All right, Isaiah 45, the title
of the message, Things Concerning My Sons. A person doesn't have to be a
Bible scholar to understand the subject of this chapter. There
is no doubt what the subject is, chapter 45, because six times
In this chapter, the Lord makes this statement. First in verse 5, I am the Lord,
there is none else. Verse 6, the last line, I am
the Lord, there is none else. Verse 14, the very last line,
Surely God is in thee, and there is none else. I'm the Lord and there's none
else. Verse 21, the last line, there's
no God else beside me, I'm a just God and a Savior and there's
none beside me. Verse 22, so you'd be wise to
look unto me and be safe, all of you. For I am God, and there's
none else." That's enough repetition for us to know what subject it
is. I'm God, and there's none else. And the Lord declares in
the first three verses of Isaiah 45 what great things that he
will do for Cyrus, his king, and by Cyrus. Now Cyrus is a
title. There is one Cyrus in the book
of Ezra who was a deliverer of the Jews out of captivity. But Cyrus is a title much like
the title Pharaoh. There were several Pharaohs.
Like Caesar, there were several Caesars. So let's look at the
first three verses. Now, I'll tell you who this Cyrus
is, though. We call him the Lord Jesus, my King. But let's read
the first three verses. Then thus saith the Lord to his
anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue
nations before him. And I will loose the loins of
kings, to open before him the two lead gates, and the gates
shall not be shut. Open up ye doors, be ye lifted
up, ye everlasting doors, and open the gates, the King of Glory
is coming in, and they'll never be shut. Lord of hosts, I will
go before thee and make the crooked places straight, I will break
in pieces the gates of brass and cut in sunder the bars of
iron, and I'll give thee the treasures of darkness and the
hidden riches of secret places. Reason number one, that thou
mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name,
and the God of Israel, that ye may know that I am God." All
that God Almighty does is to reveal, number one, that he is
the true God and the maker and giver of all things. That's what
he says in verse 3 there, and what he says in verse 6, look
at it. I'm going to do these great and
wondrous things that everybody will know, from the rising of
the sun and from the west, that there's none beside me. I'm the
Lord, and there is none else. I do all these things." That's
what, if you turn to the first Kings, this is what Elijah on
Mount Carmel, this was This is what he asked of the Lord, that
God would do a mighty thing to reveal that he's the Lord. He's
God, and there's none else. That's why the Lord does these
things, that they may know that I'm God. And you know the story
of Mount Carmel, when Elijah was there, all the 350 and more
prophets of Baal, praying to Baal and all this, and Elijah
was the lone prophet of God. And they went through all these
ceremonies and activities and sacrifices and cried to their
gods, and there was no answer. And at the end of the day, Elijah
put the sacrifice on the altar, and to show the power of God,
he kept pouring water on the altar, water everywhere. The
water ran all over the wood and the sacrifice and filled up the
ditch around the altar, nothing but water. Again, Isaiah prayed
this 63-word prayer. Those fellows have been crying
all day. Elijah said, holler louder, maybe
your God's asleep. Maybe he's gone on a vacation,
a trip, and he's not going to... 63 words. Now, here's what I'm
trying to point out. This is what Elijah asked the
Lord. Show us these things that they may know that you're God.
Listen to this. And it came to pass, verse 36,
1 Kings 18, came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening
sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet drew near, and he said, Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and of
Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel,
and I'm your servant, that I've done all these things at your
word. Hear me, Lord, hear me, hear me, that this people may
know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their
heart back again." And brother, it says in the next verse, in
the 5th verse. I tell you, we preachers have
got to get, and all of us, the right motive for what we Not
that they might know me, and know my name, promoting myself,
or this congregation, or this activity, or this program. Lord
God, if it please you, through whatever way you want to use
us, let it be known that you're God. If they don't even know my address,
that'll be good. of what we've done in the past,
but please let our children, as you pray, grant your note
to your God. And what we've done, we've done
for that one purpose, to make known your name. For I tell you, that's the reason
I'm going to do what I'm going to do with him or I'm God. But the second reason for all
that the Lord does is in verse 4. Verse 3 said that they may know
that I, the Lord, which call thee by name, am the God of Israel. And then I do it for Jacob, my
servant, and for Israel, my elect. What God does, he does for his
elect. That's right. Look at Isaiah
44, just back one page. Isaiah 44, verses 1 through 3.
Yet now hear, O Jacob, my servant Israel, whom I have chosen. Thus
saith the Lord, that made thee, and farmed thee from the world,
which will help thee. Fear not, O Jacob, my servant,
and thou, just Ewan, whom I have chosen. I will pour water upon
him that thirsteth, and floods upon the dry ground. I will pour
my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessings upon thy offspring. I do this for your sake. I do
it for Jacob, sons of Jacob, mine elect. Another scripture,
1 Corinthians chapter 3. Read this with me, 1 Corinthians
chapter 3. all writing to the early believers
in 1 Corinthians chapter 3, verse 21. Now let no man glory in men,
for all things are yours, whether Paul, or Paulus, or Cephas, or
the world, or history, past, present, and future, or life,
or death, or things present, or things It's yours. It's for
your sake. It's for the God's kingdom's
sake, for his covenant. You're Christ, and Christ is
God, and he does it for your sake. All right, back to my text, Isaiah
45. Now, here is the true Silas.
Let's read verses 5, 6, and 7, then I want to look at verse
8. I'm the Lord, there's none else, there's no God beside me.
I girded thee, though thou hast not known me. That they may know
from the rising of the sun and from the west, there's no God
beside me, I'm the Lord, there's none else. I form the light,
I create darkness, I make peace, I create evil, I, the Lord, do
all these things." Here's the key to the Silas he's talking
about here. Drop down, ye heavens, from above. and let the skies pour down righteousness."
Let the skies pour down righteousness? There is a righteousness to be
revealed, it's the righteousness of God. And the righteousness
that God has ordained and purposed for his church. The righteousness
which Christ worked out, who is called the Lord our righteousness.
And that's what this is saying. The one who is our righteousness
came from heaven. That's why he said, Drop down
ye heavens from above, let the skies pour down righteousness. I am from above. Let me just
turn to John 8 and listen to what he says right here in John
8 verse 23. He said to them, You're from
beneath, I'm from above. Drop down ye heavens from above.
And let the skies pour down righteousness. I'm from above. You're of the
world. I'm not of the world. So I said
unto you, you'll die in your sins if you don't believe that
I am he. Let the skies pour down righteousness. The second Adam
is the Lord from heaven. He came down from heaven to fulfill
all righteousness. He came down from heaven to bring
peace, pardon, and life eternal. So this Cyrus, my king, is from
heaven. Now watch the next line. Drop
down ye heavens from above, let the skies pour down righteousness,
let the earth open, and let them bring forth salvation. He's talking about righteousness
that came from heaven, and the earth's going to have a part
in this too. Heaven and earth are both involved in bringing
forward this person, this Cyrus, this king of kings. He's from
the Lord, he's the Lord from heaven, the second Adam is the
Lord from heaven. But he came from a woman's womb,
the lowest parts of the earth. The Lord from heaven was made
of a woman. In the fullness of time, God
sent forth his son, sent him forward from heaven. by the womb
of a virgin. In the fulness of time, God sent
forth his Son made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem
them which were under the law. Behold, the Lord himself will
give you a sign, a virgin shall be with son. Call his name Immanuel,
God wills it. Under us, a son is given from
heaven and a child is born from the earth. Drop down your heavens
from above, let the skies pour down righteousness and peace
and life and hope, and let the earth open, and let them, heaven
and earth, bring forward salvation. And let righteousness spring
up together, the God-man, the Lord from heaven, the second
Adam. Our Lord said to the Pharisees, Christ, the Christ, Cyrus, this
Christ. What think ye of Christ? Whose
son is he?" And they said, he's the son of David. Well, he said,
how can he be David's son and David's Lord? How can he be Lord
from heaven and David's son, born of a woman?
They couldn't answer him. They didn't have a thing to say.
But Paul tells us how, in Romans chapter 1. He tells us how he
can be David's Lord from heaven and David's son. Listen to Romans
1, beginning with verse 1. Romans 1, verse 1, Paul, a servant
of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the
gospel of God, which he promised to afford by his prophets and
the Holy Scripture concerning his son. who is none other than
Jesus Christ, our God, our Lord, which was made of the seed of
David according to the flesh." He was born of a woman, he came
from the earth. Just like every child is born,
except he had no human father, but the whole process took place
in the womb of a woman. And he came forth, a tender plant,
a root out of dry ground, a little baby, an infant, helpless, dependent
on his mother, and he grew in stature and wisdom and favor
of God and men, a man that the earth produced its Savior. The Lord from above came and
entered that world and became born, listen, made of the seed
of David, made of the seed of David, and declared to be the
Son of God. He hasn't made the Son of God,
he's already the Son of God. He became a man. He wasn't a
man. He became a man. He is God. And that's how you can be David's
son and David's God. I love this verse. Drop down,
ye heavens, verse 8, my text, Isaiah 45. Drop down, ye heavens,
from above, let the skies pour down righteousness. I bring you
good tidings of great joy. Unto you is born this day in
the city of David a Savior, who is Christ, none other than Christ
the Lord. Let them bring forth salvation. Let righteousness spring up together. Here is a big word. I, the Lord,
have created this. The angel said to Mary, You have
a son. She said, No, no way. I don't
know a man. Spirit of God come upon you,
and the power of the highest will overshadow you, and that
holy thing," that's what you said, isn't that? That holy thing
shall be called the Son of God, but he'll be your son, God's son, the God-man. I the Lord created this. I the
Lord created this. I did this. John Gill, I just
wrote this down, everything he said about this. I, the Lord,
have created this. I, the Lord, have created both
righteousness and salvation for my people. I, the Lord, have
appointed him the Lamb slain before all creation. I, the Lord,
purposed him and prepared for him a body and sent him into
the world. I, the Lord, made him to be seen
and sent him to the cross. I, the Lord, smote him, bruised
him, and left him to die alone. I, the Lord, numbered him with
the transgressors and made his soul an offering for sinners.
I, the Lord, laid him in a tomb, and then I took him from that
tomb and raised him from the dead. I, the Lord, exalted him
to my right hand, the right hand of the majesty on high, and all
of his people with him. I, the Lord, gave him a name
above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee will
Every tongue will confess in heaven, earth, and under the
earth that Jesus Christ is Lord. I, the Lord, did that. That's my duty and my work. Which
brings the next verse. Which brings the next verse.
Now, the Lord will honor and bless everybody who believes
that message, loves that message, and confesses that gospel. He'll
bless everyone. All things are given to me of
my Father. He that believeth on the Son
hath everlasting life. And he that believeth not the
Son shall never see light, but the wrath of God abideth on him."
So our Lord in the next verse, in the next verses, solemnly
rebukes all who refuse verse 8. Drop down your heavens, let
the heavens pour down righteousness Let the earth open and bring
forth salvation. Let the God-man appear. Righteousness
spring up together. How the Lord done this. Now,
word to him that striveth with his maker. Whose maker? Not yours. Not yours. His maker. The God-man's maker. How the Lord did this. I created
this. Now, let me show you that down
here in verse 11, the same thing. Thus saith the Lord, the Holy
One of Israel, and his Maker. Who's the Holy One of Israel?
Christ. Who's his Maker? God the Father.
Now, woe unto the man, a woman, that stiveth with the one who
made the Lord Jesus Christ our Redeemer. That man's got trouble. Woe to the man! or the woman
who refuses and who denies and who rejects, is Silas, King of
kings and Lord of lords. Woe to the man who striveth with
the Maker of Christ! Who made him flesh? God did.
Who made him a body? God did. Who made him to be sin
for us? God did. God is his Maker. God
is his preparer. His ordainer, the one who sent
him, he's the maker. And when the people strive against
Christ, they're striving against his maker. How foolish that is. He says
in that next line, Oh, let the pot sherds of the earth strive
with the pot sherds of the earth. Let them contend against each
other and argue and debate and quarrel and spit and sputter
and whatever they want to do. shall the clay say to him that
fashioned it?" What have you made here? I want you to watch
these questions. These questions in verse 9 and
10. What's this you've made? Who's
the maker? God is. Who made Christ? God
did. What did the people say when they saw him? This is not
our Messiah, this is the Cardinal. What's this you've made? This
is not our king, this is David's son. We know his mom and his
brothers and his sisters. This is not our king, this is
a fellow from Nazareth, a gluttonous man and a winebibber. We want
no land, we want a land. He should live and conquer, conquer
Rome and restore the power of David's kingdom, not die and
be buried. This is not what we want, this
is not what we expect, we don't need a Lamb, we don't need a
suffering Savior, we need a King, a Conqueror. What's this you've
met? He has no hands. Come down from the cross and
we'll believe on you. He saved others, he can't save
himself. He's got no hands, he can't do
anything. His hands are stretched out there,
nailed to the cross, what can he do? And they laugh, mocked
and ridiculed. He has no hands. What is this
you've done? Look at verse 10. Woe unto him
that saith to his father, who is this now? This is the Lord
God. What have you begotten? What in the world have you begotten?
He was in the world, the world was made by him, and the world
knew him not. He came into his own, his own They said, we're
not going to have this man reign over us. We have no king but
Caesar. We're not going to have him reign
over us. Isaiah 53. Here's the description
right here. Isaiah 53, verse 1. Who hath believed this message? To whom is the arm of the Lord
revealed? He'll grow up before him as a tender plant. as a root
out of the dry ground. He had no form, no comeliness. What's this rebate? When we see
him, there's no beauty, we should desire him? He's despised and
rejected of men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with greed. We hear,
as it were, our faces from him. He's despised, this thing does
not. Back to my text, verse 10, Isaiah
45, "'Woe to him that saith to the Father, What have you We
will not have this man reign over us. Woe unto him that saith
to the woman," saith to the woman, what have you brought forth?
What is this that you have brought forth? Mark, the book of Mark, I think pictures, Mark 6, listen
to this, Mark 6. What is this woman that you brought
forth?" In Mark 6, verse 1, he went out from thence and came
to his own country. The Lord Jesus and his disciples
followed him. And when the Sabbath day was
come, he began teaching in the synagogue. Many hearing him were
astonished, just astonished, saying, From whence hath this
man these things? They were bifurcated. What wisdom
is this which is given unto him? that even such mighty works are
wrought by his hand, is not this the Ciphander, the son of Mary,
the brother of James, and Joseph, and Judah, and Simon? Are not
his sisters with us?" And they were offended at him. Because everybody is who doesn't
know him, who doesn't believe him, who doesn't receive him,
who doesn't love him. They're offended, they're mixed
up. What's this you've made? What is this you've made? Woman,
what is this you've brought forth? Well, enough of that. Let's get on verse 11. That's
the woe to those who do not believe. Now, here is the good word to
those who do. In verse 11 and 12, this is the
Lord speaking to us. to those who believe. Not idolaters,
not religious folks denying who Christ is, but he's speaking
to spiritual Israel. Now, verse 12. I, thus saith
the Lord, verse 11, the Holy One of Israel and his maker,
you ask me, you ask me of things to come concerning my sons. Now,
you want to know about You're not one of these that says, what's
this you've made? Woman, what's this you've done
for us? But you say to me, I want to know your will, like Moses
of old. I want to know your ways, like
Moses of old. I want to see your glory. I do.
I sincerely want to. All right. Then ask me. Ask me
of things to come concerning my sons. Well, my son and my
sons are one. They've never been divided. They've never been separate from
Christ. Christ said in John 17, let me read it so I can quote
it exactly. He said, Father, John 17, verse
23, The glory which thou gavest me, I've given them, that they
may be one as we are. I am them, and thou in me, that
they may be made perfect in one, that the world may know thou
sent me. And ye love them as ye love me." Now, if you want
to know things to come concerning my sons and my son, you ask me. Ask me. Even the work and concerning
the work of my hands, command me, Lord, show me. concerning the work, what's the
work of his hands? Well, scripture says, for by
grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourself, it's
the gift of God, not of works as any man should boast. For
we are his workmanship. We're his workmanship. When our
Lord Jesus Christ was dying on the cross, and before he went
to the cross, he said, I finished the work you gave me today. And
Paul said in Philippians, it's God who worketh in you to will
and to do his good pleasure. Philippians 1, he said, I'm confident
that he who hath begun a good work in you shall finish in the
day of Christ. Winning is what? If you want
to know concerning my son and my sons, ask me. If you want
to know concerning the work of God in redemption, command me. Just tell me. Just tell me. Now, no wavering, for he that
wavereth is like the wind, and the sea is tossed by the wind.
But ask him faith. Do you want to know? Ask him.
He said, Because I made this earth, verse 12, and I crewed
man upon it, even my hands have stretched it out. I made this
earth, and I made it not in vain. Turn to verse 18. the Lord that created the heavens.
God himself formed the earth and made it. He established it
and created it, not in vain. He formed it to be inhabited.
And the Lord did none other. He asked me concerning the suns
and the work of my hands, I made this earth, and I didn't make
it in vain, I made it to be inhabited. And that's not this old earth,
because it's going to be destroyed. But it's going to be a new earth
and a new wherein dwelleth righteousness. It's going to be inhabited. You
want to know about that, you ask me. We look for a new heaven
and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. If you want to
know, I'll tell you. That's what we're trying to do
here, like this morning and again tonight, pouring over these verses
one at a time, over these statements our Lord makes. And my friends,
he'll give us understanding. If we're not If you're not seeking
to argue or seeking to prove somebody wrong or seeking for
self-promotion and self-glory, if you really want to know about
my sons and the things that have come to pass, you ask me. If
you really want to know about the work of my hands, you command
me. I made this earth, I created it for my own glory and pleasure,
and it's going to be inhabited. And Lord, I certainly want to
be one of those inhabitants. All right, he's finished with
us, he's going to talk to Christ, about Christ now, verse 13, now
closed. I've raised him up, I've raised
him up in righteousness. I have removed all difficulties
out of his way, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in
his hands. He's the righteous king that brings forth the perfect
righteousness and reigns in righteousness, and that's a sector of his kingdom.
I've raised him up. Now, the next line. I'll direct
his ways. And here build my city. Not Jerusalem. Not the Jerusalem. Here build
my church. The church is the city of God.
The church is the temple of living stone. The church is the The
house of God laid upon the chief cornerstone. He will build my
church. Thirdly, he shall let go my captives. The Lord's people were captives
to sin, Satan, and the law. And Christ redeemed them from
the curse, from the chains, from the captivity, and proclaimed
to those captives, deliverance to them who were in bondage.
He set them free. Free from the law, because the
debt's been paid. He let go of my captives, and
not for price or reward. He sets the captives free freely,
not because or through or for any merit on their part or works
on their part or price paid by them. because he paid the debt
in full. Out of his own riches of grace
and mercy, he provided the ransom. And the Lord said, Let him go.
I found the ransom. We are redeemed by price, but
not a price we pay. It's a price he paid. And this
all saith the Lord of hosts. We know we are not redeemed with
corruptible things such as silver and gold from our vain conversation
received by tradition from our fathers, but with the precious
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. I have raised him up in righteousness.
He will build my city. He will set my captives free,
not for price. Don't try to pay him. Don't try
to return anything.