Isaiah VI: A Word of Warning
Sermon Review
9 December 2001
Isaiah 31:1-3

Last week I believe that God challenged us about complacency towards him and about building our own individual kingdoms, rather than his. Feedback indicates that many felt that these were challenges from God. However to deal with these issues I fear that we need to be more willing to trust God and get any fears, insecurities, self will and other hindrances out of the way, in order to build his kingdom. Isaiah said to Judah, 'don't rely on Egypt - come to me instead.' This advice stands good for us also. It is really an issue of more - more trust in God and more servant-like attitudes.

Judah's Circumstance:
The Assyrians harassed Israel for approximately 300 years. They were a super power with conquest ideology. Because of the dreadful state of religious life in Israel, and the ebb and flow of allegiance to God in Judah, it was almost inevitable that all manner of alliances and worldly efforts would be entered into at different times to protect their own interests. Perhaps they even though erroneously that God's interests were best served in this way also. Worldly means of looking after our own interests and those of God have an almost insistent tug and rationale when God is somewhat on the back shelf. They loom large and persuade of their sufficiency with little or no effort. Yet they are incredibly deceitful. With Judah only having infantry, the appeal of chariots, horses, and cavalry must have been immense. Yet what was suitable in Egypt due to its flatness, was entirely unsuitable in Judah, a mountainous region. But the thought of the military might of Egypt coming to their aid was obviously more than enough to sway 'good' sense. Perhaps they thought the mere threat of Egyptian support would keep Assyria at bay? However, God was not pleased. Israel had been warned before not to seek horses or help from the Egyptians Deut.17:6; Isaiah 30:1-5, and here they were doing it again. It was doomed to failure because flesh and blood was being asked to do what only God could do.

Food for thought:
I think that the lesson from these passages is quite clear. We can not afford to not rely on God! It seems we run the risk of having God working in opposition to us at worst, or at best hurting our own and his best interests when we do not. As then, so too today, God requires that we rely on him. This call resounds across the span of Scripture. For example, Proverbs 3:5,6 - 'trust in the Lord with all your heart and rely not on your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths'. There is also powerful imagery in Jeremiah 17:5-9 that is worth meditating on - the contrasting positions of trust in God and trust in human provision as found in the opposite environments of a bush in a desert or by a flowing stream. In Ps. 37, those who cared to listen were told that if they would trust in God, take delight in him, commit their way to him, be still before him and fret not, that security, fulfilment of desires of the heart, and divine action on their behalf would be given.

What about the Christian?
Jesus warned us that we needed to be in a dependent relationship like branches and a vine, in order to do anything! John.15:1-8 Does this really mean 'anything'? Surely we are quite capable of doing a vast range of things without the direct help of God? We can eat and sleep, work and play, parent and perform many different things. We can quite easily engage in the task of building our own kingdom without direct intervention of God, can we not, albeit with varying degrees of success and failure? So what does Jesus mean? I take it that primarily he is referring to building the 'Kingdom of God', not our own Kingdom. This we build naturally. However, the Scriptures make it clear that we cannot do church, or evangelism, or worship, or youth work, or travel club, or small group, or Bible Study, or any number of ministries without God. Oh it can sometimes seem like it with all the activity and movement that we can stir up. Yet even a whirlwind of activity will not change people's hearts. Ministry is spiritual; it is divine eg.1Cor.3:6,7. Can you really imagine us, or anyone, humanly engineering what we saw in the Transformation videos? The changes God seeks to realise can only be achieved by Him. The Kingdom of God extends both outward and inward. Outward in terms of activities and actions, behaviour and deeds, ministries and programs, but it is also internal for it is built in people's hearts and minds - yours and mine! People are to be letters carved by the Spirit of God because he is the only one who can deeply change us and make people new in their minds and emotions, morals and ethics, attitudes and character, values and priorities 2Cor.3:2,3,18; Rom.12:2 etc. This is why we need to keep looking to God as we serve him.

Self Reliance or Reliance on God?
The problem is that trust or reliance on God, just as building his kingdom, does not come naturally. Why is it that we resist relying on God? Reliance brings to the fore a myriad of flaws in our faith and us. It makes us wonder if God really does know best. It causes us to consider that we might miss out on things we really want. Having to trust God inspires concern he will call us to repent over our attitudes and actions, and possibly do things that seem uncomfortable and unpalatable etc. In experience, reliance on God forces to the surface our insecurities and other uncomfortable things like differences between God's agenda for us, and ours; character deficiencies like self-will, pride and overweening self confidence or lack thereof, impatience, defensiveness, and stubbornness, all which have to be dealt with. To put it simply, trusting God ultimately means that we have to change - and that scares the pants of all of us! So rather than trust we use smoke and mirrors, rationalisations and justifications, and worldly effort to evade the need. Yet this is crazy. God is love, and our best interests are his concern as well. He does not short change his children. If we are willing to change our lives to suit him and his agenda, the promise is that we will come to find that His will is good, acceptable and perfect Rom.12:1,2. If it is true that reliance brings what needs dealing with to the surface, it is also true that reliance on him opens up in our experience the best possible life for us as we go about doing his bidding. This is a far better thing than having the Spirit hovering on the edges of our lives, grieving over the mess we periodically make of His interests and ours.

The bottom line is that whether natural or not, desired or not, God is determined that we learn to trust and rely on him, just as Paul and his fellow missionaries had to learn it 2Cor.1:8,9. In fact it was of such paramount importance to be learnt that God allowed them to feel as though they were going to die, rather than ease their fears and burdens before they learnt it? What will it take for you and I to learn it?

Of course there are many other reasons that we need to rely on God. For example, we have a spiritual adversary - Satan who is prowling around like an angry lion 1Pet.5:8 cf. Eph.6:10ff. God also has all knowledge and power, instead of human limitations, deficiencies, and biases, and therefore reliable. And of course through reliance we have opportunity to learn in experience the awesomeness and beauty of God'. But primarily we need to so that the Spirit of God has a chance to build His Kingdom in us and through us.

Conclusion:

Would you like to see Transformations take place in your life? This church? In Armidale? Then as individuals, and most especially as a church, we dare not do anything else other than trust him, surrender more of ourselves to him, and believe that he has our best interests at heart as we strive to put his best interests before our own. There is no viable alternative, no other worthwhile option. Complacency needs to be dealt with, and our hearts deeply changed so that building His Kingdom over ours becomes paramount. Put his kingdom first (Matt.6:30) and I am sure that we will find that God is no man's debtor. If you believe that God is challenging us, you and I, to avoid complacency, to put building his kingdom before your own, and to trust him more deeply, then why not spend some time in prayer about it with your wife or husband or a friend a couple of times this week and next. Then come to the prayer time on Sunday 16th. Let's seek God together to turn our valley of dry bones into new life, zest, and passion for Him and his kingdom amongst us (Ezek.37:1-13).

Blessings

 

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