a tremendous amount of wealth
of information in this one verse. Isaiah 53 and verse 6. I entitled this message, One
Verse, Essential Truth. One Verse, Essential Truth. In one short and concise verse,
we plainly behold at least three essential truths held firmly
by all who call upon the true God of redemption. There's at
least three essential truths that we adhere to and we love
and we embrace because it's in God's Word found in this one
verse. Let's look at it. He says, all
we like sheep have gone astray. we have turned everyone to his
own way and the Lord hath laid on him and obviously we know
that speaking of this whole text is speaking of the burden of
the Lord Jesus Christ bearing and having born and being wounded
for our transgressions the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity
Of us all. Now who's y'all that he's speaking
of? Obviously you've got to keep in context the same verse. It's
the sheep. It's the sheep. The first thing
that we see in this passage is the total and original depravity
of man because of sin. All people everywhere. All we like sheep. have gone
astray. All we like sheep, even the sheep,
like everybody else, go astray. From birth we go astray. All
we like sheep have gone astray. The word astray means to err. It means to stray. Vacillate,
that's to sway from side to side, to waver. Easily move from one
opinion to the other. We are not, by nature, convinced
enough by this truth of this book that we will stay with it.
By nature, we all, like sheep, go astray. We just waver. This
sounds good at the minute. That's what we're going to believe.
You get somebody up here that can read the Bible and speak
eloquently, convincingly, That sounds good to me. Then you read
someone else or hear someone else. And that sounds good to
me, too. And that's the way we are by nature, astray, easily
in error. We're born in sin. So our nature
is we just flop back and forth, back and forth. But it means
more than that. It means that we go astray. That means that
we are not with God. We're not found with God. We
don't want to be with Him. We just kind of, wherever is
the easiest path, just like water, we're just going to kind of go
with the flow. Our nature is even more than that. It's original
depravity and total depravity. Original sin. Because when our
father, Adam, died in the garden, We died with him. All we, like
sheep, have gone astray. It's, let's turn to Ecclesiastes
chapter 7. Ecclesiastes chapter 7. Total and original depravity.
That is, you and I, by birth, by nature, by practice, without
any influence from the outside world, stick us as soon as we're
born, stick us in a room, no outside influence by nature
where total ruination happened in the Garden of Eden. Total
fall after they ate the forbidden fruit. Man's will, man's nature
and spiritual well-being plummeted into eternal darkness bondage
so we don't have to be told how to sin we do it naturally Ecclesiastes
chapter 7 and look with me in verse 20 says it very well For
there is not a just man upon the earth That do it good and
sin is not That's what we do we All we like
sheep have gone astray. We don't have to be prodded that
way. We don't have to be led that way. We are our own. Have gone astray. Secondly, he says a little bit
more specifically. You and I. We. We have turned everyone to his
own way. Secondly, we specifically are
guilty of treason against God. We have turned. We have turned. I've got written down here, men
don't blame the ladies. Ladies don't blame the men. We, you and I have turned everyone
to his own way. Each and every one of us has
personal ownership in our rebellion against Jehovah God. Turn to
Genesis chapter 6. Genesis chapter 6. And look at verse 5. We've seen
this before. Genesis 6 verse 5. And God saw that the wickedness
of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of
the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Well, people say, well, there's
too much good in the world. Now, again, You're judging or
a statement like that is judging man against man Person against
person we're talking about God's bar of justice God's recommendation
God demands God commands We specifically are guilty of treason against
God we Have turned everyone his own way all leave all we like
sheep have gone astray we specifically have turned everyone to his own
way Cannot blame someone else turn to Romans chapter 3 Romans chapter 3 Verse 10 as
it is written. There is none righteous. No,
not one. There is none that understands
There is none that seeks after God verse 12. They are all gone
out of the way God's way is not our way by birth. Our way, says
Proverbs, there's a way that seems right unto men, but the
end thereof are the ways of death. Religious man, non-religious
man, it doesn't matter. Boy, girl, children, parents,
grandparents, it doesn't matter. Outside of the grace of God,
outside of His divine direction is divine enabling, divine grace
in the heart. We go our own way, which is the
way of death. They are gone out of the way.
They are together become unprofitable. There is none that do us good.
No, not one in the eyes of God. And that's what's that. That's
the situation. I'm thankful for the good so-called
that people do one to another. Our neighbors, et cetera, et
cetera, are the country, the community. But in the eyes of
God, The verdict is and always shall be, we like sheep have
gone astray, we have turned everyone to his own way. We turned. We turned. And this is a truth that we understand
and that we embrace and we continue to embrace all the days of our
life. You look at, and I'm going to show you several examples
of when God begins to do a work upon a soul, or he has done a
work on a soul, or if it's a believer who's in trouble and does some
things that is amiss, they blame themselves. They take ownership. We have turned everyone to our
own way. Me and you included. Look at
David. His spirit-filled speech and
lessons of true repentance. Turn to Psalm 51. I think we've looked at this
before. But David understood this principle. The prophet understood.
The prophet includes himself when he's writing this. He says,
all we, I'm included in that, like sheep have gone astray.
The sheep are no different than all men everywhere. But then
the sheep, by God's grace, take for specific ownership. And until
God gives us grace, we'll be pointing the finger. And we'll
always be putting ourselves up a little bit higher than somebody
else. But when he does the work of grace in the heart, we, we,
I have turned my own way. And it's not God's way. But look
at David. Look at David's speech and lessons
of true repentance in Psalm 51. He's saying a psalm of David
when Nathan the prophet came unto David after he had gone
into Bathsheba and said, you're the man. David didn't say, well,
it was the way I was brought up. Please, you know, I need
to talk to Dr. Phil about this because I think
it was the way I was brought up. My brother got everything. My sister, she was the favorite.
So, of course, I'm going to have feelings of animosity, all these
things that these idiot psychiatrists and psychologists spin these
webs of lies. The believer owns up to what
we are, what they are. He says, have mercy upon me. It's like he's talking to God
and he's the only. There's only two people in this
conversation, God and that sinner. Have mercy upon me, O God, according
to thy loving kindness, according to the multitude of thy tender
mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine
iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my
transgression, and my sin is ever before me." Verse 4, against
thee and thee only have I sinned. Now he sinned against Bathsheba.
He sinned against Bathsheba's husband. He had him killed. But he says, against thee and
thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight.
And incidentally, that you might be justified when you speak and
clear when you judge. I am guilty and worthy of damnation. And if I get any mercy, it's
going to be free and sovereign grace. Because I deserve, by my thoughts
and my actions and my deeds, I deserve eternal separation. That's David's language. Look
at Isaiah's language, Isaiah's testimony of self-loathing and
repentance. Isaiah, let's turn to Isaiah
chapter 3. And we'll look at the language of
these men and women of the grace of God as it's taught them many
things. The language at first, Isaiah
chapter 3 verse 11 is woe unto the wicked, woe unto you. He's
up there, he's like he's standing up on his little podium saying
woe unto you. Look at Isaiah 5, chapter 5.
And look at verse 8, woe unto them that join house to house.
Verse 11, woe unto them that rise up early in the morning.
Verse 18, Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity. Verse 20. Woe unto them that
call evil good and good evil. Verse 21. Woe unto them that
are wise in their own eyes. Verse 22. Woe unto them that
are mighty to drink wine and men of strength and mingle strong
drink. And he goes on and on and on.
And then in verse chapter 6. In the year that King Uzziah
died I, The prophet says, I. Something happened. A tragedy. He apparently historically is,
from what I understand, Isaiah was close to this king or thought
highly of this king and the Lord had to take this king out. In
order to show, teach this man One of His sheep, a lesson. I
saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high, lifted up in His train,
filled the temple, and above it stood the seraphims, and each
one had six wings, twenty covered his face, twenty covered his
feet, twenty did fly, and one cried unto another and said,
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is
full of His glory. And that's what we see in the
Gospel. Not man, man, man, or Poor Jesus boy cheese poor baby
Jesus in the manger. We see God in his throne Lifted
up that's through the preaching of the grace of God And what happens the post of
the doors moved and in verse 5 then he said woe is me Woe
is me I'm guilty He says, For I am undone, the prophet speaking
of himself, because I am a man of unclean lips. I'm guilty. Yes, these people around me are
guilty, but I can't I can't be saved because of them. I can't
be saved for them. I can't be saved with. It's got
to be me. Woe is me. Job says it all. The heart cry of one in whom
grace has touched. Turn to Job 42. Job 42. They're saying the same
thing. These men are saying all the
same thing because the gospel is the same. There's only one
faith, one baptism, one Lord, one gospel. And so the results
are the same. I'm not saying every detail is
the same because we're all different emotionally, physically, we have
different, you know, we're human beings, we're different. But
I'm saying the Gospel is the same and it produces broken and
a contrite heart that God produces and if He produces it, He won't
despise it. And if He produces that in you,
He's showing you the blood, He's showing you your sin, He's showing
you the blood, He's showing you that you, like sheep, have gone
astray and you have turned to your own way. Look at Job 42. He says, Then Job answered the
Lord and said, after he listened to a whole bunch of things and
he justified himself a time or two, I know that the Lord can
do everything and that no thought can be withholden from thee.
Who is he that hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore
have I uttered that I understood not things too wonderful for
me, which I knew not. Here I beseech thee, and I will
speak. I will demand of thee and declare thou unto me. I have
heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eyes
see thee. But hearing the gospel is very
important. But you can hear and you can hear, and if you don't
believe the gospel, You still don't know a thing about the
grace of God. But he said, I've heard it and
I've heard it now. The eyes of faith. He said, but
now my eye sees thee. What's the first thing he says?
Wherefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes. I abhor myself. Oh, you tell it
to a psychiatrist and you're going to get. No, you're not
that bad. No, no, no. Well, The gospel
is the only remedy for self-destruction. Because
Job says, I abhor myself, and that would lead to without the
grace of God supplementing and showing us, not only are we full
of sin and wretched and vile and undone, but the gospel comes
in and says, there's hope. Not in you, but in Christ. the man, the man, Christ Jesus. So it causes us from despair,
abhorrence of self, to looking away from ourselves and looking
to Christ. And there's our hope, and there's our peace, and that's
our salvation. But, blessed be God, in Christ
Jesus, thirdly, our iniquity has been laid upon our substitute. That's the third marvelous truth.
All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his
own way. And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. The Lord has laid on him the
iniquity of us all. For God has made Christ to be
sin for us. Christ who knew no sin that we
might be made the righteousness of God in him. That's what this
passage is speaking of. That's Paul's explanation of
what Isaiah knew in truth. Look at the marginal reading.
If you have a marginal reading, look at it with me. The Lord
hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. The marginal is the
Lord hath made the iniquity of us all to meet on him, to meet
on him. It was laid upon him, our imputation
of our sin on Christ. He bore our iniquities. He became
sin, really. And actually, it wasn't just
a mere legal transfer. Christ became sin. And I don't
claim to understand very much about that, but I know it's so.
And I think that's one Area in eternity that we're going to
just be an amazement and enthralled and awestruck that Christ who
knew no sin Pure holy harmless and undefiled actually was made
He bore it He was made sin because you if you just write it down
go to Psalm 22 And we've looked at this already in our Old Testament
pictures and studies of Christ That's the cry of Christ on the
cross And he said, I am a worm and no man. He is so identified
with us that he became us. Sin, what are we? We go our own
way, astray. He became. Sin that transaction
of horror yet one of justice and absolute necessity For our
free pardon and I say a transaction of horror as in the son had to
be forsaken by his father Never was he hung on that cross in
my God my God. Why is not forsaken me? So there's
that whore that was involved in that transaction. He was left
out in the cold. He was abandoned He was number
with the transgression yet. He himself never ever transgressed The just dying for the unjust,
the pure for the vile, the lovely for the grotesque. These things
He, Christ, our Redeemer, did freely without hesitation or
regret. He went forth headlong, headfirst,
straightaway embracing those things which were foreign to
Him, and that was sin. Look back at our text. The Lord
hath laid that transaction, that transition. He became sin. Laid on who? On Him. God satisfying God. The Lord
hath laid on Him. There's no one else that could
shoulder that burden, that could become sin and secure our liberty,
our freedom, our pardon, our peace. Only he could honor the
law, satisfy justice, fulfill the commands, and uphold the
demands that were against us. And lastly, look at the text
again. The Lord hath laid on him the
iniquity of us all. All the elect to the total sheepfold throughout
all time once for all and once forever eternally settling the
case against us the Lord hath laid made our iniquity to meet
on him the iniquity of us all Us. Us. Can you rejoice with
me now, knowing the issue of our forgiveness is secure, sealed,
and settled? Come as you are, a dying sinner,
needing mercy and reconciliation now. 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 May you be numbered with him. Bruce, would you close us please?