Isaiah 65. Isaiah 65. I'm actually taking the title from the words found in verse 9. Let's read verse 9 again. Isaiah 65 verse 9. God said, I will. I will. Now if He says I will, it shall be done. I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob. He's talking about Jacob have I loved. God talking about saving a people for Christ's namesake. I will bring forth a people out of Jacob, my elect, and out of Judah, an inheritor of my mountain, my kingdom, and my elect, and mine elect shall inherit it. All we have in the Lord Jesus Christ is the inheritance of grace. We don't have anything we've merited. We've inherited every blessing we have by His sovereign purpose and grace. And my servants shall.

Notice, I will and they shall. That's covenant language, isn't it? Remember Jeremiah 32. I will and they shall. They shall dwell there. Dwell forever with the Lord and there shall we ever be with the Lord. Comfort one another with these words. So I'm entitling the message from the words found there in verse 9.

The elect of God, the elect of God shall inherit salvation. Now salvation, we know, is the gift of God. Salvation, we know, is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation, we know, is by the sovereign will of God and the grace of God. God saves sinners on purpose. He's chosen his people to be heirs and joint heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with the Lord Jesus Christ. There is an election of grace. There is an election of grace of sinners unto salvation.

This blessed truth is taught throughout the word of God. That truth is mentioned several times in this chapter. In verse 22, it talks about my elect shall enjoy the work of their hands. How do we enjoy the work of their hands? Christ is the work of our hands. And then again, he says, I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob and the elect of God shall inherit it.

So there is such a thing as the election of grace. What is election? I think I know what it is. But whatever it is, it's in Christ. He is the elect. We are chosen in him. The first time that word is used in scripture, the elect, remember Isaiah 42 verse one, behold my servant, my elect, and who my soul delighted, the Lord Jesus Christ, he is the elect. We are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. That's what election is.

Now, being a natural son of Abraham does not mean that you are one of the elect of God. Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made, but he sayeth not, and to seed as of many, but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ. You remember those Jews said to the Lord Jesus Christ, well, Abraham was our father. He said, if you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.

He believed God. Remember what he said to those Jews who said, stand by thyself, come not near to me. I'm holier than thou. He said, you are of your father, the devil. And the works of the devil, you do. He was a liar from the beginning. He's calling them liars.

But there is an election according to the grace of God. God chose a people unto salvation. And I like what one old preacher said in the past, thank God he chose me before I was born. He never would have chosen me afterward. That election is the eternal purpose of God to save sinners in the Lord Jesus Christ. He chose us in him before the foundation of the world.

We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God, from the beginning, chosen you unto salvation. Had he not chosen us unto salvation, we never would have sought him, never would have called upon the Lord. We only call upon him because he calls us in mercy. You remember Romans 9, the purpose of God according to election shall stand.

Jacob have I loved. Esau have I hated. There is a remnant. Remember we studied in Romans 11, didn't we? There is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if it is by grace, then it's no more works. It can't be grace and work. It has to be grace only, always, alone, or it's not grace at all, not grace at all.

Now, in this chapter, we have the glorious truth revealed that Almighty God is going to call out his people, not only from among the nation we know as Israel, but also from All nations of people all over this world, God has a people. And of every race, tribe, kindred, tongue under heaven. You think about how many different races and kindred and tongues and people are there in this world? I mean, there are thousands and thousands and thousands. Africa, South America, Asia, China, Russia. God has a people everywhere. He has an elect everywhere. And He will cross their path with the gospel, and He'll call them out with the gospel of God. Sinners redeemed by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, saved by His mighty choice and grace.

You see, the Lord has always known His people. He knew us before we ever knew Him. Before I formed thee, said the Jeremiah, before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee and I ordained thee to be a prophet. He says that of every one of his people, every one of his children, every one of his elect. The foundation of God stand assure having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his. How long has he known us? Long before we knew him.

They sung a new song saying thou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof. For thou was slain and has redeemed us to God by thy blood and of every kindred, tongue, people and nation and has made us under our God kings and priests and we shall reign on this earth. not this one that we're living on right now, but he's gonna make a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. That's what will reign with him.

The Israel of God in the church of God is a spiritual nation, a kingdom of chosen sinners from among Jews and Gentiles. I jotted this down. In Isaac shall thy seed be called, Romans 9, that is, they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted for the seed. Just because you're a Jew, a descendant of Abraham, you can chase your genealogy back to Abraham, that doesn't mean that you're one of God's elect or chosen. In Christ, we're chosen. All of God's Israel shall be saved. None of his sheep can perish because he cannot fail.

He said, I give them eternal life and they can never perish. No man can pluck them out of my hand. He says, all that the father had given to me, they'll come to me. And those that come to me, I'll never, no never cast them out. They can never perish. We're one with him. There's no one going to perish in everlasting condemnation for whom the Lord Jesus Christ died as their surety and sacrifice.

If he paid our debt, there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ. Who can lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemneth? It's Christ that died. Yea rather, he's risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also, what? Ever lives to make intercession for us.

I will and they shall. I will and they shall. Now, verse 1. I am sought of them, Isaiah 65, verse 1, that ask not for me, I am found of them, that sought me not, and I said, behold the Lord, behold the Lamb of God, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.

We see the cause and the purpose of God's call in saving mercy unto Gentiles, who by nature, he says in Ephesians chapter two, you are without God, without hope, and without Christ, dead in sin. The Lord says unto us, this is the way of his salvation. This is the way he saved us. I was thought of them that did not ask, that did not call. I was found of them that did not seek me.

Now, in our experience of grace and salvation, before the Lord was pleased to call us by the gospel, in our experience of grace now, And experience is not salvation, but salvation by the grace of God is certainly something that we experience. In our experience of grace and salvation, before the Lord was pleased to call us by the gospel, we had absolutely no interest in the true gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Before God crossed your path with the gospel, before God convicted you in your heart of your sin and opened your eyes to see your need of the Lord Jesus Christ, you had no interest in the true Christ of God. We had absolutely no interest in the true gospel of God. We had no true saving knowledge of his person, who he is, of his work, what he had done. even though we might have been raised in very strict religion.

I often said this, and you probably remember me saying this. A person left to himself going up in a religious home will adopt the religion in that home. If you were raised in Iran, what would you be? If you were raised in a home of a Muslim family, you would be a worshipper of Allah and Muhammad. You adopt the religion of your environment. That's true of me, raised in works religion. That's true of many of you who were raised in religious circles but didn't know the gospel. even though we may have been raised in a religious home or maybe not.

By nature, we have no true repentance. By nature, we have no true faith. By nature, we have no conviction of sin. By nature, we don't know who God is. We have an idea that's an idolater, that's idolatry. We think too little of the God we whittled out in our mind.

But behind the reason of us eventually truly seeking the Lord and calling upon Him is the fact that He came to us with the gospel and revealed Himself unto us. After we heard the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation, what did we do? We trusted Him. After you heard the word of truth.

That's why we read there in Romans, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, But how then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? How shall they hear without a preacher? You cannot believe what you have not heard. You cannot believe something that you know nothing about.

How shall they preach except they be sent? God sends a message to His people. He crosses the path of His sheep. with the Gospel, with the message of salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished by Him, and God uses that preached Word to quicken us, to teach us, to draw us unto Himself. He called you by our Gospel. That's what God said, it pleased Him by the foolishest of preaching to say, those who are called to believe in Him. You see, the truth of the matter is we only seek Him because He first sought us. We only truly begin to love and believe Him because He first loved us. We only choose Him in saving grace because He chose us in that eternal covenant of grace. He said to those apostles, now you look at the story of the apostles. John and James, Peter and Andrew, they were just out fishing. Matthew, sitting at the receipt of customs. And the Lord crossed their path and called them out, follow me.

We only truly seek him because he first sought us. We only truly begin to love him because he first loved us. We only choose him because he chose us. That's what he said to those fishermen. You didn't choose me, I chose you. And I ordain you to be my servant. You see, we only believe the gospel according to the working of His mighty power. We only believe according to the working of His mighty power. As many as were ordained to eternal life, that's who believes the gospel.

That's why we don't browbeat people and beat up on people and buttonhole people and coerce people and tell people to come down front and make a decision, raise your hand, all those foolish things. As my, and I say my, and our dear pastor used to say, Brother Henry, preach the gospel of God's sovereign saving grace, exalt the Lord Jesus Christ, and leave folks alone. God the Holy Spirit will do the work of conviction. God the Holy Spirit will give every heart broken over sin. He's neither them of a broken heart. We can't produce a repentant soul. I can't give someone faith. I can't believe for someone. I can't repent for someone. Not even my own children. They have to repent.

And that's the gift of God. Faith is a gift of God. It is the Lord who has made us to differ. Right? He's the first cause. What do you have that you didn't receive? Now if you received it, For any by His grace, why would you boast? I am what I am, as Paul said. I am what I am by the grace of God. By the grace of God.

You see, the first cause of our seeking Him is His eternal purpose. Psalm 27 verse 8 says, when thou saidst unto me, seek ye my face, When he said to David, seek ye my faith, David said, thy faith will I seek. When he said, seek ye my faith, thy faith will I seek. And then another Psalm, Psalm 65, blessed is the man to whom the Lord chooses and causes us to approach unto him. You see, He's the first cause.

He's the last end of our salvation. He crossed our path with the Gospel, with the Word of Truth. Of His own will begat He us with the Word of Truth. A spiritually dead sinner cannot come to God until God in saving mercy comes to the sinner and fetches him and draws him out of darkness into God's marvelous light. And that's what He does. He turns on the light. We'll see. He is God.

Like walking into a dark room. We've all experienced this. You walk into a dark room, totally black. And you're looking for something in that room. You just don't stumble around in the dark trying to find that, do you? What do you do? Well, you hit that light switch.

And the light switch reveals, God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness has shined in our hearts to give us a light of the knowledge of the glory of God that shines in the face of Jesus Christ. When God turned on that light, we see the glory of God's salvation in the person, the Lord Jesus Christ. He's everything. Christ is all and in all. In Him glows all the fullness of the Godhead body, and in Christ we're complete in Him. Our Lord said this, and this is familiar to you. I'm not telling you anything you don't already know.

I read a sermon years and years and years ago, one of the first sermons I ever read, and tried to preach the message. But the old preacher said, people like to be told what they already know. And the scripture was from 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, for you know the grace of our God, the Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, that you through his poverty might be made rich. So these things I'm telling you that people shall be willing in the day of God's power. Have you heard that before? Many, many times. You've heard this before too, haven't you? No man can come to me except the father which sent me draw him.

And I'll raise him up at the last day. They all shall be taught of God and he'll raise them up at the last day. Paul in Romans 10 verse 20, Paul applying this verse unto the salvation that we enjoy says, I was made manifest unto them that ask not after me.

That word manifest means revealed. Revealed. Salvation comes by revelation, not education, revelation. Salvation comes by the revelation of God the Holy Spirit showing us that the Lord Jesus Christ showing unto us the Lord Jesus Christ in his person, who he is, God Almighty, in his work, what he has done, who he is, what he has done to accomplish salvation, and why he died, that God might be a just God and Savior. And this come to us by a revelation, a revelation.

Let's turn and read this. Hold your place there in Isaiah 65, and let's turn to Matthew 11. Matthew 11 is one verse, verse 25, Matthew 11, verse 25. At that time, Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth. Because I was hid these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed them unto babes, even so, father, for so it seemed good in thy sight." Look at verse 27, Matthew 11, 27.

All things are delivered unto me and my father, and no man knoweth the father. And no man knoweth, excuse me, all things are delivered unto me and my father, and no man knoweth his son but the father, neither knoweth any man the father save the son, and he to whomsoever the son will reveal him.

That's sovereign revelation, isn't it? Turn to one more in Matthew, find Matthew 16. I'm going over familiar territory, but it's okay. Our Lord in Matthew 16 said, whom do men say that I am? Verse 13. And they said, some that said, well, you're maybe John the Baptist, come back from the dead. Maybe you're Elijah or one other of the prophets, Jeremiah, or someone else, maybe Elijah, maybe Isaiah. But he saith unto them, but whom say ye that I am? Verse 16, Matthew 16, Simon Peter answered and said, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Wow, how do you know that? How did you figure that out, Peter? He didn't figure it out. Verse 17, Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Salvation comes by revelation of God the Holy Spirit, showing us that all of our salvation is found in Christ alone. The Lord Jesus Christ is made manifest and revealed unto us through the preaching of the gospel, the true gospel of God. concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. God has ordained the end, right? Predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, but He's also predestinated the means to arrive at that end. The means, through Christ in Him crucified, and the means that He has ordained, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of the Lord.

Now, In closing, let me give you this, back to Isaiah 65, verse 1, I'm sought of them that ask not for me. I'm found of them that sought me not. Now that just, just reading that doesn't even make sense. I'm found of them that didn't, that's the way of grace.

And then the Lord's, I said, behold me. In case you missed it, he says again, behold me unto a nation, unto a bunch of sinners that was not called by my name. That's Gentile dogs. God has a people and he's going to call them out. Behold your God. Turn towards him. Fix your eyes. Fix the eyes of your mind upon him. Acquaint yourself with Him, admire Him, adore Him, look off from your idols that you have made, and look upon the living God who made you. One old preacher said, Matthew Henry. Behold Him, behold Him.

The message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is look unto me and be ye saved. Remember, turn back to Isaiah 45. Isaiah 45, behold, he said, behold, my servant, my elect, whom my soul delighteth. Isaiah 45. Isaiah 45, the last part of verse 21. He said, I'm the Lord, there is no God else beside me, a just God and Savior. There is none beside me. He's a just God, a holy God, a righteous God, and yet He's the light to show mercy. He's the Savior. Call His name Jesus. He shall save His people from their sin, and there's none else. Don't look anywhere else. Now, behold me. Verse 22, look unto me. Look unto me. and be saved, all the ends of the earth, for I'm God and there's none else. Look unto me, look unto me, behold my elect and my servant in whom I delight. But back to Isaiah 28 verse 16, we read that Paul quotes that in Romans 10. Isaiah 28 verse 16.

Therefore thus saith the Lord, behold, there it is again, behold, I lay in Zion for foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation, he that believeth shall not make haste. What is that foundation? Other foundation can no man lay than that which is already laid, which is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Behold, behold, behold, he said.

Ho, everyone that's thirsty, come ye to the waters. Remember, turn to Isaiah 55. We studied that several times, I think. Isaiah 55, verse 1, ho, everyone that's thirsty. Again, he's saying there, behold. Isaiah 55, 1, ho, everyone. That's thirsty, come eat of the waters. He's had no money. Come eat, buy, eat, yay. Come buy wine and milk without money and without price.

You see, it's free, justified freely by His grace. When the forerunner came announcing that the Messiah has come, John said, behold the Lamb of God, behold the Lamb of God that taketh away our sin. We can only behold Him with the look and the eye of faith. That's how we behold Him. Faith is a gift of God. This is a life of saving faith, always looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. It's always coming to Him as mercy beggars by faith. He said, come boldly unto the throne of grace that you may obtain mercy. Find grace to help. in our time of need. Look, look, look. I think one of the best illustrations, Old Testament stories, it teaches us to look to the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Lord Himself, in John chapter 3, uses this Old Testament picture of the brazen serpent lifted up. Remember those people of Israel? That nation Israel?

They wandered in the wilderness for 40 years because of their unbelief. And they complained and complained. They complained about the bread from heaven. They called it light bread. They complained about the water. No water. And God gave them water. And they were ready to stone Moses and just always unbelief and rebellion against God. You know what happened? He sent those fiery serpents. And they bit the people. And then they cried, Moses, help us! Intercede for us! Be our mediator! What did Moses do? He cried to the Lord. Lord, we're dying. These snakes are everywhere. They're biting the people, they're dying.

He said, take and make an image like unto those fiery serpents, a brazen serpent, and lift it up. And that's a picture of Christ lifted up upon Calvary tree. And the Lord used that illustration He said, whosoever shall look unto that brazen serpent will be healed. You know who looked? Those who were bitten. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.

John chapter 3. That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Look! That's pretty simple, isn't it? Look! Look to the Lord Jesus Christ. Look to the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the only remedy. He's the only one that God has sent. You don't want to look anywhere else. Don't look to yourself. Don't look to your traditions. Don't look to a false refuge. Don't look to an experience. Don't look to emotion. Don't look to a feeling. Look to Him.

Exalted at God's right hand, seated, ever living to intercede for us. There is no other Savior. There is no other way. No other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved. Look to Him now. And you know what? This look here is looking. You remember Hebrews 12? I always quote that. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising his shame, and is seated at the right hand of God. Look to the one that's exalted and victorious, and thou shalt be saved. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.