win the battle. He said the words of a comforting
gospel are that he has given unto us the victory through Jesus
Christ our Lord. He said tell them that their
Messiah has come. Tell them that He came, bone
of their bone and flesh of their flesh. Tell them that He came
and that all the sacrifices pictured, His sacrifice of blood shed on
that cross has been accepted by God. that He has brought in
an everlasting righteousness, that He has made an end of your
sins, that He has finished the work, that He has gotten the
victory over death, and that He has the keys to death, hell,
and the grave, that all our iniquities are forgiven. Let me read you some verses out
of Isaiah 4. Paul says David, just like Abraham,
was speaking of a particular blessedness. He's speaking of
a particular comfort. What is that? He says the blessedness
of the man unto whom God imputes righteousness without words. You mean that there's a way that
God can count me as righteous in His sight without me doing
works, performing deeds by which He can do so? Absolutely. saying also, blessed are they
whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin. Let me ask you this. If you found
out, if you could really believe, that you are one of these to
whom the Lord will not impute sin." Isn't that comforting? You see, the comfort is not in
trying to make like you haven't sinned. The comfort is not in
trying to make out like you're not going to sin. That you're
not full of sin in yourself. This is where the comfort is
at. It's in the knowledge that the Lord will not impute your
sins to you. Any of it. You tell me we don't have a comforting
gospel. Not a comforting gospel to those
who carry on this religious, self-righteous charade and pretend
as the Pharisees, these hypocrite play actors, to be something
that they're not, but to a real sinner. This is a comfort. It's a faithful saying and a
very comforting saying, as Paul says, and worthy of all acceptation,
that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Tell them that. Speak that comfort to them. And not only that, he says, speak
this comfort to them, not only is their iniquity pardoned, their
warfare accomplished, but that they have also received of the
Lord's hand double for all our sins. You see, God has not only
put away the sins of His people in Christ who was made sin for
us, but He's also made us the very righteousness of God in
Him. It's right for you and I to believe
that we are what God says that we are, my people. That we are forgiven. That we
are righteous in His sight. That all our sins have been fully,
completely, and eternally put away. And all through the sacrifice
of Christ. That we're no longer under the
curse, but blessed. That not only has Christ in grace
regained what was lost in Adam, but has also given us much more
in Himself. I mentioned Job, and the Scripture
says of Job, it says that the Lord turned the captivity of
Job. When he prayed for his friends,
And also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then he said this, in that sixth
verse of Isaiah 40, the voice said, Cry. And he said, What
shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the
goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field. The grass
withers, the flower fades, but the Spirit of the Lord blows
upon it. Surely the people is grass." All flesh is grass. Flesh is the word that God uses
to describe what we are in ourselves, what our best works are, what
our own imagined righteousness and goodness are. What does He
say? All flesh is grass. What does grass do? When the
sun beats down on it, it withers and dries up. And that's the way all flesh
is in the sight of God. Not only before we're converted,
but after. We're to never look to it. I read and I hear so much that
is told to people by preachers who is even supposed to be preachers
of grace. Told so many things that they
are and to do as if there was some confidence to be gained
in that. No. All flesh is always grace. We're to ever be trusting Christ. We're to ever be looking away
from ourselves and looking to the Lord Jesus Christ. All flesh
is always grass. And that's all we are in ourselves
until we're glorified. Let me read you a verse in Galatians
5. Verse 17, Paul speaking of a
conflict that he does on a number of occasions that takes place
within the believer. He says, "...for the flesh lusteth
against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh And these are
contrary the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things
that ye would." He didn't say anything there
about a new nature. As a matter of fact, he didn't
say anything in this book about a new nature. He says that this
conflict in a believer is going on between the flesh and the Spirit, which he has
in capital letters here, the Holy Spirit, so that here we are, flesh, Indwelt
now, if we are born of God, by the Holy Spirit. The only thing
new about us is that the Holy Spirit comes to indwell us and
that conflict begins, not between an old nature and a new nature,
but between what we are and what He is. He says, so that you cannot
do the things that you would, that you want to in this flesh. Which means what? It means that
God, not only God the Father, but God the Son and God the Spirit,
is still saving us. We're going to find out. right
down to our last breath in this world, that every aspect, every
moment, everything in our salvation is of God. All flesh is grass. And then he says this also, cry
this, verse 9, O Zion, that bringest good tidings. He's not only talking
about his prophet and his individual preacher, but this is the whole,
whole message of all God's believing people. O Zion, that bringest
good tidings, give thee up into the high mountain. O Jerusalem,
that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength. Lift
it up, be not afraid, and say to the cities of Judah, Behold
your God. You read verse 12 to the end of that chapter. and behold your God. I'll tell you, we have many troubles
and afflictions and murmurings and complaints and stuff like
that that just rise out of this flesh when we are not beholding
our God. Well, things aren't going well
with us. Nothing ever goes right with me. I'll tell you the truth. If you're one of his people,
nothing ever goes wrong with you. I don't care what the flesh
feels like. He said, all flesh is grass. You can't believe flesh. He said,
behold your God. Behold your God. God especially
as He manifests in the flesh. God our Savior. Oh, Zion, consider
your God. Compare Him with the gods of
men. Our God is able to fulfill His
promises. He's able to keep us. He's able
to accomplish our every deliverance and release from every captivity. He's able to save us to the uttermost. He's glorious above all. He's
able to sustain us and protect us and bless us. His grace is
sufficient for us. He's our God. And the prophet said, our God
is not like their God, and all you have to do is ask Him. How's our God? Our God is in
the heavens, and He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. And if He's been pleased before
the world ever began to make us His people, What a comfort that is. What
a consolation that is. That's what he gives us this
Word for. That's why he gives us such as
Isaiah 44. Paul says, For whatsoever things
were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through
patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. And he said, our Lord Jesus is
coming again. And it'll just be more comfort. He said, remind each other that
he's coming. Remind each other what he says.
that the Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God, and the dead
in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the
Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore
comfort one another with these words. And if these words don't comfort
you, that this gospel of salvation
by grace, that's all of God in Christ, that doesn't comfort
you. I don't have any comfort for
you. And you won't be comforted, because this is all the comfort
that there is. May God in His grace cause us
to know this comfort in our hearts. That is when we are enabled to
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. You say, how are you so sure
that this is through believing on Christ? Well, the Holy Spirit According to Christ, says, is
the comforter. That word, paraclete, means,
is comforter, which means one who walks along beside. And he said, I'll send the comforter,
and he'll take the things of mine and show them to you. That's when we're comforted,
when He enables us to look to Christ. Not at anybody else, definitely
not ourselves. Well, what about, forget about
so-and-so. This is the comfort. Jesus Christ and Him crucified. What He is and what He's done
for us as sinners, that's the comfort that He speaks of. Father, this day we give praise
and glory to Your Name. We thank You for this comfort
in Christ. We pray that you make it known
to your people. Not only enable it to be spoken
by the lips of a pitiful preacher like myself, but spoken by your
spirit into each heart, into the hearts of your people. We thank you for Christ. We thank
you for all that you are and have been to us and shall be,
we thank you for all your people. We know his name is Jesus because the angel said he shall
save his people from their sins. We pray and ask all things and
give you thanks in his name. Amen. you.