Prepare For The Messiah’s Arrival! - [Luke 3:1-6]

Kim said to me a while ago After Queen Elizabeth died. I sure would have been sort of been nice to meet

Queen Elizabeth. I never got to meet her. I Was reading this week that there's a certain protocol and etiquette if you do ever meet the

Queen our King of England a certain way you have to act and this was written when the Queen was alive and this is the protocol for meeting royalty

Number one when greeting the Queen men should give a neck bow tilting their heads only while women should curtsy

When addressing the Queen you begin with your majesty, and then later you refer to her as ma 'am

During a formal dinner take the Queen's lead stand when she stands stop eating when she eats

Wait until she sits to take your seat and so on In addition if you're ever with the

Queen never turn your back on the Queen Don't touch the Queen Don't initiate conversation with the

Queen Especially stay away from personal questions in regard to her grandsons Princess William and Harry Always bring a gift

What do you do when you meet the Queen there's an etiquette there's a protocol My question this morning is what do you do when you meet the

King? Not just the human King, but the King of Kings is there an etiquette is there a protocol for meeting?

Jesus Christ the Lord of lords What do you do? How do you act? How do you carry yourself?

Today if you'll take your Bibles and turn to the gospel of Jesus according to Luke We are going to talk about Preparation for the

King one of the great things about being a pastor is I get to talk about Jesus all the time While people on TV and people in culture can't really say

Jesus They have to say in God's name or something like that We get to proclaim every single week to you the richest found in the risen

Savior You think about Adam is in the garden. He's on probation and instead of obeying he disobeys

Israel she disobeys in the wilderness Jesus he's in the wilderness as well and suffering throughout his entire life and instead of disobeying like Adam and disobeying like Israel Jesus obeys and he obeys to the point of death even death on the cross to honor his father

And what I love every week as I get to study and proclaim to you The Lord Jesus because I just want to know everything

I can about Jesus I'm so thankful that there are 24 chapters here in this gospel that give us insight on to his person in his work and his

Nature and his character we get to learn about the Lord Jesus the one who has given us peace with God the

Father through Jesus the one who has washed us and sanctified us and Justified us by his blood

It was said by Charles Spurgeon speaking about the greatness of the Lord Jesus Here stands a man guilty the moment he believes in Christ his pardon at once he receives

His sins are no longer his they're cast in the depths of the sea they're laid on the shoulders of Christ and they're gone a

Man stands guiltless in the sight of God accepted in the beloved. What do you say? Do you mean that literally?

Yes Spurgeon said I do that is the doctrine of justification by faith alone Man ceases to be regarded by divine justice as guilty the moment he believes on Christ his guilt is taken away

But I'm going to go a step further The moment the man believes in Christ he ceases to be guilty in God's esteem.

But what is more he becomes righteous? Meritorious for in that moment when

Christ takes his sins He takes Christ's righteousness so that when God looks upon the sinner who but an hour ago was dead in sins

Looks upon him with as much love and affection as he ever looked upon his son

Can you believe that Christian that's for you God? The Father looks at you like he looks at the

Son because you're in Christ And if anyone would ever do that for me I want to learn about him and I want to worship him and I want to be thankful to the

Lord Jesus because for the Christian There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus And what

Luke does is Luke starts from the beginning remember Luke is kind of like an investigative reporter

He's working through everything in an orderly fashion so that you chapter 1 verse 4 might have certainty

That this is not some flash in the pan something made up not a regular common myth or Greek mythology

But Luke is very very structured because he wants you to have a structured thinking about the infancy of Jesus When Jesus was 12 when he's 30, etc

And if I had to summarize Luke it would basically be discussion about the good news of Jesus Christ that starts from the beginning has a long section as Jesus sets his face like a flint toward Jerusalem, and then that last section

Jesus's Crucifixion his death his burial his resurrection and Ascension we are working through this book and today we come to Luke chapter 3 and we'll look at verses 1 through 6

Luke chapter 1 by the way I think it's the longest chapter in all the New Testament and what Luke chapter 1 is essentially doing remember

It's showing the parallel and some similarities between John the Baptist and Jesus when it comes to the birth narrative last week we saw

That Jesus speaks for the first time out of all the things that happened between Jesus's birth and Jesus's Public ministry from an infant to 30 years old

There's only one thing that's recorded and since it's only one thing recorded it behooves us to think that must be pretty important if God Is telling us one thing about who

Jesus is and what he did when he was 12 years old And it's not about him doing weird healings or some of the the the misconceptions

He says in chapter 2 verse 48 remember from last week. Here's the The thing that Jesus says this is the most important part about his his growing up that we don't want to miss

Luke 2 48 and when his parents saw him, that's Mary and his stepfather

Joseph. They were astonished Remember, they've lost him. They have gone to Jerusalem for Passover the caravans heading back to their hometown

They've lost him. They come back. They find him and his mother said to him son. Why have you treated us? so behold your father and I have been searching for you in great distress and He said to them the first words recorded of Jesus Christ Why were you looking for me?

Did you not know that I must be in my father's home? Moses didn't talk that way about the tabernacle

Solomon didn't talk that way David didn't talk that way You might say it's our father. You might say the father, but Jesus is letting everyone know

This is the relationship I have with the Heavenly Father and I am his son. I am the

Son of God. I have come Sent from the father and I had to be in my father's house

My whole life has been ordained because the father has sent me and everything from my life to the crucifixion to the resurrection

It's been for ordained. I am the tribe of I'm the lion of the tribe of Judah and I'm also the sacrificial lamb

Lamb to be slain he knew he was on a mission and his mission was not Primarily for his mother and father although he was submissive the text goes on to say that it was he is

His father Heavenly Father's son and he comes to do what he the father has sent him to do verse 50

Of chapter 2 and they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them That's kind of Luke giving a little hat

Tip to say, you know what make sure you reader understand that Jesus is the eternal God who?

Takes on human flesh So we come today to chapter 3 Luke chapter 3 and we fast -forward 18 years

Jesus is 30 years old and we learned what he said when he was 12 years old there in the temple as he's learning from The teachers in his father's house, and now we have an 18 year old 18 years fast

Forwarded and we are going to talk about John the Baptist Before I do though just a little reminder

The focus really is never on John the Baptist The focus is on the

God who would send John the Baptist to proclaim his son's soon arrival in other words

The focus never should be on what can we learn from John the Baptist and how did he live and what to do? The focus is on God is very kind to send

John the Baptist to tell people to get ready Because if you're going to meet the

Queen there's certain etiquette that needs to happen before you meet the Queen or you're going to have Some kind of fashion faux pas our verbal faux pas now the

King of Kings is coming What do we do to get ready for the King of Kings? He's coming. He's he's there.

So this is all about who God is and how kind he is to send John the Baptist, so if you'd like an outline today, it's super simple we're looking at Luke chapter 3 verses 1 to 6 and The title of the message really could be the

Messiah is arriving So what the Messiah is arriving? So what

I'm going to give you two responses Knowing that the Messiah is going to arrive you're going to see those two responses and here's the good news

This is kind of fun part of preaching the same Responses that they should have 2 ,000 years ago for Jesus's first return

Should be our responses for his second return Jesus is coming back. What are we going to do?

And so as you see here's what needs to happen for Jesus's first coming

I'm going to also talk a little bit about how similar that is and how much it echoes for us getting ready for Jesus's second coming

The Messiah is arriving soon number one rejoice I am going to do alliteration today the first ones rejoice the second ones repent we can do alliteration once in a while, right?

Come on always alliterate The Messiah is arriving soon rejoice

And this is more implied, but you'll see what I mean as we go through the text verses 1 & 2 in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee and his brother

Philip tetrarch of the region of it Aria and Trachonitis and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene During the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas the

Word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness

This is what we've been waiting for you can just imagine What's going through the people's minds at that time and then even recalling that through the gospel of Luke as he wrote it

Nobody that is alive has ever heard from a prophet of God Nobody who's alive has ever known anybody who's known anybody who's known anybody who's heard from a prophet of God It has been over 400 years of silence

They know the Messiah hasn't come they're longing for the Messiah to come not just because of Roman oppression, but because of sin and God has been silent and now

God is going to speak the Word of God through John is going to happen God is going to do something.

He's he's going to keep his promises It's sinclair ferguson said they're standing on tiptoes to think finally he's going to come

He's going to arrive the Messiah is going to be here history could be coming to a conclusion And one of the things

Luke wants you to do since he's a physician And he's a historian is he wants you to see these are real people non -biblical or unbiblical people like Josephus Historians write about these people we uncover archaeology about these people in real time in real space in real history

Jesus is going to arrive both in a political climate with these tetrarchs and a religious climate with high priests

Jesus is going to show up in a time like this But I think more than history.

Here's what Luke is wanting you to think In a day where every one of these people listed is a vile wicked rogue

If I want to keep going with this with the alliteration, they're scoundrels. They're scallywags, and they're scamps

I'm just thinking what are the words that we could use they're villains these people killed John the

Baptist And these people killed Jesus in a day where the wicked rule in a day that There these people are infamous for for how sinful and cruel they they could be this is when the

Lord Jesus is going to come The world is in rebellion The rulers are in rebellion against God and now

God is going to show up through the voice of John the Baptist Could there be a list of people more prideful and more violence filled and by the way, that's not just politics

What does it say? There's high priest Anas and Caiaphas by the way, you can only have one high priest at a time

It's Caiaphas now, but Anas is a the old high priest and he's got this title One man said if you meet a ex -president, you still might call them.

Mr. President And so now you got a couple of really awful people who are leading the religious

Establishment, so the politics are bad. The religion is bad and in that climate What's the text say the

Word of God came to John 400 years of silence God is going to speak finally in this mess of the world.

Yes Like God has spoken to Ezekiel and Jeremiah and Hosea and Haggai and Jonah now

God is going to speak And he's going to speak in the wilderness the

Messiah is arriving and Implication there, although it's not stated in the text is there should be this anticipation this rejoicing

Finally the Messiah is going to come finally God is going to speak there's going to be

Salvation for people no matter what the religious climate is and the application point for you dear

Christians is very simple Jesus is going to return a second time and not one single leader is going to stop him the political outlook

The religious outlook Jesus is going to come back and he's not asking for permission

He's going to come back and just like the first coming was promised and those people were excited for that The second coming has been promised

JC Ryle said Let us work on and believe that help will come from heaven when it's most needed in The very hour when a

Roman Emperor and ignorant priests seem to have everything at their feet The Lamb of God was about to come forth from Nazareth and set up his kingdom

What he has done once he can do again in a moment He can turn his church's midnight into the blaze of noonday

And that good to think that the Lord Jesus is going to come back This would be a good time for him to come back.

By the way, I used to think to myself It's kind of selfish, you know of me if I've been a trial and I'm thinking you know what

Lord Please come and get me out of this trial Shouldn't I be more focused on Lord? I want you to come back because I want to see you and worship you and understand who you are and see you face -to -face

Well, a second part is good and fine and right but there's nothing wrong with being in a distressed situation

Wanting your king to come and get you You're hurting things are difficult and you're like Lord come

I'd like you to come back I'd like you to rescue things I just I look at the the times of the the world and the times of London and the times of Israel in the times

Of you know, it just like this would be a good time to come back Lord, and I'm sorry

I'm not wanting you to come back so I can see you as much as I want you to come back to rescue me But you are the one who's going to rescue me.

So Lord, please come back Why do the nation's rage and the people's plot in vain

The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together Against the Lord and his anointed saying let us burst their bonds and cast away their cords from us

Psalm 2 says he who sits in the heavens laughs the Lord holds them in derision He'll speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury saying as for me

I've set my king on Zion my holy hill. I will tell of the decree the Lord said to me you are my son today

I have begotten you Ask of me and I will make the nation's your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession

She'll break them with the rod of iron and dash them in the pieces like a potter's vessel No matter what's going to happen with the nation's with the politics with the religion.

The Lord is going to come back Jesus said when the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him.

He'll sit on his glorious throne Before him will be gathered all the nations and he'll separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats

And he'll place the sheep on his right hand the goats on his left and the king will say to those on the right Come you who are blessed by my father inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world

Dear Christian, that's our hope that is our hope fixing our hope on on the grace

That's be delivered to us by the Lord. Jesus. This is Revelation 19. Hallelujah for the

Lord the Almighty reigns The Messiah is coming back number one rejoice

That's first coming or second coming he would apply to number two. The Messiah is arriving soon repent this is the real point here and he's going to say it explicitly in verse 3 and Figuratively in verses 4 through 6.

It's the same concept here of repentance Versus 3 4 5 & 6, but he says it different ways.

He'll say it directly and then he'll say it figuratively verse 3 and He went into all the region around Jordan that is

John the Baptist proclaiming heralding being sent by the king I have the king's message a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins

The Messiah is going to show up. What do you do? Sin a lot No, the

Messiah is going to come up. I better think rightly about my sin. That's what the word repentance means We'll see about fruits of repentance next week

But repentance is to think rightly about sin and the Messiah is coming up. I better do that.

He's going to show up soon My father worked for Northwestern Bell telephone company

When there was a monopoly and be it was cheaper prices and He was in management and so there was some kind of strike and so he had to go to Oklahoma Every week to work and it would come back to Omaha, Nebraska on the weekends

And my mom would say once in a while on Thursday night, you know, your dad's coming home tomorrow Translation clean up that room

Get the dog taken care of get everything shoveled your dad's coming back. You better get ready Just a little heads up.

It's kind of nice of my mom to do that My dad was 6 4 2 40 boxer and I don't think he ever hit me but I got my hair pulled a lot hence

We always wanted to sit behind dad driving because it's hard to pull hair like that The kindness of my mom saying you better get ready and hear the kindness of God I mean

Jesus could just show up. But what do you need to do before he shows up? Well, the

Savior of sinners needs to make sure that people are thinking about their sin rightly and John the

Baptist It's a great summary of his ministry here in verse 3 goes around all over preaching repentance

Jesus said in Matthew 11 of John the Baptist What did you go out in the wilderness to see a reed shaken by the wind?

What did you go out to see a man dressed in soft clothing? What did you go out to see a prophet?

Yes and more than a prophet behold I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you

That's exactly what's happening. John the Baptist is the advanced man. He's the preparation man

He's the one that goes out ahead to say the king is coming heads up. It's merciful to tell you ahead of time and What does he do?

What's a text say he proclaims a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins Now there's all kinds of baptisms in the

Bible baptisms of fire baptisms of suffering There's a baptism that if a Gentile wanted to be a

Jew, he would have this proselytized baptism There's Christian baptism But this is a unique baptism.

This is what we call John's baptism This is based on his prophetic office and it's a baptism that says

I know I'm a sinner and the Messiah is coming I know I'm a sinner and the

Messiah is coming people that got baptized by John's baptism and then ended up believing on the

Lord Jesus Christ Would have to get baptized after the resurrection of Jesus as a

Christian, but this is a baptism that says I Know the

Messiah is going to come listen to what Paul says when he's preaching in Ephesus in Acts 19 John baptized with the baptism of repentance

Telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him that is Jesus This is a preparation baptism.

This is a baptism saying the Messiah is going to come I realize I'm a sinner and I need to get ready.

So I ought to get baptized John's baptism says

I'm a sinner. I need forgiveness. My religion won't save me. I can't save myself I need the promised

Messiah and it's an expression of Repentance And of course repentance deals with sin

Here's an assignment for you this week dear congregation. I Like you to do what I did this week and that is read your favorite book of the

Bible It's the most well -known book of the Bible. It's the most popular book of the Bible It's where everybody starts and reason and they just finish through It's the book of Leviticus You laugh

I got you You get people to laugh and then you really get him after that right like he hood and egg lawn and the sword

Israel's in the wilderness Exodus Taken through the Red Sea. I mean, they're in Egypt taken through the

Red Sea in the wilderness They're building a tabernacle while the presence of God dwells and Leviticus answers this question

How am I to be in the holiness of God in his presence the Holy Holy God? What do

I do saunter on in I'm sinful God's holy How do I work through this and you see all the offerings to teach you their guilt offering saying, you know

I'm guilty and I I have a need of a substitute

There are burnt offerings that the aroma goes up as you burn grain to heaven saying

I need to be Consecrated to God and live for him There are peace offerings saying after my sins have been paid for and I'm and I'm honoring

God I can sit down and have table fellowship with God. That's what they're all talking about It doesn't take you very long to think guilt offerings.

That sounds like Jesus substitutionary death burnt offerings That sounds like Jesus's life of obedience peace offering

This is what we get because of the Lord Jesus and he begins to talk about sin our culture Maybe even in this church.

I don't think it's true. But maybe for some of us We don't think rightly about sin don't think rightly about sin because we've forgotten how holy

God is and for the Jew reading the book of Leviticus He or she never forgot about God's holiness because what did

God do later in Leviticus? These are the clean animals and these are the unclean animals and you would walk around and before you know it

You'd be thinking owl unclean bat unclean pig unclean Fish without scales unclean.

I had some catfish this week. What's got fair fried catfish unclean tastes pretty good

Walking around what do you mean? There's clean unclean clean unclean Have a baby unclean this that and the other washing everything else to try to remind you to try to remind me.

I Have to be thinking in terms of clean unclean clean unclean. I can't even look at the sky without saying there's a buzzard unclean

There's a heron unclean there's a lot of things that are unclean including what including who I'm unclean.

I'm thinking in the categories of clean unclean clean unclean clean unclean and of course with these teachers back in those days when

John the Baptist shows up They just squelched all the holiness of God. They've cordoned off the holiness of God as if they could they tried and If sins not that bad

God's not that holy then maybe we could just be good people and get to heaven by being good

That's what happens by the way with every religion outside of Christianity. God's not that holy Man's not that bad.

He's pretty good and the gap can be bridged the spark that's needed between that Spark plug is you know what?

It's so small Maybe my good works can do it But you read the book of Leviticus and you think all these burnt offerings all these guilt offerings.

I'm defiled I need cleansing clean unclean clean unclean. The Jew is taught by God like a schoolmaster pedantically

Think of the world of clean and unclean. So you think of your own hearts and then you think I Might be better than other people

But I'm gonna stand before God one day and then what I'm gonna need to be clean because God's perfectly holy

And I need someone to take away my sins and in John the Baptist baptism

It was I recognize that is true. And therefore I will get baptized because I need that Messiah to show up I'm taking your word for it

John the Baptist that the Messiah is going to show up and I need to be cleansed

Now if you want to argue with the text a little bit you can we're not going to get into it too much We all know here that baptism doesn't save you

Baptism doesn't forgive matter of fact repentance doesn't forgive either only Jesus forgives This baptism is an acknowledgment of their need for forgiveness because they know their sinners

The Messiah is going to come People said well, it says baptism for the forgiveness of sins you get baptized and you get forgiveness

Next time you go to the post office They might have some wanted posters there for people committing crimes

Right back of the old days cowboy movies and stuff. You'd see the big poster wanted for what?

Wanted for murder are they wanted so that they can murder people

No, they're wanted because they have murdered and that's how you should think about baptism for the remission of sins baptism here for the forgiveness of sins only

Jesus saves You're getting baptized to say I need a Savior. I need a Messiah to come

I need forgiveness Sin bears on his way help prepare get ready

I'd like to ask you this Christian because I said early we could think about their context first coming John the

Baptist says repent and get ready Be prepared. I'm wondering for you

Christian thinking about the second coming. Are you prepared for the second coming of Jesus? I Didn't say unbeliever.

I said Christian. Are you prepared for the second coming of Jesus? Now if you say there's some things in my life that I would kind of like to get straightened up and there's some repentance

Needed fine. I'm with you all the way But are you prepared for Jesus to come and the answer is since you are a

Christian and since all your sins have been paid For since you are in Christ and have his righteousness

Credit to your spiritual bank account since we know it's true because Jesus has been raised from the dead you are ready

You're ready Should you be afraid of the second coming of Christ is another way I could put it Should you have fears and doubts and sorrows?

I? Love the Heidelberg Catechism what comfort is it to you that Christ shall come to judge the living in the dead and if you're not

Thinking rightly, what do you mean? It's not a comfort because he's coming to judge the living in the dead But for the Christians, there's no sin to judge because Jesus paid it all it is finished

Every one of your sins has been paid for so the answer to the Catechism is That in all my sorrows and persecution with uplifted head.

I look for the very same one Who before offered himself for me to the judgment of God and Removed all curse from me to come as judge from heaven who shall cast all his and my enemies into everlasting condemnation

But you'll take me with all his chosen ones to himself into heavenly joy and glory

For the Christian the preparation might be we need to wash our hands from sins

I er repentance as Christians, but you're really repair. You're really prepared You do not have to be afraid of the second coming your sins will not be revealed at the second coming

They've been paid for and God says I will remember your sins No More and that should lead us to holy living well, he has a figurative description of repentance here in verses 4 5 & 6 as It is written

Luke chapter 3 verse 4 in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet This is

Isaiah 40 the voice of one crying in the wilderness Prepare the way of the

Lord Make his path straight Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low and the crooked shall become straight and the rough places shall become level ways and all flesh shall see the salvation of God Now let's think through this a little bit

Literally when a king was coming into town Let's not think about Jesus. Let's think about another king small key

What you do is you make it easy for him to get there? You go make sure the roads that he's going to travel on are fixed up.

You're gonna try to make things nice So you literally go do what this text is talking about valleys need to be filled

You don't want to big ruts Mountains and hills you want to make sure you don't have to go over the mountain to get there you cut through crooked places straight and So he's literally saying when a king would come royalty would come you make it easy.

There's a preparation that's needed But what the writer is doing here what Luke is doing as he quotes

Isaiah chapter 40 through the words of John the Baptist There's a figurative preparation

That he just talked about in verse 3. It's called repentance This whole section here about paths and straight and valleys and filled and mountains and made low

It's talking about this is what should be happening in our hearts. This is what repentance looks like figuratively from Isaiah chapter 40

Lord is going to come. How do we act? We act in humble ways.

We act in godly ways. We act in repentant ways We act like we're not indifferent to his coming we act like we're going to get rid of our bad habits and sins

We ought to repent And so John announces a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins and he says it's just like when a king comes

Literally you get the roads ready Figuratively, let's get our hearts ready get your hearts ready.

The king is going to show up now. Here's a fun thing At least

I think it's fun. You'll think I'm odd for thinking this is fun, but that's okay When you read a quote from the

Old Testament in the New Testament What goes through your mind? Oh proof texting prophecy fulfilled

But aren't there Context to those Old Testament passages that are being quoted

Well, yes, there's more than three verses found in Isaiah chapter 40 If I were to say to you when

Jesus on the cross quote Psalm 22, my god, my god, why have you what? Forsaken me was he only thinking about that verse

Or was he thinking about that verse in context and Psalm 22 also has things like this

Think about Jesus on the cross. They mock me. They make mouths at me. They wag their heads

I'm poured out like water and all my bones are out of a joint My heart is like wax. My strength is dried up like a pot shirt.

My stunk my tongue sticks to my jaws They've pierced my hands and feet

I can count all my bones they stare and gloat over me They divide my garments among them and from my clothing they cast lots

Here's what happens in Scripture when the Old Testament is quoted and yes, even here

Those verses are important and we should study them but they come from somewhere and What the writer is trying to get you to do is to say instead of quoting the entire passage

Which he could I'm going to quote a few select verses because when you hear Psalm 22 Psalm 22 my god my god you think of that whole chapter

What's the point? The point is I wonder what's going on in Isaiah chapter 40 because what when

John the Baptist said remember what Isaiah 40 says? He gives a few verses. I wonder what all the other verses say

I wonder what they teach me about God and you say I don't know. I'd love to find out great turn to Isaiah 40

The text that's being quoted assumes more than the text That's kind of how they did it.

That's how they thought What's Isaiah 40 about Luke wants

Isaiah 40 to be in your mind and some of us know Isaiah 40 And well, he should be there in 13 weeks as we read through Isaiah on Sunday morning, but you're gonna see

The saving nature of God the character of God the brilliance of God the promise -keeping

God What kind of God should we be preparing for when he shows up? He's gonna show you in Isaiah chapter 40 what kind of God even wants there to be preparation

Before the Kings Going to come back. What kind of God would send a king his only son to die for the sins?

Not of his friends, but his enemies And here we have Isaiah chapter 40 The initial context is of course

Isaiah's in Babylon and they don't know if they're ever gonna make it back How are we gonna make it back to Jerusalem?

God we've been judged by you. You've used the Babylonians to judge us We're 700 miles away from home.

And here we are Self -imposed and we've got Kings like Hezekiah in chapter 39 that don't care about anyone but themselves

Is there a king that could rescue is there a king that might come? Is there a Messiah that might come? Is there a great enough

God who's greater than Babylon the great? And so when

Isaiah 40 verses 3 4 & 5 is quoted in Luke 3 He the writer is wanting you to think about the bigger context and so whenever you read a

New Testament quote One of the things you could do is say where's that quote from and what's the larger context and that will help you interpret?

Isaiah chapter 40 we're gonna breeze through this but I want you to see how comforting it is that God is promising

His return talking about his nature Machen said of this chapter, it's quite impossible

The wondering reader will say for prose style ever to attain greater heights than these

In other words, could there be a greater chapter in all Scripture? What is

God like? Who is he? What's his nature like? Does he save is it just physical?

Does he love sinners? Isaiah 40 verse 1

What do you tell a bunch of exile self -imposed exiles under the judgment of God Is God only a

God of justice and wrath? Comfort comfort my people says your God speak tenderly to Jerusalem and cry to her that her warfare is ended

That her iniquity is pardoned. She's received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins

What do you say to Israel stuck there Comfort comfort my people says your

God is plural send a lot of people to give this message about how great God is He's going to send a king this king is also going to take care of sins iniquity is pardoned

Tell them that even though they're sinful there's comfort comfort essentially means in the Hebrew. I Can breathe again so much pressure so much stress

It's like your ribcages are falling in on themselves and you go I'm finally going to be able to breathe again spiritually

This is covenant love. This is grace not judgment Their sins have perfect match not double jeopardy, but exactly matching large and abundant

God is a rescuing God a saving God And he wants you to be prepared verse 3 a voice cries in the wilderness prepare the way of the

Lord Make straight in the desert a highway for our God every valley shall be lifted up every mountain and hill be made low

The uneven ground should become level the rough places of plain and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed

And all flesh shall see it together for the mouth of the Lord has spoken the initiative of God the

God who takes control and does not kind of you know I Evan Burns talks about this in his book one of our missionaries

Evan he said we basically are Carmen we believe in in karmic Christianity in karma and It's kind of this transactional thing

And if you do this then God does that and if we're bad Then this is how God acts and back and forth and everything else.

Here's the God that does here's the God that sins Here's the God that does everything And by the way, his words faithful verse 6 a voice says cry.

Well, what shall I cry? Here's what you cry. God can be trusted. His word is true All flesh is grass

Beauty is like the flower of the field the grass withers the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it

Surely the people are grass The grass withers the flower fades, but you don't even know the rest of the verse

It's right from first Peter one, but the Word of our God stands what? Only in good times.

I'm glad we sang that song by the way That we did the

Word the Lord who said these things. I Want to know more about God's character.

All right, let everybody know verse 9 go up to a high mountain get a megaphone Get a speaker.

Oh Zion herald of good news lift up your voice with strength Oh Jerusalem herald of good news lift it up fear

Not say to the cities of Judah. Here's what you do. I'm stuck in Babylon. I'm oppressed.

That's the literal I'm stuck in spiritual Babylon. I'm a slave to my own sin. I need a rescuer.

I need the Messiah I need someone to love me. I'm unlovable. I'm an enemy Okay, let me tell you about God and he says behold your

God Here's your God what a great way to start preaching behold your God what a great way to evangelize

What do you need to know about this God? verse 10 The Lord God comes with might he's stronger than Babylon.

He's stronger than Satan think physically think spiritually doesn't matter He comes with might his arm rules for him

Behold his reward is with him and his recompense before him The omnipotence of God the greatness of God the power of God never getting weary never getting tired never having to take a rest

Strong enough to get me out of Babylon Strong enough to get me wrenched from the grasp of Satan as an unbeliever

But is he tender? I mean I get that he's a lion. Is he a lamb too? He will tend his flock like a shepherd

He will gather the lambs in his arms He will carry them in his bosom and gently lead those that are with young As great as this

King is when someone can't make it someone can't keep up. He'll go pick up that sheep

He will not leave his own unattended He's the great shepherd. He's the tender shepherd even gathering his scattered exiles even gathering people who have said no to him for years and not believed in the

Lord Jesus and Then he's got all these questions. I think 20 questions ever play that game 20 questions

This isn't a game, but this is 20 questions clumped in like five sections and By the way, here's the fun part.

I'll give you the answer. Here's the answer to all 20 questions. No one No one

The answer to every one of these questions is no one nobody Well, why even take the test if we know the answer?

Because you're supposed to be remembering who this great God is who would send such a John the Baptist who would then be the forerunner of Jesus Who's the

God we're dealing with? What kind of God is in the Bible? Who's the real God people say? Well, my God would never do such -and -such.

It doesn't matter who your God is I want to know who God is right Babylon Exiles They're trying to get out

Where's my help we're going to come from? Egypt Assyria will somebody help me we've got to extract ourselves from this captivity and this slavery

What kind of person could get us out? Spiritually, we're slaves to sin as unbelievers and we need to be rescued and we try civil things

Ceremonial things religious things moral things we can't get out who can get us out

Who could actually be God and man? So he's God to have an infinite amount of righteousness to give us and man so he could be our representative

Who who is this? And we find out here Who's measured the waters in the hollow of his hand a little cup in your hand there

Marked off the heavens with a span that's from your pinky to your thumb nine inches enclose the dust of the earth in a measure and Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance and the answer is no one

This is the God that we're dealing with He could just say God's big he could just say

God is He could say God is alive, but he uses this language to try to make your mind think yes.

That's exactly right The hollow of his hand when I was a kid we used to go to Minnesota all the time land of how many lakes?

10 ,000 is really And it's just like there you stand there at the black ocean to look out and you're like okay

You know God doesn't have a hand, but the picture language the analogy languages. It'd be like right there Just a little bit of water

Marked off the heavens by a span calculated the dust

Mountains you just think God's great. That's the point Verse 13

He might be great, but he might not be smart Who's measured the Spirit of the

Lord or what man shows him his counsel? Whom did he consult and who made him understand the answer to all these is no one nobody?

Who taught him the path of justice and taught him knowledge and showed him the way of understanding where did God go to school?

What college did he go to and is it from Ivy League or not? God is equal to the task of rescue.

He's wise enough to figure it out Yes, but Babylon yes, but the nation's yes, but look at the current climate verse 15 behold the nations are like an oppressive warhorse

They're like a drop in a bucket from a bucket are counted as dust on the scales Behold he takes up the coast and like fine dust

Now we don't buy Products like this much anymore, but once in a while you have to weigh something I think maybe if you even go to Wegmans or something you have to weigh something ahead of time before you get the produce

Do you wipe the dust off the scales? I? Do I'm cheap. I'm just kidding We don't even think about the the greatest of the greatest of the great in comparison to the infinite

God It's like actually less than this, but we're just trying to use language so we can figure it out

God's sovereign over all these nations like a drop in the bucket Verse 16

Lebanon would not suffice for fuel nor ours beast enough or burn offering God is worth so much worship

That in Old Testament worship when it comes to offerings and burning things up, and you're going to need wood to burn offerings

You don't have enough wood in all the universe to have enough offering wood for God The nations are as nothing before them including

Babylon including any nation now They're accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness We ought not to be fearing

Pontius Pilate the Babylonian Empire or anyone else To who then will you like in God verse 18 nobody what like this compares with him?

No one? You see what he's trying to drive if I could just say it to maybe get the kids attention kids

It's really stupid to worship false gods right Did I just say stupid?

It's really stupid. Okay. It's foolish Wait to hear some of the false gods verse 18 to whom then will you like in God?

What were you like this compare with him an idol a craftsman cast it a goldsmith overlays it with gold and cast it with silver chains

Is God sarcastic you bet he is? They used to hang Egyptian relics with chains, they're dumb they're lifeless

They don't talk and if they don't talk and they're lifeless. They're not really gods at all You've got to set them up.

So they don't move in verse 20 God's sovereign over creation. Don't you know verse 21?

Do you not know do you not hear has it not been told you from the beginning question after question after question?

Have you not understood from the foundation of the world? Since you can't understand how great he is submit to his good sovereign hand

Since you can't understand the totality of his greatness It would be better just to tuck yourself underneath that God and rest

It is he who sits above the circle of the earth and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. I Mean, what's a grasshopper?

I? Think locusts by the way are clean foods so you can eat a locust if you want When we were five years old in Nebraska, we didn't have anything else to do

So we would get a grasshopper pull some of the big legs off and then throw it in the spiderweb for fun

I told you I'm a sight case. It's just a matter of People ride the bicycles long distances for a reason

They're running from something So we just stop for a second before we go through the rest of verses even if we have time to do it.

I Say to myself, why do I complain? Why do I worry?

Why am I fearful? Why am I borrowing troubles from tomorrow? Why do

I focus on all my troubles instead of having my mind directed back to this God who is infinitely majestic and who

Loves me with an everlasting love proven by sending Jesus to die for me Who's like a shepherd who's powerful

Who can't be stopped from his sovereign will? He blows on them verse 24.

They wither. I mean it It's really kind of summed up in verse 25 to whom then will you compare me that I shall be like him says the

Holy One So what do you do verse 26 6 lift up your eyes on high and see who created these?

He brings out their host by number calling them all by name stars. That is greatness might strong power

This is key to everything if you're Babylonian you worship the stars. How about the one who makes the stars?

How about the one who controls history? Yeah, he's great he's powerful he's wise he's greater than all nations, but I don't even know if he cares about me

He's probably too great to care for me. He's probably too transcendent to be compassionate Verse 27.

Why do you say Oh Jacob and speak of Israel? My way is hidden from the Lord and my right is disregarded by my God You're too great to care

Have you not known have you not heard the Lord is the everlasting God the creator of the ends of the earth

He doesn't grow faint or weary his understanding is unsearchable Here's how much he cares

Verse 29 he gives power to the faint and to him who has no mighty increases strength

Even you shall faint and be weary and young men shall fall exhausted But they who wait for the

Lord first coming second coming Shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles.

They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint God cares

What's the point pastor the point is when you read a little section like Isaiah chapter 40 that's found in Luke 3

Don't forget to go back and see the big picture When you read Psalm 22 verse 1 found in Matthew go back and read

Psalm 22 because you will be blessed You'll be enriched what kind of God sends as a

Messiah what kind of God sends a forerunner to his Messiah It's the kind of God that wants you to say.

I know it's true and I will rejoice and I will repent There's etiquette for when the

King comes. Let's pray. Thank you father for your word We're thankful for the

Lord Jesus Christ I'm thankful for this dear congregation a congregation that wants to be told the truth

And we're thankful that in time the Lord Jesus came and in time he'll come again and we say