When trouble comes, where do
you turn for comfort? Where do you find help? What's
your source of strength? Do you look to the Lord God and
trust him, or do you lean upon the arm of flesh? Do you say
with David, I will lift up mine eyes into the hills from which
cometh my help? My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth. Or do you go down to Egypt and
seek help from earthly power, carnal wisdom, and carnal skill? Do you find your help in God
or in the world? Do you go to the pillbox or to
this precious book? Do you run to the shrink or run
to the savior? Do you flee at the sound of trouble
or do you find your strength sitting still in quietness and
in confidence before God? It's one or the other. It is
always one or the other. God is my defense. That's my subject. That's the
title of my message. Our text will be the 31st chapter
of the Gospel of Isaiah. Isaiah 31, verses one through
nine. God is my defense. I take that title from David's
words in the Psalms. He often sang that very thing. He's saying, God is my defense.
God is my defense. God is my defense. God is my
defense. When he was in trouble, when
his heart was heavy, when friends forsook him, when foes pursued
him, when darkness engulfed him, David sang, God is my defense. That's the message of Isaiah
31. The Lord God, our Savior, the
triune Jehovah, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, God is my defense. Let's read the chapter together.
Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help, and stay on horses,
and trust in chariots, because there are many, and in horsemen,
because they are very strong, but they look not unto the Holy
One of Israel, neither seek the Lord. Yet he, that is the Holy
One of Israel, the Lord, he also is wise and will bring evil and
will not call back his words, but will arise against the house
of the evil doers and against the help of them that work iniquity. Now the Egyptians are men and
not God, and their horses are flesh and not spirit. When the Lord shall stretch out
his hand, both he that helpeth shall fall, and he that is hopin'
shall fall down, and they shall fail together. the helper and
the one helped, leaning on the arm of the flesh, both shall
fall. For thus saith the Lord, or thus
hath the Lord spoken unto me, like as the lion and the young
lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of shepherds is called
forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor
abase himself for the noise of them. So shall the Lord of Hosts
come down to fight for Mount Zion, his church, his elect,
his people, for the hill thereof. As birds flying, so will the
Lord of Hosts defend Jerusalem, his church, his elect, his kingdom. Defending also, he will deliver
it, and passing over, he will preserve it. Turn ye unto him
from whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted. For in
that day, every man shall cast away his idols of silver and
his idols of gold, which your hands have made unto you for
sin. Then shall the Assyrian fall
with the sword not of a mighty man and the sword not of a mean
man shall devour him. But he shall flee from the sword,
and his young men shall be discomforted. And he shall pass over to his
stronghold for fear, and his princes shall be afraid of the
ensign, saith the Lord, whose fire is in Zion and his furnace
in Jerusalem. If we will apply what Isaiah
here tells us concerning Israel's history, and they're looking
to Egypt for help, if we will apply it to ourselves and our
horrible, evil inclination to lean upon the arm of the flesh,
this chapter is full of instruction for you and me. May God the Holy
Ghost teach us his word. And by his word, teach us ever
to look away from ourselves. To look away from ourselves to
Christ Jesus the Lord, who is our help, our refuge, and our
defense. This is the first commandment
of the law. Thou shalt have no other gods
before me. and it is a direct violation
of that commandment. It is an open act of idolatry
to take from God that confidence of faith that is due to him alone
and place it upon any creature, upon myself or upon any other. You see, the object of my trust
is the object of my worship. and that which I worship is my
God. If I trust the Lord God, I worship
him. He's my God. If I place my trust
in myself, my works, my knowledge, my experience, my righteousness,
my will, or anything or anyone else, I'm guilty of idolatry. In the light of those things,
wrote those statements out, I thought no wonder the Apostle John concludes
his epistle to us with these words. Little children, keep
yourselves from idols. Keep yourselves from any object
of trust except God, who is our defense. This sin of Judah, which
Isaiah reproves in our text, was turning from God to Egypt. From the arm of the Lord to the
arm of the flesh. Looking not to the Lord for help,
but looking to Egypt for help. Looking not to God's strength
for strength, but to the horses and chariots of Egypt for strength.
That was Judah's sin. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria,
had come against Jerusalem with a powerful and, humanly speaking,
an irresistible army. When he did, the Jews went down
to Egypt for help. They should have looked to the
Lord for his promised merciful and gracious protection. Protection
they had proved again, again, and again. But they rejected
his counsel. They would not sit still before
him. They would not look to him in
quietness and confidence and find help. Therefore, God sent
Isaiah to Judah with this message. It is a message of judgment.
Judgment not against his elect, but judgment against those who
profess to be his people and did not trust him. Judgment not
against his people, but against those who profess to be his people.
Verse one, he says, woe to them that go down to Egypt for help
and stay on horses and trust in chariots because there are
many and in horsemen because they're very strong, but they
look not the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord." How foolish,
how utterly foolish it is for you and me to trust in the arm
of the flesh for anything. Certainly that's true with regard
to all matters of grace and salvation. We dare not trust the arm of
the flesh for our redemption, for righteousness, for acceptance
with God. We dare not trust the arm of
the flesh for deliverance from anything with regard to God's
salvation. But the same is true with regard
to all earthly care and trouble. We dare not trust, we dare not
lean upon the arm of the flesh. Look at verse two. Yet he also
is wise, the Lord God is wise. and he will bring evil and will
not call back his words, but will arise against the house
of the evildoers and against the help of them that work iniquity. Now the Egyptians are men and
not God. They're horses flesh and not
spirit. When the Lord shall stretch out
his hand, both he that helpeth shall fall and he that is hoping
shall fall down. If you lean on the flesh, when
the flesh falls, you fall. If you lean on Egypt, when Egypt
is gone, you're gone. They shall fall, they shall fail
together. The help of Judah that they hoped
to gain from Egypt would be vain and useless. And the help that
you and I seek to gain by carnal means, in ourselves or anyone
else is ridiculous. Isaiah's message here is a call
to repentance. In verse six, he says, turn ye
unto him from whom the children of Israel have deeply revolted. God calls his elect remnant among
the people to repentance. He calls you and me to turn to
him in the midst of a people who have turned away from him.
to look to Him in the midst of a people who look away from Him.
He calls His elect and tells us that it is still our strength,
it is still our strength, it is still our strength to sit
still, to be quiet and trust Him. To sit still, to be quiet
and trust Him. This is a message of grace to
a people who deserve justice. a message of mercy to a people
who deserve wrath. The Lord God promised Judah that
if they would return to him and put their trust in him, as soon
as they did, he would deliver them from their enemies. That's
what it tells us in verses seven, eight, and nine. Before I go
further, let me address myself to you who are yet without Christ
under the wrath of God. You who are yet held captive
by sin and by Satan, who do not know our God and our Savior,
who know nothing of the liberty of His grace, would you be free? As soon as you repent, that is,
as soon as you turn to Him, as soon as you look to God, casting
away your idols, casting away your carnal trust, casting away
the work of your hands, trusting Christ alone. As soon as you
look to him, you're free. Free from the curse of the law,
free from the guilt of sin, free from the fear of death, free,
free, free in Christ. God's salvation makes sinners
free. Look to Christ. and walk in freedom. Oh, I can't tell you how good
it is to walk in freedom, to walk in freedom before God, freedom
from sin, freedom from wrath, freedom from guilt, freedom from
fear, to walk freely before God. God help you to look to the Savior.
In these nine verses, the Lord God calls for us to trust him
alone. And he promises that he will
effectually protect and deliver all who trust him from all their
enemies. God's salvation takes in not
only our spiritual salvation. The Lord God, we often say the
Lord saved his soul. He does more than that, he saves
a man. He saves the whole man, body,
soul, and spirit. And his salvation includes deliverance
day by day from trouble and heartache and bondage, oppression and enemies. All deliverance is God's salvation. Now let me show you these four
things in these nine verses. First, understand this. God's elect, never need and must
not seek the help of the world. I speak particularly of God's
church and kingdom and I speak particularly of you and me as
God's people in this world. God's elect never need and must
not seek the help of the world. I speak not now with regard to
carnal material things. I speak not of ordinary things
of life. I speak about our life in this
world, walking with God, serving God, and serving his cause. How dishonoring it is for God's
children to seek comfort, strength, and help from his enemies. Anytime
Judah goes down to Egypt for help, Judah suffers. Anytime Judah goes down to Egypt
for help, Judah suffers. Peter got himself into a peck
of trouble one night because he chose to warm himself by the
fires of the Lord's enemies. He chose to make for his companions
those who were the enemies of his Savior. He chose to make
for his friends those who opposed his Savior, and that cost Peter
dearly. The same is true for you and
for me. God's servant never needs what
the King of Sodom might provide for him. You remember what Abraham
told the king of Sodom after he had delivered the kings of
the plain? And the king of Sodom came down
and offered Abraham all the goods and the spoils. Abraham said,
I will not take a thread, even to a shoelatch it. I will not
take anything that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have
made Abraham rich. God's church doesn't need the
help and the assistance of the world. God's calls, God's gospel,
God's preachers do not need and do not seek the help of God's
enemies. I didn't say they shouldn't.
I said God's church, God's preachers, God's calls does not need and
does not seek the help of God's enemies. Turn to Matthew chapter
10. I want you to see this, Matthew
10. Our Lord Jesus is sending out
his disciples to preach the gospel. And this is his word to them,
as he sends them out to preach the gospel. Verse nine, provide
neither gold nor silver, nor brass in your purses. You go
and preach the gospel and don't make any provision for yourself. Don't make any provision for
yourself. Satan makes many to serve the flesh, enticing
them with carnal cares away from the service of our Redeemer.
The Savior says, verse 10, nor script for your journey, not
even two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves, how come? for the workman is worthy of
his meat. And into whatsoever city or town
you shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and there abide
till you go hence. And when you come into a house,
salute it. And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon
it. But if it be not worthy, let
your peace return to you. and whosoever shall not receive
you nor hear your words when you depart out of that house
or city, shake off the dust of your feet. I'm sure I've told
you this before. Shortly after coming here as
your pastor, we were in the process of getting this upstairs part
of the building done. We were meeting here, but it
wasn't anywhere near done. I was out here in the office one day,
and a fellow went to school with, Called me up, found out I was
living in Danville and wanted to come by for a visit. He came
in, we visited a little while, and he had gotten involved in
some business and wanted me to go into business with him. And
I said, Steve, I'm just not interested. Well, let me tell you what I
can do. I said, Steve, I'm just not interested. This was back
in what, 1981? Somewhere in there. He said,
Don, I can guarantee you $50,000 a year for just a couple of days
a week. I said, Steve, I'm not interested. I've got something
else to do that's more important. It's called preaching the gospel
of God's grace. Now, having done so, I don't
pretend to suggest that I've sacrificed anything. I haven't. Nothing. On another occasion,
our Savior said to his disciples, when I sent you without purse
and script and shoes, lacked ye anything? And they said, nothing,
nothing. Never lacked a thing. Never lacked a thing. God abundantly
provides for his own. according to his will, his servants,
and his church, and his people. We never need to look for help
somewhere else. Never. Some years ago, Brother
Bill Clark was missionary in Paris, actually Marseilles, France.
And there was just one other gospel missionary there that
he knew. There's one other man who said he believed the gospel
of God's grace. And Bill got word this man and
his family were packing up, going back to England. So we went to
see him. And this missionary said to Bill,
he said, I just can't live on what I'm getting here. And Bill
looked at him and said, you mean you can't live on what your Heavenly
Father provides you? I can't. How about you? I can't. God's people never need
the help of God's enemies. We must not lean upon the arm
of the flesh, but upon the omnipotent arm of God our Savior for everything. for everything, for sanity, peace
of mind, comfort. Back several years ago, I'd been,
I forgot what kind of machine I was on, and in the hospital
I was still unable to communicate things, but I understood everything
going on around me, I just couldn't say anything. And the doctors
and nurses came in and were talking to Shelby about sending me over
to whatever the nut house is over in Lexington, and I wanted
to scream, no! I'd rather you put me to death
now than so dishonor God. No, no, no, no. God's people don't need the arm
of the flesh for sanity. Let others have it if they need
it. God's people don't. I don't need the arm of the flesh
for domestic peace and tranquility. Somebody says, well, we're going
to go see a marriage counselor. What on earth for? You want a
divorce? I've known people go see a marriage
counselor who's been married two or three times. That's smart.
I can't think of anything brighter than that. What dummies people
are. We don't need the help of the
world for trouble. We need God's help, God's strength. This is his word, casting all
your care upon him. He careth for you. Cast all your
care upon him, he careth for you. We never have reason, not me
as a preacher, not you as a believer, not this church nor any other.
We never have reason to compromise the gospel and dishonor our God. I'm very familiar with how churches
are supposed to be built and how to do it. I'm very familiar
with the tricks of the trade. I'm very familiar with the marketing
of religion. I'm very familiar with the entertainment. And people wonder why I insist
on being so out of step with the times. It's on purpose. It's by deliberate, determined
purpose. We will not compromise God's
word. We will not compromise God's
name. We will not compromise God's
honor in order to please men. If it means shut the doors down,
shut the doors down and turn this place into a barn. We must
not lean on the arm of the flesh. We won't flee the world's assaults
and we won't seek the world's assistance. We won't operate
on the world's principles and we won't use the world's methods.
Look at 2 Corinthians chapter 4 for just a second. What a word
of instruction this is for this church and for every church,
for this preacher and for every preacher. Paul says, therefore
seeing we have this ministry, since God has trusted us with
the rich treasure of the gospel of his grace. As we have received
mercy, we faint not, we keep plugging away. But this we have
done. We have renounced the hidden
things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the
word of God deceitfully. But by manifestation of the truth,
commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight
of God. We simply boldly, frankly, plainly
declare the truth of God, and the truth we declare commends
itself to you, and you know the word preached from this pulpit
is truth. I defy any man, any man, anywhere,
ever to suggest that something he's heard from this pulpit is
not according to this book. It's commended, it commends itself,
the truth of God does to every man's conscience. If our gospel
be hid, it's hid to them that are lost. In whom the Lord God
Almighty, the God of this world, hath blinded the minds of them
that believe not. Now here's the second thing,
back in Isaiah chapter 31. All doubt, all unbelief on our
part, All doubt, all unbelief in me. All doubt, all unbelief
in Rex Bartley and his wife Debbie. All doubt, all unbelief on our
part is utterly senseless, unreasonable, and shameful. But preacher, you
know we have troubles with that. I know, that's the reason I'm
hitting it as hard as I can. I have a lot of trouble with this. But
that which causes me trouble is senseless, unreasonable, and
shameful. Judah had no reason whatsoever
to fear Sennacherib. Judah had no reason, none at
all, to fear Assyria. Had they only listened to God
and hearkened to his word, they would have avoided much sorrow
and trouble. Oh, God, if only you would listen
to God and hearken to his word, you will avoid much sorrow and
trouble. Turn back to 2 Chronicles and
listen to this. 2 Chronicles 32. 2 Chronicles
32, verse 7. Be strong and courageous. Be not afraid nor dismayed for
the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with
him. For there be more with us than with him. Hezekiah the king
is talking now to Judah, verse eight. With him is the arm of
the flesh, but with us is Jehovah our God to help us and to fight
our battles. And the people rested themselves
upon the words of Hezekiah. When Peter began to Consider
the boisterous winds and waves of the sea. He began to doubt
the Savior, and he began to sink. And he cried, Lord, save me,
and the Lord did, and he then reproved Peter's unbelief. Our
Lord Jesus said to his disciples on the Sea of Galilee, when they
were so terrified, how is it that you have no faith? I can't
tell you how many times I've heard him ask me that question.
Now I want you to do something for me. Will you do something
for your pastor? Youngest, oldest, will you do
something for me? Give me one reason, just one,
why we shouldn't trust God everywhere, with everything, all the time.
Just one. Has he ever broken a promise? Have you ever known him to be
unfaithful? Is anything too hard for the
Lord? Has God changed? Of course not. unbelief then is utterly senseless,
shameful, unreasonable, a reproach. God's faithful, God's omnipotent,
God's gracious, God's unchanging. We have no reason to question
his wisdom, his goodness, his grace, his power. Our doubts,
our unbelief, come altogether from looking at ourselves and
our circumstances. The fact is, except God the Holy
Ghost give us grace, we cannot believe. We believe God only as God the
Holy Ghost works faith in us. Initially, when first converted,
day by day, Hour by hour, moment by moment, throughout the days
of our lives, we believe God only as he works faith in us. Here's the third thing. God our Savior, Our almighty,
unfailing, immutable, triune God is our defense. Turn back a few pages to Psalm
125. Psalm 125. They that trust in the Lord shall
be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth forever. As the mountains are round about
Jerusalem, So the Lord is round about his people from henceforth
even forever. Now here in Isaiah 31, Judah
is in great trouble. She's in desperate need. God
calls for Judah to trust him and promises to protect and defend
Judah in many ways. Let me call your attention to
three or four. First, in verse four, the Lord God tells his
people that he protects his elect with the firmness and resolve
of a lion. And he gives us a picture. A
lion has sneaked into one of the foes around Jerusalem, and
he's got a lamb in his mouth, in the grip of his teeth. and
they hear the roar of the lion on his prey. And the shepherds
come out and holler and scream and shake their staffs and make
a noise. And all the shepherds screaming
to the top of their lungs can't persuade that lion to turn loose
with his prey. So the Lord God says, I hold
you. and I keep you, and I defend
you, and all the noise of hell won't change that. He that keepeth
Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps. Brother Mark read it back in
the office, Romans 8. If God be for us, who can be
against us? Nothing, no one. will persuade
God to let us go. He holds us in the palm of his
omnipotent hand, in the palm of his infinite grace. And God
protects his own with the tenderness and persistence of a mother bird.
Verse five, he said, as birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts
defend Jerusalem. Defending also, he will deliver
it, and passing over, he will preserve it. Did you ever get
too close to the nest where Robin had her eggs? Or too close to
any other bird where the nest were? They will give their lives
to protect the young. So the Lord God has given his
life for us. And God who gave his life for
us will defend us. He will deliver us. passing over,
constantly passing over, he will preserve us. Then in verses eight
and nine, we're told that God protects his people with legions
of angels. Oh, this is one of those things
that you just sort of have to guess about because I have never
seen an angel. I've never observed The work
of an angel with a physical eye. Look at verse eight. Then shall
the Assyrian fall with the sword, not of a mighty man, and the
sword not of a mean man, a common weak man, shall devour him. But he shall flee from the sword,
and his young men shall be discomforted. And he shall pass over to his
stronghold, run back home with his tail between his legs for
fear. and his princes shall be afraid of the ensign, saith the
Lord, whose fire is in Zion and his furnace in Jerusalem. Christ,
of course, is the ensign by whom God's church prevails over her
enemies. But the picture here is just
a man coming with a flagpole. He stands up and they see the
flagpole and take off for hope because God protects his own.
Our Lord is a wall of fire round about his Israel. The fire of
God is always in Zion. And in his furnace, his silver
and his gold is refined. And his angels, his angels constantly
are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to those who
should be the heirs of salvation. His angels sometimes appear as
chariots of fire, numberless chariots of fire on the mountains
surrounding his people. Sometimes his angels appear as
an angel comes into the court when Peter is in the inner prison,
shakes him and wakes him up. and says, Peter, put your boots
on, put your breeches on, put your coat on, we're going out
of here. And Peter puts his clothes on and they get up and start
to walk out. And as they do, they come to this gate and it
opens. And they come to the next gate,
it opens. The scripture says, of its own accord, as if the
gate had a wheel. How's that? God sends his angels
to deliver his own from trouble. Peter thought he was dreaming
the whole thing till he got outside and had a drink of water. He
thought he was dreaming the whole thing. And sometimes his angels
come in stranger form still. In Acts 23, the apostle Paul
was in captivity and there was a band of more than 40 Jews among
the Sanhedrin who took a vow and said, we won't eat till we
kill this man. We won't eat till we kill him. He's not getting out of here
alive. And the Lord God had some angels there. One of Paul's kinsmen
heard about it, came and told Paul. Paul said, go get the captain
of the guard. Tell him I've got something to
tell him. The captain of the guard came and Paul said, you go tell your
captain, the chief captain, what these men are doing. And God
took a Roman captain and he ordered a garrison of soldiers to make
ready and got Paul out of town. Oh, God's angels. Sent forth
to minister to them who shall be the heirs of salvation. God
protects his Israel and even uses their enemies to do it.
God protects his Israel and even uses their enemies to do it. I sayeth the Lord, will be under
her a wall of fire about, and will be the glory in the midst
of her. He that toucheth you toucheth
the apple of mine eye. Fear not, I am with thee. Be not dismayed, I am by God. I will strengthen thee, yea,
I will help thee. Yea, I will uphold thee with
the right hand of my righteousness. Back up to chapter 30 of Isaiah. And learn this fourth thing. Our strength, our blessedness, is quiet confidence in God our
Savior. Verse 7 of chapter 30. Their
strength is to sit still. Verse 15, in returning and rest
you shall be saved. In quietness and in confidence
shall be your strength. Look anywhere else for help and
you make misery for yourself. The arm of flesh will fail you. You dare not trust your own.
God will never fail you. Trust him and him alone. I want to make a statement now
that I know is redundant, and I know it will sound redundant,
but it's a statement that needs to be made and heard and remembered
and followed. Are you ready? It is not possible to trust God
too much. It is not possible to trust God
too much. It is not possible to be too
confident in Him and His goodness. It is not possible to commit
too much to His care. It is not possible to believe
God too confidently. It is not possible. He is God,
our Savior, worthy of calm, confident faith. And that calm, confident
faith in God, our Savior, inspires gratitude. So rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything
give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning
you. This faith and gratitude Promotes
fidelity. It promotes faithfulness to God
our Savior. When Paul was about to leave
Ephesus, they begged him not to go, knowing that they would
see his face no more. They begged him not to go, knowing
that bonds and imprisonment followed him. And Paul said, none of these
things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so
that I might finish my course with joy. and the ministry which
I've received of the Lord Jesus testify the gospel of the grace
of God. Oh, how God has intervened for
us. God stepped into the world in
human flesh. God stepped into our place at
Calvary. God intervened by his providence
and preserved and kept us to the day of our calling. God intervened
with omnipotent mercy and called us by his grace. God has intervened
secretly in ways of which we're totally ignorant to keep us in
the way of faith. to protect us, to uphold us,
to sustain us, to keep us from our own evil hearts, to keep
us believing him. God has intervened secretly to
provide for us day by day by day, to protect us hour by hour
by hour. How we ought to trust him. You
see, in all things, In all things, God is my defense,
my refuge, my rock, my salvation. I pray you can say the same. Amen.