OK, Isaiah chapter 18. I've entitled
the message this evening, A Present Brought to the Lord. Now, this
chapter 18 is Isaiah's message from the Lord to Ethiopia. And
you'll notice it's the same message that Isaiah had from the Lord
for Israel, for Babylon, for Moab and for Syria. Because if
I can say it one more time, there's just one gospel. There's just
one message for every audience and every generation. It's the
message of our Lord Jesus Christ. In verse 1, this is the message
to the land of Ethiopia. Woe to the land shadowing with
wings which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. Israel had been
told, come to Ethiopia to hide from the Assyrians in the shadow
of our big mountains. And Isaiah has a message for
Ethiopia. But how's that message going
to be delivered? How's that message going to get from Israel to Ethiopia? How are God's people there in
Ethiopia going to hear that message? Well, they're going to hear it
from one of God's messengers. Look at verse 2. To sendeth ambassadors
by the sea, even in vessels of bulrushes upon the waters, saying,
Go ye swift messengers to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people
terrible from their beginning hitherto, a nation meted out
and trodden down. whose land the rivers have spoiled.
Now, historically, this is speaking of messengers from different
countries being sent to warn of the Assyrian army coming and
the destruction that they're going to produce everywhere they
go. But spiritually, this is a picture
of God's messengers. God's messengers are swift to
go wherever it is that God would send them. And here's our message
to all men. We declare who man is and who
God is. This is a message to all men
telling us who and what we are by nature. Isaiah says they're
scattered. Now, scattered means driven from
God because of their sin. But not scattered randomly. You
know, if I had some marbles or something up here, tossed them
on the floor, they'd scatter every which way. I couldn't control
where they went at all. This is not talking about scattered
randomly. God doesn't scatter anything
randomly. The word means drawn, drawn by
the hand of Almighty God to exactly where God wills for them to be.
Now, that is God's elect, but you know, it's every human being.
Every human being is exactly where God put them to accomplish
his purpose. Whether you have a good neighbor
or a bad neighbor, they're there by God's purpose. They're your
neighbors, good and bad. They're all there because of
God's purpose. That was God's purpose for you and them. If
you go to work in the morning, you've got a good boss or a bad
boss, whichever way it is, that boss is there by God's eternal
purpose. And aren't we thankful? This
is true, God's elect. Whether or not these people come
to know Christ and believe Him and come to Him, this is not
left to chance or accident. They're exactly where God put
them. And it didn't start with them. You know that? It started
way back there with their ancestors. If you want to, you just go back
as far as you want. Their ancestors did what they
did. They lived where they lived. And everything they accomplished
in their life was accomplished so that at some point in the
future, God's elect would be in the place that He has ordained
for them to be from all of eternity. So that they'll hear the gospel.
And they'll be given faith in Christ, and they'll come to Christ.
They'll believe on Him. I'll give you a good illustration
of this. David Edmondson's wife, Teresa. Her mother was born and
raised in Nagasaki, Japan. One morning, Teresa's mother
left the house. She's going to go out for school,
but she's got a stomachache that morning. Instead of turning right
to go to school, you know what she did? She turned left to go
to the doctor's office. There she sat in the doctor's
office. You know what happened? The atomic bomb exploded in Nagasaki. Every single child in that school
was killed. Teresa's mother wasn't. She was
down the road. She had radiation things and
things to deal with the rest of her life, but her life was
spared. I know exactly why. She was just
a little girl. She hadn't given birth to Teresa
yet, and Teresa is one of God's elect. She's going to be born
and come to hear the gospel. Well, her mother grew up. She
became a interpreter. Met an American serviceman. Married
him. Came to the United States where
Teresa was born. Heard the gospel. Scattered. Exactly where God would put them.
That's exactly what that word scattered means. Drawn to where
God would put them. Impeeled. Scattered. Impeeled,
Isaiah said. That word peeled means polished.
It means dark, like polished brass. That's the Ethiopian's
skin. But that's our soul by nature.
Polished, dark, and black with sin. And that's why Isaiah says,
he said, we're a people terrible from their beginning. Now all
of us are terrible from our beginning. Isn't that what Scripture teaches
us? We're fallen in Adam. Guilty in Adam. When Adam fell,
guilt was imputed to us and a sin nature was imparted to us. We're terrible from our beginning.
All we can do or think or say or feel is sin. We are terrible
from man's beginning. And we're terrible from our personal
beginnings here on earth. We're conceived in sin, shapen
in iniquity. We're sinners by birth, sinners
by choice, sinners by practice. We don't have to blame our sin
on anybody else. It's our fault. We're terrible
from our beginning. And we have no hope of pleasing
God in ourselves. We're certain of earning God's
just punishment for our sin. And that's why Isaiah says next,
a nation meted out and trodden down. God's judgment will be
meted out in exact justice. In the exact proportion to our
sin, God's judgment will be meted out and we'll be trotted down
under the heel of the Almighty and separated from God. That's
what this phrase, whose land the rivers have spoiled, that
means divided or separated. We're separated from God because
of sin. But look at verse three. Now,
remember, this is a message to all men who man is and who God
is. All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth,
see ye, when he lifteth up an incense on the mountains, and
when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye, that the message of the gospel
is to all inhabitants of the earth." This message that I have
tonight is for every one of us. Every one of us. Do you dwell
on the earth? Are you an inhabitant of the
earth? Then this message is for you. God says that he has sent
this message for you. The gospel message is for you. Look and live. That's the message.
Look to Christ and live. God's going to punish every sin,
but look to Christ and live. The ensign that Isaiah talks
about here, he used this word several times in our study here
in Isaiah. It means a banner that they would
lift up on a mountain. They lift up somewhere so all
the army could tell where I'm supposed to go and what I'm supposed
to do. They would watch for that ensign to be lifted up. We'll
look back to a few pages in chapter 11 of Isaiah. For the believer,
that banner is Christ. He is Jehovah Nisi, the Lord,
our banner. In Isaiah 11, verse 10. And that
day there shall be a root of Jesse. which shall stand for
an ensign of the people." See, this is a man. "...which shall
stand for an ensign of the people. To it shall the Gentiles seek,
and his rest shall be glorious." This ensign is to be lifted up,
that we're to look for. It's Christ our banner. Look
to Him and live. And just to be sure we don't
miss Christ the banner being lifted up, God's going to blow
a trumpet to get everybody's attention. And the sound of that
trumpet is the sound of the gospel. the command of the gospel that
is preached by God's ambassadors. Look and live. Look to Christ
and live. And look at verse 4. When you
see Christ, there will be rest. For so the Lord said unto me,
I will take my rest, and I will consider my dwelling place like
a cedar heat upon herbs, and like a cloud of dew in the heat
of harvest. Now we see Christ and we hear Christ lifted up.
There's rest. Isn't there a rest for your soul?
And because Christ lifted up on the cross, because He was
lifted up as a sacrifice for sin, there is rest. If He wasn't a sacrifice for
sin, there'd be no rest. But He is sacrificed. So there's
rest for His people. There's rest in the sacrifice
of Christ. There's rest from all of our
works of the law, because Christ did them all. He accomplished
all of that for His people. He made satisfaction to God's
law. He did everything that God requires. There's nothing left to do. So
we rest. But you'll notice this is not
the church talking, is it? This is the Lord talking. I will
take my rest and his rest will be sweet. God rests himself in
Christ because God is well pleased in Christ. Salvation is only
found in Christ because God is well-pleased in Christ, and God
rests in Christ. Believers can only rest in Christ
because God rests in Christ. He rests from judgment. He rests
from... He rests. The work's finished. All His
work, His purpose of redemption is finished. But if you look
back at Psalm 132, here's another way God rests. He rests in Christ,
and He rests in His people. Psalm 132, verse 13. For the Lord hath chosen Zion,
he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest forever. Here will I dwell, for I have
desired it. I will abundantly bless her provision. I will satisfy her poor with
bread. I will also clothe her priests with salvation. And her
saints shall shout aloud for joy. There will I make the horn
of David to bud. I have ordained a lamp for mine
anointment. His enemies will I clothe with shame. But upon
himself shall his crown flourish." This is his place of rest. God
said, this is my rest forever. There will I dwell. He's going
to rest and dwell in his people. God's people are not going to
be lost. They're not going to be forsaken. Everything they
need is going to be provided in Christ. God will be with them. He rests with His people. This
is where He desires to rest. And when the world's going crazy
around us, and it is, and we're running around like chicken little,
the sky's falling, the sky's falling. God rests. I wish I'd learned that lesson
when I'm just all upset. God's not. He rests. We're worried and just fretting,
and God's at perfect ease. God says, I'll consider. From
my habitation, I'll consider what should be done. From my
dwelling place, I'm at ease. In my resting place with my people,
I'll consider what should be done. What do you reckon is going
to be done? Whatever it is, He wills. It shall be done, and it will
be right, and it will be good. I worry all the time. I wonder
if my plan is going to work out. I've got a plan for everything.
When are my plans going to work out? God never wonders. His purpose
shall be done. He rests. And when our God's
will is done, it's like clear air after the rain. We were coming
home last night and the rain had just swept through. Wasn't
the air beautiful? The clouds. When God's will is done, Oh, it's
so clear and beautiful. It looks beautiful. It smells
beautiful. Oh, it's wonderful. His will
being done is just like refreshing dew on the crops. And our God
is always at rest, knowing He's working everything together to
accomplish His will. And you and I would enjoy a whole
lot more rest if we just rest in Him. We really would. He promised
to be with His people while we just rest in Him. Well, we've
seen this over and over again here in our study in Isaiah.
Outside of Christ, God's judgment brings complete destruction.
He's promised to be with his people, but outside of Christ,
there's complete destruction. Look at verse 5. For for the
harvest, when the bud is perfect and the sour grape is ripening
in the flower, he should both cut off the sprigs with pruning
hooks and take away and cut down the branches. They should be
left together under the fowls of the mountains. unto the beasts
of the earth. And the fowls shall summer upon
them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them."
Well, God's going to come in justice, and He's going to cut
down every rebel sinner. Just as easily as a farmer cuts
down or prunes those grape sprigs. You know, they're kind of dry. They're not good for anything.
All they're doing is producing small sour grapes. Well, they're
good for nothing. They should be cut down, and
they are, easily. Well, God's going to do the same
thing when He comes to everyone who refuses to bow to Christ.
And they're going to be left like stubble in the open fields.
They're going to be left with a verge and a beast as a devourer.
Separated from God for all of eternity. And that's exactly
what we deserve for our sin. Not one person could ever argue
against it. That's what our sin deserves.
This is God's strict, absolute punishment for sin. But we've
also seen this repeatedly so far in our study in Isaiah. In
the middle of this justice and punishment that we deserve for
our sin, God's promised mercy in Christ. Look at verse 7. In
that time shall the present be brought unto the Lord apostle
of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people terrible from
their beginning hitherto, a nation meted out and trotted underfoot.
whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the
Lord of hosts, the Mount Zion." Now, God has promised to pluck
a people out of all this destruction and save them by His grace and
make them a present to Himself. Now, these people God's chosen
and He saved them. Did God choose them and save
them because they're better than all these other people who are
being destroyed? You know, they're being destroyed because of their
sin. Are they better than these people who've been destroyed?
Are they less of a sinner? Have they committed less sins?
I know they're not perfect, but maybe they've committed less
sin and that's why they're not being destroyed. Well, are they? Is that the way God's word describes
them? Look how he describes them in verse 7. Scattered and peeled. and from
a people terrible from their beginning hitherto. A nation
meted out and trotted underfoot, whose land the rivers have spoiled."
Isn't that the exact description he has in verse 2 of all men?
It sure is. This is God's people. They're
driven from God because of the blackness of their sin. They're
fallen in Adam. They're guilty in Adam. The only
nature they have is a sin nature, a nature that hates God, a mind
that's enmity against God. A nation that deserves to be
trodden down. When God's judgment comes, His
judgment is meted out. It's exactly the same description
of all of us by nature. But by God's grace, He's going
to pluck some out. He's going to bring them to the
place of the name of the Lord of Hosts. That's His church,
Mount Zion. They're going to be called to
the church that's called by the name of Christ. They're going
to be called to the body of Christ. Now, how's that going to happen?
When God gives faith in the message that his messengers bring. Now,
if you look over in Acts chapter 8, God gives us, he records in scripture,
the beginning of the fulfillment of this prophecy in Acts chapter
8. In verse 26. And the angel of the Lord spake
unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south, unto the
way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert."
Now, Philip, earlier in this chapter, he'd been in a great
revival in Samaria. And everybody's interested in
a revival. We'd like a revival in our day, wouldn't we? Well,
you want to know how revivals happen? Revivals happen through
the preaching of the gospel. Philip came to Samaria, he preached
the only message he had. He preached Christ and a revival
started. Look at verse 5. Then Philip went down to the
city of Samaria and preached Christ unto them. And that's
all it took for this revival to start. He just came and preached
the only message he has, the message of the Lord Jesus Christ. And here there's a great revival
going on. And the Lord calls Philip away
from this revival. And I looked at that earlier
this week and thought, That would be like the Lord calling one
of us this past weekend to lead this conference. The Lord was
just blessing so unusually. And this would be like the Lord
calling one of us to lead the conference and go somewhere to
preach. That's just what John Chapman did. Sunday, he went
to Piper and preached. You know what he preached? He
preached Christ. Same message Philip did. And
the Lord called Philip to leave this revival and go to a deserted
road. This is the old Gaza road. It
was in the middle of the desert. And people didn't travel this
road much anymore. It's like we don't travel old
60 much anymore. People on that day, they didn't
travel that old Gaza road anymore. There's a nicer, newer road being
built. It probably had rest areas and stores and shops and places
to get water. Not the old Gaza road. It was
just going through the desert. But God sent Philip there because
on that deserted road, going through the desert, is where
God had scattered one of His sheep. And He sent His messenger
to him. And that gives us such hope for
our day. Our day seems like a deserted
place, doesn't it? We think, well, there used to
be some gospel here, but not anymore. There used to be some
reverence of the Lord in our country. Not anymore. Now it's
deserted. The whole world seems like it's
a dried up desert where no way there can be any life. But the
Lord still sends his preachers to desert areas. He sends his
preachers to people who are dead in sins. And when he does, they
all come with the same message. It's the message of Christ. Look
at verse 27. And he arose and went, and behold,
a man of Ethiopia and eunuch of great authority under Candice,
queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure
and had come to Jerusalem for the worship, was returning and
sitting in his chariot, read Isaiah the prophet." Now this
eunuch was somebody. He was the treasurer for the
Queen of Ethiopia. It's like a cabinet level position. He was somebody. But he'd taken
some vacation time to go to Jerusalem because during one of these feasts,
he'd heard about the Jewish religion. He'd heard some things in his
land about the God of Israel, and he was looking for something.
He probably didn't know what he was looking for, but he knew
he was looking for something. He had a desire in his heart
to worship the Lord, whoever he is. He didn't know exactly
who the Lord is or where this desire came from, but he had
a desire to worship the Lord, to find out more about him. So
he went to Jerusalem during this feast. He came to the feast. He saw the feast. He saw the
ceremonies and everything going on. He saw it all. Now the feast
is over. And he's going back home just
as empty as when he first got there. He was leaving without
any more knowledge of the Savior than when he came. He didn't
know any more about true worship. He didn't know anything about
how God saved sinners. More than he did, he left Ethiopia.
But while he was there, He was able to buy a scroll. He was
able to buy the writings of Isaiah. The very writings we're studying
on Wednesday nights. And as he was sitting in his
chariot, riding on his way home, he was reading that scroll. He
was reading the Word of God. Now, God's getting ready to save
a sinner. That sinner's going to hear the Word. That sinner's
going to read the Word. He's going to come in contact
with the Word of God Every time there is no exceptions to that,
because the word of God's the seed that God uses to give life. And I'm always encouraged. I'm
so encouraged with someone who's never heard the gospel before.
They come here, the gospel, and they leave scratch in their head.
They got questions. I think I've never heard anything
like that before. That's not what I've always been
taught. I disagree with that. But instead of going to their
old church history or some old theology or just looking at what
they've always been taught to find answers, if that person
will go to the Word of God, I want to know what the truth is. I'm
not going to find it from my old teachers. I'll tell you where
I'm going to find it. In the Word of God. And if that
person starts reading the Word of God to find out what God says,
it could be God's getting ready to move in mercy. Planting the
seed of life. Could be. That's what happened
to this eunuch. And this eunuch is a picture
of us. And none of us are somebody like he was. You know, we all
think we are, don't we? But we're not. And nobody here has black
skin like he did. But our hearts just as black
with sin as his was. And this man had no understanding
of who God is. And we didn't either until God
gave us life and gave us understanding. But here's how this man is a
picture of every one of us. He was a eunuch. A eunuch cannot
produce life because he's maimed on purpose. That's us spiritually. We cannot produce life because
we were worse than maimed when Adam fell. When Adam fell, we
died. And we became servants of sin.
Often a eunuch became a eunuch so that he'd somehow be a better
servant. I don't know the logic there,
but that's what they did. When Adam fell, we died. So we
can't do anything but sin. We've become a servant to sin.
We can't think a righteous thought. We can't do a righteous act.
We can't understand a single verse of Scripture. We can't
call on God. We can't worship God. We don't
have any ability to do anything that will please God or to help
ourselves. The only way a sinner like us, eunuchs like us can
be saved is by God's sovereign grace. God's sovereign electing
grace coming where we are and doing for us what we cannot do
for ourselves. It's our only hope. And here's
this poor sinner. He lost. He's confused. He just he's empty. But he's
reading God's word. that bless his heart he doesn't
understand. So God sends him a preacher.
Look at verse 29. Then the Spirit said unto Philip,
Go near and join thyself to this chariot. Philip ran thither to
him, and heard him read the prophet Isaiah, and said, Understandest
thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except
some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he
would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which
he read was this. He was led as a sheep to the slaughter,
and like a lamb done before his shearer, so opened he not his
mouth. In his humiliation his judgment
was taken away, and who shall declare his generation, for his
life is taken from the earth? And the eunuch answered Philip,
and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this, of
himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth,
and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Now the
eunuch, he could understand the language. He knew the Scripture
was talking about some man. He didn't know what man. Philip,
who is this man? And Philip took this opportunity. He began to teach to this eunuch. He began to teach him some church
history and some theology. And I teach him some Hebrew and
Greek because you can't understand all this if you don't understand
some Hebrew and Greek. No. Philip began with the same
message to that one eunuch that he preached to the hundreds and
thousands back there in Samaria. He preached unto him Christ.
Wouldn't you like to heard that sermon? You wonder what Philip's
outline was? Look back in Isaiah 53. I don't
know what his outline was, but I got a pretty good idea. The eunuch asked Philip, who
is this man? Philip could have told him, you know, many people
have asked that very same question. Look at Isaiah 53, verse 1. Who
hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the
Lord revealed? Many people have asked, who is
this man? Philip could have told him, here's the message concerning
this man. He's no mere man. He's the God-man. God became a man. God sent his
Son to become a man to be the Savior of sinners. Look at verse
2. For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, as a root
out of a dry ground. He hath no form or comeliness,
and when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire
him. The Lord Jesus is God's Son. He was born a real man. He's God's Son. He is God. But
God became a man. He was born a baby. And when
he was born, he was a helpless baby. He was totally dependent
on his mother. If she didn't take care of him,
he would have died. But at the same time, his mother
was totally dependent on him because that baby's God. You
could have crushed that baby just as easily as you could crush
an oak tree when it first spreads up through the ground. You know,
I've seen oak trees. I don't think I can move them
with a truck. But when that thing first sprigs
up from the ground, I can handle that easy. Just kill it with
no problem. That's the way this baby was. Just could have crushed
him so easily. Yet that baby is God Almighty. That's who this man is. Who is
this man you're reading about? He's the God-man. And he came
to this earth as a man because men are lost in sin. Men by nature
hate God. Man will not and cannot come
to God, so God had to send His Son to them to be the Savior
of sinners. Look at verse 3. He is despised
and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid as it were our faces from Him. He was despised and
we esteemed Him not. I'm sure Philip told this eunuch
how the Lord Jesus was perfect. In every way He was perfect.
He was holy. He was kind. He was loving. Everything
he did was good. And as a man, God's son worked
out a perfect righteousness. He didn't have to do that for
himself. He's already righteous. He did this for somebody else.
And as a man, he never committed a single sin in thought, word
or deed. Not one sin. But men are so sinful. This is the sin nature of all
mankind. We hated him and rejected him
anyway. Can you imagine? Rejecting someone
who's perfect, who's kind and loving and always does good.
That's what we do, because by nature we're so sinful and hateful. We would not place any value
on the Son of God who came to seek and to save that which was
lost. We esteem him not. Who is this
man? Mr. Eunuch, he's the only perfect
man to ever live. He is the sinless Savior. And man hates him anyway. Man
wants nothing to do with him. He's the only savior of sinners,
but man wants nothing to do with him because we're dead in sins. But thank God, God did not let
his people have their way. Oh, if they had their way, they'd
go to hell. God overrode their will and their way, and he saved
them anyway. But now if those people are going
to be saved, God has a people. He sent his son to save them.
But if they're going to be saved, they must have a sacrifice for
their sin. Somebody's got to offer a sacrifice,
so put their sin away. So the Lord Jesus was made to
be sin for His people. He suffered and He bled and He
died for their sins so He'd make them the righteousness of God
in Him. Look at verse 4. Surely He hath borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten
of God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes
we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray.
We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord hath laid
on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was
afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. He is brought as a
lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shears is
dumb, so he opened not his mouth. He was taken from prison and
from judgment. And who shall declare his generation?
For he was cut off out of the land of the living. For the transgression
of my people was he stricken." Who is this man? Oh, he's the
suffering Savior. The Lord Jesus suffered like
no man has ever suffered. He suffered at the hands of men,
but he also suffered at the hand of God. But not for any sin he
ever committed. He suffered for the sins of His
people. He suffered to put the sin of His people away. See,
all this sin and despair is talking about us. It's our griefs and
our sorrows and our transgressions and our iniquities. And the Lord
Jesus Christ bore them all in His precious body on the tree
and put them away. Washed them away under the blood
of His sacrifice. And listen, He went willingly. They didn't drive him kicking
and screaming. He went willingly to die for an elect people. He
went willingly to suffer and die just as silently as you lead
a lamb to be sheared. He suffered and he bled and died
for my people, for an elect people. He is the suffering, successful
Savior, sovereign Savior, suffering God's judgment against the sin
of His elect. And this man, Mr. Eunuch, he's God. But he died. He actually died under God's
justice. Look at verse 9. He made his
grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death because
of though he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his
mouth. I'm sure the eunuch, maybe he
wondered aloud, why did he die? He's perfect. He's holy. He's
God. How could he die? I don't understand
this. And Philip answered, he died
because God made him sin, the sin of his people. And the law
demands him for death. And he died to satisfy the law. Verse 10, he died to satisfy
his father's justice. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise
him. He hath put him to grief. When
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. It pleased God's justice
to put his son to death. Because his son was made sin. But now read on, verse 10. Yet
it pleased the Lord to bruise him. This is something, the transaction
at Calvary was something God did. It pleased the Lord to bruise
him. Yet put him to grief when thou shalt make his soul an offering
for sin. He shall see his seed. He shall
prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in
his hand. He shall see the travail of his
soul and shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous
servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities."
The Lord Jesus Christ died for somebody. For somebody in particular. And whoever it is he died for,
they're going to live. They're going to live eternally.
They'll have eternal life. They could never die. Because
Christ died for them. He died the death that they deserve.
And they'll be forever with the Lord. They're righteous, so they'll
live eternally. But you'll live in forever. It's
not really the miracle here. They'll live forever, eternally
with the Lord. He shall see them. And you may
now stop, Philip. You just told me he died. How's
he going to see him? Philip, I'm glad you asked. Because
God raised him from the dead. It pleased the Lord to bruise
him. But it pleased the Father to raise him from the dead again,
because all that sin laid on him is gone under his sacrifice. So the Father raised him from
the dead. Who is this man? He's the successful Savior. He
accomplished all the pleasure and all the purpose of the Lord.
In verse 12, Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong, because he hath
poured out his soul unto death, He was numbered with the transgressors
and he bared the sin of many and made intercession for the
transgressors. Who is this man? He's the victorious
Savior. He is the one we preach. And Mr. Eunuch, I'm glad you
bought this scroll, but if you'd have bought any scroll, any scroll
of the Holy Scriptures, every verse would speak of this man,
this man. Pretty confident Philip's outline
went something like that, but he must have said something more
than that. He must have told that eunuch what baptism is.
Now look back in Acts chapter 8 again. Baptism is how a believer
confesses salvation in Christ. Where we picture our salvation
through the death, the burial, and the resurrection of our Lord
Jesus Christ being put completely under the water, picturing his
death and burial. And being brought back up out
of the water, picturing his resurrection. Acts 8, verse 36. And as they
went on their way, they came into a certain water. And the
eunuch said, See, here is water. What doth hinder me to be baptized?
And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest.
And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son
of God. And Philip commanded that chariot
to stand still. And they went down both into
the water, both Philip and the eunuch. And he baptized him. And when they were come up out
of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that
the eunuchs saw him no more. And he went on his way rejoicing.
He had the key to the rest of that scroll now, didn't he? Philip
was found at Azotus, and passing through he preached in all the
cities till he came to Caesarea. Now what do you have to understand
in order to be saved? Not much. Really and truly not
much. We have to understand our sin
and our guilt. We have to understand that Christ
is the Savior of sinners. But how much of all that do you
have to understand? I really don't know. And I am
confident not much. The Lord will teach you more,
but not much. But I do know this, Mike. I do
know who you have to know. I do know who you have to believe.
You must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I don't know
all you have to know. Some people want to put all these
restrictions on you. I just want to know this. Do
you know who the Lord Jesus Christ is? Do you know the Savior? If
you do, you're to be baptized. Philip commanded that chariot
to stop. We're going to have us baptism.
That eunuch believed Christ with all of his heart. And he said,
Philip, I've got to be baptized. And Philip told him the only
fence around baptism is this, faith. Do you believe? And that
eunuch said, I believe. Philip baptized him and the Spirit
caught him away. And that eunuch went back to
Ethiopia. What do you reckon he did when
he got there? He said, look at this scroll I got. Let me tell
you about this man I met and the message he preached. He fulfilled
Isaiah 18. The messenger came to Ethiopia.
Now look back quickly in our text in chapter 7. I told you
the title of the message was the present brought to the Lord. It says in verse 7, at that time
shall the present be brought unto the Lord of hosts of a people.
The people, His people, His elect people are His present. Now I'll
show you that if you look in Psalm 2. Psalm 2. His people are the present
that's brought to the Lord. Psalm 2, verse 6. Yet have I
set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree. The Lord has said unto me, Thou
art my son. This day have I begotten thee.
Ask of And I will give thee the heathen for thine inheritance,
and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Ask
me and I'll give them to you, the son asked. And the present
brought to the Lord is the heathen. The heathen. Now I don't know
about you men, but when I know something's coming up, a birthday
or Christmas or anniversary or something, I put a lot of thought
into a present that I'm going to get for Janet. I want it to
be something nice. I don't want it to be something
like a heathen. I want it to be something nice. I want to
put it in a nice package and make it look nice. A heathen like me? Is a present
to the Lord of hosts? How can that be? I'm an insulting present. By
nature we are. But you ought to see God's people
as Christ has made them. You ought to see them washed
in His blood. You ought to see them as God sees them. Perfect,
spotless, without spot or wrinkle in the Lord Jesus Christ. That's
God's present to Christ. And Christ, when all His purpose
is done, He's going to say, Father, here they are. And present them
back to the Father. Here they are. All of them you
gave me are here. They're perfect. Here they are. What a present. What a present.