Sermon snippet – Turn Ye Part II
INTRODUCTION – Last week, we began to consider Isaiah 31:1-6. This passage provides us with specific and simple truths about God that should strengthen us spiritually. There are three key points that I want to ponder.
- GOD IS TRUSTWORTHY
We studied this point at length last Sunday. Let us remind ourselves, based on verses 1-3, on not to trust untrustworthy people; we have a God Who can be trusted at all times. Remember that God the Son promised to die for us on the Cross and fulfilled that hardest of all prophecies. Truly our Savior is trustworthy.
- GOD IS TOUGH
God does not back down or give in to pressure or intimidation. In verse 4, He is likened to a “lion”. He is bold and will not be dissuaded from His plans, even by intense opposition. He was going to fight to defend Jerusalem (“mount Zion”), and He did so miraculously (Isaiah 38:36). We can think of Jesus, God the Son, dying on Mount Zion, successfully defeating our three enemies (sin, Satan, and the world system that is opposed to God). Because of this toughness – this unafraid resolve – Jesus is called “the Lion of the tribe of Juda” (Revelation 5:5). This entire passage (Revelation 5:1-7) reveals that only Jesus, the “Lamb as it had been slain” (verse 6), has the power to possess the scroll (verse 1) that is emblematic of the dead to all things. Our resolute Savior reigns supreme.
- GOD IS TENDER
Isaiah 31:5 does not contradict the previous verse’s imagery; rather, it complements that vivid word picture with another. The comparison here is to a bird lovingly protecting its nest. Here the tender heart of God is displayed. When combined with the power of the lion, the metaphor is complete: God has both the desire and the strength to save His people. In Matthew 23:37-39, Jesus applies this imagery to Himself. Certainly when we contemplate the Cross, we see the tenderness of our Savior.
CONCLUSION – Isaiah 31:6 implores us to “turn” (repent). From what are we turning? “Woe” (verse 1). God in His great goodness wants us to avoid His righteous judgment, and each of us can do that by being certain that our faith is fully in the Savior, Jesus Christ. Then, as His people, we should seek to be like Him: we should be people who can be trusted, who never back down from the truth, and who make sure that this toughness does not become hardness but is tempered by tenderness.