“A Light to the Nations!” – FBC Morning Light (7/25/2024)

Well, a good Thursday morning to you. Today we're reading in Isaiah 48 -51 and I want to focus on Isaiah 49 and verse 6, the last part of verse 6, which is a part of a prophetic passage that's looking forward to the coming of Messiah.

And you know, the other day we looked at the verse that said, the passage that said, spoke of the nations and how

God sees the nations of the planet. And he said that they're but dust, they're just a drop in the bucket.

And that statement could lead someone to conclude that God doesn't care anything about them after all.

In God's sight, the nations of the earth are just a drop in the bucket. Who cares about a drop in the bucket?

Who cares about a speck of dust on a scale that isn't even measured? Who cares?

Who cares? Well, God does. And we see this here in Isaiah 49, verse 6, because speaking prophetically of the coming of Messiah, of the

Lord Jesus, he says this, I will give you as a light to the

Gentiles, that you should be my salvation to the ends of the earth.

God the Father is speaking to God the Son, and he says to God the Son, I'm going to give you as a gift to the world.

I love the world in this way, that I will give you as a light to the

Gentiles, so that people all over the planet may come to faith in me and trust in you as the

Savior who can save from sin. I will give you as a light to the Gentiles, that my salvation should be to the ends of the earth.

Now, we know that this is a prophetic passage regarding Jesus, because of what happened when

Jesus was brought to the temple. Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple, and the days of her purification were completed.

We read this in Luke chapter 2, that they come into the temple and there's Simeon, and they meet

Simeon, and Simeon comes to Joseph and Mary, and he takes the baby

Jesus up in his arms, and he says this, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared before the face of the peoples, a light to bring revelation to the

Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel, a light to the

Gentiles. My eyes have seen your salvation. Well, I wonder today, have your eyes seen the salvation that is found only in Jesus Christ?

I trust that it's so. But the wonderful thing is, the wonderful thing is, that again, contrasting with that earlier verse, this passage shows us that God doesn't view the nations of the earth as irrelevant, and as,

I mean, that he doesn't care about them. God sent a Savior. God sent a light to open blind eyes, and allow those dead in trespasses and sins all over the planet to see the salvation that is found only in Christ.

So here we are, 2 ,000 years after the light to the nations came into the world, and what do we know?

What have we learned? What do we see? We see the reality of this, that there are people on every continent and every nation of this planet who have come to faith in Jesus Christ, whose eyes the

Lord has opened, and they have seen his salvation, and they have received him. Isn't it incredibly marvelous to think that this salvation has spread across the globe from the little tiny village of Bethlehem?

Well, let's give thanks to our God today for the light that he sent, and the salvation that he offers.

And so, Father, we do thank you today. We thank you for the Lord Jesus. We thank you for the illumination that shows us that he is the

Savior, and that you, almighty God, you are a

God of love and a God of salvation, one in whom we can trust, one whom we must.

And I pray today that if there's anyone listening to my voice that has not yet come to faith in Christ, that the light would shine upon them, that their eyes would be opened, and they might receive him today.

And this we pray in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. Alright, well listen, have a good rest of your