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Embracing God's Mercy: Confession and Restoration in Isaiah
God desires your life to be preserved, and in this sermon, Pastor Jon Budd emphasizes the importance of recognizing sin markers, believing God's Word, and fearing the Lord as essential steps for spiritual preservation. Drawing from Isaiah Chapter 1, he illustrates how Israel fell into disobedience and empty rituals, ultimately leading to their downfall. The message highlights God's compassion and willingness to restore those who confess their sins and return to Him. Pastor Budd explores the serious consequences of forsaking the Lord while offering hope for redemption to those who seek righteousness. As we reflect on our own lives, the call is clear: be real with God, acknowledge our shortcomings, and embrace the path of obedience for true restoration.
Pastor Josh Massaro opens the podcast with a warm welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church community, setting the tone for a deep dive into the teachings of the Bible. This week's sermon focuses on the prophetic insights of Isaiah, particularly the challenges faced by the people of Judah during a time of spiritual decline and moral corruption. Pastor Massaro draws a parallel between the ancient struggles of Israel and modern faith journeys, emphasizing the importance of recognizing sin markers and the need for genuine repentance. He eloquently shares the story of gymnast Jocelyn Robertson, using it as an analogy for perseverance and faithfulness in the face of adversity, much like the prophet Isaiah who was called to deliver a challenging message of judgment and hope. The sermon elaborates on Isaiah's unique ministry, illustrating the difficulties he faced while remaining faithful to God’s calling, and encourages listeners to trust in God's ultimate plan for salvation and restoration.
The narrative transitions to an in-depth exploration of Isaiah chapter one, where Pastor Massaro highlights how God desires His people to be preserved from destruction through obedience. He discusses the three critical steps: recognizing sin markers, believing God's word, and fearing the Lord. As the sermon unfolds, listeners are reminded of the richness of God’s mercy, illustrated through Isaiah’s prophetic declarations, which offer both judgment and the promise of redemption. This duality serves as a call to action for believers today, urging them to live righteously and to embrace God's grace, even in the midst of societal turmoil and personal struggles. The podcast culminates with a heartfelt prayer, inviting all to seek restoration and to deepen their relationship with God, echoing the timeless truth that He is indeed the source of salvation and strength.
The podcast episode also emphasizes the historical context surrounding Isaiah's ministry, detailing the societal issues faced during his time. Pastor Massaro reflects on the contemporary relevance of Isaiah's warnings against empty rituals and moral decay, urging listeners to examine their own lives and communities for signs of spiritual decline. The sermon invites introspection, asking poignant questions about personal faithfulness and the corporate state of the church. The metaphor of a silversmith refining silver becomes a powerful image of God's transformative work in the lives of His people, signifying that through trials and purification, believers can emerge reflecting the likeness of Christ. This sermon not only resonates with those familiar with biblical teachings but also serves as an accessible entry point for newcomers, as it weaves together narratives of hope, repentance, and the enduring promise of God’s presence in our lives.
Takeaways:
- God desires our lives to be preserved through recognizing sin markers in our lives.
- Isaiah's ministry illustrates the importance of both obedience and the hope of restoration.
- Confessing our sins to God cleanses us and restores our relationship with Him.
- God's compassion allows us to return to Him, regardless of our past mistakes.
- The message of Isaiah emphasizes the contrast between the faithful and the unfaithful.
- Faithful obedience leads to restoration, while disobedience results in separation from God's blessings.
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This podcast is produced by Ralph Estep, Jr., host of the Ask Ralph Podcast, a daily podcast on Christian Finance you can find it at https://www.askralphpodcast.com/
Transcript
Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church Podcast where we are proclaiming the truth to the world.
Pastor Josh:My name is Pastor Josh and I want to thank you for listening to this podcast.
Pastor Josh:I hope that this podcast can be a blessing to you and strengthen you in the Word of God.
Pastor Josh:Now come along, let's look into the Bible and see what God has for us here today.
Speaker B:Praise the Lord that He fulfilled the Father's will by coming to earth being born a lowly estate by the Virgin Mary by the Virgin Mary to come to this earth to fulfill what the Father had planned.
Speaker B:What was that Salvation's plan?
Speaker B:The good news of Jesus Christ.
Speaker B:And tonight we're going to talk about a very unique person.
Speaker B:His name is Isaiah in the Old Testament, the Book of Isaiah, Chapter one Isaiah, Chapter one Before we get there about Isaiah, there was a lady whose name was Jocelyn Robertson in her final performance at the US Olympic team trials for gymnastics on Sunday 30 June, inside Minneapolis Target Center, Jocelyn Robertson brought the house down.
Speaker B:Her full Exercise in the fourth rotation was captivating powerful in Cap 2 days of 8 for 8 performances.
Speaker B:As Robertson hit her final pose, her head thrown back and arms raised, the tears started to flow and the crowd erupted.
Speaker B:She hadn't just met the moment, she had made a one, and it was one that earlier this year seemed like a dream.
Speaker B:I might have to wait four more years, she stated this My ankle was still really hurt.
Speaker B: Team USA alternates for Paris: Speaker B: Finally, at the: Speaker B:You're going to get to the Olympic trials even because our team this year has so much depth, she says.
Speaker B:It was either you're perfect or you're not going to make it, she concluded, shaking off tough performances at the American Classic and US Classic in late April and mid May respectively, to finish 10th at the US Championships earned her spot at the trials.
Speaker B:It was a fight that was as much mental as it was physical, she says.
Speaker B:It was hard to battle mentally because it was hard for me to be like, you're fine, it's just achy, she explained.
Speaker B:When January and February hit, I was still having a lot of pain and I was really down on myself.
Speaker B:My support team really pulled me back out of that and we figured it out.
Speaker B:Now I want you to imagine that kind of picture with the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah, chapter 6.
Speaker B:God commissions the prophet Isaiah to do a very special and unique ministry.
Speaker B:One that required Isaiah to share a message.
Speaker B:But he says, share this message until the lands are desolate and there's nobody else left to preach to.
Speaker B:How would you feel about that kind of a ministry?
Speaker B:It's the same idea as, you know, God telling you to get a sales job.
Speaker B:All right, I want you to get a sales job.
Speaker B:You're going to make millions and millions of dollars in sales.
Speaker B:You're going to make a really good income for your family and you're like, okay, that's a very risky business.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:But all right, you know, it's the same kind of idea where Isaiah, Isaiah or maybe.
Speaker B:And so, but Isaiah's told us where it's like, okay, I'm going to go here.
Speaker B:Eventually there would be fruit from Isaiah's ministry.
Speaker B:Eventually down the road they will look back at the book of Isaiah and there'll be eventual fruit from his ministry.
Speaker B:But it was going to take a very long time to see that fruit.
Speaker B:Now the name Isaiah means the Lord is salvation.
Speaker B:This name is similar to Joshua, Elisha and Jesus.
Speaker B:Isaiah is quoted directly in the New Testament over 65 times, far more than any other Old Testament prophet and mentioned by name over 20 times.
Speaker B:Isaiah was the prophet to Judah during 4 Kings, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah.
Speaker B:Now Isaiah was a contemporary to Hosea.
Speaker B:Micah 2 Chronicles 32, 32 seems to indicate that Isaiah even had the opportunity to write the biography for King Hezekiah.
Speaker B:Isaiah lived until at least 681 BC.
Speaker B:Tradition says that he would.
Speaker B:He was killed under King Manasseh by being cut in two with a wooden saw.
Speaker B:A man who had stuck faithful to his mission of what God had called him to do to his death.
Speaker B:The key verse in the book of Isaiah, Isaiah, chapter 12, verse 2.
Speaker B:It states this.
Speaker B:And this is actually the verse we claim when Isaiah was born because it was a very difficult delivery process.
Speaker B:Isaiah 12:2 states this.
Speaker B:Behold, God is my salvation.
Speaker B:I will trust and not be afraid.
Speaker B:For the Lord.
Speaker B:Jehovah is my strength and my song.
Speaker B:He also has become my salvation.
Speaker B:Think about that verse there.
Speaker B:I will trust.
Speaker B:I will not be afraid for the Lord Jehovah, the all powerful God, the all sufficient God, the God who knows all of my needs.
Speaker B:The God who has called me to, to this specific purpose for Isaiah, his very difficult ministry of sharing this message.
Speaker B:But God is my strength, he is my song.
Speaker B:He also has become my salvation.
Speaker B:It may not be a salvation that he would see in his lifetime but one day that salvation would come.
Speaker B:Now, Isaiah prophesied during the period of the divided kingdom, during the major thrust of his message to the southern kingdom of Judah.
Speaker B:He condemned the empty ritualism of his day and the idolatry into which many of the people had fallen.
Speaker B:We'll talk about that in the first part of Isaiah, chapter one.
Speaker B:But he foresaw this coming Babylonian captivity of Judah, because this departure from the Lord, a very, very sad state with the nation of Israel and specifically with Judah.
Speaker B:And the book of Isaiah has 66 chapters, much like the Scripture, right has 66 books in the Bible.
Speaker B:The first through nine chapters are of judgment, judgment, judgment, and.
Speaker B:But the last 27 books talk about a message of hope.
Speaker B:In Isaiah chapter 40, where he says in verse one, comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, saith your God.
Speaker B:There was a plan of restoration that God had for Israel.
Speaker B:But a chapter to highlight, as mentioned earlier, was chapter six, where the Lord brings Isaiah into his throne room.
Speaker B:And he commissioned to give this message of judgment and hope until there was no one who would be left.
Speaker B:But we're here in Isaiah chapter one.
Speaker B:If you have your Bibles in Isaiah chapter one there, we're going to see a simple truth tonight.
Speaker B:And that truth is this.
Speaker B:God wants your life preserved.
Speaker B:God wants your life preserved.
Speaker B:How can your life be preserved?
Speaker B:Your life can be preserved by observing three steps to destruction found here in Isaiah chapter one were three warnings you could say to be able to preserve yourself on the road of obedience for God.
Speaker B:First, number one, recognize sin markers.
Speaker B:Number two, you must believe God's word.
Speaker B:And third, you must fear the Lord.
Speaker B:So Isaiah, having just finished talking about false worship and how distasteful it was in God's eyes, he moves to showing how it leads to wickedness and that God has to deal with that wickedness.
Speaker B:Let's look Here in Isaiah 1.
Speaker B:1, it states the vision of Isaiah, the son of Amaz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
Speaker B:Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the Lord hath spoken.
Speaker B:I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
Speaker B:The ox knoweth his owner and the ass his master's crib.
Speaker B:But Israel doth not know why people doth not consider.
Speaker B:Ah, sinful nation.
Speaker B:A people laden with iniquity, a seat of evildoers.
Speaker B:Children are corrupters.
Speaker B:They have forsaken the Lord.
Speaker B:They have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger they are gone away backward.
Speaker B:Why should ye be stricken anymore?
Speaker B:Ye'll revolt more and more.
Speaker B:The whole head is sick, and the heart of faith, from the sole of the foot even to the head, there was no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores.
Speaker B:They have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointments.
Speaker B:Your country is desolate.
Speaker B:Your cities are burned with fire.
Speaker B:Your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.
Speaker B:And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage, and a vineyard, as a lodge, and a garden of cucumbers as a besieged city, except the Lord of hosts had left us, left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.
Speaker B:Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom.
Speaker B:Give unto the law of our God.
Speaker B:Ye people of Gomorrah.
Speaker B:To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me, saith the Lord.
Speaker B:I am full of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts, and I delight not in the blood of bullocks or of lambs, or of he goats.
Speaker B:When ye come to appear before me.
Speaker B:Who hath required this at your hand to tread my courts, pray no more vain oblations.
Speaker B:Incense is an abomination unto me.
Speaker B:The new movements and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with it.
Speaker B:It is iniquity.
Speaker B:Even the solemn meeting.
Speaker B:Verse 16.
Speaker B:Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes.
Speaker B:Ceaseless to do evil, learn to do well, seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
Speaker B:Come now, let us reason together, saith the Lord.
Speaker B:Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow.
Speaker B:Though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Speaker B:If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.
Speaker B:But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword from the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
Speaker B:And so I read all those verses to be able to give you that context there.
Speaker B:How Israel.
Speaker B:God tells Israel in the verse two.
Speaker B:He says, I have nourished you, I have brought you up as a precious little one.
Speaker B:As an infant, I have taken care of you.
Speaker B:I've been a faithful God, I have provided for you.
Speaker B:Verse 3.
Speaker B:Israel have rejected their provider.
Speaker B:Israel had rejected the one who had brought them and delivered him from Egypt, had brought them into this promised land.
Speaker B:They had completely rejected him.
Speaker B:And so far, to the degree that they were rejecting God so much that they were rejecting their own physical issues and meaning, specifically their spiritual issues.
Speaker B:It goes on to talk about some examples in verse 6.
Speaker B:The sole of the foot to the head, there is no soundness of it.
Speaker B:You have these opal wounds all over your body, Israel, and you're not getting it taken care of.
Speaker B:There's some major issues going on here.
Speaker B:Verse 7.
Speaker B:Your country is desolate.
Speaker B:Your cities are burned with fire.
Speaker B:Your land is filled with strangers who are not even Israelites, and they're devouring it in your presence.
Speaker B:It's desolate as overthrown by strangers.
Speaker B:And the daughter of Zion left as a cottage in a vineyard.
Speaker B:And it says, this is a very sad thing in verse nine.
Speaker B:Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a small remnant.
Speaker B:We would have been like Sodom and Gomorrah if we had that small remnant.
Speaker B:If we had those faithful individuals who had stuck to being real, worshiping God, we wouldn't have had it turned out like Sodom and as Gomorrah.
Speaker B:But then God has a message of hope and restoration and a promise for the Israelites, and that's what we're getting into tonight.
Speaker B:And so there's three different ways that God encourages the Israelites to be preserved, and God encourages us to be preserved today, us who are striving to follow and obey Christ.
Speaker B:First, you recognize sin markers.
Speaker B:So we've talked about a lot of the process of how Israel got to where they are right now in verse 21.
Speaker B:So let's look at verse 21.
Speaker B:It says, how is the faithful city becoming harlot?
Speaker B:It was full of judgment, righteousness lodged in it.
Speaker B:But now murderers, Thy silver has become dross, thy wine mixed with water.
Speaker B:Thy princes are rebellious and companions of thieves.
Speaker B:Everyone loveth gifts and followeth after rewards.
Speaker B:They judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.
Speaker B:So what is.
Speaker B:What does God first?
Speaker B:How does he first describe Israel?
Speaker B:Look at verse 21.
Speaker B:There it states, how is that faithful city?
Speaker B:You guys have been faithful to me.
Speaker B:You have been offering your sacrifices faithfully before me, having that.
Speaker B:That complete openness and that transparency with me, right?
Speaker B:There were no skeletons in the closet, right?
Speaker B:They were open with God.
Speaker B:They were real with God.
Speaker B:It was full of judgment.
Speaker B:There was righteousness going on.
Speaker B:And people were looking at them literally coming in, observing like the riches of Solomon, right?
Speaker B:Saying how richly God had blessed their country.
Speaker B:Things were properly rendered in accordance with the law, and everyone followed what God had said.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:But not only did it have good judgment, but righteousness also lodged in it.
Speaker B:What is that talking about?
Speaker B:Well, it's talking about how the people, specifically the leaders of the country, the leaders and the people of Israel, they faithfully followed after making righteous judgments, following in true righteousness after how, according to how God wanted them to live, things were right.
Speaker B:These were right where they were focusing on.
Speaker B:It was literally the center of attention to people because they were doing it God way.
Speaker B:And when you choose to live for God, you choose to say, you know what?
Speaker B:I want to be faithful.
Speaker B:I want to be faithful to God.
Speaker B:You're going to stand out.
Speaker B:As I mentioned this morning, you're going to stand out because you're different.
Speaker B:Everyone else around us, they're caught up with their own sin, they're caught up with their own wickedness.
Speaker B:They're caught up with being completely isolated from God.
Speaker B:And we are called to be a faithful people who are zealous of good works, who are living out testimonies of God's grace and his mercy.
Speaker B:And specifically here, righteousness, good judgment, right?
Speaker B:You have rumors going on, lies being spread, maybe at work or with family, family relationships and stuff.
Speaker B:How are you known within your family?
Speaker B:How are you known within your workplace?
Speaker B:Are you known as somebody who has good judgment, God's judgment, God's righteousness, or, you know, as somebody who, who's like anybody else?
Speaker B:So we see here that, that some of these things is that Israel had been a faithful city, but what had they become?
Speaker B:Look at verse 21.
Speaker B:It says now, murderers.
Speaker B:Wow, what a contrast there.
Speaker B:Murderers.
Speaker B:God says here, literally killing people.
Speaker B:They used to value things that were precious, such as life, but now they value things that were clearly wrong, that were completely in violation to the law.
Speaker B:Killing in violation before the presence of a holy God.
Speaker B:And there were some clear comparisons here.
Speaker B:Look at verse 22.
Speaker B:It says, Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water.
Speaker B:Thy princes are rebellious, the companions of thieves.
Speaker B:Everyone loveth gifts and followeth after rewards.
Speaker B:They judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.
Speaker B:What's he saying here?
Speaker B:Well, first he's saying, thy silver's become dross.
Speaker B:What's that talking about?
Speaker B:He's saying, you've lost your shine.
Speaker B:You've lost your identity with me.
Speaker B:You've gotten mixed up with the local heathen nations around you.
Speaker B:You've allowed yourself to ally with the false gods around you by marrying individuals who are not saved, individuals who were not, who were not believers.
Speaker B:You were allowing yourself to be connected with them.
Speaker B:They were not true blood Israelites.
Speaker B:They were not people who were desiring to follow after God.
Speaker B:They were the heathen people.
Speaker B:What kind of relationships are we striving to have with people around us?
Speaker B:There is that evangelistic relationship, people who are not saved that we have to strive to show God's love and his kindness towards.
Speaker B:But there's also relationships of fellowship and it's a very careful distinction.
Speaker B:Be very careful about that.
Speaker B:Because if we can make connections with people and we say, oh, you know what truth is Bending God's word is not, is not all that I need, I need to add things to it, my own opinions that are not based on Scripture, then you're going to find yourself going astray.
Speaker B:You're going to find yourself wandering just like the Israelites here.
Speaker B:And before you know it, like this morning we talked about, you're going to be as that branch that withers up and then God can't use you effectively.
Speaker B:But a silver is become dross.
Speaker B:They have become worn out and become useless for God to be able to use.
Speaker B:Next we see that he describes them as wine mixed with water.
Speaker B:Now mixed here, this literally means to be defiled.
Speaker B:The Israelites had defiled themselves with the heathens around them.
Speaker B:That was one of the things God had warned them about.
Speaker B:Don't connect with those nations around you.
Speaker B:Stay faithful to me.
Speaker B:Stay connected with your people.
Speaker B:The people who are striving to be a people who are zealous for good works, striving to be that testimony to the nations around you.
Speaker B:But instead they were, they allowed themselves to get polluted by the nations around them.
Speaker B:And so it gives a breakdown though in verse 23 of what this looked like, what was happening within the nation of Israel, verse 23.
Speaker B:Thy princes are rebellious and companions of thieves.
Speaker B:The leaders of Israel were stubborn and not following the Lord.
Speaker B:It wasn't, it was no longer an outward fake show.
Speaker B:They were actually being corrupt.
Speaker B:They were making unrighteous judgments.
Speaker B:They were allowing their judgments to be tainted by the ideologies of the false gods around them.
Speaker B:Or even maybe their own selfish desires, their own wicked desires that were not according to how God had called them to live and to rule over is over the Israelites, or specifically with Judah here.
Speaker B:They were rebellious and they were companions of thieves.
Speaker B:It was not talking about, well, they were stealing, right?
Speaker B:They were manipulating, they were stealing things from what wasn't theirs.
Speaker B:They associated themselves with thieves.
Speaker B:They were very dishonest in their rule.
Speaker B:Was there bribery going on, you know, with these different things that were going On, I mean, Solomon, right, He allowed other wives to marry the other countries and stuff, that kind of idea there.
Speaker B:But we, but we see this corruption from the crown down, and princes are rebellious, but not only that, everyone loveth gifts and followeth after rewards.
Speaker B:Verse 23, it says everyone, everyone loveth gifts, followeth after rewards.
Speaker B:Nobody really cares anymore about desiring God.
Speaker B:The only desire about what can I get out of the deal?
Speaker B:What can I get out of it?
Speaker B:God was no longer in the equation.
Speaker B:That's what he's saying here.
Speaker B:He's saying these people cannot properly judge.
Speaker B:They were allowing their own selfishness to be guiding how they were living their life, how they were ruling as princes all the way down to their average person, like you and I.
Speaker B:They were allowing themselves to get caught up with bribery, to get caught up with stealing, with gifts, right?
Speaker B:Oh, you know, so and so, you know, this is one case coming up.
Speaker B:I'm not sure if it might sound familiar to certain situations today, right?
Speaker B:But someone gets bribed to make a certain judgment, right?
Speaker B:And then that judgment goes a certain way, right?
Speaker B:That's how it was back then.
Speaker B:These leaders of Israel were allowing themselves to be bribed to be to make unrighteous judgments.
Speaker B:And why was this?
Speaker B:Because they were relying on their own understanding.
Speaker B:These rulers subjected themselves to briberies.
Speaker B:They did not regard the needy in their society.
Speaker B:That's ultimately what ends up here.
Speaker B:The last part of verse 23, it says, they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.
Speaker B:So who is the ones who really get hurt here in this verse are the ones who were helpless.
Speaker B:They get neglected, the fatherless, the widows, the ones who really needed help.
Speaker B:They were getting neglected.
Speaker B:They weren't truly desiring to be righteous rulers.
Speaker B:So the first point we saw was they recognized sin markers.
Speaker B:But secondly, believe God's word.
Speaker B:Look at verse 24.
Speaker B:Therefore saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the mighty One of Israel, Ah, I will ease thee of mine adversaries and avenge me of mine enemies.
Speaker B:And I will turn my hand upon thee and purely purge away thy dross and take away all thy ten.
Speaker B:And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsels as at the beginning.
Speaker B:Afterward thou shalt be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness.
Speaker B:So what is God saying here?
Speaker B:He's saying the identity of the Lord.
Speaker B:What is his identity?
Speaker B:Verse 24.
Speaker B:Therefore saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the mighty one of Israel.
Speaker B:This isn't just coming from anybody.
Speaker B:This is coming from God himself, the God who had supernaturally delivered Israel out of the country of Egypt, supernaturally led him through the wilderness for 40 years, supernaturally brought him into the promised land and delivered all these different people groups and taking this land that was promised to them.
Speaker B:That's the same God here in verse 24, where it states, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the mighty One of Israel, the one who had gone before Israel had opened up the sea for the Israelites to go across to deliver them, the one who had given them manna every single day, who had taken care of the young, had taken care of every single person within the country of Israel.
Speaker B:God saying, I'm the one who has been so faithful through the years, through all generations before you.
Speaker B:I want to encourage you guys tonight.
Speaker B:God is still a faithful God.
Speaker B:God is still a loving God.
Speaker B:You may feel like you've messed up, but God's grace is always willing to receive you back for what you have done.
Speaker B:Verse 18, he says, Come now, let us reason together, saith the Lord.
Speaker B:Though your sins be as scarlet, they should be as white as snow.
Speaker B:And you say, well, Pastor John, you have no idea what I've done.
Speaker B:You know, I don't have to know, but God already knows.
Speaker B:And God's the one who's saying, come back to me, confess that sin.
Speaker B:Say, lord, forgive me for my sin, raise them together.
Speaker B:That's the same idea as confessing, which means saying the same thing as saying the same thing as meaning.
Speaker B:Let's talk about it.
Speaker B:Let's get on the same page, right?
Speaker B:Have you ever had that before with somebody where there's somebody else who, you know, has clearly misunderstood what you were doing or what you were saying?
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:And that's kind of the idea here.
Speaker B:And what do you do?
Speaker B:You go talk to them, right?
Speaker B:You'd be like, hey, why are you upset at me?
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:What did I do to offend you?
Speaker B:And they say, well, you said this to me, whatever.
Speaker B:And it's like, no, you know, I didn't mean it that way, right?
Speaker B:I'm sorry, I apologize.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:I'm sorry.
Speaker B:And you make that relationship, right, just like that.
Speaker B:That's what God is saying here, Come back to me.
Speaker B:But in a very real sense, you've done wrong.
Speaker B:So when you come on the terms with God, you come before him to reason with him, to say, lord, I was wrong, I have sinned.
Speaker B:I've committed wickedness before you, Lord, please forgive me and cleanse me and help me to walk in obedience to you.
Speaker B:Verse 18, Though your sins be as scarlet, they should be white as snow, but they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Speaker B:And in verse 19, if ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.
Speaker B:So, as I mentioned earlier, thus saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the mighty, One of Israel.
Speaker B:This is the one almighty God, the one who will never grow faint or weary in dealing with his people.
Speaker B:What does he say?
Speaker B:Verse 24, I will ease me of mine adversaries and avenge me of mine enemies.
Speaker B:Here it says with ease.
Speaker B:It means to regret in a compassionate manner, right?
Speaker B:If reading that phrase there, I will ease me on my enemies.
Speaker B:We talk today and we say, all right, man, sleeves up, right?
Speaker B:Someone did something to me.
Speaker B:I'm going to ease myself and just take care of it here, God, with that word ease there, it means I want to come alongside.
Speaker B:I want to restore.
Speaker B:I want to see this come back together in a compassionate manner.
Speaker B:That's what.
Speaker B:That's where God's heart is.
Speaker B:Genesis chapter six talked about this.
Speaker B:It talks about how God had seen the wickedness of man, how it was great in the earth.
Speaker B:This is right before the flood.
Speaker B:In that same chapter, 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.
Speaker B:And it says it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth and had grieved him at his heart.
Speaker B:Even there you can see the same picture, that sorrow, that love, that compassion that God has for anybody to come back to him.
Speaker B:Micah 7, 18, 19, some other really good verses.
Speaker B:If you have someone who's asking you and challenging you for God being a hateful God, you can challenge him with this.
Speaker B:Micah 7, 18 and 19.
Speaker B:Who is a godlike unto thee, that pardoned the iniquity and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage.
Speaker B:He retaineth not his anger forever because he delighteth in mercy.
Speaker B:He will turn again.
Speaker B:He will have compassion upon us.
Speaker B:He will subdue our iniquities, and thou will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
Speaker B:So what's he saying with those verses there?
Speaker B:I read the first part of verse 8, the last part of verse 18.
Speaker B:He retaineth on his anger forever.
Speaker B:I don't know about you, but I think about that, you know, historically in my life, and it's like, well, I just need to get it out, right?
Speaker B:I need to be like, oh, I have this anger.
Speaker B:I just need to release it, right?
Speaker B:But here, God does not retain his anger forever because he'd rather show his mercy to somebody.
Speaker B:He would rather be.
Speaker B:He wants to show his mercy of forgiveness and compassion.
Speaker B:That's why when God called Jonah to go to the people of Nineveh, and then when they repented, Jonah got upset, right?
Speaker B:Jonah was like, come on, Lord, take them down.
Speaker B:Strike them down with fire from heaven, right?
Speaker B:Not literally, but the idea, right, of judging them and.
Speaker B:But God didn't do that.
Speaker B:Jonah was so fixed on God's judging Nineveh, but when they actually repented, God forgave them and showed them mercy.
Speaker B:And that's what God desires for you?
Speaker B:That's what God desires for me.
Speaker B:That we have nothing between us and him.
Speaker B:Everything is confessed.
Speaker B:Everything is open before him.
Speaker B:So we see.
Speaker B:He will ease himself of his enemies, but also he will avenge his enemies.
Speaker B:And what is this?
Speaker B:It means God will be just in dealing with the wicked properly, right?
Speaker B:God will be.
Speaker B:God will deal with the wicked properly.
Speaker B:You come in and you're going to be hurting, specifically his people wickedly.
Speaker B:He is going to deal with them.
Speaker B:Likewise, the individuals who are unrepentant who choose to reject him, he will reject and judge.
Speaker B:Anybody who chooses to reject God is, now, I want to go my way.
Speaker B:They're going to be rejected.
Speaker B:But let's keep moving on here.
Speaker B:Verse 25.
Speaker B:So we see this contrast here of how he has the ease of his enemies, right?
Speaker B:That compassion.
Speaker B:But also there is that avenging of the enemies, those ones who are unrepentant.
Speaker B:Verse 24.
Speaker B:Therefore saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
Speaker B:Sorry, verse 25.
Speaker B:And I will turn my hand upon thee and purely purge away thy dross and take away all thy ten.
Speaker B:What a beautiful picture there.
Speaker B:What is he saying there?
Speaker B:God will restore Israel and God will restore you.
Speaker B:He can restore you right now in your seat where you are, you say, lord, I've sinned against you.
Speaker B:Please forgive me, Lord.
Speaker B:Help me know to live a life that is obedient for you.
Speaker B:But he says that he will purely purge away thy dross, take away all thy ten.
Speaker B:He will purify the silver to make it completely clean.
Speaker B:Now, do you guys.
Speaker B:Are you guys familiar with that process of the silversmithing?
Speaker B:See, of the silversmith, right?
Speaker B:What does he do?
Speaker B:Well, he gets the fire going, right?
Speaker B:He gets that fire.
Speaker B:And as the fire is started up, the silver starts to melt.
Speaker B:And as the silver starts to melt, the silversmith starts taking out his impurities, right?
Speaker B:Just the exact same picture Here.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:But how do you know when the silversmith is done refining the silver is when you see the image of the silversmith's face and the silver.
Speaker B:And that's God's goal for us.
Speaker B:That was God's goal for Israel.
Speaker B:Through this purging process, when we confess our sin to him, we choose to live obediently for him.
Speaker B:That's when we look like him.
Speaker B:God will.
Speaker B:God purges us.
Speaker B:He will purge the Israelites, he will restore them back.
Speaker B:He will take away all of the dross, all those impurities, take away all of itin.
Speaker B:And what does he say in verse 26?
Speaker B:I will restore thy judges as at the first.
Speaker B:God will restore righteousness after their cleansing.
Speaker B:You see, it wasn't backwards, right?
Speaker B:God wasn't going to give him righteous judges because they were asking for it.
Speaker B:I feel like a lot of times today, you know, we're.
Speaker B:We kind of had a perspective.
Speaker B:We were praying for maybe as leaders in our country or whatever specific leaders it is, but we're neglecting the own wickedness in our hearts.
Speaker B:How can we expect God to do any changes?
Speaker B:Well, it starts with us first.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:Come before God and say, lord, I have sinned.
Speaker B:Lord, I confess my sin to you.
Speaker B:I bring it before you, Lord.
Speaker B:God will have his way with Israel.
Speaker B:Nobody will be able to stop his plan.
Speaker B:Now let me ask you a question, an illustration here with this.
Speaker B:Are you familiar with the waxing, what it means to wax the floor?
Speaker B:When I worked at PCC as a part of the wax crew for like one or two semesters, it was like a weird shift.
Speaker B:It was like 7 to 9pm, like Tuesday and Thursday night or something like that.
Speaker B:And we would go over and what was the first step?
Speaker B:Well, the first step was we had to mop the floor.
Speaker B:Why?
Speaker B:Yeah, to clean it.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:If you hadn't mopped the floor and you put the wax on, would it be a nice fresh wax looked, you know, polished floor?
Speaker B:No.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Likewise here, God says you get your cleansing made.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:And then I will restore the judges and I will restore righteousness to where?
Speaker B:To where it was before they would become a righteous and faithful city to the Lord.
Speaker B:Our final point tonight is this.
Speaker B:Fear the Lord.
Speaker B:Look at verse 27.
Speaker B:Zion shall be redeemed with judgment.
Speaker B:Her converse with righteousness and the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together.
Speaker B:And they that forsake the Lord shall be consumed, for they shall be ashamed of the yokes which ye have desired.
Speaker B:And ye shall be confounded for the gardens that ye have chosen for ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water, and the strong shall be as tow, and a maker of it as a spark.
Speaker B:And they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them.
Speaker B:God will deal with the obedient and he will deal with the disobedient first.
Speaker B:Here it says that they that forsake the Lord shall be consumed.
Speaker B:Those who forsake God, who choose not to embrace the Lord to embrace his commandments.
Speaker B:They're going to be.
Speaker B:They're going to be as those branches are cast in the fire, those who are truly not saved, those who are truly not.
Speaker B:Who are truly not desiring to follow after God, to have that, they're going to be cast away.
Speaker B:But those who are saved, those who truly desire to follow after God, who want to come, be restored.
Speaker B:He says, I'm going to restore you.
Speaker B:I'm going to bring you back.
Speaker B:But there's no exception to this.
Speaker B:There's no dodge on this judgment.
Speaker B:We all fall between one of the two.
Speaker B:Look at verse 29.
Speaker B:They shall be ashamed of the oaks that ye have desired.
Speaker B:Ye shall be confounded for the gardens that ye have chosen.
Speaker B:Ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth as a garden hath no water, and the strong shall be as a toe, and the maker of it as a spark.
Speaker B:They shall both burn together, and none shall quench them.
Speaker B:So what's this talking about?
Speaker B:Well, it's saying those who truly are wicked, those who.
Speaker B:Who are not following after me, they are going to truly be burned together, and nobody will be able to quench them.
Speaker B:That destruction is final when it happens.
Speaker B:But what does it say to those who.
Speaker B:To those who are truly faithful, as mentioned this morning, right?
Speaker B:Those who are truly faithful to the word of God, those who are truly faithful to following the after.
Speaker B:The Lord going to be as a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth his fruit in the season.
Speaker B:You're going to be as a strong reed.
Speaker B:The song becomes.
Speaker B:As a strong reed.
Speaker B:But.
Speaker B:And so the final question is this.
Speaker B:Will you be restored?
Speaker B:Will you be restored back to where God has you, or will you be as the wicked here, where, you know, at the end of the day, they chose and they said, you know what?
Speaker B:I'm not truly going to live for God.
Speaker B:Even though, you know, they had gone through all the motions.
Speaker B:Verse 13.
Speaker B:Bring no more vain oblations before me.
Speaker B:Stop bringing your emptiness before me, your empty worship.
Speaker B:Be faithful to what I've called you to do.
Speaker B:Be restored, Be real with God.
Speaker B:Stop being a hypocrite, be real with him and confess that sin before him.
Speaker B:Will you be restored?
Speaker B:All right, let's see here.
Speaker B:I have one major announcement and that's for I forgot I mentioned that this morning too, but Sherry Fulmer's funeral is this Saturday.
Speaker B: is a visitation and: Speaker B:If you're able to make it out for that close service in prayer.
Speaker B:Dear Lord, I thank you so much Lord for this message of hope, Lord, this message of judgment, Lord it is a very scary position, Lord, to think about how this really could be anybody, Lord, who does not truly desire to follow after you, God But I pray that you please help us, Lord to have a heart of openness, Lord, a desire to confess our sins before you, Lord to be real with you, Lord and I pray there's anybody in here tonight, Lord or who those who are watching to the livestream Father Help us to make our lives right before you, Lord that we would confess our sins, Lord.
Speaker B:First John 1:9 if we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness, Father in Jesus name I pray.
Speaker B:Amen.
Pastor Josh:Thank you again for listening to the Middletown Baptist Church podcast.
Pastor Josh:I hope that this sermon has been a blessing for you.
Pastor Josh:If you would like to find out more information about our church or this sermon, you can find us at middletownbaptistchurch.org or find us on Facebook or YouTube.
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Pastor Josh:Thank you so much.
Pastor Josh:God Bless.
Pastor Josh:Have a wonderful day.
