May I please the Lord to bless
us together this evening as we meditate in his holy word. Let
us turn to the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 23 and we'll read verse
15. Sorry, chapter 24 rather. Chapter 24 and verse 15. Wherefore, glorify ye the Lord
in the fires, even the name of the Lord God of Israel in the
isles of the sea. The word of God is very comprehensive
and it has words and encouragements and
instruction and correction really for every scene and situation
that you and I will be caused to walk through in this life
and it's very clear from the Word of God that the true Church
of God will never have an easy path as they pass through this
world and the reason for that again is really abundantly clear
we're passing through this world, it's not our rest, it's not our
home and we're on a journey and indeed may that journey bring
us at last home to glory and not on a journey that brings
us at last to endless misery and terrible situation in hell
and therefore the Lord causes his people to wander about, really, in this
world, realizing that there's no true resting place here. Of course, our nature often tries
to find comfort and ease and the situation so that we can
make things easier for ourselves, but we are often very ignorant
of the true Word of God, which doesn't really give us any encouragement
to expect such a path as that. And so, here in this Isaiah's
prophecy, in this chapter that we've read, the 24th chapter,
we see how there's that description of the earth in a pretty sad
and solemn situation. And yet, also, it gives us encouragement
to know that beginning at verse 13, it speaks really to the Church
of God, and it says, when thus it shall be in the midst of the
land among the people there shall be as the shaking of an olive
tree and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done well
we can imagine that it's a graphic situation of just a few olives
left on a tree and just a few grapes left on the vine and that's
really referencing the remnant the true Church of God there
will only be a few that always have been a few there always
will be a few and then the Prophet tells us they shall lift up their
voice they shall sing for the majesty of the Lord they shall
cry aloud from the sea wherefore glorify ye the Lord in the fires,
even the name of the Lord God of Israel in the isles of the
sea. And so, this verse tells us that
there will be those situations that God's people will be found
in, and it's described here as the fires, or as the margin renders
it, as valleys. what it clearly means it is not
on a mountaintop and that the church of God doesn't live on
the mountaintop sometimes for the blessing of God we do perhaps
rise up and find ourselves there but generally speaking it's in
the valleys and generally speaking it's like this in the fires but
nonetheless in this situation and recognising that it's the
Lord that has brought us there we are not to be discouraged
we are not to think, well we must be out of the way because
of this situation the word tells us here, wherefore glorify ye
the Lord in the fire so when things are going against us may it be a time when The grace
of God gloriously shines forth in our lives. You may remember
so many illustrations really in the Word of God, but just
a few, thinking of the Apostle Paul in his life. Well, we're
told he had a thorn in the flesh. We're not told what it was. It's
a good job we're not, because it can apply to anything in our
lives. But it was something which was
very painful and very irksome to him. And he prayed three times
that he might be delivered from it. And we may think, well, surely
the Word of God encourages us to pray. Yes, it does. And to
expect answers. Yes, it does. But not always
the answers in the way that we expect. because the Apostle Paul
received a gracious answer. And the answer was this, my grace
is sufficient for thee. He wasn't delivered from that
thorn in the flesh, but he was told God would give him grace
to withstand it, grace to continue. and that surely should be an
encouragement to us in our little lives not to expect deliverance
from situations which we may find ourselves in trying as hard
as they may be to realise that the Lord sometimes leaves us
in that kind of situation to show forth his favour and his
grace to set forth that he gives us enduring strength, enduring
grace to bear infirmities perhaps perhaps to bear oppositions perhaps
to bear unbelief sometimes the Lord you see brings us therefore
we might say into the fires and sometimes These can be very hot,
can't they? And they can be very discouraging. We may be sometimes tempted to
think, well, surely I can't be in the right path. Surely I must
be in the wrong path to find myself in a situation like this. Well, it may be that in that
path, in the fires, in the valley, we observe and see God's grace and
through that it brings honour and glory to God because other
people see the grace of God in us that's not for self-gratification
that's to see the grace of God and what does that bring then?
Glory to God surely then we have a situation here glorify ye in
the Lord not that which is the world will think of as being
a suitable object and a suitable remedy and a suitable outcome
but it's the way that the Lord leads his people so that they
are really nothing But Christ is all and in all. And again,
in this situation, what is the wonderful blessing? And it is
a wonderful blessing. And what is it? Union with Christ. Yes, it's a wonderful favour
to know that Lord Jesus endured the fires. He endured the valleys,
didn't he? In his life upon the earth, it
was far, far from easy. and that's the fact we might
say well no one has had a more difficult life and yet you see
the Saviour endured and glorify ye the Lord and surely the blessed
Saviour glorified the name of his Father didn't he? didn't
he bring glory to his Father? through his willingness to obey
his Father even in that extreme situation And so wherefore glorify
ye the Lord in the fires. And as we think of the word fires,
well, I'm sure we cannot forget to think about those three Hebrew
children in Daniel's day, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were
ordinary men. They weren't superhuman men.
They were ordinary men like we are. And yet, you see, when there
was that edict, that law passed that everybody should bow down
to the idol, they refused to do so. They refused to do so. Why? Because it was contrary
to the Word of God. The Word of God meant to them
much more than the commands of an earthly king. And yet, they
were made very much aware that if they disobeyed the command
of the king, they would be thrown into the burning, fiery furnace. But, blessed be God, they weren't
moved to dispense with the word of God. They weren't moved to
obey the decrees of an evil king, but they were given grace to
stand firm, and surely here they were, glorifying the Lord in
the fires. Now, they knew not what the outcome
would be, but they told the king that God could deliver them,
But if not, they were willing to die. He didn't know what the
outcome was. But you see, God brought about
a wonderful deliverance. And as we read that account,
it's very touching to think that the king rose from his seat and
said to those around him, did we not cast three men into the
furnace? Behold, I see four. and the fourth
is like unto the Son of God well the very clear evidence is that
the Lord was with them and we may not today have to
pass through that kind of situation although in some parts of the
world of course there are extreme persecutions today nonetheless
we have this Wonderful example set before us to realize that
even if called to pass through trying fires And it may not be
in a physical way It may be in a spiritual way. It may be that
people Accuse us and people speak wrongly against us and people
misjudge us Just like the Savior had in his life but The reaction,
you see, of those three Hebrew children was to obey God. And God was with them in such
a remarkable way, and so remarkable, that when they came out of the
burning fiery furnace, there wasn't even the smell of fire
upon them. When God grants a deliverance, it is a deliverance. when a mercy it is to realize
that we have a wonderful God a great and glorious God who
deals with his people for their profit and for their eternal
good so we should not therefore be surprised in our life that
sometimes we find ourselves in a scene like this it's like a furnace of fires
and perhaps they may sometimes be very hot but you know under God what will they do?
well under God they'll burn up that which is of the flesh sometimes
we need to go into the fire we need to go into the fire you
may say well not sure if I agree with that well we should agree
with it because the Word of God tells us really about the situation
and in the prophet of Zechariah 13th chapter the last verse in
that prophecy a prophet tells us and I will bring the third
part through the fire that means that there's no way of circumventing
it. There's no way of going around
it. I will bring the third part through
the fire. We should therefore realize that
we may have to pass through the fire. We may have passed through
the fire. We may be passing through the fire. And we should be thankful
if it is so, because if we are the children of God, the benefit
will be this. our religion will be refined. The blessing of God's fire is
to refine our religion. And that's to take us off ourselves. And that's to make us call upon
his name. And that's to make us seek his
will. That's to make us willing to
suffer for his sake. That's to make us willing to
submit ourselves under the mighty hand of God. Really, it means
to prostrate ourselves before Almighty God. Well, what is the Lord doing
that? Brings down our pride? That's
a great monster, isn't it? That needs some dealing with,
doesn't it? Because we're all proud by nature. Oh, it's a great
sin, isn't it, pride? The Lord speaks so much against
it. What a mercy when the Holy Spirit shows us that the Lord's
dealing with us because of our pride. We may be rebellious. We may not like God to deal with
us. And we may try and justify ourselves and think, well, I'm
not really as bad as that. It can't be that God's against
me. Perhaps it's because of our pride. The Lord therefore says,
I will bring the third part through the fire. And the position there
is that two thirds will be burnt up. Two thirds. Think of that. Think of that in your religion
and my religion. Yeah, we may be hanging on to things of the
flesh. My friends, we can hang on to
things that God has given. They won't be burned up. But we may have added some things
to them. The Lord sometimes gives us a
promise. And we may put our interpretation
on that promise. And it may not be God's interpretation.
And therefore the promise won't be burnt up, but our interpretation
will be. And what will that leave us with?
God's promise. And as we're left with God's
promise, we may find that it's a bit different to what we thought
it would be. Yes, a bit different. You may
perhaps think, of the life of Joseph. Those dreams that he had, they
were wonderful dreams, weren't they? Well, he wasn't to know how that
was going to be brought about. But he had to pass through some
really difficult times, didn't he? We're told, the Word of God
tried him. There he was in the prison. Can
this have been of God? Can this be the way? Yes, Joseph,
it is the way. It's God's way. It's an ordained
way. Many years will have to pass,
but the fulfillment will come to pass in a way that Joseph
could never have anticipated. But Joseph was brought down.
And when he came, therefore, before Pharaoh, it was to acknowledge
that it was God that revealed dreams. It wasn't his ability.
No, it was God. God was going to have the glory,
and he did. And, of course, there was the
fulfilment of that dream when his brothers came and bowed down
to him. Yes, what a fulfilment. God's ways. But, you see, He
had to pass through the fire, through the furnace. And we only have, of course,
a brief outline of Joseph's life, don't we? A brief outline of
what he passed through. We're just told a little, and
that little gives us a good insight into how God dealt with him. So, these accounts should be
strength to us as we think well surely no one has passed this
way and surely no one has had to endure such opposition as
I'm having to endure bless God we have these positions in the
Word of God and so here we have this statement then and I will
bring the third part through the fire and will refine them
Yes, when God refines, he purifies. Purifies, refine them as silver
is refined, and will try them as gold is tried. They shall
call on my name, and I will hear them. I will say, it is my people. And they shall say, the Lord
is my God. Isn't it a great blessing to
know that we have such a God that deals with us in love to
our souls, to rid us of fleshly religion, and to bless us with
that which is of His Spirit, that which He has given, and
that He brings about the right interpretation of it and the
right fulfilment of it And so as we journey on through life,
we have to lose that which was of the flesh. It may be painful
at the time, but as we look back, we'll have to agree with those
great words of David, as for God, his way is perfect. Wonderful thought, isn't it?
Wonderful truth. And it's a strengthening truth
to realize that the way that God leads us is a good way. It's not a bad way. In actual
fact, the Word of God goes further than that. It says it's a perfect
way. And so if this testing time,
this trial, brings us to the position where we come and say,
The Lord is my God. Well, there's no greater blessing
than that, is there? To be brought there. The Lord
is my God. Well, there we have the test
of Zachariah. And again, how thankful we should
be that we have these prophecies which pick up these points to
encourage us in our lives so that we conclude we are actually
in the way. We may have thought we were out
of the way. No, we're in the way. God is dealing with us as
sons and daughters of the Most High God. And then reverting
to the Apostle Paul again. Remember when Paul was in Macedonia. Well, what was he told to do?
He was told to go to Philippi and preach the gospel. Well,
that was an instruction from God What did Paul do? Did he
argue? No he didn't. He went into Philippi. And of course he preached the
gospel. But you see, he was arrested
because of what he and Silas were doing. Brought before the
judges and then beaten and put in prison. And what were they
doing? obeying the Lord God they would
never have anticipated that would they? and they set out from Macedonia
doing God's will blessed with the opportunity preaching the
gospel and then this which came upon them but what was the outcome? what was the outcome? well first
of all there they were in the prison And then they were much
afflicted. And what did they do? We're told
wonderful words. At midnight, in the middle of
the night, they sang praises unto God, and the prisoners heard
them. So it wasn't something done silently.
It wasn't something they just did by themselves. No, they sang
loudly so that the prisoners heard them. Surely there was
the outworking of this word, was there not? Wherefore glorify
ye the Lord in the fires. There was Paul and Silas clearly
in the fires, were they not? But God was with them. God hadn't
left them. And not only were they able to
do that, but he was also going to bring about the wonderful
conversion of the man looking after them, the jailer and all
his house. Well, what a wonderful way God
has in bringing about his purposes. And so, there was a glorious
outcome. to that situation. There was
Paul and Silas in the fires, but it brought glory to God. Wherefore, glorify ye the Lord
in the fires. And they were doing that, weren't
they? They were glorifying God when they were in that position,
in that prison house, at midnight, by singing praises unto the Lord
God. And these are wonderful examples
for us today, aren't they? in the midst of great affliction
to sing praises under God well what a mercy if God enables us
to do just that even the name of the Lord God of Israel in
the isles of the sea wherever it might be wherever it may be
to follow such a gracious and glorious injunction as we have
here because We were told they shall lift up their voice, they
shall sing for the majesty of the Lord, and they shall cry
aloud from the sea. What a good thing it is when
we read a testimony like this, but you know how sad it is, surely
in the day and age in which we live, there's not much like that,
is there? Lifting up our voices and sing
for the majesty of the Lord. And cry aloud. Cry aloud. Sometimes we're just too embarrassed,
aren't we? To cry aloud. We're too afraid,
perhaps, to cry aloud. We perhaps are too nervous about
what people will think and people will say. Well, we have these
words here and what a good thing it is. Wherefore glorify ye the
Lord in the fires. And then we also have this described
as in the valleys the valleys well perhaps we might
understand what David said when he was called to pass through
the valley he describes it to us in that well-known 23rd Psalm
and what does he tell us he says yea Though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For thou
art with me, thy rod and thy staff, thou they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before
me in the presence of mine enemies. David could write this from a
personal experience, couldn't he? and it's a blessing if the
Lord comes and deals with us so that by personal experience
we know that what David wrote is true and here he was, tells
us through the valley of the shadow of death it was a dark
place a dark place we may sometimes come into dark
places Just remember, in God's sight, the darkness and the light
are both the same. They're not to us, but they are
to God. Because God knows the end from
the beginning. He knows the way he's leading
you and me, the path we're taking. He knows. It may seem darkness
to us. It may seem very dark to us. The Lord knows. You see, the
Lord sees through the darkness. He knows the path and therefore
David had some dark valleys to walk through in his life. But
God was with him in those valleys. And God brought him out of those
valleys. He brought him out into a wealthy
place. And so, as we may be, found perhaps
walking. He says, I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death. We might find ourselves walking
in dark valleys. Doesn't seem to be any sunshine.
Doesn't seem to be any blessing of the Lord. Seems as though
we're far off. Can't see the sun. Can't see
the sun of righteousness. Well, what does David say? I
will fear no evil. Because he realised, even in
that situation, nonetheless, God was with him. God was with him. And so he says,
I will fear no evil. And he had this wonderful confidence. And my friends, if God is dealing
with us in love, as sons and daughters of the Most High God,
we should be able to have This same confidence in our God. What
does he say? For thou art with me. He's here
in the shadow of death, the valley in the shadow of death. But he
says, thou art with me. What a mercy to know God is with
us. God is with us. We may not be
able to see Him very clearly because it may be so dark. But
yet, faith, you see, stretches out. faith to believe the faith
that God has given us it's his gift we haven't produced it ourself
God's given it to us and therefore to have faith in our Lord God
that he brings us into the valley and he'll bring us up out of
the valley and so he tells us for thou art
with me thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. And we might
think about that as really the word of God directing us and
comforting us. And sometimes in these situations
to cast our mind back and to remember the way the Lord has
led us, the way the Lord has brought us into the way. And
so although we're now in the valley, remember it's still God's
way. And God's with us, and his word is a comfort to us. Thou
shalt remember all the way the Lord thy God has led thee. Yes,
and sometimes we need situations to look back and to remember
all the way. We may sometimes only remember
the high points. There are many other points when
God was with us. We should not forget them. And
what are they? A comfort to us. A comfort to
us. Yes. And he tells us then, Thou
preparest a table before me. God preparest spiritual food
for us, my friends, in whatever situation we might find ourselves
in. He tells us here, in the presence
of one's enemies, we can think of this, when the devil seems
all around us, yet the Lord can still come and feed our souls
the Lord comes and feeds his people with that suitable food
that convenient food that food which is good for them and not only that he anoints
our head with oil so that our cup runneth over a valley in the shadow of death
Yes, but God is there, my friends. God's there with his people.
He's with us every moment of our life. Because he tells us,
I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Therefore we may
boldly say the Lord is my helper, having proved it thus far. The Lord will not leave us, nor
forsake us. And he'll feed us with that suitable
food for us. So as David said, his cup ran
over. His cup ran over, surely we're
looking back and remembering the goodness and favour of God
toward him as he journeyed on through life with so many difficulties
and of course his own heart to contend with Yes, I'm not told
when this psalm was written, but we know, of course, the 51st
psalm was written after that tragic fall with Bathsheba and
the murder of her husband. But you see, God was with David
even then. God allowed him to fall into
that sin. That was a deep valley, wasn't
it, for him? But God was with him in that
situation. And God caused him then to look
again, to turn again, to confess his sins. You see, sometimes
sin is not very deep. Sin's a bit shallow. And there
are those things and there are those times when the Lord allows
us to perhaps to fall into greater sin so that we realize the wonder
of deliverance. and the wonder of mercy. And
then perhaps we have a much greater view of the Saviour, a much more
precious view, a much better understanding of the value and
the preciousness of His sin-atoning blood. It's all through the work
of the Holy Spirit. And so He comes. Confidence in
God. Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life. Whatever the situation
I'm found in, the Lord will be with me, goodness and mercy,
through his life. And he looks ahead on how good
it is if you and I can always look ahead. And I will dwell
in the house of the Lord forever. The Lord's dealing with us, purifying
us, fitting us for our eternal home. And so we see these valley
experiences. Well, if God before us, who can
be against us? The devil will often come and
tempt us and say, well, if you're a child of God, you would never
find yourself in a place like this. You'll never be as far
off as this. Well, just read on. What does the prophet say? But
I said, my leanness, my leanness, woe unto me. Yes, we may feel
like that sometimes. He goes on. The treacherous dealers
have dealt treacherously. Yes, the devil's a treacherous
foe. Never believe him. He'll make you doubt everything.
Never believe him. The treacherous dealers have
dealt treacherously. Yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt
very treacherously. We have these words to instruct
us and to encourage us and to direct us into what we should
expect and how we should face such opposition, realizing, as
David said, yes, notwithstanding all these things, surely goodness
and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall
dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Now, the great thing
is, to know that God is dealing with our souls, that we're not
being left to wander on aimlessly through this world and then to
fall into hell. We need to know that God is dealing
with us in love to our souls and here we have some little
evidence of God's mercy toward us in words like this, which
perhaps we might be surprised to find in the middle of the
prophecy of Isaiah. But nonetheless, they are very
appropriate for the true living church of God. And so may we
come and understand from our heart the reality of these words. Wherefore, glorify ye in the
Lord. In the fires, even the name of
the Lord God of Israel, in the islands of the sea. Amen.