Work of the Lord, Operation of His Hands

Q: What does the Bible say about the work of the Lord?

The Bible teaches that the work of the Lord encompasses creation, providence, and salvation, all intricately orchestrated by His sovereign hand. In Scripture, the work of the Lord is profoundly significant, signifying His sovereignty over all creation and history. Isaiah 5:12 highlights God's complaint against Israel: they did not regard the work of the Lord nor consider the operation of His hands. This indicates that the Lord's work is not only about large-scale events but also the intricate details of life, reminiscent of a woman's meticulous knitting. His involvement ranges from creating the universe to guiding the paths of every individual, exemplifying His constant and omnipotent presence. Furthermore, the work of the Lord is demonstrated through the prophetic voices He raised, reflecting His intention to communicate with humanity. In Isaiah 5:26-30, God depicts His ability to summon nations swiftly as an act of judgment or salvation. It underscores that every event in history is curated by His will—nothing occurs outside His divine orchestration. His handiwork serves to vindicate His holiness and authority while simultaneously illustrating His grace and mercy toward His people.

Q: How do we know God's sovereignty is true?

God's sovereignty is affirmed through Scripture, which presents Him as the ultimate authority who directs all things according to His will. The sovereignty of God is a foundational tenet of Reformed theology, deeply rooted in biblical revelation. Passages like Daniel 4:35 declare that God does according to His will in heaven and on earth, showing that nothing escapes His rule or influence. He is portrayed as the Lord of hosts, exerting control over every element in creation, from the rise and fall of nations to the intricacies of individual lives. Additionally, Scripture illustrates God's sovereignty through His means of communication—specifically, through the prophets. 1 Peter 1:21 states that prophecy is not initiated by human desire but by the Holy Spirit moving individuals to speak God's truth. This highlights God's active role in guiding history and His people while validating the authenticity of His sovereignty. Therefore, God’s sovereignty is not only a doctrinal belief but a central aspect of His character as portrayed throughout the entire narrative of the Bible.

Q: Why is God's grace and truth important for Christians?

God's grace and truth are crucial for Christians as they reveal His character and the means of our salvation through Jesus Christ. The significance of grace and truth in the Christian faith cannot be overstated, as they are integral to understanding God's nature and our relationship with Him. John 1:14 affirms that Jesus is 'full of grace and truth,' establishing Him as the embodiment of God's character and provision for humanity. Grace represents God's unmerited favor, empowering believers to live in the light of His love and mercy, while truth ensures that God’s promises are not merely subjective but rooted in His unwavering faithfulness. Moreover, Christians are called to reflect this grace and truth in their lives. Galatians 5:22-23 describes the fruit of the Spirit, which includes characteristics like love, kindness, and faithfulness—components that stem from experiencing God’s grace. By anchoring their identity in the grace of God and living out His truth, believers can effectively witness and draw others into the light of the Gospel, thus fulfilling their calling to make disciples of all nations.

Q: What does Isaiah 5 teach about judgment and mercy?

Isaiah 5 illustrates the dual themes of judgment and mercy, highlighting God's holiness in disciplining His people while providing hope for the righteous. Isaiah 5 provides profound insights into God's character concerning judgment and mercy. The chapter begins with a lament for God’s vineyard—representing His people—who have failed to produce good fruit despite His care and provision. This failure leads to divine judgment, as articulated in verses 13-15 where the consequences of rejecting God’s ways result in captivity and despair. The imagery serves to illustrate that God's holiness necessitates judgment against sin, which serves both as discipline for His people and a warning to others. However, interwoven with this theme of judgment is the promise of mercy, particularly for the righteous. In Isaiah 5:17, it states, 'Say ye to the righteous, it shall be well with him.' This emphasizes that while judgment is real and serious, God remains steadfast in His ability to preserve and bless those who seek Him. Ultimately, this duality showcases God’s majestic righteousness, capable of meting out judgment while simultaneously extending lovingkindness and salvation to those who belong to Him.

You know, if you had a bio, a word written about you to be
published in some widely read publication or on some form of
media, the radio or the news, television news or the internet,
if it was within your power to do so, You'd seek to it that
it's published correctly. And you'd make sure all the information
is included and nothing's erroneous or added. And you'd do it because
your name is behind it. And when it's published, the
first thing you do is to read it. Don't we? We get a copy of it, we read
it. Make sure all the information was published the way we sent
it to the publisher. And we do it because our name's
behind it. We want to see if it's published right. The name
of the thrice holy God is behind His every work. And He has the power to make
sure. And for the sake of His holy
name, He makes sure everything that is published is published
just as he would have it published in truth. Daniel chapter 4 and verse 35,
Nebuchadnezzar discovered something about the power of God. He said all the inhabitants of
the earth are reputed as nothing and he doeth according to his
will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the
earth. And none can stay his hand or
say unto him, What doest thou? He has the power to publish. He has the power to make sure
his name is not tainted in his work. Before he created the heavens
and the earth, only the Word existed. John said in the beginning was
the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The
same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by
Him and without Him was not anything made that was made. He was before
anything that was made. He spoke everything into existence
by His Word. Hebrews 11 verse 3 says, Through
faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word
of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things
which do appear. You think of the, I like to look
at those, these new satellite maps we can get. Look up, you
know, when you map quest something and it will give you a bird's
eye view. When we first moved here, I'd love to zoom in on
our house on Manning over there, you know, and look at it. You
can see just detail about it, you know, and then zoom out from
it and just watch how small it gets. And that's just out as
far as we've been able to go. Go out further than that and
get on out to where Earth looks like a dot or can't even be seen. That's where God is. He framed
all these things by the word of His power. He's powerful. He's powerful. He raised up prophets
called holy prophets. Different from the prophets Brother
Jaime just read about there in Ezekiel. Holy prophets made holy
by Him. And He breathed His word into
their hearts and used their mouths to speak His will and their pens
to put it in writing. Peter said, for the prophecy
came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. He's preserved this word
just as he has held everything in place, held it in the balance
by the very one that he's spoken to us by in these last days.
Have you ever wondered how the translators, who guided the hand
of the translators? Same one that got into the hands
of the ones that first spoke it. He hath in these last days spoken
to us by his Son. That's how he's spoken to us
now. Whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he
made the worlds, who being the brightnesses of his glory, the
expressive image of his person, and upholding all things by the
word of his power. By the word. By the incarnate
Living Word came grace and truth. Look at John 1.14 with me. John
1.14. And the Word. John 1.14. And the Word. was made flesh. This very One
who was before anything existed. This One who spoke everything
into existence from nothing. This One who upheld everything
in place and upholds everything in place. This One who has spoken
to us in the last days. He's the Word made flesh. and dwelt among us. And we beheld
His glory, John says, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father, full of grace and truth. John bare witness of Him and
cried, saying, This was He of whom I spake. He that cometh
after me is preferred before me, for He was before me. And
of His fullness have all we received, the believer. has received of
His fullness. Grace for grace. Grace upon grace. For the law was given by Moses.
It wasn't Moses' law. Grace and truth wasn't given
to Jesus Christ. Grace and truth are the essential
perfections of His very character. Grace and truth came when He
Himself came. Before He did one thing, grace
and truth came by His coming and dwelling among us in the
flesh. The law was given to a people and all it said was, this do
and this don't do. But it couldn't give any power
to do or not do. It could tell a man what sin
is, but it couldn't make a man confess that he's a sinner. By the laws, the knowledge of
sin. But what Paul said, I was alive without the law once. I
had it. I thought I was obeying it. I thought I was alive, but I
was an outlaw. But when the commandment came,
when Christ came by grace and truth, in grace and truth into
my heart, when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.
Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. By his own word of grace,
he wrote the names of a people in the Lamb's Book of Life before
the world began. By His own word of grace He sent
forth His Son, the Word who was made flesh. By His own word of
grace, mercy, and truth, judgment, meet in perfect righteousness
on the shoulder of the Lamb He provided. You know, grace is
mercy. Truth is judgment. They meet
together in righteousness in one place. That's in His Son,
at Calvary. Holiness was magnified to the
heavens that day at Calvary. The holiness of God was magnified
before all that day when he laid down his life. Mercy was magnified
to the darkest hearts of sinners that day when he hung there between
heaven and earth. Without the law, without the
prophet, and yet witnessed by both of them. All along it's
what they spoke about and what they pointed to. Without anyone
to help him. For he tread the winepress alone.
This is a solitary God. This is God who existed before
you and I existed. This is God who didn't look to
you and I to help Him create anything. And doesn't look to
you and I to help Him create anything. And doesn't look to
you and I to help Him in what I ought to. He tread the winepress
alone at Calvary, and he tread the winepress of God's holy fury
alone, and he satisfied justice. And just like he raised up all
the holy prophets, he said, I'll give you pastors according to
mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
The reason they're pastors after his own heart is because they
don't come in their own name, preaching their own ideas, mingling
their work with his, making men think their will is separate
from his will, but they come preaching his word, the word. For I've delivered unto you first
of all that which also I received, how that Christ died for our
sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried and that
he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. I came declaring
to you the Word, declaring to you the Word that I received,
the Word that saved me, the Word that redeemed me. And I came
preaching the Word to you through the Word that He gave, which
is all about the Word that saves. This is the Word. This is Christ
we're talking about. And by the Word of Truth, the
Spirit quickens whom He will, and the Word speaks eternal life
into spiritually dead hearts through the Gospel. Look at 2
Corinthians 4, verse 6. In the beginning, we're told when He made that
first creation, He said, Let there be light. And there was
light. And He says here, 2 Corinthians
4, verse 6. For God who commanded, for God
who commanded, with a word, the light to shine out of darkness,
the same God who said, let there be light, has shined in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ. Moses saw Him pass by and saw
Him from behind. That's a mighty poor way of seeing
His glory. When He makes a sinner to behold
His glory, He makes him to behold Him square in the face of Jesus
Christ. That's where we behold His glory.
And He does it in power through His Word. Now, back there in
Isaiah chapter 5, Here's the complaint the Lord
had with His people, the house of Israel, that people He brought
out of Egypt. Verse 12, And the harp and the
vial and the tabret and the pipe and wine are in their feasts,
religious and civic and their community feasts, but they regard
not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of His
hands. And therefore my people are gone
into captivity because they have no knowledge, and their honorable
men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst." Look down
at verse 19. They say, Let him make speed, and hasten
his work, that we may see it. And let the counsel of the Holy
One of Israel draw nigh, and come, that we may know it." Is that how you want to talk
to this God I just presented before you? This God who doesn't
Look to you and I for anything. We can't even stop His hand from
doing what He's pleased. We want to be so flippant as
to say something like that. Woe unto them that call evil
good. We want to really label something
as good when it's really evil. and good, do we want to label
it evil? That ought to tell us to be very
careful, very careful. They put darkness for light and
light for darkness. They put bitter for sweet and
sweet for bitter. Woe unto them that are wise in
their own eyes, prudent in their own sighting. little puny, fumbling,
fickle, black-hearted rebels against God, worms, fleas, dogs,
imagining that infinite wisdom can be outwitted? That Providence Himself can be
counteracted by the strength of our hand or the will of our
flesh, the wisdom of our puny little brain? Woe unto them that are mighty
to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink. God sees us when we're by ourselves, alone,
wherever we are. He sees us continually, whatever it is. Wherever we are, He knows our heart. And He says, Woe to them that
justify the wicked for reward. You know who the first man is? The first wicked man is that
men will justify? Ah, ah. And take away the righteousness
of the righteous from him. Therefore, as the fire devours
the stubble and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall
be as rottenness. The bitter root, rotten. And their blossom shall go up
as dust powder because they've cast away the law of the Lord
of hosts. You know what the law is? You
know what the law is? The law is God speaking. The law, the Word of the Lord
is the Word of the Word. It's God speaking. Do you think
that Do you, do you, your children,
do they obey you at home because you've set down a law for them
to obey you and they're scared and that's why they obey you?
Or do they obey you because they love you? What I'm getting at is behind
every law that God gives is God himself, the lawgiver. Why do
we seek to obey him? Is it simply because we're fearful
of being punished? Is it simply because we're afraid
of having a, we want to sue the guilty conscience? Is it simply
because he's a fire escape from hell? Or is it because we truly
serve him from a heart of love that he's given us? You know,
I didn't have to set a rule down when my child began to be able
to walk. I didn't have to lay down a rule
for Emma and say, now you better walk to me. Soon as she learned
how to walk, she just walked straight to me. You know why? Because she loved me. She loved me. When God gives
a love in the heart of a sinner, there's something that came before
the law came. And it's Him. And the law is
good and it's just. The law's holy, just, and good.
But that law, brethren, we behold not light from that law. We behold the light from the
light. We behold no love from that law. We behold love in Him.
And that law teaches us, yes, how to curb this murdering, whoremonging,
dirty, rotten flesh. But it does nothing for the Spirit
to teach us how to love Him. He does that. He does that. And so, he says here, they've
turned away from the law of the Lord of hosts. The One who controls
everything. The One who controls the operation
of His hands. The work of the Lord speaks of
big things that He's done. The work of creation and the
work of providence. Large things that we just can't
enter into. The operation of His hands is
like a woman with a knitting needle. Ever so intricate. Every little detail being worked
out. Everything. He's the Lord of Hosts. Those leaves that fell off that
tree out there. You know why they fell off that
tree out there? The operation of His hands. That's why. You know how you got here today
where you are? The operation of His hands. Somewhere a long
time ago a seed fell out of an acorn tree out of a oak tree
and that a pine tree and that pine cone was eaten by a squirrel
that he Directed right to that pine cone and the seed of that
pine cone was left and it went into the earth right where he
planted it and the rains came down as he gave them and that
little plant came up out of there just as he gave it power to come
up out of there and and he nurtured it and it grew up and it grew
up and it grew up and when the log cutters came in and were
cutting down all the other timber he directed them away from that
little tree because it wasn't big enough yet and it grew and
it grew by his operation of his hand and then one day he put
it in the heart and somebody came and they cut it down and
they took it to the mill and they chopped it up and all these
fellas came from afar by the operation of his hand and they
all came right to that mill and they all worked together right
there by his strength, by his power, by the operation of his
hand and they planed out some pine lumber and somebody bought
it by the operation of his hand and they took it to a mill where
they make chairs and somebody that he'd given wisdom and understanding
to make a chair made a chair and you're sitting in it right
there, right now. I'm talking about the operation
of His hands. Everything that He does. Everything
that we have. Everything that happens. Everything
that comes to pass. Animate and inanimate. Everything
is made by Him. And everything that's living
moves and lives and has His being in Him. He's the Lord of hosts. Multitude. Multitude. Not just a multitude that He'll
save. full of multitude. His enemies
are his armies. They're in his hand. Satan is
in his hand. The devil's in his hand. He don't
do anything but what he came to meet with Job and his family
when they came together to worship. Of course, the Lord allowed him
to. And the Lord said, have you considered My servant Job? The
Lord put it in his thought. Have you considered My servant
Job? And he said, You've got a hedge about him, I can't touch
him. This is the God I'm talking about.
And he said, you've taken my word, you've taken my law, and
you've cast it behind your back. And thought, we're wise, we're
prudent. When's he come? He hasn't come
since the day he came and since he supposedly went in the grave
and was resurrected. All things continue like they've
always been, nothing's changed. We live in a day where a form
of godliness is easy to be found, and yet the power of God's denied,
and a great deal of what men regard as great works of grace
are nothing more than great works of deceit. Paul spoke of false
prophets, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into
the apostles of Christ, and no marvel, for Satan himself is
transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it's no great
thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers
of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works.
And sadly, the wicked heart is oppressed with his subpar power
of devils, which is nothing more than an out and out scoffing
at the almighty works performed by the omnipotent God of heaven
and earth. God, who is sovereign to destroy
all our enemies, is sovereign to work righteousness for his
people and in his people. He is sovereign to redeem His
people in judgment and convert His people to Himself in righteousness. The Holy One of Israel is all-powerful,
both to will and to do His good pleasure in us and among us.
And it is only by His power that His people are made to willingly
do what pleases Him. Now, we come to our text. That
was the introduction. Isaiah 5, verse 26. And he will lift up an ensign
to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the
end of the earth. And behold, they shall come with
speed swiftly. None shall be weary nor stumble
among them. None shall slumber nor sleep.
Neither shall the girdle of their loins be loose, nor the latchet
of their shoes be broken. Whose arrows are sharp, all their
bows bent, Their horses' hooves shall be counted like flint,
and their wheels like a whirlwind. Their roaring shall be like a
lion. They shall roar like young lions. Yea, they shall roar and
lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none
shall deliver it. And in that day they shall roar
against them like the roaring of the sea. And if one looketh
to the land, behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is
darkened in the heavens thereof. Well, God will vindicate the
honor of His holiness and authority the same way He saves. And He'll
do it in judgment and He'll do it in righteousness. The same
power of God which is mighty to destroy His enemies is mighty
to save His people. He said, say to the righteous,
it shall be well with them. They shall receive the reward
of their... I've got to read that because
it's important to get it right. Isaiah 3, verse 10. Say ye to the righteous,
it shall be well with him, for they shall eat fruit of their
doings. That's the fruit of Christ's
doings that's made the fruit of our doings. being filled with
fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ. A whole
lot different from verse 11. Woe unto the wicked, it shall
be ill with him for the reward of his hands shall be given him. He worked it out. He'll get what
he wanted. Exactly what he wanted. Isaiah
5.26. And he will lift up an enzyme
to the nations from far and will hiss unto them from the end of
the earth. And behold, they shall come with speech swiftly. He
will lift up an enzyme. This is how He'll bring His enemies
and their enemies to destroy them. He said, I'm going to use
my own enemies, the people that hate me, that don't know me,
never heard of me, don't have my word as you do, don't have
my oracles as you do. I'm going to use them, bring
them from way, way away. And I'm going to bring them in
and I'm going to destroy you, He said, because you're my enemies.
He said, all I got to do is just hiss unto them from the end of
the earth. The reference here is to an old
custom of luring bees. They would charm the bees with
a hiss and it would bring the bees out of the hive. He says,
he said when he was delivering his children from Pharaoh, remember
the locusts that came up, devoured the land, just went through and
devoured the land. He said, I'm going to hiss to
this people, this army of men, and I'm going to bring them up
just like I brought up those locusts and wiped you out, wiped
out your enemies when I was delivering you from Egypt. How could he
do that? Surely there's some, we can label
it with some kind of scientific explanation, some kind of scientific
reason it happened. Who made the laws of science?
Who made the law of gravity? If it wasn't Newton, God did. Who made the laws of
the rules of nature? He did. Who gave you power of
logic and reason? He did. So if he wants to lure
an army of bees or if he wants to lure an army of men as if
they were bees, all he's got to do is hiss to them and they'll
come. And for the rebel, this end sign,
what is that sign? I kept looking and kept thinking,
what is the sign? What's the sign for these people
that they would see and look at it and you think, well, it's
an inside. It's like you raise a banner, a flag, some kind of
standard, some kind of symbol to let folks know, okay, now
it's time to go. What is it? What is that? And I kept trying
to look at some kind of object that maybe happened after the
Lord was raised. And I looked at the cross first,
and then I thought, well, I don't think that's what made Titus
come upon Jerusalem in 70 A.D. And I kept thinking, what's the
insight? What made the king of Assyria? What made him decide it's time
to go up there and try to take over Israel? Turn over to Isaiah 10, 5. The
rebel, for the rebel, this ensign is merely God taking his hand
off of him so that he can vent what is already in his heart.
That's all it is. Look at Isaiah 10, 5. O Assyrian, the rod of my anger. This is
going to be the first one that's going to come upon Israel, the
Assyrians. And the Lord's speaking to this one He's going to use
to come upon Israel. And He says, O Assyrian, the
rod of mine anger, just like you would take a rod and use
it as a weapon, and the staff in their hand, the staff in the
Assyrian's hand is my indignation. It's my indignation, God said.
And he said, I will send him against a hypocritical nation
and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge
to take the spoil and to take the prey and to tread them down
like the mire of the streets. Now, listen to this. Howbeit,
he meaneth not so. He doesn't mean for him to be
the rod in my hand. He wouldn't dare do this if he
thought he was serving God. He wouldn't dare do this if he
thought he was bringing glory to my name. Howbeit he meaneth
not so, neither doth his heart think so. But it is in his heart
to destroy and to cut off nations, not a few." He's already there. God said, now all I got to do
to bring it to pass is just take my restraining hand off of him.
Let him go. What's the enzyme? You ever heard
somebody say you'll know when you know? You'll know when you
know. The wicked man knows when he
knows. When he sets his heart on something and all of a sudden
it looks like I can accomplish this. He knows when he knows. That's the enzyme. He's taking
his hand off of it and he'll go run headlong into it. But
listen to this now. The same way He takes His hand
off, leaving a hard-hearted sinner in just reprobation, He puts
His hand on one of His vessels of mercy and makes them behold
Christ, the Anzite. Look here with me at Isaiah 11,
verse 10. He says, And in that day there
shall be a root of Jesse. And we talk about that branch,
we talk about that little seed, that tender plant that grows
up out of a dry ground, the branch that should be glorious in that
day, the fruit that should be comely. In that day there should
be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an enzyme of the people. To it shall the Gentiles seek,
and His rest shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in
that day that the Lord shall set His hand again the second
time to recover the remnant of His people which shall be left
from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush,
and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the
islands of the sea." Who are those people? Those are the people,
that remnant that's in Israel that He scatters abroad. when
Christ died and he scattered them to the forewind. He got
an elect remnant that are Jews too. He got an elect remnant. He got an elect people who were
Gentile. But it's not all Israel. It's not that nation Israel.
That nation Israel is under the wrath of God. It's an elect people. It's for the elect's sake that
he'll save them. Not for the cause of their sons of Abraham,
physical sons of Abraham, because they're sons of God by divine
purpose, by election, by blood. Because He bought them, and there
He is. And He says, what I'm going to
do is I'm going to raise up Christ. I'm going to hold Him up. And
He says, and I'm going to take the operation of my hand, and
I'm going to reveal the inside to the Gentiles, and I'm going
to pluck out my elect remnant of Jews from every tribe, nation,
and people to where they've been scattered as well. Now, let's
look here at verse 27. Isaiah 5, 27. And I'll go fast. None shall be weary, nor stumble
among them. None shall slumber, nor sleep.
Neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet
of their shoes be broken. These enemies, which are the
rod in His hand against His enemies, None shall be weary nor stumble
though they come from far. None shall slumber nor sleep
for excitement at the prize ahead. Their girdle of their loins shall
not be loose. They're not taking off their
clothes when they lay down. They're ready. Nor the laxity of their
shoes broken no matter the rough and rocky terrain. This is a
heathen nation who never had the oracles of God. And brethren,
this is the power of God. This is the power of God. He
said, I'm going to bring a nation and I'm going to supply all their
needs, everything they need, so that they come up with great
success. The same manner toward those
who were his elect. Remember the children in Israel
wandered, the shoes didn't wear out. He fed them, he clothed
them, took care of them, provided for them. What did King David
say? He said, I was young and now I'm old. And he said, I've
never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. Now,
when I've always read that, I've always thought, now what about
those who wandered in sheepskins and clothing? Those who were
sown asunder? Those who were tortured and killed? He said, I've never seen the
righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. Never seen it. Never seen it. There's something
a whole lot more than this body. There's something a whole lot
more than these temporal things. Being forsaken of God is to not
have Christ. The same as being saved is to
have Him. You know it? He said, He gave His only begotten
Son. Shall He not with Him freely
give us all things? And then look here at verse 28. It says,
and their arrows will be sharp, and all their bows bent, and
their horses' hooves shall be counted like flint, and their
wheels like a whirlwind. And he said, their roaring shall
be like a lion, and they shall roar like young lions. Yea, they
shall roar and lay hold of the prey, shall carry it away safe,
and none shall deliver it. These enemies that he's talking
about, those are carnal weapons. Those are just carnal weapons.
Carnal weapons. Real bows, real arrows, horse
hooves, wheels, their strength is all carnal. Every bit of it. But for the believer, it's a
spiritual warfare. It's spiritual weapons. Look
over at Ephesians chapter 6 with me. Ephesians chapter 6. Start reading with me in verse
10. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord. Now what
we've been talking about is the power of God. Be strong in the
Lord and in the power of His might. Now listen. In the power of His might, put
on the whole armor of God. that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against... Now listen, we wrestle not against
flesh and blood. We see how God deals with flesh
and blood. We see how the carnal man is being dealt with here,
using other carnal men. He said it will be well for the
righteous. He said, I'm going to save my people from the mist
of all that. I'm not going to forsake them. They're not going to have
to beg for Christ to break. They're going to have Him. So
it will be well with the righteous. Our warfare is not flesh and
blood. but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against
spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore, take unto
you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in
the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore. You know, Paul told us in Hebrews
to lay aside all the weight and the sin that so easily besets
us. Here He's telling us now, lay
something aside, but put something back on. Put something on. Lay
aside the old man, put on the new man. And He says, stand therefore
having your loins girt about with truth. What did He say about
that girdle? It says here that their girdle
shall not be loosed. He said, now put on that girdle.
It won't be loosed. It will be girt about with truth.
With a lie, with a half-truth, with truth plus some lies. Truth. And having on the breastplate
of righteousness. That's the breastplate that he
made. His son made. The righteousness of Christ our
Lord. And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel
of peace. You want to know how to run this race? Pay attention
to His Word. Listen to the Gospel, and it
will give you strength to run this race. If the man preaching
is preaching the Gospel, he's pointing you away from this course,
and away from the witnesses, and away from the crowds, and
away from how you're running. And he's pointing you to heaven
above. That's where you're going to find this preparation. Have
your feet shot. And above all, take the shield
of faith, wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery
darts of the wicked. and take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto
with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. And for me, that
utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly
to make known the mystery of the Gospel." You know what the
mystery of the Gospel is? That's the mystery that's hidden
from the world. Now, one last thing here. He says that they'll
roar like a lion. And that's because the lion of
the tribe of Judah. Christ our Lord. He's our strength. But look here now, verse 30.
And in that day they shall roar against them, these enemies shall,
like the roaring of the sea, And if one look unto the land,
behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in
the heavens thereof." Look over at Isaiah 2, verse 11. Verse 10, let's read verse 10.
This has a two-fold meaning. It means one thing to the righteous
and another thing to the wicked. Enter into the rock. For the
righteous, that's Christ. Hide thee in the dust, for the
righteous, that's the dust of humility. For fear of the Lord,
for the righteous, that's reverence. Sanctifying the Lord is high
and lifted up. And for the glory of his majesty,
for the enemy, that rocks a hole in the ground. A place where
you can go into the earth and try to hide yourself, thinking
you can fool God. But he says this, the lofty looks
of man shall be humble, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed
down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. Now,
is he still talking about the same thing over here in our text?
Look over here to Isaiah 5. Isaiah 5. And look up at verse
15. It says, what's going to come
to pass? What is bringing to pass? for
his enemies, and the mean man should be brought down, and the
mighty man should be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty should
be humbled, but the Lord of hosts should be exalted in judgment,
and God that is holy should be sanctified in righteousness."
Those people, those ones that didn't believe Him, didn't trust
Him, and they see this army coming upon them, and they see God high
and lifted up in judgment, that He's righteous in bringing this
upon them because they wouldn't seek Him, they wouldn't turn
to Him, they wouldn't look to Him, and He destroys them. But now what
about that army of sinful, wicked, vile men? He used to destroy
them. What's it going to do with them? We'll go back over to Isaiah
10. Isaiah 10. In verse 8, it says here that
that king, it's what he says to himself, are not my princes
altogether kings? He goes in there and takes this
arm and he thinks, look what I have done. Look what I've done. And he looks down here at verse
12 and he says, the Lord says, wherefore it shall come to pass
that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon Mount Zion
and on Jerusalem, Will punish the fruit of the stout heart
of the king of Assyria and the glory of his high looks For he
saith by the strength of my hand I've done it and by my wisdom
for I'm prudent and I've removed the bounds of the people and
have robbed their treasures and have put down the inhabitants
like a valiant man and My fat hand have found a nest the riches
of the people as one gather eggs that are left I've gathered all
the earth and there was none that moved the wing or open the
mouth or peeped against me Now listen to what he says Shall
the axe boast itself against him that uses it to cut down
a tree? Me and you'd think that'd be
pretty silly, wouldn't we? If an axe boasted against us. Hey,
that axe didn't have any strength, did it? We picked it up, used
it, got through, threw it away. He says, or shall the saw magnify itself
against him that shakes it? as if the rod should make itself
against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift
up itself as if it were no wood. Therefore shall the Lord, the
Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness, and under
his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire, and
the light of Israel shall be a fire, and his holy one for
a flame, and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briars
in one day, and consume the glory of his forest. Well, but what
about the righteous? What about them? What about them? When all this has come to pass
in the righteous judgment and God has been sanctified in righteousness
and in judgment, what then? What about them? Look back there
at Isaiah 5, verse 17. Then shall the Lamb That's just
an altogether different description than what the description was
given of his enemies. A little lamb, just little lambs. Then the lambs, then shall the
lambs feed after their man. And the waste places of the fat
ones shall strangers eat. People they didn't know, people
they wouldn't look upon, people they wouldn't have anything to
do. They're going to inherit it all. And they're going to feed after
their mouth. Say ye to the righteous, it will be well with them. Say
to the wicked, be evil with them. Righteous will eat the fruit
of their doings. Are they their doings? Or are
they the fruit of the omnipotent, all-powerful, almighty God? Who
delivered that remnant that was right there in the midst of them?
Who delivered that remnant? Who gathered them from the four
corners? Who's gathering them right now? Who's calling out
His elect right now? Who redeemed them? Who bought
them? Who's carrying them on to glory? Who's carrying them
on His shoulder like a shepherd carries a little lamb? Who's
doing that? But to the evil, the works of
His own hands. He didn't regard the operation
of God's hand, just the work of His own. So he'll eat the
work of his own hand. Rotten, bitter fruit. Go out
there and get you one of them dried leaves, mush down on it
for lunchtime. That's what the wicked are chewing
on this morning. Some are calling themselves Pharisees,
some are calling themselves Sadducees, some are calling themselves Scribes,
some are calling themselves Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists. Some would
call themselves Christians. Some would call themselves Catholics. Some would call themselves Pentecostals. Some would call themselves Baptists.
Some would call themselves Presbyterians. Just eating chaff. God's people
are feeding on His Word this morning. And they're doing it
because He's the God of power that feeds His people with judgment
and righteousness. They feed after their match.

Work of the Lord, Operation of His Hands

What does the Bible say about the work of the Lord?

How do we know God's sovereignty is true?

Why is God's grace and truth important for Christians?

What does Isaiah 5 teach about judgment and mercy?

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Work of the Lord, Operation of His Hands

What does the Bible say about the work of the Lord?

How do we know God's sovereignty is true?

Why is God's grace and truth important for Christians?

What does Isaiah 5 teach about judgment and mercy?

Sermon Transcript

About Clay Curtis

Comments

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