Blind Witnesses
Sermon: Blind Witnesses
Date: April 5, 2026, Afternoon
Text: Isaiah 43:8-10a
Series: Isaiah
Preacher: Conley Owens
Audio: https://storage.googleapis.com/pbc-ca-sermons/2026/260405-BlindWitnesses.aac
Transcript
Please turn to Isaiah chapter 43 Isaiah 43. We have that go ahead and stand for the reading of God's Word Bring out the people who are blind yet have eyes who are deaf yet have ears
All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble who among them can declare this and show us the former things
Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right let them hear and say it is true You are my witnesses declares the
Lord and my servant whom I have chosen That you may know and believe me and to understand that I am he
Before me no, God was formed Nor shall there be any for any after me.
I I am the Lord and besides me. There is no Savior. I declared and saved and proclaimed and when there was no strange
God among you and You are my witnesses declares the Lord and I am
God Also, henceforth. I am he there's none who can deliver from my hand.
I work and who can turn it back Amen You may be seated
Dear Heavenly Father, we ask today that your word would open our eyes. We are your witnesses
Lord As it describes here people who are blind yet have eyes who are deaf yet have ears
We know that you are one who opens eyes and ears and we pray that you would do so today in Jesus name.
Amen Throughout this section in Isaiah Isaiah highlights or the
Lord through Isaiah highlights in a number of ways how he brings himself glory in unexpected ways in ways the people do not anticipate and in particular that is highlighted here by the fact that he brings his people as Witnesses his people who are blind and deaf as witnesses
This is counterintuitive Typically when you bring a witness, it's someone who has seen and heard in Very clear ways.
These are people who have eyes and have years who are able to observe but they are not able to understand
Because they are blind and are deaf. I named the sermon early on in the week
But if I were to rename it, I would simply call it blind witnesses blind witnesses because it highlights the
Irony That the Lord is using to demonstrate the way that he brings himself glory here first of all in this passage when it says bring out the people who are blind yet of eyes who are deaf yet have the ears he is
Drawing the metaphor again of a courtroom scene This is something that we have seen a few times before in this section in Isaiah He said in Isaiah 41 1 listen to me in silence of coastlands.
Let the people renew their strength Let them approach then let them speak. Let us draw near for judgment
So he imagines the people he describes people all coming to him for judgment
Verse 21 of chapter 41 says set forth your case says the Lord bring your proofs says the
King of Jacob And he continues on to describe this courtroom scene. He describes this again
Several things have been elaborated at this point. Now. We have the servant of the
Lord Who was elaborated on in chapter 42? Behold my servant whom
I uphold my chosen in whom my soul delights Speaking of the Messiah that is to come the
Lord's chosen servant the people being a failed servant of the Lord But him having a servant who will serve in their place
Gives them this hope for salvation That has been added here and now we also have this notion of witnesses
That God is bringing forth witnesses and the nation's will bring forth their witnesses as well
Any witnesses that they would deem fit? These passages here are typically rendered as commands these two verses eight and nine
Bring out the people who are blind All the nations gather together yet, these are
Stated perfectly by perfect. I'm referring to the grammatical category, which means something that has already been accomplished
This is the Lord is reporting these things and what is known as the prophetic perfect Perfect describing something that has not taken place yet as having already taken place
They have already been brought out they have already been gathered together It is certain that this is already going to be this is already accomplished
It is so certain that it will be accomplished that he is describing it as something that has already been accomplished
So he speaks of his people who are blind yet have eyes who are deaf you have years In the previous chapter in verse 18 said hear you deaf and look you blind that you may see
Who is blind but my servant or deaf as my messenger whom I send? Who is blind as my dedicated one or blind as the servant of the
Lord? He sees many things but does not observe them seers are open, but he does not hear
This is speaking of his people. They are blind They can see and they can observe in the sense of being able to collect raw facts in front of them
But as far as being able to put them together and understand them and interpret them they are incapable of doing so These These are the ones that he has chosen to present his case to be his witnesses in Verse 9 says all the nations gathered together and the people's a symbol
Who among them can declare these things and show us the former things? The nations here all the nations that would oppose
God's people that would serve various idols That would say that God is similar to any of the other idols
They may come together in judgment. They can bring whatever witnesses
They would care to bring but the Lord will still show them wrong because they likewise are blind
They do not know what the Lord has accomplished They may observe the things that he is doing, but they do not understand where they are going
They may have observed things that they have he has done, but they do not understand all his purposes for these things
So the Lord brings us all together in verse 10.
You are my witnesses declares the Lord and my servant whom I have chosen that you may know and believe me and Understand that I am he
Before me no God was formed nor shall there be any after me He speaks of his people as a witness.
He speaks of them as a servant and he Invites a comparison to the nations who have also been gathered just as his people have been gathered together
Remember verse 6 I will say to the north give up and to the south do not withhold bring my son from afar My daughter's from the ends of the earth
Before when he had been describing this courtroom seen all the nations are being gathered from the ends of the earth and now his people
Are being gathered from the ends of the earth He's talked about his people giving him glory everyone who is called by my name in verse 7 whom
I created For my glory whom I formed and made and so likewise the nations will also render him glory
That will not be in the same sense as people will glorify him through him upholding them Through him upholding this people and the nation's will bring him glory through him destroying the nation's
They will be exchanged as it had said in verse 3 for I am the Lord your God the Holy One of Israel your servant
Your Savior I give Egypt as your ransom kush in seba in exchange for you
That great exchange something that will happen and so the people are gathered together both
God's people and the nation's they're all to bring their witnesses and Testify whether they understand what the
Lord has done what has taken place and whether or not they are able to understand it There's several sources of blindness.
There are two sources in particular first of all their sin Because of sin we are
Blind to things that God is accomplishing that we would otherwise be able to see this is the emphasis in the previous chapter where it says here you deaf and look you blind and He laments how blind his servant is that he can see things, but but can't hear
That he can see things, but doesn't understand them. He has ears, but he doesn't hear
So that is one source of blindness is sin another source of blindness is simply our natural limitations
God's plan transcends man's ability to Anticipate what he is doing and that seems to be more his intention here
As to not refer merely to his people as being blind on account of their sin but even being blind on account of their natural limitations that none is
Capable of understanding what the Lord has done because his plan is greater than any of their plans
He is greater than all of them Consider the various ways that this is true
The world does not know the things of God 2nd Corinthians 4 4 says that he has blinded the minds of unbelievers
They do not understand the things of God even those demons who are
Very ancient they have lived a long time. They are very intelligent.
They are likewise Notice he's he's speaking of idols in this whole passage.
They likewise do not know what he is doing They can study everything the Lord is doing. They do not know what is taking place
Consider the particular people that he is writing this to Those who are going to go into Babylonian exile and be taken out of it
They don't understand what the Lord is going to do. They don't realize that he is going to miraculously save them through Persia Even though he is very explicit about it in his word that there's a
Limitation that they have both by their sin and by their own Human limitations that they do not understand that he will take them out of Babylon through unexpected means of Persia coming and defeating
Babylon and Cyrus giving proclamation and even Gifts necessary in order that the people be able to rebuild the temple
Then leading up to the birth of Jesus Christ While anticipating a
Messiah the particular means at the end Messiah is given through the incarnation It's not someone something that anyone anticipated once again, though it is spoken of many times
The Bible speaks in such ways that the only possibility would be that The Messiah be one who is both
God and man and yet the incarnation is not something that was Anticipated because it's beyond man's ability to understand these things
Then even while Christ walked with his disciples on the earth and He told them about his death that he would die that he would rise again in three days and the disciples afterwards in Luke 24 recount that he had told them all these things and hadn't understood
They hear these things with their ears, but they don't process them to be able to understand that Oh, he must die in order to be raised again all of these things surpass
Man's ability to anticipate both on account of his sin and on his natural limitations, but it is by people's observing these things and later being able to recount that they had observed these things and even
Testifying to these things in repeating the reality that has occurred Before it comes to full fruition that God is glorified by blind by blind servants
There are many things now that we do not understand There are many things in what he is doing that we do not understand.
He has revealed many mysteries to us He has revealed the mystery of Christ that he is drawn together
Jew and Gentile and to one that he has given a great forgiveness in Jesus Christ but there are mysteries that he has likewise not revealed in Ephesians 5 that Book that speaks repeatedly of the mystery of Christ Speaking of the union between Christ in the church as still being a mystery means that we do not yet know
What exactly will be accomplished what it will be like for the church to be? Not just betrothed to the groom but To have that union fully consummated.
These things are mysteries to us. We do not fully understand What is?
We do not fully understand what is taking place we are friends of We are friends of God he has
Told us much of what we are doing what much of what he is doing Jesus has called us friends
We are not merely his servants so that we would not understand what he is doing at all and he has told us much of That but he has not told us all of that.
There are many things that remain yet to be seen In 1st Corinthians 13 12 it says for now we see in a mirror dimly but then face to face now
I know in part then I shall know fully even as I have been fully known Many things that we do not see and understand at this point
Romans 8 verse 18 and 19 say For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God The glories that are to be revealed have not yet been revealed what
God is accomplishing Something that he has not revealed to us Completely also how he has accomplished it is something that he has not revealed to us completely
Just later on in this very chapter It says and we know that for those who love God all things work together for good
For those who are called according to his purpose Now this verse gives great comfort that the
Lord is working all things even the difficult trials that affect us Is all those things work together for good?
The fact that we do not understand how exactly they are all working together for good is
Testimony in itself that he has not revealed all the ways in which he is working that we are still in a sense blind servants we may not be blind as Many were before the death of Christ that he would
That he opened eyes during his earthly ministry and most especially after and for the outpouring of the Spirit many people see now with an enlightenment that is
Exceptional yet at the same time There is a sense in which he is still working in the same way through blind servants through people who are observing
What he is doing but not being able to process it not being able to put all the cords together to understand the harmonies later on in 9
Romans 9 22 Says what if God?
Desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power has endured with much patience Vessels of wrath prepared for destruction in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy which he prepared beforehand for glory
Here he is answering the question of What God's purposes are and it's interesting that he phrases this as a question
I don't believe that we are to take this and say that maybe this is true. Maybe not This is something that is certainly true that God is accomplishing this but by in phrasing it as a question
I believe what Paul is intimating in part is there may be and almost certainly are many other additional answers for what
God is accomplishing in his purposes of having Arranged things the way he has where there are some prepared for destruction and some that are prepared for mercy
We do not understand each one of those purposes We do not understand all the what of where he is taking us
We do not understand all the how of even what he is accomplishing now though We have the great privilege of being New Testament Saints who understand much more of the how much more of the what then?
Then those had in previous times and this is true of all things.
It is not God does not work a little here and a little there and one day we will see a few threads come together
He is working in Everything everything is replete with the workings of God the lot falls in the lap
But it's every decision belongs to the Lord. Everything is taking place at the hand of God He has his purposes in everything.
He works all things according to the counsel of his will Says in Ephesians 1 9 says that he is making known to us the mystery of his will according to his purpose
Which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time to unite all things in him things in heaven and things on earth
Paul speaks of something that has been accomplished in Christ that Christ has
United all things in him in heaven and on earth, but he also speaks to something that has yet to find a fuller
Fulfillment all things will know their purpose eventually in Jesus Christ. All things will be known as Having their purpose in him he has arranged all things all things were created for him
All things were created through him. All things were created by him But the mystery is how everything is for him.
We do not understand all those details Revelation chapter 15 says in verse 3 and they sing the song of Moses the servant of God in the song of the
Lamb saying Great and amazing are your deeds O Lord God the Almighty just and true are your ways
O King of the nations Who will not fear O Lord and glorify your name for you alone are holy all?
Nations will come and worship you for your righteous acts have been revealed
Note the relation to this passage Why does he have these blind servants in order that they may know that he alone is
God when it says I am he in Isaiah chapter 43
What it's saying is all these different gods are Contesting for being ones of power, but the only one is power is me
I am he says the Lord in Revelation 15 for it says for you alone are holy
God the Holy One of Israel the one who is not like the other gods because it is only he who is powerful who understands
All nations will come and worship you why for your righteous acts have been revealed the righteous righteous acts exist in Such abundant qualities you are entirely unaware of how abundant they are, but they will all be revealed so that They will be known in fuller measure
Now once again This is found fulfillment in Jesus Christ in that the nations are already coming to him his righteous works in the
Old Testament Have been revealed in great measure yet. There is a Continuing work that is happening during this era that still remains a mystery that we will discover more and so We find ourselves to be blind servants
Our eyes have been open and yet at the same time We have limitations that God will glorify himself through us observing what he is doing but not understanding completely until the end
Consider those who are in the exile even those Who are saved?
Israel at that time is a mixed people. There are people in Israel who truly know the Lord who are filled with the
Spirit Without the spirits outpouring in the great measure that we enjoy him today yet have the spirits
Do they have life in themselves? through the work of God their minds are enlightened and still they do not they did not know what
God was doing in Taking them into exile and out of exile They did not know that Babylon was necessary in order that salvation through Persia might happen they did not know that it was necessary for the staff and through the
Wickedness of the people in order that God's righteousness might be displayed that the details were Not made known to them and this principle is true in general the witness that God brings to this courtroom
Vindicates him and gives him an exceptional glory on account of that witness being blind if you were to bring witness to court and he is one who is a part of your tribe a part of your
Kingdom and you're going to court an international court against all the other nations
Well, of course you would expect this one to give an account that lines up with the things that you want him to say
But what is happening here is there's no bias There's no poisoning the mind of the witness with anything either good or ill it is simply
What have you observed you blind witness who does not understand any of the things that he is seeing?
recount these things and Then because I the
Lord have arranged things So perfectly will be able to show that even by this blind witness that does not understand
These things have taken place on account of my greatness The Jews as they celebrated of the
Israelites and then later on the Jews The Jew people of Judea being split off from the rest of Israel Celebrated the various ceremonies that God had given.
What are they doing at this time? They are being blind to witnesses. They are Observing the sacrifices not knowing how they will be fulfilled in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ They are
Observing the they were observing the various feasts not knowing how they would point to Jesus Christ Observing all the different regulations all the different dietary restrictions all the different Clothing restrictions not knowing how they pointed to the kingdom of Jesus Christ all of these things are then being a
Blind not in the spirit not in the moral sense of sin, but even in their natural limitations.
They are blind witnesses Testifying to what God is going to do Not even realizing that they're testifying to what
God is going to do even now as we Proclaim God's Word as we treasure it in our heart and store it up in our heart
Not knowing what those glories are that await for us We ourselves are in a ways blind witnesses
Because though he has opened our eyes to many things there are things that are still not yet revealed to us
But that he has spoken of in his word such that on that day we will
Open our eyes further and realize What he has accomplished that these glories that he has spoken of are
Many of them will have been spoken of in such a way where we will see directly from the pages that we were witnesses to these things the whole time and how
How do we not know all the details? Well, we are simply a limited people that God is using to Proclaim his glory by calling his shot beforehand permitting us to Observe these things without being able to process all of them yet giving us a privileged position of being able to process much of it
Especially as known as in the incarnation and the resurrection of Jesus Christ But then ultimately having this more fully revealed on that last day
And this is if not evident already by the scriptures that I've brought forward to you
Just consider the fact that many believers Cannot agree on what
God has prepared for the end Take a handful of believers and you'll get a handful of different views of the end times and I know of no one who has such arrogance to think that he is
Perfectly certain about many of those details. They might have the broad framework down But no one feels like even the things that are explained in the scripture are
Perfectly manifest to them now. They are given to us to be understood I'm not saying that they are they are mysteries that are not designed to be understood
But there is a fullness of revelation that we just yet do not appreciate that will be made known
These are God's purposes He says in Isaiah chapter 43
Verse 10 you are my witnesses declares the Lord my servant whom I have chosen that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he
Just consider what that verse is saying for a minute. This is not usually why you choose a witness Usually you choose a witness because he knows and understands
God is choosing his witness in order that the witness would know and understand it is
By being witness of of these things in a blind way Not fully processing what
God is doing Him making it known only later that he is able to show how great a
Savior he is the fact that it is beyond our comprehension that was beyond comprehension before the incarnation the resurrection of Jesus Christ and then now
The glories that await still not known to us in fullness He has chosen us to be blind witnesses in that way in order that we know his greatness the reverse of how you think of a witness
Witness because someone knows no witness in order to know likewise Why a servant the various gods have their servants in order to be served
The Lord has his servants. He did not come to serve but to he did not come to be servants
But to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many he has his servants. We serve him in order to Have benefit from him in order to have a greater
Appreciation of him it is through the service of him is through the witnessing of him That our blessings are accomplished.
God is blessing us through all these things even through Choosing not to reveal the glories that are to later be revealed
It is very ironic that the Jehovah's Witnesses choose this particular passage
From which they get their name to be sort of their life verse as it were
You are my witnesses declares the Lord my servant whom I have chosen Jehovah's Witnesses appeal to this to speak of themselves as ones who understand what
God has done and what God will do and yet They clearly do not understand They do not understand what
God has done. They cannot explain the gospel as being Forgiveness of sin by the substitution of Jesus Christ.
They have a view of works righteousness They do not understand that God has joined with man in the person of Jesus Christ in the incarnation in fact as they argue against the doctrine of the
Trinity they typically I've never met a Jehovah's Witness who actually understands what the doctrine of the
Trinity is even speaking with them for long time They still at the end of it do not understand and I don't mean a lot of people will say that Because someone doesn't agree with it.
I'm saying they simply do not understand what the belief is. They will argue against it They will try to show you all sorts of passages that say the father is not the son and the clear answer is yes
The father is not the son. You simply don't understand what the doctrine the Trinity is Jude 1 10 says but these people blaspheme all that they do not understand and they are destroyed by all that they like unreasoning animals understand instinctively
How many people go about life they have an arrogance about them that does not realize
That the things of God are often deeper than our natural intuition would lead us to realize and Your natural intuition should lead you to realize that the things of God are going to be deeper than you anticipate
Do not be like an unreasonable animal recognize that while we are witnesses in God while God has revealed much
There are things that he has not completely revealed and there are things about him that are beyond our comprehension
There are things that will be revealed. There's are things that simply cannot be revealed because They are unlike anything in creation, there's no analogy that can be given for The nature of God is one
Three persons one being in three persons in summary
First you should marvel at the things of God this should give you reason to Consider the wonders of what
God has done if you were someone who grew up in a church as I am A lot of these things that we read about seem very normal to you
Seems very normal to speak about the incarnation to speak about the resurrection, etc but if you contemplate what it must have been like to anticipate things beforehand and how these are so far outside of the ability to anticipate
It will give you a sense of how Great it is the work that God has done and how great it must be the work that he is doing now that we don't fully understand
Marvel at those things marvel at what God has done develop in yourself a wonder at the incarnation at the resurrection do not allow these things to grow dull to you and Likewise anticipate what
God will do anticipate it with humility. This is also great reason for peace Because if you recognize that you are not supposed to understand
What God is taking you to in complete detail how God is taking you there in complete detail
If you're able to allow the secret things to be the secret things leave those things to the Lord And give you a great reason for peace.
These all belong to the Lord Psalm 131 says Oh Lord, my heart is not lifted up.
My eyes are not raised too high I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me
But I have calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother like a weaned child is my soul within me
Oh Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore We should not raise our eyes beyond where they are to be raised.
We should not occupy ourselves with thoughts that are too high but rather We are to be quieted knowing that we cannot understand all the things of the
Lord that he has Left some of these things to be revealed much later and his ways are much greater than our ways
His ways are much higher than ours. Amen Dear Heavenly Father.
We thank you for the wonderful gospel that we have in Jesus Christ. We thank you for the Incarnation There's something that could not be anticipated and yet it was spoken of so many times
The resurrection was not anticipated yet the Lord had spoken to his disciples about it so many times
We looked forward to the work That you will do to the work that you have accomplished and are doing
We thank you that on that final day when every last enemy is placed under Christ's feet we will see him face to face and we thank you for the