Isaiah 65, we're going to look
at the first 10 verses. The Lord Himself speaking to
the prophet Isaiah in this section here. Isaiah 65, verses 1-10. This is the Lord speaking. I am sought of them that asked
not for Me. I am found of them that sought
me not. I said, behold me, behold me
unto a nation that was not called by my name. I have spread out
my hands all the day unto a rebellious people which walketh in a way
that was not good after their own thoughts, a people that provokes
me to anger continually to my face, that sacrifices in gardens
and burns incense upon altars of brick, which remain among
the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine's
flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels, which
say, stand by thyself, come not near to me, for I am holier than
thou. These, says God, are a smoke
in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day. Behold, it is written
before me, I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense
into their bosom. Your iniquities and the iniquities
of your fathers together, sayeth the Lord, which have burned incense
upon the mountains and blasphemed me upon the hills, therefore
will I measure their former work into their bosom. Thus saith
the Lord, as the new wine is found in the cluster, and as
one says, destroy it not, for a blessing is in it, so will
I do for my servants' sake that I may not destroy them all. And I will bring forth a seed
out of Jacob and out of Judah, an inheritor of my mountains,
and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell
there. And Sharon shall be a fold of
flocks in the valley of Achor, a place for the herds to lie
down in for my people that have sought me." Now this wonderful,
these wonderful first 10 verses in chapter 65, we behold taking
it The first section is found in
verse 1. This is obviously the prophecy
of the calling of the Gentiles. The second thing we're going
to see is found in verses 2-7, the rebelliousness of the Jewish
nation state. And thirdly, verses 8-10, a remnant
of elect Jews shall still be called. When all is said and
done this morning, and we look at these passages, these verses,
when all is said and done, when all is spoken and assessed, when
truth is sorted from error, we'll see that grace is still grace,
full and free, whether it's to the Gentiles or to the Jews. That's how God has always saved
His people. We saw that in a little bit more
extension this last past Wednesday in the book of Judges, a really
good example of how God saves His people. Old New Testament. Old Testament believers believed
the same gospel, the same God, the same righteousness, the same
sacrifice. They just saw it in type. Every
time one of those animals were sacrificed, every time there
was a law written about this or about the stranger or about
the servant, the believer saw the Lord Jesus Christ in that
and received it by faith. Consequently, the Old Testament
unbelievers, they just like today, they went to church, they performed
sacrifices, they walked aisles, they exercised their quote-unquote
free will, they did all this. It's no different than the Old
Testament. The Old Testament non-elect or the Old Testament
unbelievers They just went through the motions. They didn't know
why they were doing it. God said to do it. God says I have to
be here Sunday morning. So all these churches are full.
People are just going because they think they have to. They
may want to, but we saw that Paul said that his kinsmen according
to the flesh had a zeal after God, but not according to knowledge.
So the Old Testament unbeliever is the same as the unbeliever
up the street, down here in our midst or whatever. You're here,
you're just going through the motions. But when the Lord gets
a hold of the sinner, That's what we want. That's what we
ask the Holy Spirit to assist us. There's no difference. We're
going to look at these three things and we'll see that grace
is still grace. It's still full and free. The
first section, the gracious calling of the Gentiles, or us, the Lord
included us, in verse 1. I am sought of them that asked
not for me. I am found of them that sought
Me not." What a riddle! What a riddle! Turn with me to
Romans chapter 10. We'll just see where this passage,
and we know this is the Gentiles because Paul makes reference
to this very thing in Romans chapter 10, verses 20 and 21. He says in verse 20 of Romans
10, but Isaiah is very bold and says, I was found of them that
sought me not. I was made manifest unto them
that asked not after me. But to Israel, he says, all the
day long I have stretched forth my hand unto a disobedient and
gainsame people. Now he's talking in that chapter
of Jews and Gentiles in this chapter 10. But they have not
all obeyed the gospel. Isaiah saith, Lord, who hath
believed thy report? So then faith cometh by hearing,
hearing by the word of God. They have not all heard, yes,
but the sound went out unto all the earth and their words unto
the ends of the world. Verse 18, but I say, did not Israel
know? First Moses saith, I will provoke
you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish
nation will I anger you. He's speaking of the Gentiles.
Ephesians chapter 2, verse 11 forward, Wherefore remember that you being
in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called uncircumcision
by that which is called circumcision, the Jews, in the flesh made by
hands, that at that time you were without Christ. You didn't
know Christ. You didn't seek Christ. You didn't
ask Christ. You didn't desire to find Christ.
That's what he means back in Isaiah. The outspeakings and
oracles and ceremonies and law were given to the Jewish nation
state, not to the Gentiles. being aliens from the commonwealth
of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise, having
no hope without God in the world. But now, but now back then as
well, in Christ, you who were sometimes afar off are made nigh
by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath
made both one and hath broken down the middle wall of partition
between us. Having abolished in his flesh
the enmity or hate, even the law of commandments contained
in ordinances, for to make in himself of twain one new man,
so making peace, that he might reconcile both unto God in one
body by the cross, having slain the hate or the enmity thereby."
Acts chapter 13. Acts chapter 13, starting in verse
38. Be it known unto you, therefore,
men and brethren, that through this man, Christ, is preached
unto you the forgiveness of sins. And by him all that believe are
justified from all things from which you could not be justified
by the law of Moses. Beware, therefore, lest that
come upon you which was spoken of in the prophets. Behold, ye
despisers, and wander and perish. For I work a work in your days,
a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare
it unto you. And when the Jews were gone out
of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might
be preached to them the next Sabbath. Now, when the congregation
was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed
Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue
in the grace of God. And the next Sabbath day came
almost the whole city together to hear the Word of God. Oh,
wouldn't that be wonderful? Next Sunday, tear that old part of the building
down, add on. Wouldn't that be wonderful? He uses, you see what he's using?
He's using the foolishness of preaching. He's using people
speaking, inviting, telling their neighbors, telling their family,
telling their friends. The whole city came together to hear the
Word of God, but the Jews saw the multitudes, that is the Gentiles,
they were filled with envy and spake against those things which
were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Then Paul and
Barnabas waxed bold and said, it was necessary that the word
of God should first have been spoken to you, but seeing you
put it from you and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life,
lo, we turn to the Gentiles. For so hath the Lord commanded
us, saying, I have set thee in a light to the Gentiles, that
thou shouldst be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. And
when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified
the word of the Lord. And as many as were ordained
to eternal life believed. No more, not one. Not one-half,
not one-third more, or not one-third or one-half less. As many as
ordained to eternal life believed. The calling of the Gentiles,
the calling of you and me. What a wonderful thing! How can
it be that Jehovah is sought of them, that ask not for him. I am sought of them that ask
not for me." Oh, I was seeking God. I was asking for God to
come and I was doing all these different things. Spiritually,
no we weren't. We hated God. We hated the God
of the Bible. That's just a fact. We're wicked. We cannot do one good thing.
We don't have that free will. We don't have that ability. We
saw that this morning in Bible class. We don't have the ability
to come to Christ. No man can come unto Me that
he may have life. It came, but it says here that
they sought Him that asked not for Him. They were found of Him
that sought Him not. Yeah, we see in this phrase the
myth of the error of man's free will is exposed. We see in this
phrase the utter and total ruin of our race before God. We see
the total depravity seen, known, and owned. This seeking, then,
must be, can only be, by the sovereign, free, and glorious
working of God in Christ by the Holy Spirit. How can it be that
God is found and we're not even looking? How can it be that He
is sought after and we're not seeking Him? We're not even in
the ballpark. I'm not talking about religious ballpark. I'm
talking about the gospel. I'm talking about the truth.
The truth of the matter is we all are born astray, going astray. David said in my mother's womb,
You know, I was born hating God. He must seek or else we shall
never be found, saved or redeemed. He must cause the aching in our
heart and in our mind to run after Christ for safety, security
and salvation. Only God can find God. Only God can find God is what
I'm saying. Thusly and only he can reveal himself to his miserable
vile sinful creatures this first phrase Once and for all Nails down our
depravity and his mercy. I am sought of them that asked
not for me I am found of them that sought me not our inability
is shown here and His total sufficiency is shown here. Our complete fall
is shown in this phrase, and His particular discriminatory
grace is seen. Now, but now, through the blood
of the Lamb and the everlasting covenant, we are called, sealed,
and sanctified. And I say this with my whole
heart as I was going through this, and I don't know why this
whole week has been, this thought has been on my mind, may we here
at Jackson not take grace for granted. Because we've seen a
lot of places, there's a lot of places where the Gospel was
preached, and then it only lasts one generation, and then it's
not preached thereafter. May we never take grace for granted,
seeing it as only He, that makes us to differ from anyone of Adam's
race. We had nothing to do with it.
The second thought in this passage is found in verses 2 through
7. It's the rebellion of the nation state or the Jewish state. But this is us outside of grace. This is us even in the flesh. these things. All men and women
from birth, nature, and practice are found in these verses. Let's
look at them. I have spread out my hands all the day unto rebellious
people which walk in a way that was not good and after their
own thoughts. From the moment that we got smacked in the hind
end and drew our first breath, that breath was a gift of God.
The goodness of God is meant to lead us to repentance and
yet it wasn't, you know, When I was 10, 15, 20, something years
old, my mom and dad were religious, we went to church occasionally,
but I had no interest. I didn't care. God gave me this. I did it for myself. That's what
we thought. We're rebellious. Our own thoughts
of God, our own thoughts of grace, our own thoughts of salvation,
we formulated them. You don't have to be a religious
person to formulate how you think God can save sinners, or how
you think you can be saved, or who God is, or what salvation
is. Look at verse three. A people that provoke me to anger
continually, to my face, that sacrifices in gardens, burns
incense upon altars of bricks. We are idolatrous folk. Whether
it's the weather, whether it's money, whether it's prestige,
whether it's self, or something self has made up, we're more
concerned with that than we are God. Now this is interesting. Look
at verse 5. Which say, Stand by thyself. Now this is the Jews.
Think about the history of the Jews. They had it all in a sense.
Which say, Stand by yourself. Don't come near me, Gentiles.
Don't come near me. The Jews have no dealings with
that woman at the well state. They have no dealings with Samaritans.
They are worse than the worst. You guys live on the other side
of the tracks. But once grace comes in, That should not be
the case. We deal with each person, each
ethnic, race, background as individuals. And if they're a stinker, they're
a stinker. Call it like it is. But look at this, which say,
Stand by thyself, don't come near me, for I am holier than
thou. These are a smoke in my nose,
a fire that burneth all the day. Now this word holier, I've heard
this my whole life. Well, in grace, you think you
know, you're holier than thou. This word and the suffix, okay,
E-R, this is the only place in the whole Bible that this is
used. It's not used anywhere else.
We are holy in Christ. Holier, that's something that
we think we've done, okay? Does that make sense? This is an addition to the already
perfect work of God. It's a gross addition of man. And truth be known, listen to
what I'm saying, Bruce made a comment about you can read and understand
the Bible, but you can't understand God through this reading. It's
got to be by divine revelation. This is a merely intellectual
only understanding of election. You see that? I understand election. So I must be one of the child
of God. You're obviously not one of the
elect. Or any doctrine. Which Bruce
saw that the scriptures they've taken, and Peter they've taken,
they rest it to their own destruction. This holier, we have complete
holiness because we have Christ's righteousness. We have the blood
atoning over us. But this holier than thou, that's
man. That's man trying to separate
himself. And that's why when we say, we
tell these folks, and I've told folks in time past, the gospel,
and then I say, well, that's not according to election. Well,
what do you mean election? And then they get all worked
up. Or discriminatory grace. He died for his people and people
only. We know that's the truth. But the truth only, without the Spirit, this is what
we'll do. We'll become haughty. Well, I
understand the deep things of God. I understand predestination.
Anything that God in this book can be twisted and rested, we
know that because man is so depraved. But this whole year, this separating,
we are to be a separate people. So there's balances in here.
But we're never to be separate from people to think that we're
better because of our skin color. He said in Deuteronomy, I didn't
choose you because you were the most in number, I chose you because
I set my love, God set his love upon us. We have nothing to do
with it. Nothing at all. So who should we share to? We
share with any and everybody. Any and everybody. And if they
have, like an axe, if they've judged themselves unworthy of
eternal life, that's on their end. But the hate and anger and
the holier-than-thou attitude It's not of Christ. It's not
of Christ. So this is what these Jews, and
you can see that, they kept on telling Christ, we have Moses'
law, we be Abraham's seed. Well, what's going to happen
to these kind of people, religious or not? Well, the Jews were very
religious, verses 6 and 7. Behold, it is written before
me, I will not keep silence, but will recompense unto your
bosom. Your iniquities and the iniquities
of your fathers together, saith the Lord, which have burned incense
upon the mountains and blasphemed me upon the hills, therefore
will I measure their former work in their bosom." Judgment is
certain and sure. Judgment for all who add to the
son's accomplishments at Calvary. Judgment is certain and sure
to those who adhere to a mere legal righteousness. And thirdly,
that trust in themselves. And fourthly, that glory in the
flesh. But basically what the Jews were
saying, we're Abraham's seed. They were saying, we're the elect. Now we would never do that, would
we? I did it not too long ago. I thought, you know, I'm one
of God's, he needs to be taking care of me. Completely walking
out on my own, instead of looking at the word and saying, he's
promised, all the promises in Christ, in the flesh, we can
go out and do about anything. I remember Marvin Stonker saying,
I quit saying a long time ago, well, I wouldn't do that. And
I remember Henry saying, Well, David and Bathsheba, Henry said,
well, you haven't seen Bathsheba. That's our flesh. That's our
flesh. The righteous, the believer,
scared to death, runs into that strong tower, which is Christ,
and are safe. The third thing, and last point,
verses 8 through 10, we see grace is still grace. And this said
grace is for the needy, the undeserving, the sinful. Verses 8-10, thus
states the Lord as a new wine is found in the cluster. And
one saith, Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it. So will
I do for my servants' sake, that I may not destroy them all. And
I will bring forth a seed, a seed, not everybody, a seed out of
Jacob and out of Judah, an inheritor of my mountain. And mine elect
shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there. It's grace. How is the Old Testament sinner
saved? By grace. How is the New Testament
sinner saved? By grace. We just have the full
canonization of Scripture. Whether we are Jews or Gentiles,
male or female, old or young, grace is entirely based outside
of us and totally centered upon the lovely, gracious, and our
supreme substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ. Verses 8 and 9,
there's three words here, four words, so will I do. Now who's speaking? God. He speaks to us through His Son,
and this is revealed to us, by the Holy Spirit. God will do. That's outside of ourselves.
So salvation is what I, Christ, God will do for His chosen people. And as this book boldly states
time and time again, in verse 9, who are these He will do this
for? They're called servants in verse
8. In verse 9, elect. Why are people so upset and so
afraid of this Word? because it gives God all the
glory. So there's having pride just
by birth, you know, I don't like this doctrine. And then there's,
as Henry would say, there's pride of grace. What do we have to
be proud of? We didn't choose ourselves. He
caused us. He's done it all. It's said so
many times, and I should have looked it up, how many times
does the word elect or remnant or chosen in the scriptures. It's all over the place. Deny
it at your own peril. Well, it is God's law. Why does He do this? Why does
He do this for the elect? So I will do it for my servants'
sake, that I don't destroy them. It is God's law that must be
honored. It is God's ways that must be
kept. It is God's decrees that shall
be fulfilled. It is therefore God's responsibility
to call unto himself all those whom he will, he says in John. And those that he calls will
come, they will find him. They didn't seek him, but they'll
find him. They will submit to his ways, his word, his grace,
and they will flee to Christ for eternal refuge. And Sharon shall be a fold of
flocks, a valley of acorn, a place for the herds to lie down in,
for my people that have sought me." Now this whole thing started
off in verse 1. I am sought of them that ask not for me, for
my people that have sought me. Who are these people? I don't
know. I'm looking at a bunch of them
here this morning. I'm sure there's more out there.
That's why we're here. I don't know who they are, so
I preach and commanded to preach the gospel to every creature. But I don't particularly like
this guy. It doesn't matter if you like him or not. This particular
person is a pest. It doesn't matter. Salvation,
as Jonah found out, is of the Lord. To God be the glory. Bruce,
would you close us?