The Oasis of God

Isaiah’s Promise of Water in the Wilderness

Please turn to Isaiah 41 that can be found on page 601 if you're using the pew Bible in front of you as a chapter 41 please stand when you have that we'll be reading verses 17 through 20. When the poor and needy seek water and there is none and their tongue is parched with thirst I the Lord will answer them.

I The God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water and the dry land springs of water.

I'll put the wilderness put in the wilderness a cedar the acacia the myrtle and the olive. I Will set in the desert Cyprus the plain and the pine together. They may see and know may consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord has done this.

The Holy One of Israel has created it. Amen. Maybe seated. Dear Heavenly Father. We thank you for your word here in Isaiah. We ask that you would Show us your truth. We are the poor needy who are seeking water.

We ask that you would give us that water of life and we pray that you would show us the Oasis you describe here that we would see and know and to consider and understand that the hand of the Lord has done this.

Amen.

Salvation, Need, and God’s Purpose in Both

God has given us a great salvation. Salvation that is described all throughout the Bible is something that we are to consider as described here. It's important to understand his purpose in salvation and his purpose in Permitting people to be needy in order that they would seek salvation.

Apart from these things people do not have a full appreciation for their salvation if they don't understand their salvation. Then they don't have a full appreciation of it. They don't understand their need or God's purpose in need.

Then they don't have a full appreciation of their need. And so if we break down Human experience into these two different things our need for salvation and then salvation itself. It's important to understand both of these things in order to appreciate them.

In order to understand what it is God is doing. This passage here speaks of God's purposes both in salvation and in need for salvation itself. So it have us spend some time on this to understand. Looking at this first verse when the poor and needy seek water.

And there is none and their tongue is parched with thirst. I the Lord will answer them I the God of Israel wouldn't will not forsake them here in the near context of Isaiah. The context is about Israel going off into Babylon needing to be rescued from Babylon.

This is pictured as them going off from their fertile land of Israel fertile land of Canaan off to a wilderness. Where they will need Salvation their tongues are parched. They are wandering through the wilderness.

This of course recalls their actual experience wandering through the wilderness not being in the promised land. They will indeed be taken away from the promised land. They will need to be restored to it.

They will need salvation from God and The Lord will answer them he will answer them. He'll restore them out of Babylon. He will save the people. Says in verse 18. Describing the salvation as an oasis says I will open rivers on bare heights and fountains in the midst of the valleys.

I'll make the wilderness a pool of water and dry land springs of water. I'll put the in the wilderness the cedar the acacia myrtle the olive. I'll set in the desert the cypress the plain and the pine together.

Speaks of open rivers being on bare heights. If you consider how streams work. Waters fall all over the mountain and they collect they pull on the valleys at the very bottom. Never seen a river at the top of a mountain because water cannot pull at the top of a mountain.

But when he says he will open rivers on the bare heights and fountains in the midst of the valleys. He is describing Open river. These are these are reverse right open rivers. They belong at the bottom where all the water has collected.

When it speaks of Fountains in the valleys. Well, the fountain would come from halfway up the mountain. It would it would pour out a higher point and then descend but God is going to so bless the people that there will be rivers in the high places and there will be Fountains in the low places.

This is a supernatural kind of water that's being described here. We'll make the wilderness a pool of water and the dry land springs of water. All these places where it's just desert filled with water.

Now put in the wilderness the cedar acacia myrtle olive all these different kinds of trees. How many trees does he list cedar acacia myrtle olive? Cypress pine plain seven different kinds of trees he lists here seven showing the fullness of what he is doing and Turning this into a fertile land.

This is a picture of salvation. It's a picture that Isaiah has used before but it comes out here in a very particular way. And then he says his purpose. Why why does he do all these things? Why has he waited them for them to call out to them him?

Why has he? Answered in such a magnificent way That they may see and know may consider and understand together. That the hand the Lord has done this the Holy One of Israel has created. He is the Holy One of Israel as it said before in verse 17.

He is the God of Israel. The God of a land is supposed to save the land. He is the God of Israel. So he will save the Israel not only is he the God of them, but he is the Holy One. He is not like other gods other gods may not be capable of saving their people, but he is the Holy One.

He is not like other gods. He is distinguished from them. Which is what holy means. He is he is set apart or dedicated he is Unlike the others. He is the Holy One Israel now of course Isaiah as we have seen all throughout the New Testament and how the Apostles interpret Isaiah the salvation that he speaks of prophetically figuratively speaking of the people returning from Babylon is Not to be primarily Interpreted of the people returning from Babylon.

It might be immediately Interpreted that being the immediate significance, but the ultimate significance Ultimate referring to something that is at the end the last and therefore the primary significance is our own salvation that this speaks of.

Indeed God has Saved us. We are a poor and needy people. We are people who thirst who are parched those who do not have salvation those who do not have the waters of life Are dead they are dead and their trespasses and sins.

There is no life. There's only death a certain death that is coming. But then also the death that is experienced now where there is no life within them. They may be able to serve God and said they're slaves to their own sins.

This is the state of every man apart from Jesus Christ, but through Jesus He has given an incredible salvation. Says in John 4 13 Jesus said to her everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again.

But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. The woman said to him sir, give me this water so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.

This is the miraculous spring that Isaiah is prophesying one that springs up in places where it is not expected. Waters of life not coming from the outside into people but God placing directly into people by Jesus sending his spirit.

Renewing man turning his heart of stone into a heart of flesh in order that he may no longer be a slave to sin. But rather may walk in the ways of God having the life. Now this is not just true of the first coming Jesus Christ.

It's also true the second coming at his first coming. He came he ministered he provided the way of salvation and as he left he sent his spirit and so through his. Through that overabundance of his spirit through that outpouring of his spirit.

We have a fullness of life even now the church is not Floundering rather it is flourishing yet at the same time we do the Bible describes both these truths both these truths that the church is flourishing and yet at the same time we are a stranger in a Land that is not our own.

We are wandering in a wilderness and we are awaiting That salvation to become fully manifest when the Christ returns and we have an even greater Experience of that fullness of life that we have now. It's true.

We have eternal life now, but there is a greater manifestation of that that is coming. There's a greater Greater realization of that truth this is spoken of as creation says here at the end of this passage that That they may consider and understand together That the hand of the Lord has done it the Holy One of Israel has created it has created it this is The same world that word that is used in Genesis 1 1 speak of creation.

This is not him forming things that have existed before. And into something new rather. This is him making something entirely new. This is a new creation. He has made a new creation informing his church and there will be a new heavens and a new earth as that new creation is fully manifest all across the world and.

This.

Demonstrates that he is the true God. He is the Holy One of Israel. He is not like other gods if you consider the picture of The magicians of Pharaoh attempting to duplicate.

Moses's.

Miracles to show that their gods Were just as good as Moses God. Consider what happens? Moses turns the serpents the staffs and the serpents. The magicians do the same. Moses turns the water and the blood.

The.

Egyptians do the same Moses turns Pulls frogs out of the Nile the Egyptians their magicians do the same. But then when it comes to further things which are Indicating greater acts of creation Moses striking the ground and out of dust Gnats appearing just as out of dust God created man himself.

These are things which are beyond what other gods can do. God is indicating himself as holy and Doing higher and higher miracles that the false gods Cannot duplicate with their false signs and wonders.

And so as those miracles increase God's holiness is Increasing. And he is demonstrating What he explains in Romans 9 that he raised up Pharaoh and he raised up Moses in order that his glory might be displayed.

So it is with his salvation. He could work small salvations but he chooses to work greater and greater salvations in this great salvation that he has created in saving his church and producing this people in Increasing it and leading it onward to that final day and or to show that he is the holy one of Israel.

He is a great God unlike any of the other gods. The work that he does is unlike their works.

The Meaning of Need, Suffering, and New Creation

Now.

That explains his purpose for salvation. It's to show that he is holy to show that he is glorious that he is greater than all the other gods. But it also explains why it is that he permits needs to exist the way they exist.

They grow they increase in order that salvation would be a greater salvation. God could. Save people not in their depths of despair, but where they're barely have any despair at all. But would this show that he is holy unlike the other gods?

To argue it would not. There is something about the nature of creation. About making something that is unlike just a reforming of something else turning a staff into a serpent making clear liquid red liquid.

Etc. There's something special about a new creation that demonstrates who God is and This is something that is.

Ironic.

Because all of the world all of creation itself Recognizes that God is the one at work in our own natural creation. But man in his own ignorance does not recognize this. It says in Job Job 12 verse 7.

But ask the beasts and they will teach you the birds of the heavens and they will tell you or the bushes of the earth and they will teach you and the fishes of the Sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this.

What is he speaking of here? He is speaking of creation all of these things know.

That.

God has formed creation yet. Man does not. Why does man not because of his own sin? Because in his sin, he suppresses the truth. He rejects the truth does not know what God has done. And so what? Man needs is a Great and mighty act of a new creation to show what God has done so that he would know this in a more Glorious way.

Now you might ask Well, why does God permit man? Why why must he? Let man go into this depth of ignorance in order to raise him out of it. Why not just create man such a way that he would already be understanding of God's greatness as the rest of creation is.

Because God has done this in such a way that man does not simply Propositionally know God's greatness when he is saved as though being saved. He now Understands only what the birds and the beast understand, but he experientially Understands creation because God has permitted him to fall into ignorance and to be saved out of it.

There is an experience of salvation experience of new creation that goes beyond what the birds and the beast experience. First Peter tells us the angels long to look into the salvation that we have. There is something that we enjoy.

There's something that we experience. Birds and the beast even the angels do not experience and so he has permitted need including that need of our.

Ignorance.

Reaching depths of despair in order that we would experientially and not just propositionally. No. No salvation. You may also ask why is it that God does not save more than he says. Why does he permit so many men to not only reach depths of despair, but then even to perish?

This.

Demonstrates the precious nature of it you will on that last day appreciate the gift of salvation all the more. Because God has permitted not only you to reach depths of despair and pulled you out of them.

So that you experientially know his salvation but others to reach the depths of despair and not been pulled out of it so that you would praise him as It says and the end of Isaiah that this will be part of our worship that throughout all of eternity We will go and we will consider those who Their worm does not die and their their Their fire is not quenched.

These are the final words of Isaiah that we will consider God's greatness and the greatness of his mercy to us in Considering how rare a thing how rare a gift salvation was. So, why did he not just create us in the understanding way so that we would experientially know him.

Why did he not save more so that we would value this gift rightly all these are necessary for for an appropriate? Appreciation of this and this is why Need is so prevalent in our world. Why is it the man was born blind.

Was it because of his sin or his parents in knows that the power of God would be demonstrated in him. This is how Jesus can also say that you will always have the poor among you. Why will you always have the poor among you because this is a necessary feature?

Not just of a fallen world because it has. Because of Adam's sin. Yes, that is true. But because God permitting it to stay in such a poor condition allows us to experience and know in a greater way the goodness of his salvation and You may ask why is it though that once we have that goodness of a salvation?

Why is it that once we are saved? We stay Needy in this life as I said, there's one salvation that happened at his first coming. Now this is the one that we already experienced if you have trust in Jesus Christ you have eternal life, but there's a fuller manifestation of it coming and the new heavens and new new earth at Jesus second coming and During this time we experience great need we experience great trial.

Why is that that you would further know your need of him that you would? More appreciate his work and learn to rely on it during this time and that throughout all history you would look back. See what he has done in you.

Moreover it demonstrates to the watching world and to all of creation for the rest of eternity. That God is a good God for people to serve him under poor conditions. He must be a very good God.

What.

Lets you know that a king is good is in part that the people are willing to serve him even when things are difficult. You know if a king is not a good king the people are fickle, you know, he gives you Things you like and then you serve him.

I was talking earlier with the brother about the Obama phones, right people got their Obama phone. Oh, yeah, they like Obama later. You know, you might not be doing what they like. They don't like him anymore.

That's how people are with human Kings typically because they don't have a loyalty that extends much beyond that. But if you Have a great God who is a great king and you serve him during difficult times.

What does that demonstrate to the angels to the rest of the world and to even those who are perishing that God is a great? God and then moreover. That demonstrate into the world, but also it increases your vindication on that final day.

The fact that you endure During the season will make that final day when Christ comes and he vindicates you before his Father in heaven. Before those who are perishing before the angels in heaven when he vindicates you it will be a greater vindication on account of the fact that you had this lowly condition that looks like one who is not saved right that looks like Looks as though one who has not been raised and seated in the heavenly places.

To undergo this kind of condition for the remainder of our time here on earth is to lead to a greater vindication. Your eternity will be all the better. For the fact that you undergo trials in this life, and there are many aspects to that that I'm not prepared to cover today.

But there are many aspects to this. It is a God has ordered this world in a good way. The fact that he has permitted This world to fall in the sin was a good thing. The fact that he has permitted you to Undergo trials is a good thing.

He knows what he is doing. Sin itself is not a good thing. Calamities themselves are not good things, but God has his purposes in them and his purposes are good. All of The world will look on as Israel returns from Babylon.

And they will say that God is a holy God he has saved people out of Babylon. Same is true first church He saves us the world looks on and he Demonstrates his glory in a great way.

How to Consider Salvation Together

Now.

Consider. What this means for us given what this passage says? It does this that they may see and know may consider and understand together. That the hand of the Lord has done this the Holy One of Israel has created us had created it.

We are called To see and hear we are called to consider and understand together so many people. They have their salvation and they do not and they consider it to some degree. But they don't understand this is one of the duties of a Christian is to consider it to meditate on it further and further the nature of our salvation.

Psalm 107 Records many of these same words and ends with the same observation that we should attend to these things that we should consider these things. Psalm 107 33 and I'll read all the way to 43 says He turns rivers into a desert springs of water into thirsty ground a fruitful land into a salty waste because of the evil of its inhabitants he turns a desert into pools of water a Parched land into springs of water and there he lets the hungry dwell and they establish a city to live in.

They sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield by his blessing. They multiply greatly and he does not let their livestock diminished. Okay, so he talks about turning Rivers into deserts so in one direction but then the opposite he turns a desert into pools of water parched land into springs of water and He permits people to dwell there.

He restores the thirsty there. He continues on when they are diminished and brought low through oppression evil and sorrow. He pours contempt on princes and makes them wander and trackless waste. But he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks the upright see it and are glad and all wickedness shuts its mouth.

Why is God permitted these things so they would reach low positions in order to be raised to high positions with the Great Salvation. Verse 43 whoever is wise let him attend to these things. Let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord if you are wise.

You will attend to these things. Now God has made all his people wise. He has given them the wisdom of his spirit. Yet it should be obvious to you that that wisdom is given in different measures. Those who are most wise among the people of God spend the most deep thought.

Thinking about the greatness of this salvation. Whoever is wise let him attend to these things. Let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord. You ought to be considering that salvation. What does it mean to consider it?

One you should know the word in depth. So many people do not read the Bible. They consider it something that they go to in hard times. Etc. You have already if you are saved you have already been through the hard time that God has taken you through.

He has already saved you. You should already be considering these things in great depth. You should be memorizing your Bible. You should be reading it. You should be contemplating it deeply. You should spend time Having deep thoughts about salvation.

You should have questions that you are getting answers to. Now if you read the Bible and you don't have questions. You are probably not reading it deep enough if you read it and you have questions and you don't seek for answers to those questions.

You are not reading it deep enough. I Do not say these things to lay heavy burdens on you. I say these things because There is a joy in your salvation that you will not appreciate apart from following this command given here.

Rivers wise let him attend to these things. God saved the people in order that they would consider these things together He saved you so that you would appreciate it.

When I.

Tell you to go to the words that talk about that salvation. I only want your greater joy. I'm a laborer for your joy as the Apostle says. Do not so many people reject this with a kind of pious anti-intellectualism.

Right that oh, these are these are things that are beyond my pay grade or that's not or it's almost as though it is not. It is wandering off into ill-advised vain philosophies. To think deep thoughts about salvation.

There are those who hear of the doctrines of grace The nature of election and they say these are not things that people can understand. The Bible has repeatedly Explained the nature of our salvation. It uses the words election Predestination it talks about this in detail.

If you don't think those words were given to us to understand then you are not considering Your salvation as you want. There are people who do the same now. I know that we're all. You know pretty much everyone in here is a committed Calvinist.

So that's not going to be the main thing in your mind. But there are a number of things where I see people even in our own circles do this eschatology. No, I understand that there's a way that the end times are not as central a doctrine as other things.

But is not the end part of how God intends to save us is Not this part of his plan of salvation. Is it not something he has written to you about and Therefore worthy of your contemplation. Now, I understand you're going to prioritize those things that you contemplate.

You're gonna prioritize those things that you read. That's nothing wrong with that. But do not write these things off for Intellectual reasons to say that this would be foolish to study. Do not despise the Word of God.

There are a number of doctrines that I used to use as my canonical example of Small tertiary matters that are That are not a big deal to disagree on that list has really Decreased. Not because I don't think there are plenty of things that it's okay to disagree on but because I realize more and more how important these things are and.

I.

Don't want to denigrate those as being unimportant truths, even if I want to acknowledge there's room for believers in this life who are Being matured by the hand of God and being taught by the Spirit to not have it all together until that final day.

At the same time. I don't want to denigrate these truths about salvation as being small truths. I used to say.

That.

When trying to come up with one of the examples I used to say Dichotomy versus trichotomy. It's not not a big deal, right? That's the idea is is man soul and spirit or sorry is man body and soul or is he body soul and spirit is the Spirit something different than the soul I used to say.

Oh, that's like one of these my new shit. It's not really all that important. Well, it has a lot of implications for how you understand salvation many people who embrace trichotomy arrive at all kinds of conclusions because they have Distinguished soul from spirit when they are not meant to be distinguished in that way.

When Paul talks about distinguishing the Word of God distinguishing soul and spirit he's describing something that's impossible. Okay, he's not he's not describing something that can be done. He's describing something.

That's that's Near impossible right the idea being that When he said just before that in Hebrews 4 joints and marrow, it's not joints from marrow. It's distinguishing joints from joints. You know, what is a joint?

It's just kind of this this mess of substance that doesn't have parts to it. What is marrow this mess of substance? It doesn't have parts to it was a soul. It's a substance doesn't have parts to it. So if the Word can God it can pierce into things that don't have parts to it.

That's that's the point. It's not that you can distinguish a soul from a spirit. It's very easy to distinguish joints from marrow. They're not even they're not even next to each other. They're separated by bone.

Okay, that's a that's an easy thing to distinguish. What this is talking about is distinguishing within the joint itself within the marrow itself within the soul itself. Okay, that's that's what it's talking about.

So a lot of a lot of people look at Hebrews 4 is showing that soul and spirit are different it. If you understand how joints and marrow work you realize oh, no. It's these are actually doesn't doesn't prove that at all another thing that I used to Point at as my canonical example of something that wasn't that important was different views of lapsarianism.

Maybe you don't even know these terms but infralapsarianism or super lapsarianism. That's the idea of whether what God's purposes in salvation are did he? Create a people in order to save it. Did he? Let's see, let me Infralapsarian is basically did he save the people because they had fallen where a super lapsarian would be did he?

Permit the people to fall in order that he could save them. Okay, so those are those might sound very similar and I understand there's a lot of details to these doctrines. But if your answer is he permitted people to fall that it was part of his decree that man would fall in Order that he could save them then Salvation becomes God's main goal.

The incarnation is something that was not plan B it is plan a and just the heights of so many truth the more I have seen that particular doctrine that Is fun to point to as some tertiary thing because it's you know So many syllables long and you know sounds obscure, but it has so many implications for how you see your salvation.

If God Decreed the fall in order that we be saved. That leads to things like we're talking about today that you should appreciate the depth of suffering As being something that highlights the greatness of salvation that God has purposed it all these all these things should not be written off as Unimportant rather you should realize if God has communicated a truth it is because it is important it's not to say there can't be any kind of ordering to these things, but It's all it's all important stuff to not consider these truths is to waste your suffering, okay?

You prior to knowing Christ were a child of wrath you do not have peace with God you now have peace with God. Even after you have peace with God you endure trials in this life and God saves you out of them.

And he will ultimately make that salvation fully manifest when Jesus returns that Experience of those former years. Dwelling as a child of wrath that experience of trial in this life is so that you would have a greater Understanding of the joys of salvation that is what is explaining here.

Why is he doing it? They may consider and understand okay, if you don't consider and understand you are wasting all your suffering. It is not doing you any good. It was it it becomes purposeless to you.

Now God still has his purposes in it, but those but there are as a greater realization of the purpose of suffering. When you contemplate your salvation more deeply. You know people will go through a lot of suffering for good things.

You know you will go through a Lot of people consider their their years of schooling to be suffering they did it so they could get that career. You know they were willing to endure suffering for that thing they will go through all kinds of hardships on their own body, you know athletes will train and Beat their bodies to a pulp in order to in order to excel in something and win the prize.

People will undergo surgeries that Wreck them and are Incredibly difficult in order that they would have their lives saved they will they will undergo difficult things if the thing at the end of the tunnel is Highly valued enough to them now if you experience a bunch of suffering, but there's nothing that you're getting out of it.

If you're not considering the depth you know the greatness of your salvation if you are not obeying this passage to attend to these things. Then it's all wasted. You know no one goes for surgery for nothing.

No athlete trains for nothing. Or these are not things that happen and given that you've already experienced the difficulty. Enjoy the reward of the difficulty which only is to be had by Contemplating the truth of God's salvation.

Contemplating it and this is something that is to be contemplated together said in Isaiah 41 That they may see and know may consider and understand together. These are truths that are not just supposed to be contemplated on your own.

There's to be contemplated together in your own home. There these words are to be on your lips as you go by the way as you talk to your family. They are supposed to be here in this assembly and at all times these are contemplations that we should be Having together there's a there's a command not just to contemplate these as a monk monastically.

Yes, you ought to spend time alone contemplating these truths, but contemplating them together is right as well. Use that time after at lunch after the service to contemplate the truths of your salvation together.

Don't waste that time use it to contemplate the truth of your salvation together. God has created this people through salvation. But then and having created them and told them told them to contemplate their salvation together is Reinforcing the goodness of that salvation.

So he's not just saving people individually saving them together. So they're not just to contemplate individually there to come up contemplate it together. Now what about the prevalence of need that it describes here poor needy seeking water?

Etc. Him permitting there to be so much need in the world. So a few people understand. Find it interesting if you if you read enough of the Bible I will talk to this so often. I don't know why it would.

People would have such difficulty answering why there is evil in the world. There was this video that was really popular floating around a lot on the internet past couple of weeks with John Lennox. Explaining the problem of evil.

I don't know if any of you saw this there heard of John Lennox. But he starts off with just this.

I mean.

He's just got this long elaborate way of saying that no one can really explain the problem of evil never has satisfying answers. But one thing we can answer any, you know, he comes up with just some pragmatic solution.

Maybe if we can answer that we can be at peace in our hearts, etc. Bible answers why God permitted suffering over and over and over. This is no mystery. This is no mystery if you. Yeah, if you just go to this, it's it's um, it's obvious in a lot of way.

And this is not even the clearest passage either. There are many clearer passages. But what should you do with the the prevalence of suffering. First of all. You should not fret about your own suffering.

You should expect it. You should know that God has permitted it Into your life in order that you would know your need for him in order that he would continue to save you through this world till that last day when Christ returns.

Till that last day that he has you here. You should address it by preaching the gospel to yourself reading the words of God.

Knowing.

The goodness of salvation. If you are poor and needy and seek water Go to God call out to him. It is in those times of the answers. He is there now, what about prevalence needs for others, uh, do not despise need in others.

Remember God has Set up the world that there would be much need. And so while a lot of people have brought need on themselves by their own foolish actions this is in part God's plan because It should be the case that there is much need in order for his salvation to be great.

So keep that in mind so that you do not despise the suffering of others. Um, it's very easy to think lowly of people who are who are Suffering depending on the nature of their suffering. If it if it seems like it may be something brought around by themselves, but remember that God is at work in these things so that we should recognize his hand and Not despise not despise suffering.