Let's pray together. Almighty God, we come before
thee in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and we give thee
thanks for this opportunity to worship thee together. We are
aware of the privilege that is ours this night to be able to
gather here and to enjoy the facilities that are provided,
appreciate the fellowship of those who gather with us with
a similar motivation. But our greatest blessing above
all things is to know that the Lord Jesus Christ is pleased
to meet with his people where two or three are gathered in
his name. And we ask our God that they will remember that
promise this evening, that we indeed coming seeking audience
of thee will find thee to be here and that we will have that
privilege of entering into thy presence in a more real and personal
and intimate way as we wait upon thee and we seek thy face and
we ask for thy mercies to be revealed to us both in the preaching
of the gospel and the worship of God We ask that thou wilt
be pleased to meet with and minister to each one gathered here this
evening. Thou know'st us, our God. Thou
know'st us in the depths of our being. There is nothing hidden
from thee. Thou know'st our hearts. Thou
know'st our souls. Thou know'st the things that
go through our minds. Thou know'st the condition of
our spirit before thee. We pray that all things being
open and bare before thy all-seeing eye will be blessed to us this
night as thou dost set things in order and present the Lord
Jesus Christ unto us once again in a spiritual way, meeting our
every need. As we come unto thee, we pray
it will be as those with empty plates asking for a portion of
blessing. It will be as those who are aware
of their need and seek that filling which only thou canst give. That
there will be a humility and a sincerity and an earnestness
about our coming. and thou wilt be pleased to bestow
such rich blessings upon us as thou alone knowest we require.
And send us from this place with a skip in our step, rejoicing
in our heart that the Lord has been pleased to meet with us,
to speak to us, and to touch our hearts and souls with power
from on high. We rejoice in the wonder of the
gospel which thou hast revealed to us and deposited amongst us. We are so grateful and thankful
that thou hast been pleased to give us an opportunity in these
days to gather around it, to declare it, to seek to uphold
it in all of its majesty and wonder. We pray that in these
days and in the days to come, thou wilt give access and openness
to the preaching of the word in this place and in this community. And there will be many souls
touched with the preaching of the gospel as thou art pleased
to gather thy people unto thyself. So we wait upon thee now, our
God, and we ask for a calmness and a peace as we turn to thy
word. We pray that thou wilt open it
to us. and that thou wilt be pleased to bless us in the ministry
of the gospel. For Jesus' sake we ask it, amen. Our reading then is in Isaiah
chapter 43 and beginning at verse one. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not, for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers, they
shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned. neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the
Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour. I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Sheba for thee. Since thou wast precious in my
sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee. Therefore
will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. Fear not,
for I am with thee. I will bring thy seed from the
east and gather thee from the west. I will say to the north,
give up, and to the south, keep not back. Bring my sons from
far and my daughters from the ends of the earth, even every
one that is called by my name. For I have created him for my
glory. I have formed him, yea, I have
made him. Bring forth the blind people
that have eyes and the deaf that have ears. Amen. May God bless
to us this reading from his word. As the Lord will enable, I want
to spend a few minutes together with you considering some of
the themes that we find in these few verses. I want us to look
at what the Lord Jesus Christ says to us in these verses with
respect to those things which he has done for us and the accomplishments
that he has achieved for his people. I have a title for my
sermon and it is simply this, how much are you worth? How much
are you worth? The Lord Jesus Christ claims
his people and he claims ownership of his people. He declares his
interest in his people in the opening verse before us. He says
that not only upon the basis of creation, but also upon the
foundation of redemption and calling, he has ownership of
his people. The Lord says that by that ownership
and that interest, he is declaring his everlasting love for us. I was so pleased when our brother
read the psalm he did, that he made reference there to the everlasting
mercy that we have in Christ. God's mercy is from everlasting
to everlasting. And when we see the everlasting
nature of God's love towards us, when we lay hold and grasp
the fact that God's love to us is not a new thing, God's love
to us is not a recent thing, nor is it dependent upon anything
that we do in our lives, but it transcends our lives, indeed
the life of this world and extends into eternity and from everlasting. and the blessings of God to his
people founded upon his love revealed in his mercy and his
justification of a people from all eternity is the ground upon
which we stand and are the blessings to which we are heirs and joint
heirs. We have been made to sit in heavenly
places with Christ Jesus. He has made us heir of all things
in Him, and these everlasting benefits and blessings ought
to be the constant theme of the Lord's people. And I trust that
this witness here in Kingsport and those places who love the
Lord throughout this land and those churches and other places
will continue to sing this hymn, this great praise of the everlasting
love of God and how that love has, from everlasting, reached
into time and secured the deliverance of a people whom the Lord Jesus
Christ is pleased to call his own and to demonstrate and reveal
his ownership and interest in. The Lord's love for his elect
people and the promises that he has given to his church ought
to be a daily comfort to us. Every day, no matter what we
face, every day no matter what the challenges are, we rise in
the morning from our beds rejoicing in the fact that whatever this
world throws at us, whatever Satan might seek to do in order
to discourage and trip us up and make us to struggle, the
everlasting love of the Lord Jesus Christ secures our eternal
deliverance and well-being. We to whom and in whom Christ
is revealed are a people of covenant blessings. God has made a covenant
with Christ and with the Holy Spirit, and we are the recipients
and the beneficiaries of that covenant. We are held in place
by it, and that great promise that God has within the Godhead
manifests itself in the redemption and the keeping and the securing
of that people whom he loves. Covenant of grace that we speak
of, the everlasting covenant, as it is referred to many times
in scripture, is founded upon God's unchanging love. And every blessing is ours because
of that love. Every good and perfect gift is
ours because of that love. Every happiness is assured cause
of that love. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. Prophet is writing here to Jacob
and to Israel. That is who he identifies as
the recipient of this letter, this prophecy. And it's very
interesting to think that even in the way in which he has phrased
this, he has given us a lovely glimpse of the gospel. It is
said that Isaiah was like the eagle of the prophets, for that
perspicuity, that depth of insight, that tremendous vision that he
had of the coming of the Messiah and the accomplishment of the
plan of redemption. And here we see a lovely indication
of that even in shadow form as he refers to Jacob and to Israel. Jacob, you will remember, was
that one who was the twin of Esau, and yet he came from his
mother's womb in second place. But he sought the blessing for
himself, and he always was that deceiver. He was that supplanter. He was that trespasser who sought
to go beyond that limit that was given. But he became Israel, the Prince with God. And that
transformation, that change, was not because Jacob was able
to pull himself up by his bootstraps, to change his lifestyle, to alter
his demeanor. It was because he became a prince
with God. God made him. an heir of salvation. God brought him to that place
of acceptance. God honoured him and set him
up. And the sovereign grace of God
is even revealed here to us in the very titles that are used
to describe the people of God to whom this prophecy is presented. But we would be mistaken if we
imagined that this is simply a reference to one individual
or even indeed to that people who are named of his name even
to this day. Of course there is a spiritual
dimension to this and we read our Old Testament scriptures
with New Testament eyes, understanding and discerning that here in type
and in picture and in shadow is the whole of the gospel revealed
to us. that which soon would be manifested
in the coming of Christ, the Messiah long foretold and prophesied. And we know from the New Testament
that we are to interpret these terms of Jacob and Israel in
a spiritual way. Paul does so, does he not, in
Romans chapter 9? There in verse 6 he says, not
as though the word of God hath taken none effect, Speaking about
the nation Israel, for they are not all Israel, which are of
Israel. Here's the difference. You have
to discern, you have to rightly divide. They're not all Israel,
who are of the nation Israel. And again, in a couple of chapters
later, in the 11th chapter, verse 26, Paul says, and so all Israel
shall be saved. As it is written, there shall
come out of Zion the deliverer and shall turn away ungodliness
from Jacob. There we can see both Israel
and Jacob being mentioned in the context of a spiritual people
who are redeemed and whose iniquities are dealt with, whose sins are
taken away, who find an acceptance because of the gospel of our
God. You remember what the Lord said
when he was gathering his disciples around him? that there was one
who was at prayer. He was worshipping God. He was
called by his brother. Philip went to get him and said,
come on, see this man. Surely this is the Messiah. Nathanael
came to the Lord and the Lord said to him, ah, an Israelite
indeed. What are you saying, Lord? Of
course I'm a Jew. Name like Nathanael. No, he was
one of the elect. Christ was identifying that he
was an Israelite, indeed a spiritual man, a man who even then understood
the true spiritual reality and the true spiritual manifestation
which was given in the person of Jesus Christ. He was a child
of God in whom was no guile. He was a sinner like everyone
else, but he had been made pure by the righteousness of Jesus
Christ. Jude, the writer of the epistle
at the end of our scriptures, writes to those who are sanctified
by God the Father and preserved in Jesus Christ and called. This is the people who are being
identified in this opening verse. Those who are called in time
by the gospel, those who are called effectually by the Holy
Spirit, those who are sanctified by God, those who are preserved
in Jesus Christ. These are the people that are
called the children of God. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, he that formed thee, O Israel, fear not,
For I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name. Thou
art mine. Ownership belongs to the Lord. Ownership belongs to Christ. Thou art mine. He gives us a
couple of indications as to the ways in which we are to understand
that ownership. We are his by creation. We've read it. Because of the
Father's love for the Son, because of the Father's love for the
Son, God created men upon the earth to be His Son's eternal
companion. The Lord Jesus Christ was presented
with a bride. Because of the father's love
to the son, he made a people that would be his sons. And that people are his by creation. And because of that love, he
made them a new spiritual creation. Ephesians 2.10 says we are His
workmanship created in Christ Jesus. I was thinking about that,
what it means to say we are His workmanship and I'm sure in your
television broadcasts, as in those things that go out in the
UK as well, you have these programmes where the television presenter
will go around looking for old things that might be of value,
things that would ordinarily be thought of as inconsequential,
maybe even junk. And then he picks it up, and
he looks underneath it and his eyes widen as he recognises some
little indicator, maybe a name scrawled on the bottom or some
date or some number which makes it more than just a violin or
a vase or some piece of junk, but something that is so valuable
that it was never imagined. And what made the difference?
Well, the person who made it. It may not have looked any different
from another, but once you see who made it, then the value of
it increases. Well, that's God's workmanship
that you see in the life of those who are born again. It is God's
workmanship and those who are Christ's, those who have been
created anew in Him, those who are created in Christ Jesus,
they bear the marks, they bear the hand of the workmanship of
God. We have a beautiful country around
here. It's lovely and I've enjoyed
once again the opportunity to see some of the sites around
and about. Thank you. But there is nothing
to the beauty that he has created in the souls of fallen sinners
because of his love for his son. He said, I am gonna give you
something so valuable, something so beautiful, something so lovely
that it will thrill the soul, it will thrill the heart of the
Lord Jesus Christ himself. A bride so beautiful, and he
made men to be honorable and to be holy in him. God's workmanship,
we are created in Christ Jesus. Not only are we created, thus
saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee. Here is a creation and a formation. What's different? Well, the elect. here have been created in Christ
Jesus and formed or conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus
Christ. So not only have we been created
by God, but we have been created to look like Christ. We have
been made in his image. People think that the Lord Jesus
Christ was born as a man and that we, as it were, with our
humanity, with our head and our arms and our legs and our bodies,
that was the pattern that the Lord Jesus Christ took when he
came as a child. No, humankind is made in the
image of God. And when Christ came, he took
the body that had already been prepared for him and he entered
into that body and he came amongst his people. And here we see that
the elect people of God are formed to be like Christ, conformed,
made like Him, spiritually united to Him as one with Him. Romans 8, 29, a verse you are
very familiar with, I am sure. Whom He did foreknow, that is,
whom He loved before time. He also did predestinate. to be conformed to the image
of Christ. People say, oh, you're the people
that believe in predestination to heaven. Well, actually not. We believe that we are predestinated
to be conformed to the image of Christ. Heaven is where we're
going, but we are conformed to him. We've been formed. to be
united to Him so that where He is, there we will be also. It's consequential that we will
be in heaven. We will be wherever Christ is
because we are formed to be like Him and with Him and united to
Him. This is the elect people. We
are made like Christ. He is the firstborn among many
brethren, and we have a family tie with him. We are brothers
and sisters with him. We have one father. We have a
likeness to him. There is a name that we bear,
and that is the name of the family. And so you see the resemblance.
When you look upon the Lord's people, you see the resemblance
of the Lord himself. And that's not because we're
trying harder than anybody else. It's because that's the way the
Lord has formed us to be. We are predestinated to be conformed
to the image of his son. The elect people are a people
adopted into God's family. And of course, when we think
about adoption, we must remember that the choice in adoption does
not rest upon the child's shoulders, but it rests upon the parent's
shoulders. Children don't adopt parents. Parents adopt children. And they do it, don't they? They have to do it. They have
to go. And they have to go through the
process of adoption. And they look and they see the
children. And upon what basis? It's entirely
personal. But they make a choice. And that
choice alters the life forever of the child that they choose.
That's just the way adoption works. That child is no longer
simply going to be left, simply going to stay where it is. Its
whole life is changed because of the choice of the parent.
And so it is that God has a chosen people, a people that he has
adopted, a people where he has taken the initiative and he has
brought them into that relationship. He has formed them in Christ
and he has made them a people. Ephesians 1 verse 5 says, having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself according to the good pleasure of his will. You wouldn't
begin to imagine that somebody would come along to a parent
and say, we are imposing this child upon you, you will now
become their parent. That just doesn't happen in life.
And yet, here is people who will still say that the right of the
child is to choose God or not. No, it is according to the good
pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace,
wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have
redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according
to the riches of His grace. We are created in Him and we
are formed in Him to be like Christ and united to Him. These verses in Ephesians lead
us on to the third way in which we are seen to be the children
of God, and that is that we are redeemed by Him. We are created
by Him, we are formed in Him, and we are redeemed by him. This is the effect and the application
of the eternal purpose of God, that which he designed and desired
in eternity now comes to fruition as the Lord Jesus Christ himself
coming as a man, coming as the surety, coming as the substitute,
coming as the representative, coming as the deliverer, takes
that role, that office upon himself and stands before the holiness
of God in the place of his people and redeems them by the shedding
of his own blood. A people are sold under sin. By the redemption of Jesus Christ,
they are recovered and they are brought back. A ransom is delivered,
a payment is made, and God's chosen people are redeemed by
Christ from sin and from Satan and from the law and from hell
and from death And so Paul says, there is now therefore no condemnation. They are a freed people. They
are at liberty in Christ because of the redemption which he has
effected. First Peter chapter one verse
18 says, for as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with
corruptible things as silver and gold, but with the precious
blood of Christ as a lamb without blemish and without spot, who
verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world,
but was manifested in these last times to you. Foreordained before
the foundation of the world, the Lamb of God, no recent design,
an eternal purpose finding its fulfillment. in time as the Lord
Jesus Christ came into the world. That everlasting love, that everlasting
plan of God to redeem his people, to own his people, to take his
people to himself will be our theme in eternity and ought to
be so now. We ought to rejoice in this.
We ought to delight in this. We ought to speak often together
of these things, for we will sing of them for eternity. Thou wast slain is the new song
in heaven. Thou wast slain and hast redeemed
us to God by thy blood out of every kindred and tongue and
people, out of. It's not a universalism here.
This is a distinct people. This is a definite people, a
redeemed people. Thou hast redeemed us to God
by thy blood out of every kindred, tongue, and people, and nation. Election knows no natural barriers,
and nor should the church. Every blood-bought child of God
is my brother and my sister in Christ. They might be of any
nationality, they might be of any race, they might be of any
economic background, they might be of any physical or mental
state. If they are one of the Lord's
people, then give good testimony and give good profession to that
effect. Then we embrace them and we love them and we care
for them as we care for our own natural brothers and sisters
and more so. For these are our true brothers
and sisters in the Lord. Why? Because we have a common
father. We are brethren together. We
are in Christ under his ownership. Thus saith the Lord, thou art
mine. Children of God by creation,
children of God by formation, children of God by redemption,
and children of God by calling. Fear not, for I have redeemed
thee. I have called thee by thy name, thou art mine. The elective
purpose of God in the eternal decrees brings in time the application
of the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ. That ensures
the new birth of the Lord's people as they are called into new life
in Christ, to follow him in obedience and in faith. The effectual calling
The work of the Holy Spirit in effectual calling is a distinctive,
definitive, particular activity. The Holy Spirit calls individuals. He has called them by name. Some of us had the opportunity
recently to think about that little phrase in Matthew, depart
from me, I never knew you. Why did he not know them? Well,
he'd never called them by name. Of course, God's omniscience,
he knows all things. Ye workers of iniquity, depart
from me. I never knew you, but here are
people that he knows, because he called them by name. He knows
their name. Forgive me. I keep forgetting
people's names. I try. If I forget your name,
then give me the benefit of your graciousness, he forgets none
of his people. He knows who they are and where
they are, and he sends his spirit to get them. This is the effectual
calling. None of his people are lost. None are overlooked. None have gone too far, but they
will not be gathered and woe betide us. We'll be tight you
and we'll be tight me, we'll be tight the church. If we become
so judgmental, if we become so dismissive as to imagine the
failures and the faults and the falling away of some means that
they are beyond the pale and that they are incapable of recovery. The Lord is pleased to send to
the uttermost to gather his people. The Apostle Paul calls himself
the chief of sinners. I am so pleased that he did that.
We could argue all night about whether he was being hyperbolic
or telling the truth or what reasons he might have had for
doing so. He said he was, that's good enough
for me. And if he was the chief of sinners,
then there is a place for the deepest sins, no matter what
they might be. And we see that, we see that
in our own families. We see that in our own self.
We are often surprised at the depths to which our own depravity
can bring us. Let us be pitiful to those who
are in the depths and the snare of sin, knowing that only the
blood of Jesus Christ, only the effectual call of the Holy Spirit,
only the everlasting love of God will be able to bring such
an individual. This is the grace of God, and
it is grace that we preach, and so we must be consistent, and
we must be graceful to those whom the world rejects even for
their actions and for their lifestyle. The effectual call is revealed
to us in the work of the Holy Spirit. It accomplishes its purpose. God himself goes forth to achieve
the end of that which he desires. And in time, the Holy Spirit
secures the designed plan of eternity, as the gospel goes
forth and reveals those whom he has quickened in its trail. 2 Timothy 1, verse 9 says, who
hath saved us and called us with an holy calling, not according
to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which
was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. I don't know how these free willers
can read the same Bible as me and yet come out with a theology
that is so much topsy-turvy on its head. Every page speaks of
the everlasting, enduring, eternal love and purposes of our God. Now, if we are his, if we are
his, and that by creation, and that by formation, and that by
redemption, and that by calling, if we are his, what have we to
fear? What have we to fear? Now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. We may be subject to, we will
be subject to trials. We will be subject to the troubles
and the difficulties of this life. We will have great disappointments. We will have great anxiety for
ourselves, for our loved ones, for our little ones, for the
world around about us, our friends and for our neighbours. But our
preserver, has us in the palm of his hand, and no one can harm
us. That's the beauty of this great
elective work. He has secured us. He has promised
us deliverance. He has not promised us an easy
life. In fact, verse two, it seems
as if Isaiah is thinking about all the ways in which he might
magnify the troubles that are coming upon the people to whom
he is writing. He does not say, if you pass
through the waters, he says, when you pass through the waters,
I will be with you. Though the rivers would come
against you, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the
fire, you will not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. Our Preserver looks after us
and keeps us, and the depressions and the blackness that come in
this life and that affect us, and cause us to doubt and cause
us to struggle, the Lord knows about those dark days. And when they come, they will
not overwhelm us. When the persecution of this
world comes against us individually or collectively as His people,
as the church, when we feel a sense of helplessness because the people
we've trusted have let us down, Because the pastor we looked
to has proved that he didn't have the matter in his soul.
Because the congregation that we thought trusted in our direction
have proved that they no longer want to hear the truth and have
caused us great hurt or trouble. Because the son or the daughter
that we have raised up to follow after the Christian path has
done something that has so hurt us and so entered into our experience
and our life as to be like it takes a very fist and rips out
our heart and causes so much hurt and distress in a family
that we begin to wonder whether or not we can possibly go on.
When the very things that are closest to us let us down. I will be with you. Fear not. This is what we have. We need
to remember this. We need to trust in this. These
are the encouragements and the comforts and the blessings that
the Lord would have his people enjoy day by day. We will not be overflowed. We
will not be burned. I will be with you. I will be
your savior. Why does the Lord say that to
us? Why should he hold us in such
a regard? Why should he seek to do us so
much good? Look at verse four. This is a
fantastic passage. Since thou wast precious in my
sight, you will not be harmed. because you are precious in my
sight. It's really great to see these
little ones here and I am always encouraged and blessed when I
see children in a congregation. These parents, they will do whatever
they can to safeguard the well-being of their children. I dare say
it's become a little bit of a cult, the way in which people seem
to be worshipping their children these days. We need to be careful
with our children too, but we want to do the very best for
our children. Why? Because they're precious
to us. They're precious. And we are
precious to him. Our desire to do good to our
children has limitations. because we can only do so much
and there comes a time when they shake off the shackles of their
dad's instructions and their mother's advice and they go and
they do their own thing. They do and they will. But he has power over all things. And we are precious in his sight. Precious to the Lord. He regards
us as being precious. We're not valuable in ourselves. We're sinners. We're as corrupt
as the next man or woman. We've no intrinsic worth within
ourselves. We're no better than others.
We are of the same fallen race of Adam. nor are we precious
in our own sight. We know the kind of people that
we are. If the Lord has spoken to us,
if the Lord has taught us anything, he has taught us that we are
sinful men and women, not to be trusted, not to be depended
on. Beyond that which Christ does
for us and gives to us, we would be as lost as the next man and
worse. And we're not precious in the
eyes of the world. The world looks upon us with
disdain. It thinks that we are mad for
the things we say and do. But they are precious in the
sight of God and of Christ. Precious because he has chosen
them. And because he has adopted them
into his family. Because he has blessed them with
all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. We are precious to the
Lord Jesus Christ because the Saviour desired us in eternity,
and the Father betrothed that which the Son desired to Him,
and He has provided for them in eternity, and He has died
for them in time. We are precious to Him. That's
why the scripture compares the elect to precious things. Gold, jewels, precious stones
is how they elect, how the church is described in the word of God. We are a peril of great price. We are treasure. We are Christ's
portion. We are dear to him as the apple
of his eye. And, verse four continues, thou
hast been honorable. We are an honourable people,
precious in His sight and honourable. Not that we are without sin,
not that we have been preserved from the fall and its consequences. Yet the Father has honoured us
in eternity by choosing us by name and setting us in that place
of His blessed love. He has settled upon his church,
he has settled upon his people in eternity and he has honoured
them by that settlement. We are honoured by Christ because
he took our part to accomplish all that was necessary for our
redemption and we are honoured by the Holy Spirit who brings
life and faith and knowledge in the Gospel of the Son. We are honourable because we
possess faith in Christ. Honourable, for we have been
made holy in Him, for we bear the mark of His handiwork. Honourable,
because we are clothed in His righteousness. Honourable, because
He views us without sin, having taken that sin away and placed
it upon our Saviour. Honourable, for we are made in
Christ's image, and we are the temple of the Holy Ghost. We
asked the question at the start, how much are you worth? Precious,
honourable people, loved and cherished by God, redeemed and
saved by Christ, owned of Him, created by Him, formed to be
like Christ, redeemed by the Saviour, called by the Holy Spirit. How much are you worth? In verse
three we are told, of this people, I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Sheba for thee. I will give men for thee and
people for thy life." What a tremendous thing to say. Nations are expendable for the glory of his people. Nations are given up in order
that his elect might be gathered in. You remember the story of
the lady with the coins who lost the coin in her house and she
swept the whole house until she found that which was lost. God will turn nations upside
down in order to find his people. He will sweep the house from
top to bottom in order to discover his people. That precious thing,
that was lost. Isaiah 43, verses 5 to 8, and
we're bringing this to an end. I will bring thy seed from the
east and gather thee from the west. I will say to the north,
give up. the South keep not back. Bring
my sons from far and my daughters from the ends of the earth, even
every one that is called by my name, for I have created him
for my glory. I have formed him, yea, I have
made him. Bring forth the blind people
that have eyes and the deaf that have ears. We believe in preaching
the gospel promiscuously. We believe in preaching the gospel
to all men and women. We want it to go to the ends
of the earth, to the north and the south and the east and the
west. Preaching the gospel and declaring the glory of the Lord
Jesus Christ is the role of the church. And yet we will have
no involvement with most of the evangelism that goes on in our
world today, for it is A feeble excuse for any gospel that we
have come to learn and to love. But here is the promise of God.
Here is the sovereign accomplishment of our God. He will gather his
elect. I live in the north of England.
So every time I preach, every time I get up into the pulpit,
I can take this little phrase to myself. I will say to the
North, give up. And that's an encouragement to
me as I preach the gospel. I will say to the North, give
up. And to the South, here we are. Keep not back. You can get into
your pulpit. You can preach the gospel with
confidence. You can be engaged in this great
work that God is accomplishing, for he has chosen to use his
church in the gathering in of his people. Everyone that is
called by my name comes. They come because, as the Lord
says here, they have been created for His glory. God's people,
each and every one of them, are as precious to Him as His own
glory. If one be lost, then the glory
of God is impugned. If one fails to come, the purpose
of God is thwarted, and the power of God is compromised. If God
has so declared, we might well dwell comfortably in the shadow
of our Saviour. Fear not, I have called thee
by name, thou art mine. May the Lord bless and teach
us the value and the meaning of these lovely gospel words
in this day and in the days that lie ahead. Amen.