Latest / Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons / Your God is too Small

Transcript

Your God is too Small · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

0:00
And I would just like to introduce our guest preacher this morning, Reverend Dr. Bob Ackroyd.
0:07
! He's no stranger to the islands, but it's appropriate to give him an introduction. Bob came from the east coast of America and came over to study history, the history of the nations of the United Kingdom.
0:23
And in doing that, he found the God of history and his son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
0:31
And that's been a great benefit to the free church down through the years.
0:36
Bob has served on numerous committees. He was chairman of the mission board.
0:40
He was on a number of other committees as well and has done great work in the church, becoming moderator in 2023.
0:49
He's also been involved in prison ministry in Edinburgh, ongoing in that prison ministry.
0:57
And it's been amazing to hear what he's been doing there and the way that he's been taken in by the prisoners.
1:05
It's wonderful to see that the Lord's people are able to go into these situations and provide help to people who are in need.
1:17
So we are so grateful that he's been able to join us today and he will now take over the service.
1:24
And I've asked him to go to the main door after the service where he can meet with you.
1:30
And one thing I would say is, if you've ever been at a camp with Bob, don't be surprised if he knows your name.
1:38
Absolutely amazing the way he's able to remember people.
1:43
So if you, and that's decades ago, people who have been at camp with him decades ago, he still remembers their name.
1:49
Bob, I'll hand over to you.
1:50
Thank you, Margo.
1:53
Well, may I add my welcome and warm good morning to you.
1:58
I was asked specifically by our principal to convey the greetings of Edinburgh Theological Seminary.
2:04
I think you may be familiar with Ivor Martin, so he sends his warm greetings to you all.
2:10
And we at the seminary are delighted to serve the church.
2:13
And it's a great privilege on an occasion like this to be able to preach here and to share fellowship with you all.
2:22
So let us, we're going to, I should say, Murdo mentioned camp.
2:25
I'll put a plug in.
2:26
I'm leading a camp this summer in Renfrew.
2:29
If there are any senior boys and girls, particularly boys, S3 and above.
2:36
If you're interested in go-karting and escape rooms and hill climbing.
2:44
Anyway, camps are a great ministry of this church.
2:47
And if you're a young person here or you're parents of young people and you haven't considered camp,
2:52
maybe this year might be a great opportunity of sending some of the young people of this congregation of this town to camp,
2:59
even for the first time.
3:01
Let's worship God.
3:02
We're going to sing to his praise.
3:03
We're going to sing from Psalm 67.
3:06
It's the first version of that psalm in the Scottish Psalter.
3:11
And that's on page 300.
3:13
And the tune is Selma.
3:15
And we sing those familiar words.
3:18
Lord, bless and pity us.
3:21
Shine on us with thy face.
3:23
That the earth, thy way, and nations all may know thy saving grace.
3:28
Let's join our voices together in the praise of God.
3:30
Amen.
3:31
For the earth, thy way, and nations all may know thy saving grace.
4:00
Let people praise thee, Lord.
4:08
Let people all be praised.
4:14
Oh, let the nations be glad
4:22
In songs their voices raise.
4:29
Thou just say, people judge
4:36
On earth, through nations all
4:43
Let people praise thee, Lord.
4:49
Let them praise thee, both great and small
4:57
In earth, thy fruit shall yield
5:04
Our God shall bless him stand
5:11
God shall us bless
5:16
And shall live thee, unto earth
5:23
God shall live thee, unto earth
5:30
We've joined our voices in praise.
5:34
Let's now unite our hearts in prayer.
5:36
Let us pray.
5:37
Father in heaven, we thank you for that open invitation
5:40
And that vast promise given
5:43
That you will be the blessing to all the nations
5:47
That as we ask for your blessing upon ourselves
5:50
We ask that blessing might overflow
5:53
It might overflow into the lives of our families
5:57
Into the lives of our communities
5:59
Into the life of this nation
6:01
Into the nations of this earth
6:03
We thank you this morning as we join in worship
6:07
We join with your church
6:09
From the north and from the south
6:11
The east and the west
6:12
In all nations, in all continents
6:15
Where the name of the Lord Jesus is exalted
6:19
And the gospel of the Lord Jesus is heralded
6:23
So Lord, we pray that you would indeed
6:25
Be merciful to us
6:27
You are great and good
6:29
You are high and holy
6:31
And you have come down now to our level
6:35
You have come down to experience life firsthand
6:38
So we have in the Lord Jesus
6:41
A sympathetic high priest
6:45
Who knows, who sees, who cares
6:48
Who has walked this way before
6:51
So we thank you that when we come to you now in prayer
6:54
You understand
6:55
You understand the human condition
6:58
You understand the human frailty
7:00
You understand the struggles
7:02
And the trials and the troubles
7:04
That are characteristic of this life
7:07
And not only do you understand
7:09
But you are able
7:10
You are able to do above and beyond our asking
7:14
Beyond our imagining
7:15
Because you, O God, are great in power
7:19
Great in might
7:21
Great in holiness and righteousness
7:24
And Lord, we pray
7:26
That by faith we may lay hold of you
7:30
That our trust may be rooted in you
7:33
In your Son, the Lord Jesus
7:35
And that the Holy Spirit himself
7:38
Might work in such a way
7:39
That the words that are written on a page
7:42
Might be words that are imprinted upon our hearts
7:46
And lived out in our lives
7:48
We thank you that though we are weak
7:51
You are strong
7:52
Though we are often foolish
7:54
You are altogether wise
7:56
We are so aware of our inconsistencies
8:00
And our limitations
8:01
But you are perfectly consistent
8:03
And you are limited by nothing
8:07
And no one
8:09
So Lord, we thank you
8:10
That whether from this pulpit
8:12
In this place
8:13
Throughout this town
8:14
Throughout this island
8:16
Throughout this nation
8:17
Throughout this world
8:18
You have promised
8:20
That you will accompany
8:22
The proclamation of your word
8:25
With your presence
8:26
With your power
8:27
With your blessing
8:29
We ask, Lord, that you might exceed
8:31
Our expectations
8:33
That you might exceed our asking
8:36
And that certainly
8:37
You might exceed our deserving
8:39
Because we come to you
8:41
In that name
8:41
Which is above every name
8:43
At the name of Jesus
8:45
We know that one day
8:46
Every knee will bow
8:47
We know that one day
8:48
Every tongue will confess
8:50
But until that day comes
8:52
We bow our knee
8:54
We confess with our tongue
8:56
That you are Lord
8:57
And we want and long to see
9:00
Many more come to that same
9:02
Saving knowledge
9:04
Where they too will bow their knee
9:06
In glad adoration
9:08
Where they too will confess
9:09
With joy
9:11
The Lord Jesus Christ
9:13
As their Lord
9:14
So hear these our prayers
9:16
And answer us
9:17
According to
9:18
Your rich mercy
9:20
Your infinite resources
9:22
That are found in Jesus Christ
9:24
Your Son
9:25
Our Savior
9:26
Amen
9:28
Well, I want to speak
9:30
To the young people here
9:31
And I'm sure
9:33
You have heard this word before
9:35
I'm sure that your parents
9:37
Will have told you
9:39
That you are precious
9:41
And maybe parents
9:43
If you haven't used that word recently
9:44
Remind your children
9:46
That they are indeed precious
9:48
There's a verse
9:50
That I want to share with you
9:51
In the Bible
9:51
From Isaiah
9:52
This is from Isaiah
9:54
Chapter 43, verse 4
9:55
For those of us older
9:56
With Bibles
9:57
Isaiah 43, verse 4
9:59
Tells us something
10:01
Very important
10:02
But before I tell you
10:04
About the verse
10:05
I want to give you
10:05
An illustration
10:06
So this ring
10:08
That is on my finger
10:09
If I look inside
10:11
I see a number
10:12
And that number is 14
10:15
And next to the word
10:16
Number 14
10:17
Is a capital K
10:19
So this tells me
10:20
That this ring
10:21
Is 14 carat gold
10:23
Gold is a precious metal
10:25
And if I took this
10:27
If I wanted to
10:28
If I wanted to sell
10:29
This ring
10:30
I could take it
10:31
To a merchant
10:32
The merchant would weigh it
10:33
And would give me cash
10:35
Based upon the amount
10:37
Of gold
10:37
And the amount
10:38
That this ring weighs
10:40
But this ring
10:42
Isn't precious to me
10:43
Because it's made of gold
10:44
Let me tell you
10:45
A little bit about this ring
10:46
You see this ring
10:48
Was given twice
10:49
And inside the ring
10:52
There are two dates
10:54
If I can see
10:55
With my limited vision
10:57
Now
10:57
R-E-S
10:58
Plus D-A
11:00
8-20-55
11:02
So the 20th of August
11:05
1955
11:06
Ruth Evelyn Spooner
11:08
Gave this ring
11:09
To Dennis Ackroyd Jr.
11:11
My mom and dad
11:12
What is it
11:15
44 years later
11:16
And the other inscription
11:18
Inside the ring
11:19
Is H-J
11:21
Plus
11:22
R-A
11:23
5-24-99
11:25
So this ring
11:27
Was given by my mother
11:28
To my father
11:29
And then this ring
11:30
Was given by my wife
11:32
To me
11:32
She put this ring
11:33
On my finger
11:34
On the 24th of May
11:35
1999
11:36
So this ring
11:38
Is doubly precious
11:40
To me
11:41
Not because it's
11:42
Made of gold
11:43
But because it was
11:44
Given in love
11:45
My mother
11:47
To my father
11:47
My wife
11:49
To me
11:49
Love
11:51
You see
11:52
The Bible
11:53
Tells us
11:53
Something very important
11:55
And young people
11:56
I want you to hear this
11:57
Because this is not
11:58
What I'm saying
11:59
Nor even is it
12:01
What your parents
12:02
Are saying
12:02
And all that's
12:02
Very important
12:03
But God says this
12:05
About you
12:06
Because you are
12:08
Precious in my eyes
12:10
And honored
12:12
And I love you
12:13
So young people
12:15
And not so young people
12:18
God has something
12:19
That he wants you
12:20
To know
12:21
He wants you
12:22
To know
12:23
That in his eyes
12:25
You are
12:27
Precious
12:28
Infinitely
12:30
Valuable
12:31
You are honored
12:32
In his sight
12:33
He loves you
12:35
You see
12:36
If you believe that
12:38
Something remarkable
12:40
Happens
12:40
If you believe
12:42
That God knows you
12:43
And loves you
12:44
That you are
12:45
Precious in your sight
12:47
In his sight
12:47
It changes everything
12:49
Changes how you think
12:51
Changes how you feel
12:52
It changes how you live
12:54
And I want to say
12:55
I know this is
12:56
A children's talk
12:57
But as an adult
12:59
I'm now 58
13:00
I've come to realize
13:02
That actually
13:03
God means
13:04
What he says
13:05
I should have realized
13:07
That a long time ago
13:08
But actually
13:09
He means
13:10
That I am precious
13:11
That I am honored
13:13
And that I am loved
13:14
And he means that
13:16
For you
13:17
You are precious
13:19
You are honored
13:21
You are loved
13:21
Sometimes we find it
13:23
Difficult
13:24
To take God
13:25
At his word
13:26
He doesn't mean me
13:28
He doesn't mean people
13:30
Like you know
13:30
If he really knew
13:32
Well he does really know
13:33
But he does say
13:35
And when you think
13:37
Today
13:37
Parents
13:38
Somehow
13:39
Say to your children
13:40
You heard what the preacher
13:42
Said today
13:43
I want you to know
13:44
That you are precious
13:45
To me
13:46
Because words matter
13:47
Words that have
13:49
Meaning matter
13:50
And God's word
13:51
Matters to me
13:53
God's word
13:54
Matters to you
13:55
And no matter
13:56
How young you are
13:57
This morning
13:57
I want you to know
13:59
Without a shadow
14:00
Of a doubt
14:00
That God says
14:02
You are precious
14:04
To him
14:05
You mean so much
14:07
Because you are
14:08
So valuable
14:09
And if you believe that
14:11
I guarantee you
14:13
Your life
14:14
Will be changed
14:15
By that truth
14:17
So may God bless
14:18
To us
14:19
His word
14:21
Precious
14:21
Honored
14:23
And loved
14:24
I'm now going to lead us
14:25
In the Lord's prayer
14:26
Let's join our voices
14:27
Our Father
14:29
Which art in heaven
14:31
Hallowed be thy name
14:33
Thy kingdom come
14:35
Thy will be done
14:37
On earth
14:38
As it is in heaven
14:39
Give us this day
14:41
Our daily bread
14:42
And forgive us
14:43
Our debts
14:44
As we forgive
14:46
Our debtors
14:46
And lead us not
14:48
Into temptation
14:49
But deliver us
14:51
From evil
14:51
For thine is
14:53
The kingdom
14:53
The power
14:54
And the glory
14:55
Forever and ever
14:57
Amen
14:58
Amen
14:59
Well as we
15:02
Now turn again
15:03
To sing to God's praise
15:05
We're going to sing
15:05
From Psalm 103
15:06
As the young people
15:08
Will make their way
15:09
To their Sunday school classes
15:10
This is page 135
15:14
Psalm 103
15:17
And we're going to sing
15:18
To the tune
15:19
Before the throne
15:20
Praise God my soul
15:23
With all my heart
15:25
Let me exalt his holy name
15:28
Forget not all his benefits
15:29
His praise
15:31
My soul
15:31
In song proclaim
15:33
Psalm 103
15:34
Let's join our voices
15:35
In praise
15:36
The Lord forgives
16:05
To all your sins
16:08
I'll guilt your sickness
16:10
And distress
16:12
Your life he rescues
16:17
From the grave
16:19
And ground you
16:20
In his tenderness
16:23
And ground you
16:26
In his tenderness
16:29
He's got this fight
16:33
In his strength
16:35
From his unending
16:38
Source of good
16:41
So God just like
16:43
The evil strength
16:46
To youthful maker
16:49
Is renewed
16:51
The Lord is known
16:54
For righteous hands
16:57
And justice to them
17:01
God and what?
17:03
To Moses he made known his ways, his mighty deeds to Israel's sons, his mighty deeds to
17:16
Israel's sons.
17:19
The Lord is merciful and kind, to anger slow and full of praise.
17:30
He will not constantly prove, for in his anger hide his face.
17:40
It does not punish our misdeeds, or give our sins their just reward.
17:51
Our greatest love, as high as heaven, who warms all those who fear the Lord.
18:02
Who warms all those who fear the Lord.
18:10
Let's turn together to read in God's word.
18:17
We're going to read from Isaiah chapter 6.
18:20
Isaiah 6 is one of these great commissioning chapters where God is calling and equipping
18:27
and giving to one of his people a clear message and a clear ministry.
18:34
The time frame, if you're interested, as a history person, I like to know dates.
18:39
We're looking at 738 BC.
18:43
This is a golden age for Judah.
18:47
This is a time in which the nation is going well.
18:51
Military, politics, economics, all seem to be going great.
18:58
And in the midst of this, the king dies.
19:02
The king dies, but the real king still lives and speaks.
19:07
So let's read together Isaiah chapter 6.
19:10
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up.
19:21
And the train of his robe filled the temple.
19:25
Above him stood the seraphim.
19:27
Each had six wings.
19:29
With two he covered his face.
19:31
And with two he covered his feet.
19:33
And with two he flew.
19:35
And one called to another and said,
19:38
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.
19:42
The whole earth is full of his glory.
19:46
And the foundations of the threshold shook at the voice of him who called.
19:51
And the house was filled with smoke.
19:54
And I said, woe is me, for I am lost.
19:59
For I am a man of unclean lips.
20:01
And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.
20:06
For my eyes have seen the king, the Lord of hosts.
20:10
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.
20:19
And he touched my mouth and said, behold, this has touched your lips.
20:24
Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.
20:30
And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, whom shall I send and who will go for us?
20:35
Then I said, here am I, send me.
20:39
And he said, go and say to this people, keep on hearing, but do not understand.
20:46
Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.
20:49
Make the heart of this people dull and their eyes heavy.
20:52
And blind their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears.
20:58
And understand with their hearts and turn and be healed.
21:02
Then I said, how long, O Lord?
21:05
And he said, until cities lie waste without inhabitant and houses without people.
21:12
And the land is a desolate waste.
21:16
And the Lord removes people far away.
21:19
And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
21:23
And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again,
21:27
like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.
21:32
The holy seed is its stump.
21:36
Amen.
21:37
And may God add his own blessing to this reading from his word.
21:43
We're not going to sing again.
21:44
We're going to sing from the Scottish Psalter, Psalm number 93.
21:49
Psalm 93.
21:50
And we'll sing to the tune of Stroudwater.
21:52
You'll find this on page 354, near the back of our psalm books.
22:01
The Lord doth reign, and clothed is he with majesty most bright.
22:07
His works do show him clothed to be, and girt about with might.
22:11
Let's join our voices together to sing to God's praise.
22:14
The Lord doth reign, and clothed is he with majesty most bright.
22:32
His works do show him clothed to be, and girt about with might.
22:47
The Lord doth is all so stabbing shed,
22:56
But yet can not depart.
23:03
Thy throne is fixed, of old and found,
23:10
From everlasting heart.
23:17
The bloods, O Lord, have lifted up,
23:26
They lifted up their voice,
23:32
The bloods have lifted up their rays,
23:41
And made a mighty noise,
23:47
But if the Lord that is on high, is more of might by fire,
24:02
a noise of many waters is our great sea willow's eye.
24:17
Thy grace to glory, everyone, in faithfulness excel,
24:32
and holiness forevermore thy hearts become a thrill.
24:47
Whenever I get a chance to visit London,
24:58
one of the places that I always go is the British Museum.
25:03
A few years ago they had an exhibition, and it was entitled,
25:07
Ashurbanipal, King of Assyria, King of the World.
25:12
Now in the 7th century BC, the Assyrian Empire was a big deal.
25:17
And within the Assyrian Empire, Ashurbanipal was a big deal.
25:22
I don't know about you, but I can go months without thinking about the Assyrian Empire,
25:27
and years can pass without giving much attention to the emperor, the king, Ashurbanipal.
25:34
It reminds us, even as a historian, we forget these great figures of the past.
25:40
Empires rise and fall.
25:42
Kings come and go.
25:44
Presidents and prime ministers fade in the memory.
25:49
We encounter in Isaiah 6 something different by far.
25:55
Someone different by far.
25:57
This is no ordinary king.
26:00
This is no ordinary empire.
26:02
This is no ordinary encounter.
26:05
And as we see in Isaiah 6, and in a few moments hopefully we'll look into Matthew's gospel,
26:10
into the New Testament,
26:12
I think we are reminded of something profound here.
26:16
That whatever our vision and understanding of God is,
26:21
whatever our apprehension,
26:24
by definition, your view, your God, my God, is far too small.
26:31
The God who is, is far greater than any estimation, than any evaluation.
26:38
Whatever picture we have in our minds,
26:41
whatever ideas we have in our hearts,
26:43
is far too small.
26:45
There was in the 1950s, a short book was published,
26:51
which was entitled,
26:52
Your God is Too Small by J.B. Phillips.
26:55
And he began that book with this quote,
26:58
We can hardly expect to escape a sense of futility and frustration
27:04
until we begin to see what he is like and his purposes are.
27:10
God will inevitably appear to disappoint the man who is attempting to use him as a convenience,
27:18
a prop, or a comfort for his own plans.
27:23
God has never been known to disappoint the man who is sincerely wanting to cooperate with his own purposes.
27:32
God is great.
27:33
God is great.
27:34
God is big.
27:37
He's far bigger, far greater, far more powerful than we can ever imagine.
27:44
Isaiah encounters the living God in the temple.
27:49
As he goes, he sees something that is beyond his comprehension.
27:54
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up,
28:02
and the train of his robe filled the temple.
28:06
You see, our God is great.
28:09
Great in power.
28:10
Great in authority.
28:11
Great in majesty.
28:12
Great in glory.
28:14
Great in holiness.
28:15
Great in his plans and his purposes.
28:18
Our great God appears to us here on the pages of scripture to bring a sense of awe and wonder.
28:28
You see, we're told that when Isaiah went to the temple, that the Lord didn't fill the temple.
28:37
It wasn't the robe of the Lord that filled the temple, but it was the train,
28:42
or in the other translations you have the word hem.
28:46
You know what a hem is if you have a pair of trousers or a dress.
28:50
The hem is just the very bottom of the trouser leg, the very bottom of the dress.
28:55
It's just a small piece of fabric that just brings the piece of cloth to an end.
29:01
It's quite insignificant.
29:04
And Isaiah is saying, I saw the Lord, and the very hem of his robe filled the temple.
29:11
Which means that our God is so great, so big, that even the hem fills this magnificent building of the temple.
29:19
And he went on to describe how great our God is.
29:25
That he is a God who is great in holiness, a God who is great in glory, and a God who is great in redemption.
29:33
We encounter the seraphim, and if you're interested in angels, the only place in the Bible that we read of the seraphim is here.
29:45
These angelic servants who are attending God and who are singing this chorus of praise only appear here in scripture.
29:55
The angels serve.
29:57
They are messengers.
29:59
They are servants.
30:00
They exist to do the bidding of God.
30:05
And here they are telling us, holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts.
30:10
The whole earth is full of his glory.
30:14
Now the Lord of hosts is one of many descriptions.
30:18
And notice that it's the personal name of God, L-O-R-D in capital letters.
30:23
Hosts can refer to the heavenly bodies, the stars and the moon and the sun.
30:32
But most likely what's emphasized here is that the hosts refer to the angelic army.
30:41
And that God is the commander-in-chief of the armies of heaven.
30:45
He has the authority to call the angels to do his work, to prosecute his plans, and to achieve his purposes.
30:56
So what do we have here?
30:58
We have a God who is all-powerful, who has all resources, who accomplishes and achieves whatever he plans and purposes.
31:09
This is our great God who we encounter today.
31:12
We encounter him, yes, on the pages of scripture, but we can encounter him personally and powerfully.
31:19
And when we encounter this God as he is, he never disappoints.
31:25
He never discourages.
31:27
He never lets us down.
31:28
He's far greater than we ever imagined that he could be.
31:33
One of the great writers in the history of the church back in the 1700s was a man called John Owen.
31:40
John Owen was a man with a big brain.
31:42
He wrote many volumes of theology.
31:45
But he admitted, he said, we speak much of God.
31:48
The truth is we know very little of him.
31:51
We know so little of God because it is God thus to be known.
31:56
One of the great theological minds said, actually, we know so little.
32:00
God is so great and our knowledge is so small.
32:03
But what we know fills our hearts with wonder, with awe, and with expectation.
32:09
So this great God who is the commander-in-chief of the angelic armies, what he says they do,
32:17
we're told that he is great in holiness.
32:20
He is set apart from this world.
32:23
He is distinct from this world.
32:26
He is distinct from the ways of this world.
32:28
He is completely set apart.
32:30
And if we are one of his people, we likewise are set apart.
32:35
A holy God and a holy people go together.
32:39
Distinct and separate.
32:42
Separate from the ways of this world.
32:44
Separate from the standards of this world.
32:46
Separate from the spirit of this age.
32:49
This holy God.
32:51
And whenever the Bible repeats something, it repeats something for emphasis.
32:56
It's like how you might, if you're studying and you're reading your textbook and you come across a passage,
33:03
you might highlight it.
33:04
You might underline it.
33:05
You might put a post-it note.
33:07
Why?
33:08
Because this is important to remember.
33:10
And when God, in his word, repeats, holy, holy, holy, this God is set apart from this world.
33:20
He's the creator.
33:21
We're the creature.
33:23
He is high and exalted and we are low and humble.
33:27
But notice that not only is he a holy God, but that this God is glorious.
33:32
This world that he has created is filled with his glory.
33:37
Now, in the Bible, this word glory means a heaviness or a weightiness.
33:43
That our God is substantial.
33:45
He's significant.
33:47
He's not light.
33:49
He's not ephemeral.
33:51
But he is substantial and significant.
33:53
The holy God.
33:55
The glory of God.
33:57
And then almost immediately we see that this holy and glorious God is a God on a mission.
34:03
And a God who has come to achieve something remarkable.
34:08
Because the holy God and the God whose glory fills the whole earth is the God who is involved in redeeming a people.
34:19
This word redemption is a theme that goes through the whole scripture.
34:24
The idea of redemption is payment of a price to set someone free.
34:30
The Lord Jesus put it so succinctly.
34:34
He said, whoever sins is a slave to sin.
34:37
Sin and slavery go together.
34:41
That's not how the serpent sold it in Genesis 3.
34:45
The serpent sold sin as sin brings freedom, but it never does.
34:50
The world sells sin.
34:52
Sin brings satisfaction and happiness.
34:54
It never does.
34:55
Our flesh will try to convince us that sin brings some form of fulfillment or joy, but it never does.
35:04
Sin always brings slavery.
35:08
But Jesus went on to say, of course,
35:11
But if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
35:15
Sin and slavery, Son and freedom.
35:18
And throughout the scriptures, the children of Israel and Egypt, we hear, after the coming of Jesus, exile, captivity, bondage, slavery,
35:33
our God is a redeeming God who pays a price to set his people free.
35:38
Because the immediate reaction of Isaiah, it's not so much of awe and wonder, but of woe and dread and fear.
35:49
The foundations of the threshold shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
35:56
I lived in Japan for two years, and I remember one morning waking up, and the whole house was shaking.
36:06
And I thought, boy, it seems like a train.
36:09
It must be rumbling right past the house.
36:13
It's shaking the house.
36:15
I didn't know the train line was so close.
36:18
It wasn't a train.
36:19
It was an earthquake.
36:20
And you kind of felt like you were on the open sea, but you were in a building.
36:25
You were on land.
36:27
I can't explain the feeling, but you just, it was, once you realized what was happening, it was terrifying.
36:33
You know, this idea, everything is now shaking.
36:36
Everything was shaking in the temple.
36:39
And you could understand that Isaiah was petrified.
36:42
He was terrified.
36:42
What's happening here?
36:44
And notice his reaction.
36:46
And I said, woe is me.
36:48
I'm in trouble here.
36:51
You see, when we encounter God as he is, not as we imagine him to be, not as we hope that he might be,
36:58
but as we encounter the God who is holy and glorious and majestic and large,
37:05
the natural reaction is, I'm in trouble.
37:10
We're in trouble.
37:11
And he says exactly that.
37:13
I'm a man of sinful lips.
37:16
And I live among a people of sinful lips.
37:18
So what Isaiah is saying, I am in trouble and we are in trouble.
37:23
The God who creates and the God who is glorified and the God who is holy, he encounters us.
37:30
And when he encounters us, we now see ourselves in his light.
37:35
We now see ourselves in his truth.
37:37
And we realize that we are not right.
37:40
He's holy, but we aren't.
37:42
He's righteous, but we aren't.
37:44
He's pure, but we are not.
37:47
Woe is me.
37:48
I'm in trouble here.
37:50
And notice what happens.
37:52
Just very succinctly.
37:54
One of the seraphim, remember they're singing that angelic chorus, breaks off, as it were,
38:01
and flew with a burning coal in his hand to Isaiah.
38:06
He had taken with tongs from the altar.
38:09
He touched my mouth and said, behold, this has touched your lips.
38:15
Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.
38:20
The movement, the direction of travel here is essential.
38:24
The problem is Isaiah.
38:26
Isaiah.
38:27
The problem is the people.
38:29
But the solution is God's.
38:33
You see, I'm very much, as I now teach, I teach at ETS, and I preach occasionally on Sundays.
38:40
And I'm very much aware that you have to not only be content that what you're saying is correct, and that's very important,
38:50
but you have to ask yourself as a teacher or as a preacher, what am I saying and how am I being heard?
38:58
Because very often I find that when I preach or teach, that people hear things that I'm not saying.
39:05
And the reason why we hear things that the preacher isn't saying is because we have these thoughts already in our minds.
39:13
We have these deep-grained thoughts in our minds.
39:17
And one of those thoughts is, I need to try harder.
39:21
I need to do better.
39:23
I need to fill in the blank.
39:26
I need to read the Bible a bit more.
39:28
I need to pray more regularly.
39:30
I need to be a better husband.
39:32
I need to be a better parent.
39:33
I need to.
39:34
And you see, so often those thoughts are in our minds.
39:38
So even when the Bible says something differently or the preacher says something differently,
39:43
we just repeat what we know, what we think we know to be true.
39:48
But we see here in very vivid picture language,
39:53
the problem is ours, but the solution is God's.
39:58
Isaiah isn't able to fix the problem.
40:01
The only thing that Isaiah can do is identify the problem.
40:05
We can identify our problem, but we can't fix it.
40:08
God fixes it.
40:09
God provides an answer to our problems.
40:13
God fixes what we have broken.
40:16
God solves what we cannot solve.
40:19
So I want you to see it.
40:21
Even if we find it difficult to believe, see the image here.
40:27
The angel takes the coal from the altar.
40:30
The solution goes from God to the people.
40:34
And God provides a way that sin is atoned for, that guilt is taken away.
40:43
Guilt and sin go together.
40:46
Guilt and shame go together.
40:48
The first thing that happened when our first parents sinned was they felt shame.
40:54
They felt shame because they were guilty.
40:57
They disobeyed a clear command.
41:00
They were told sin will bring freedom.
41:04
Sin brought guilt and shame and separation.
41:08
But the gospel undoes the fall.
41:12
The gospel unravels this consequence of sin so that no longer is there guilt, no longer is there shame, no longer is there separation,
41:23
but rather a sinful person, a sinful people have now been reconciled to God by God.
41:32
It's remarkable.
41:34
The God who is so great that the very hem of his garment fills the temple.
41:39
The God who is so great in holiness that his holiness and glory fill the whole earth.
41:45
And the God who looks down in mercy and takes the initiative to solve that great problem of human sin,
41:54
of human guilt, of human separation, of human despair.
42:01
This is our God.
42:03
This is God in his glory.
42:04
This is God in his greatness.
42:06
And Isaiah introduces us to this magnificent God.
42:12
In the 19th century, God raised up some remarkable characters.
42:17
He raised up people that went to the ends of the earth with the gospel, like Hudson Taylor went to China.
42:23
He raised up pulpit ministries like C.H. Spurgeon in London,
42:27
where he preached to 6,000 people every Sunday morning, every Sunday evening.
42:32
There were stories told where the Metropolitan Tabernacle was filled,
42:37
and that there were queues outside the door to come in.
42:42
Spurgeon said to the congregation,
42:44
Can I please ask every converted person here to leave,
42:49
so that your seat might be filled with those who are not yet Christians?
42:53
That's remarkable.
42:55
A remarkable, a 6,000 seat venue was so full that the preacher said,
43:00
Can I ask those who are already Christians to leave,
43:04
because there are people outside who are not yet Christians who want to come in?
43:08
And the third character that strikes me is D.L. Moody, the American evangelist.
43:13
He had a fourth grade education.
43:15
That means at age 10, he left school.
43:18
He wasn't well educated, but he was eager to learn.
43:22
And if you're eager to learn, and you're converted by Christ, watch out.
43:28
Because this man, without a formal education, became a powerful preacher of the gospel.
43:35
He described the gospel in these three, you see,
43:38
he describes the simple message of the gospel in simple terms.
43:43
He said, The gospel is three R's.
43:45
One, we are ruined, ruined by the fall.
43:50
Two, we are redeemed, we are redeemed by the blood.
43:54
And three, we are regenerated by the spirit.
43:59
Sin brings ruin.
44:02
But the gospel brings redemption, brings regeneration.
44:06
And this young man, D.L. Moody, for the next 40 years of his life,
44:10
he preached Jesus to 100 million people in person.
44:16
Not educated, not refined, but he had a passion in the gospel,
44:22
and he had a vision of how great God was, and how great God is.
44:30
So God redeems, and God restores, and God renews.
44:34
That's the gospel of Jesus.
44:36
And what we find in Isaiah chapter 6,
44:41
we find that there's a vivid link between Isaiah 6 and the Lord Jesus Christ.
44:49
First, the link we see is in Isaiah itself.
44:54
You'll notice in the first verse we're told,
44:56
I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up.
45:01
If you move forward in Isaiah to Isaiah chapter 52 and verse 13,
45:10
the final of the four servant songs,
45:14
Isaiah 42, Isaiah 49, Isaiah 50, and Isaiah 52, 53,
45:20
the introduction to the final servant song begins this way.
45:25
Behold, my servant shall act wisely.
45:28
He shall be high and lifted up and shall be exalted.
45:35
The same words that introduce the vision of Isaiah in chapter 6
45:39
are the same words that introduce this final song of the servant in 52 and 53.
45:47
This same servant who will be crushed.
45:49
This same servant who will be bruised.
45:52
This same servant who will be pierced.
45:54
Pierced for our transgression, bruised for our iniquities.
46:00
The chastisement of our peace is upon him,
46:02
and by his stripes we are healed.
46:06
So the God who is high and lifted up in that vision in the temple,
46:10
and the suffering servant who is high and lifted up,
46:15
but lifted up not on a throne but on a cross,
46:18
lifted up not to public adoration but to public ridicule and scorn.
46:25
And we see this vital link between the vision of Isaiah 6
46:28
and the suffering servant of Isaiah 52.
46:32
And we are reminded that we have an exalted and a risen and an honored Jesus,
46:39
that he is high, that he is lifted up,
46:43
that he is powerful, that he is holy,
46:47
that he is glorious, that he is able.
46:51
You see, what is seen in picture language in Isaiah 6
46:55
is now seen in personal language in Isaiah 52 and 53.
47:01
The coal taken from the altar,
47:05
the atonement for sin,
47:07
the taking away of guilt,
47:09
is now found in a person.
47:11
And that person is Jesus.
47:14
He is the means by which God redeems
47:17
and restores and rescues and renews.
47:22
So as you read Isaiah 6,
47:24
you have to read Isaiah 6 along with Isaiah 52 and 53.
47:28
But I'd like to notice one final connection.
47:32
And you'll notice on the order of service
47:34
that the text was from Matthew chapter 9.
47:38
Let me just read a few verses from Matthew 9,
47:41
from verse 18 to 26.
47:49
While he was saying these things to them,
47:52
behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him saying,
47:56
my daughter has just died,
47:59
but come and lay your hand on her and she will live.
48:04
Jesus rose and followed him with his disciples.
48:07
And behold, a woman who had suffered
48:10
from a discharge of blood for 12 years
48:12
came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment.
48:17
For she said to herself,
48:18
if I only touch his garment, I will be made well.
48:22
Jesus turned and seeing her, he said,
48:26
take heart, daughter, your faith has made you well.
48:30
And instantly the woman was made well.
48:33
And when Jesus came to the ruler's house
48:35
and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion,
48:40
he said, go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.
48:44
And they laughed at him.
48:46
But when the crowd had been put outside,
48:48
he went in and took the girl,
48:49
took her by the hand and the girl arose.
48:53
And the report of this went through all that district.
48:58
I was struck in Isaiah chapter 6
49:01
by this vision of the hem of the robe filling the temple.
49:07
How great God is.
49:09
And I was struck in Matthew chapter 9
49:12
by this woman who had suffered for so many years
49:16
that she had the faith simply to touch the hem of the garment of Jesus,
49:22
just the fringe of his robe.
49:25
She somehow felt, she somehow knew,
49:28
she somehow was confident that if she just touched
49:31
the very edge of his garment,
49:34
that she could be made whole.
49:37
This is how great Jesus is.
49:39
This is how powerful he is.
49:41
You see, becoming a follower of Jesus
49:44
is not the measure of your confidence in him.
49:49
Many of us, myself included,
49:52
our faith is variable.
49:55
Sometimes it's weak.
49:56
Sometimes it's strong.
49:58
Sometimes we can be overwhelmed with doubts.
50:01
We can be uncertain.
50:03
We can be confused.
50:04
So you see, for me,
50:07
being a follower of Jesus
50:09
is not the strength of my faith,
50:11
not the strength of my commitment,
50:14
not the depth of my understanding.
50:17
But my identity as a follower of Jesus
50:22
is based upon the strength of his commitment,
50:27
based upon the strength of his power,
50:30
based upon who he is and what he can do.
50:33
Because this woman touches the very fringe,
50:36
and she's made whole.
50:38
How is that possible?
50:40
How can just a simple touch
50:43
heal one who had suffered for so long?
50:46
How can a simple act of faith
50:49
transform the human heart,
50:52
change the human mind,
50:54
change the very direction?
50:56
I don't know how that's possible,
50:57
but I know it is possible.
50:59
I don't know how he does it.
51:01
But just as this woman who reached out in faith,
51:04
because that's the key,
51:06
Jesus identified her faith.
51:08
She had enough faith to touch the hem.
51:12
She had enough knowledge to reach out.
51:15
So this morning,
51:16
it's not how much you know.
51:18
It's not how strong your faith is,
51:21
but who is the object of your faith?
51:24
Where do you find your confidence lying?
51:27
Is your confidence in yourself,
51:30
how much you understand,
51:32
how much you've been able to do,
51:34
or is your confidence in the one
51:37
who can make you whole,
51:40
who can make you clean,
51:42
who can fix what you have broken,
51:45
who can restore what you have lost?
51:48
Even if your faith is so small like the woman's,
51:51
and you feel like I can just barely touch
51:53
the hem of his garment.
51:55
The moment she touched,
51:57
she was made whole.
51:59
And when we reach out in faith to Jesus,
52:02
with the weakest,
52:04
with the most limited understanding,
52:07
watch what he can do.
52:10
Watch his power,
52:12
his authority,
52:13
his capacity,
52:15
his ability.
52:15
And I want you to know
52:17
that we have a strong savior this morning.
52:20
Our faith might be weak,
52:21
but his power is strong.
52:23
Our commitment might be variable,
52:26
but his commitment is persistent,
52:29
personal,
52:29
and he will bring his people home.
52:33
He has the ability not only to forgive us,
52:36
but he has the ability
52:37
to strengthen us along the way,
52:40
and to make sure that not one of us is lost.
52:43
I mentioned the connection between Isaiah 6
52:48
and Isaiah 52.
52:50
In each of the four gospels,
52:52
the commissioning of Isaiah 6 is mentioned
52:55
at one point or another.
52:58
In each of the four gospels,
52:59
the final servant song of Isaiah is quoted.
53:03
And I think what we are told there
53:05
is that the vision of the exalted Lord
53:09
in the temple
53:10
and the vision of the suffering servant
53:12
is found nowhere else
53:15
than in the person and the work
53:17
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
53:19
Matthew wants us to know that.
53:21
Mark wants us to realize.
53:23
Luke wants us to know.
53:25
And John wants to make it crystal clear
53:27
that the Lord who is high and exalted
53:30
is the same Jesus
53:32
who is lifted upon the cross
53:34
so that all men, women, boys, girls
53:37
might see, might perceive,
53:39
and might respond to him.
53:41
Our God is so great.
53:44
Our gospel is so great
53:46
because our Savior is so great.
53:49
He's great in power.
53:50
He's great in authority.
53:52
He's great in love.
53:54
He's great in mercy.
53:55
And even if you feel,
53:56
I can but touch that hem of his garment.
53:59
My faith is so weak.
54:01
My life is so inconsistent.
54:02
And yet, if your faith rests upon him,
54:07
he is consistent.
54:08
He is powerful.
54:10
He is committed.
54:12
If you like music,
54:14
if you like classical music,
54:16
one of my favorite pieces
54:18
is the Hallelujah Chorus.
54:20
And the Hallelujah Chorus,
54:22
one of the great verses
54:23
that is quoted from Revelation,
54:25
says,
54:25
The kingdom of this world
54:28
has become
54:29
the kingdom of our Lord
54:31
and of his Christ.
54:32
And he shall reign forever and ever.
54:36
All the ancient emperors,
54:37
all the ancient kings
54:39
have faded into obscurity.
54:41
But our king,
54:43
our Lord,
54:44
lives and rules and reigns today.
54:48
He will reign forever and ever.
54:50
He is king of kings.
54:52
He is lord of lords.
54:53
He is all-powerful.
54:55
He is all-present.
54:57
He is all-merciful.
54:59
He is all-loving.
55:00
So how big is your God?
55:03
How big is your Savior?
55:05
Is he big enough
55:06
to take your sin away?
55:08
Is he powerful enough
55:09
to renew your heart?
55:11
The Bible says yes.
55:13
He's big enough.
55:14
He's powerful enough.
55:16
He's gracious enough.
55:17
He's able and he's willing.
55:20
I've worked for many years,
55:21
as Murdo said.
55:22
I've been in and out of prison
55:23
for the last 25 years.
55:26
I remember one.
55:28
We used to have young offenders
55:29
under 21s at Edinburgh Prison.
55:32
And I remember this boy.
55:34
I mean, he must have been.
55:34
He was 16,
55:35
but he looked like he was 12.
55:36
You know,
55:37
came up to hear on me.
55:39
And one of the jobs that we,
55:40
one of our responsibilities
55:41
as chaplains
55:42
is to introduce ourselves
55:44
to new admissions.
55:46
And you could tell
55:47
this guy had never been
55:48
in jail before.
55:49
He just was stunned.
55:50
And I introduced myself
55:52
and I said,
55:52
I'm one of the chaplains.
55:54
Is there anything
55:54
I can do to help you?
55:56
And he said,
55:57
yes, there is.
55:58
Can you take me home?
56:01
And I said,
56:02
I can't do that.
56:04
You see,
56:04
I wanted to help him,
56:05
but there was so,
56:07
but I couldn't do that.
56:08
I couldn't say,
56:09
right,
56:09
well,
56:09
I'll just take you back
56:10
to your house.
56:11
I'll just take you back
56:11
to your mom,
56:13
take you back
56:13
to your family.
56:15
But I couldn't do that.
56:16
You see,
56:17
we have in Jesus
56:18
a Savior who is willing
56:20
to help
56:20
and able to help.
56:22
He has all power,
56:24
all authority,
56:25
all wisdom,
56:26
and all grace,
56:26
and he's willing
56:27
to help you.
56:29
He's willing to forgive
56:30
and able to forgive.
56:31
He's willing to transform.
56:33
He's able to transform.
56:34
That's how great he is
56:36
and that's how good he is.
56:39
I mentioned
56:39
that quotation
56:42
from J.B. Phillips,
56:44
and I'm reminded
56:46
of,
56:47
at the end of that book,
56:48
he put it this way.
56:50
He said,
56:50
many people
56:51
have a vague,
56:53
childish affection
56:53
for a half-remembered Jesus,
56:56
but they've never used
56:57
their adult critical faculties
56:59
on this matter at all.
57:01
They hardly seem
57:02
to the paramount importance
57:04
of his claim to be God.
57:06
Yet if for one moment
57:08
we imagine the claim
57:09
to be true,
57:10
the mind almost reels
57:12
at its significance.
57:15
The Jesus who walked
57:16
past this woman
57:17
and she reached out
57:18
and touched,
57:20
he is God in the flesh
57:21
with all authority,
57:23
with all power,
57:24
with all honor,
57:25
with all glory,
57:26
with all holiness.
57:28
God has come down.
57:30
He's come down
57:30
on a mission.
57:31
He's come to seek.
57:33
He's come to save.
57:34
He's come to bring us
57:36
so that we might go
57:37
from where we are
57:38
to where he is.
57:40
your God
57:43
is too small
57:44
and so is mine.
57:45
Your Savior
57:46
is too small
57:47
and so is mine.
57:48
But we encounter
57:50
a great Savior
57:51
with great power,
57:53
with great affection,
57:55
with great capacity.
57:56
And even though
57:57
our faith
57:58
is so small,
57:59
when you have
58:00
a small faith
58:01
in a great Savior,
58:03
watch out.
58:04
Watch out for what
58:05
he can do in your life.
58:07
Watch out for what
58:07
he can do
58:08
through your life.
58:09
Watch out for what
58:10
he can do
58:10
in the life
58:11
of this congregation,
58:12
in the life
58:13
of this town,
58:14
because he is that big.
58:16
He is that great.
58:18
He is that gracious.
58:19
And he is that merciful.
58:22
I saw the Lord
58:23
high and lifted up
58:25
and the hem
58:26
of his robe
58:27
filled the temple.
58:30
Let's pray.
58:32
Father in heaven,
58:32
I thank you
58:33
for each one of us
58:33
gathered here.
58:35
Lord,
58:35
we recognize
58:36
that we are weak.
58:37
We recognize
58:38
that we have sinned.
58:40
We recognize
58:40
that we are
58:41
a people
58:42
of unclean lips
58:43
and that we are
58:45
in desperate need
58:46
of your grace,
58:47
of your strength,
58:48
of your wisdom.
58:49
Father,
58:50
we come to you
58:51
in humility,
58:51
but we come
58:52
to the one
58:53
who is high
58:54
and exalted.
58:55
We come to you
58:56
in weakness,
58:56
but we come
58:57
to the one
58:58
who is strong.
58:59
And I pray
59:00
that you might give
59:01
to us that faith
59:02
of that woman
59:03
who had suffered
59:04
so long.
59:05
one day,
59:06
the same as the next,
59:07
one month,
59:08
one year,
59:09
time after time.
59:11
And for many of us,
59:12
life is hard.
59:15
Help us to reach out
59:16
in faith to Jesus.
59:18
And for those of us
59:19
who have been
59:19
walking the path,
59:21
remind us
59:21
that we need him
59:22
as much today
59:23
as we ever have.
59:25
We continue
59:26
to need his grace.
59:27
We continue
59:28
to need his strength.
59:29
We continue
59:30
to need his love.
59:32
We continue
59:32
to need his mercy.
59:33
But we thank you
59:35
that we have
59:35
a Savior
59:36
who is great
59:37
in power,
59:39
great in love,
59:40
who is both able
59:41
and willing.
59:43
And our prayer
59:44
is in the name
59:45
of Jesus.
59:46
Amen.
59:47
Amen.
59:49
Well, we're going
59:50
to sing our final
59:51
item of praise,
59:52
which is Psalm 124.
59:54
That's from
59:55
the Sing Psalms version.
59:56
And we're going
59:57
to sing to the tune
59:58
Old 124th.
1:00:00
So Psalm 124.
1:00:02
we'll sing
1:00:03
these words
1:00:06
to God's praise.
1:00:07
If God the Lord
1:00:08
had not been
1:00:08
on our side,
1:00:09
let Israel say,
1:00:11
had not the Lord
1:00:12
been near
1:00:12
when foes attacked us,
1:00:14
filling us
1:00:15
with fear.
1:00:16
Let's join our voices
1:00:17
in God's praise.
1:00:18
Please.
1:00:48
When the wrath against us reached its height,
1:00:55
Our ivory had been swallowed in their spite.
1:01:04
We would have been enveloped by the flood,
1:01:12
O malarettes and torrents would have gone,
1:01:20
The waters would have carried us along,
1:01:28
But praise the Lord, for he has set us free,
1:01:36
And has long left us to their cruelty.
1:01:45
We have escaped just as our captured bird,
1:01:53
Out of the flowers met us being set free.
1:02:00
The snare is come, we are of liberty,
1:02:08
Our help is in the name of God the Lord,
1:02:17
To reveal the earth and heavens by this word.
1:02:24
Let us pray.
1:02:27
And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1:02:30
The love of God, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
1:02:34
Rest upon, abide with us this day and forevermore.
1:02:38
Amen.
1:02:54
Amen.
1:03:24
Amen.