The Suffering Servant Pt 2

God’s people would take their
copies of God’s Word turned to Isaiah. Chapter 53, although
even as we began to consider last week, this great section
starts even just a bit earlier. John Calvin. in observing the
idolatry of his own day. Said that. Man’s heart is a perpetual
factory of idols. As he looked at the abuses of
the Catholic Church with regards to their statues and even pictures
of our Savior, his heart and. Any true believers hard sense
has to be vexed And. Beyond just bothered by those
pictures, but offended. We began last Lord’s Day with
a consideration of Exodus 20, you shall have no other gods
before me, you shall not make for yourself an idol or any likeness,
and it would seem that those plain words would resonate with
any believers heart. And yet for centuries the church
has battled the use of idols and images. The tendency to want
to see God and represent God is alive and well, even to this
day. As I said last week, the most
offensive one to me of all is is the more modern one. I think
it came out in the 70s with Jesus looking buff and a cropped beard
and short hair and Those images, they bother me. I know what they’re
designed to represent. But the very purpose of God in
sending Christ was not to present before us an image. It was not
to present before us a physical representation of what God is
like, but we were to look beyond that to the character, to the
Savior that God himself had sent and to His glory. If you would. That’s essentially
what Isaiah is painting for us, not a picture of Jesus physical
description, not a picture that that we could even look upon
with our eyes, but he’s painting a picture with words he’s describing
in great detail the nature of the Savior. that God had sent for the sin
of man. As I pointed out last Lord’s
Day, Isaiah 52 verse 13 is where this section actually begins.
It’s the fourth in a series of songs. Songs about Christ. Songs about the Messiah. And
Isaiah 52 verse 13 begins the fourth of four servant songs. Songs
about the servant, God’s servant, our Lord Jesus, if you would.
Isaiah 52, verse 13. Behold, My servant will prosper. He will be high and lifted up
and greatly exalted. Just as many were astonished
at You, My people, so His appearance was marred more than any man,
and His form more than the sons of men. Thus, he will sprinkle
many nations. Kings will shut their mouths
on account of him for what he had not been told them they will
see and what they had not heard they will understand. Who has
believed our message and to whom is the arm of the Lord been revealed?
Where he grew up before him like a tender shoot and like a root
out of parched ground, He has no stately form or majesty that
we should look upon him, nor appearance that we should be
attracted to him. He was despised and forsaken
of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and like
one from whom men hide their face, he was despised and we
did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he himself
bore. and our sorrows He carried, yet
we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for
our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well-being
fell upon Him. And by His scourging, we are
healed. All of us, like sheep, have gone
astray. Each of us has turned to his
own way. But the Lord has caused the iniquity
of us all to fall upon Him. He was oppressed. And He was
afflicted. Yet He did not open His mouth.
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent
before its shearer, so He did not open His mouth. By oppression
and judgment, He was taken away. And as for His generation, who
considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living,
for the transgression of my people to whom the stroke was due. His
grave was assigned with wicked men. Yet he was with a rich man
in his death, because he had done no violence, nor was there
any deceit found in his mouth. But the Lord was pleased to crush
him, putting him to grief. If he would render himself as
a guilt offering, he will see his offspring. He will prolong
his days. and the good pleasure of the
Lord will prosper in his hand. As a result of the anguish of
his soul, he will see it and be satisfied. By his knowledge,
the righteous one, my servant, will justify the many, as he
will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot him a
portion with the great, and he will divide the booty with the
strong, because he poured out himself to death and was numbered
with the transgressors, yet he himself bore the sin of many
and interceded for the transgressors.” See, the problem with images,
as James Boyce pointed out, they mislead the worshiper. They take
us off track. We begin to focus on statues
and pictures of the alleged savior, as if that really is him, as
if that really represents him. And it takes us off of the view
of what we ought to really be considering. What was he really
like? What was his nature? Not what did he look like? What were the color of his eyes?
How tall was he? Images said another dishonor
God for they obscure his glory. That’s what we ought to focus
on as believers in Christ. We ought to be focusing on his
glory. Not on his stature, not on his
appearance. We began last Lord’s Day with
this, the fourth. Of Isaiah’s servant songs, as
I pointed out last week, there are four of them. Therefore,
that Isaiah begins to zero in on beginning in chapter 40 through
66, which he begins this process of unfolding and describing the
Savior in great detail. The first. Servant song that
we come across, as I pointed out again last Lord’s Day is
Isaiah chapter 42, which. The first of the servant songs
is really not just an introduction, but a description of the gentle
manner of the Messiah. He will not cry out nor raise
his voice, nor will he make his voice heard in the street, a
bruised reed he will not break and a dimly burning wick he will
not extinguish, extinguish. The second of the servant songs
is found in Chapter 49 which describes the servant’s mission
and its ultimate success. The third of these songs is found
immediately after in Isaiah 50. Really pointing to the perfection
of the Messiah. The fourth of the servant songs
is found here as we’ve just read. which begins in Isaiah 52, verse
13 and carries on through 53, 12. And as I pointed out last
week, the closer you look at it, you see that Isaiah 52 really
does wrap up, concludes in verse 12. And Isaiah 53, if you will,
essentially begins with Isaiah 52, 13, as we’ve just read. Now, I suggested to you that
there are a series of verses in this so-called song, this
poetry, this ode to the Savior, to the suffering servant. The
first verse is the servant’s astonishing reception. That’s
what we’re in the midst of considering here in 52, 13 through 15, the
Savior’s astonishing reception. But secondly, Isaiah moves to
unfold the servants astounding rejection, just unbelievable
as the words unfold. Who has believed our message?
And the obvious answer is nobody, or at least very, very few. There in verses one through three,
Isaiah deals with the servants astounding rejection and in the
following verses, verses four through four through six, He
unfolds the servants amazing suffering. We’ll consider that
in the weeks to come that enters into the servants awful demise. This suffering was unto death,
as we all know, but Isaiah paints that picture vividly in verses
seven through nine. And then he closes out with this
song with driving home the purpose of all of this suffering, it
wasn’t for naught. Jesus didn’t just suffer for
suffering sake. He suffered for a purpose. And
we see in verses 10 through 12 of Isaiah 53, the servants awesome
sacrifice. The servants astonishing reception,
astounding rejection, amazing suffering, awful demise and awesome
sacrifice. Pick up with me, if you would,
back in Isaiah 50. to where we left off last Lord’s
Day. Isaiah says, Behold, my servant
will prosper. This is an overarching entrance
into the entire section. He says that Jesus is ultimately
going to be successful. God is going to make him successful. His efforts are going to be effectual. What he offers on the cross by
way of his sacrifice is going to be received and embraced and
affirmed by none other than God himself. He will be high and
lifted up and greatly exalted. And we spent no little time considering
those great truths even echoed in Philippians chapter three
and elsewhere that Jesus Christ One day is going to be exalted
to the high place, and that is where we know him to be. Now,
as believers, we know him to be high and lifted up. Jesus,
as he painted the picture, was pointing to the cross. But as
the apostles who look back on that scene know it, they know
that it wasn’t just the cross that Christ was pointing to.
He was ultimately ultimately pointing to The exaltation to
be seated at the right hand of the Father. Acts chapter 2 verse
33, by way of brief reminder, therefore, having been exalted
to the right hand of God and having received from the Father
the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this which
you both see and hear there in Acts chapter 2 in the pouring
forth of the Holy Spirit. The first testimony is that look,
Christ was crucified. Absolutely, Christ was buried,
but Christ rose again. And he not only rose again bodily,
but ultimately God raised him in exaltation. To heaven. God highly exalted him, as Paul
said, Philippians to nine to nine, God highly exalted him
and bestowed upon him the name which is above every name. Well,
God says that this sacrifice, this mission that Christ is entering
into is going to be effective. It is going to be received by
God. And it would be received by some
men. Some people would see Christ
For who he is, some people would see Christ in his sacrifice and
embrace it as they ought. Consider, if you would, verse
14. Here, as we begin to consider.
The servants astonishing reception, we see. Not only the reception
by God, we see the reception by people, even kings. Verse 14 begins, just as many
were astonished at you, my people, so his appearance was marred
more than any man in his form, more than the sons of men. And
he says many were astonished at you, my people, he’s talking
about Israel, he’s talking about the nation of Israel, so small,
so puny, so seemingly insignificant and yet constantly upheld. by the hand of God himself. To be astonished. That word is
used in a number of different places in scripture and it essentially
points, it can be translated as a desert waste, desolate. To be in a condition like that,
to be numb or startled. or confused. And it’s almost like they were
dumbstruck when they saw the Lord Jesus Christ. They were
dumbstruck when they saw Israel. This is God’s people. This in the Lord Jesus Christ
is the Savior. The word is used Translated as
appalled many times, Leviticus 26, 32, I will make the land
desolate so that your enemies who settled in it will be appalled
over it. This is farmland. Little Israel,
which never should have have survived did, which was a constant
sign of amazement. Utterly stunned. By others. Jesus Christ likewise stunned
people. He constantly amazed people. Think of this. After the shepherds
visit. The shepherds themselves were
astounded, astounded at the angels visit, astounded at the message
they came. They took me at the side of the
bed of the child and then they went away worshiping God. But
it’s recorded that Mary, Jesus’ own mother, was astonished. Mary
treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Mary was astonished at the Lord Jesus Christ. After the dedication
of the temple, both Mary and Joseph are reported. that his
father and mother were amazed at the things which were being
said about him. They were astonished. They were dumbstruck at the things
that were being said about their own son. Jesus went down ultimately
with them to Nazareth, and he continued in subjection to them. This paints the picture following
the scene where Jesus stayed behind and was engaged in deep
conversation with the leaders and teachers, the rabbis of the
synagogue. And it says that his father and
his mother, after they had purposed to go away. Jesus continued in
subjection to them, and his mother treasured all these things in
her heart. She was absolutely astonished at her son. In fact, even Jesus’ entire hometown
could rightly be said to be astonished at Christ. In Matthew chapter
13, it’s recorded that He came to His own hometown and began
teaching them in their synagogue. And they were astonished and
said, where did this man get this wisdom and all these miraculous
powers? Is this not the carpenter son
that just like little Israel puny insignificant little Israel. Jesus Christ came and absolutely
stunned the world. Stunned his mom. He stunned his
parents. He stunned his entire village.
Is not his mother called Mary and his brothers James and Joseph
and Simon and Judas. There’s nothing spectacular about
those guys. But Jesus. Jesus is astonishing. Where did this man get all these
things and they took offense at him. But Jesus said to him
a prophet is not without honor except in his own hometown and
in his own household. Mary was astonished, Joseph as
well, his entire hometown, even his disciples. As Jesus began
to call his disciples, there were many occasions where even
those who would eventually become part of his inner circle, they
were astonished. Nathaniel, when he was called,
said to Christ, Can any good thing come out of Nazareth? Nathaniel was astonished. Astonished
about the Word of Christ. Astonished about His stature
and His standing before men. This is our Savior? Even His disciples, His own disciples,
and I’m not just talking about it. They’re calling that after
years of walking with Him and hearing Him and seeing Him, even
His disciples were astonished at Christ. is our Savior. Recorded in Mark 4, 41, they
became much afraid and said to one another, who then is this
that even the wind and the sea obey him? They were astonished
at Christ. Not only them, even his own disciples,
it’s obvious then that the crowds, the greater portion of the people
Christ came across, they would be astonished. Recorded in Matthew
7 verse 28, when Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were
amazed at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one having
authority and not as their scribes. They were astounded. The question to you this morning,
does Christ still amaze you? Does Christ still astound you? Does his love for you, in spite
of you, still just bring you to a point of awe? Does the fact
that God in the midst of all of your sin, and he knew it all,
and he still does, does the fact that Christ would go and die
for you before you ever placed an ounce of faith in him, does
that still astonish you? Many were astonished. And just
as many were astonished that you, my people, so his appearance
was marred more than any man. And that’s what takes people
off of faith. This is the Savior, this one who died on the cross,
this one who can’t even help himself. They mocked him on the
cross. They mock him to this day. This
is the Savior. The one on your crucifix, that’s
the one that you call Lord. His appearance was marred more
than any man and his form more than the sons of man. But Isaiah alludes to here is
that Jesus was abused to the point of absolute distortion. You didn’t even recognize him
as a man. He was beaten to the point and
battered. To the place where people looked
at him and didn’t even recognize who he was. When Puritan recorded it this
way, he said he was beaten, smitten on the cheek and crowned with
thorns. His face was foul with weeping and his face spoiled. He had his face spoiled with
the abuses that were done to him. Never was a man used so
barbarously. That’s what Isaiah points to. Jesus, as you know, quoted on
a number of occasions from Psalm 22. Absolutely considered a messianic
psalm, but in that psalm embedded in it, I am a worm and not a
man, a reproach of men and despised by the people. That’s what Christ
knew he was coming to do when he came to Earth, not only in
taking on human flesh, not only in taking on unglorified human
flesh. He wasn’t the most handsome man
in town. But he knew that ultimately he
was taking on a body that was going to be bruised and battered
to the point where people didn’t even recognize it. Matthew chapter 26. Records this, then they spat
in his face and they beat him with their fists and others slapped
him. And they said to us, prophesy
us, you Christ, who is the one who hit you? Matthew 27 says
that while he hung on the cross. They carped at him and said he
saved others, he cannot save himself. He’s the king of Israel.
Let him now come down from the cross and we will believe in
him. They mocked. He trusts in God, let God rescue
him now if he delights in him, for he said, I am the son of
God. Has anyone ever endured such
brutality as the Lord Jesus Christ? And no wonder. No wonder. One pastor in reviewing these
words said the words conflict strangely. With the type of pure
and holy beauty with which Christian art has made us familiar as its
idea of the Son of Man. You remember when I said images
mislead? An image of Christ, an earthly
image of Christ, a painting, a statue cannot possibly, cannot
possibly do him justice. So the earlier forms of art prior
to the time of Constantine represented Christ as worn, emaciated with
hardly a touch of earthly attractiveness. At least those were more accurate,
more in line with what Isaiah says here. than the modern version
that came out in the 70s. Isaiah says that Christ, even
in his abused, marred, disfigured state, would be received. That even There would be people
that would see Christ through those things. They would still
see Him for who He really was. Look at verse 15. Thus, He will
sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut their mouths
on account of Him. For what had not been told, they
will see. What they had not heard, they
will understand. When he points to this idea of
sprinkling, it is the idea of the sprinkling of the priest
who cleanses the leper that the blood of Christ is going to cover
the sin of many nations. It is for all people. It is not
specific any longer to Israel or to the Jews. The sprinkling,
this sprinkling of the blood of Christ, which really fleshes
out the idea of what was alluded to in numbers, the sprinkling
of the Levitical priest. No longer. No longer would it be just for
Israel, no longer would this cleansing be just for them. Now
the cleansing, the cleansing from sin, not leprosy. Would be for all. Keep in mind
the scene. Acts chapter 2, Christ has gone
to the cross. He’s been buried, raised up again,
and now he has just ascended to the Father. And now comes
the Holy Spirit. And in that scene, listen. Now
there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation
under heaven. And when this sound occurred,
the crowd came together and they were bewildered. Each one of
them was hearing them speak in his own language. They were amazed
and astonished, saying, Why are not all these who are speaking
Galileans? How is it that we hear them speaking
in our own language to which we were born? Parthians, Medes,
Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,
Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the districts of Libya, around Cyrene,
visitors from Rome, Both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs,
we hear them in our own tongues speaking the mighty deeds of
God. And they all continued with amazement
and great perplexity, saying to one another, what does this
mean? It’s a fulfillment of what Isaiah
had said 700 years earlier, he will spring in He will sprinkle,
rather, many nations. Kings will shut their mouths
on account of him for what had not been told they will see.
Few things. It was Christ. It was Christ
that they saw. They hadn’t figured on Christ.
They hadn’t figured on this tiny little town producing a savior. They hadn’t figured on a carpenter
son. They hadn’t figured on one who
would die on the cross. When he says kings will shut
their mouths on account of him, what he points to is reverence.
That there would be many who would ultimately bow in absolute
worship, silent wonder. At coming face to face with the
suffering servant. One commentator noted the shutting
of the mouth is the involuntary effect of the overpowering impression
or the manifestation of their extreme amazement. Now, we a
lot of times will say that it was jaw dropping. But sooner
or later, the trap has to close. Right. And that’s what he points
to. That once you open your mouth
wide in astonishment, Sooner or later, you’re going to close
it in absolute worship. I have nothing more to say. No
words would be worth worthwhile for me at this moment. It is
absolute worship. Isaiah 49, 7 says, Thus says
the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and its holy one to the despised
one, to the one abhorred by the nation, to the servant of the
rulers. Kings will see and arise. Princes
will bow down because of the Lord who is faithful. The holy
one of Israel has chosen you. There will be absolute worship
no matter the position in society, beginning with kings to peasants Many will bow the knee to Christ. Pilate didn’t worship him. But
Pilate got to a point where there was nothing more to say. Pilate
got to a point where, you know what? I’m out of my league here. John 18, 38, Pilate said to him,
what is truth? And when he had said this, he
went out again to the Jews and said, I find no guilt in him. I’m done. Wise men, Herod, Theophilus,
Gregory the Great, many would come to know Christ regardless
of their rank. In the case of Herod, his mouth
was shut, not out of worship, but out of being stunned by the fact that
the very God stood before him. What had not been told them,
they will see. The Jews, as we saw in our study
of Romans 9, had many, many benefits, many blessings. Seeing the representations
of God, having God’s law literally placed into their hands. They
saw. They knew. But many throughout
the world caught only a faint glimpse of what God was doing
in Israel, they did not know. They had not heard. They did
not have a full report. They didn’t have all the information
certainly that Israel had. But what had not been told them,
they will see. That many will come to know Christ, who would
have been thought certainly by the nation of Israel as being
completely outside the pale of God’s hope. Worthless. Romans 15 says, Thus, I aspire to preach the
gospel. This is Paul wrapping up the
book of Romans. Wrapping up what he essentially
said at the start, remember, they were critical of Paul for
not coming to Rome. Paul was defending himself at
the outset and saying, look, I’m not ashamed of the gospel.
I’m eager to come to Rome and I’m eager to come there to preach
the gospel. I’m not ashamed of the gospel
because it’s the power of God for salvation. So he concludes in Romans 15
and he says, as I am, I aspire to preach the gospel not where
Christ was already named so that I would not build on another
man’s foundation. But as it is written, they who
had no news of him shall see. And they who have not heard. Shall understand. Paul was already
there highlighting The great work which God had done in saving so many throughout the land. Consider Job verse 29, verse
9, the princes stopped talking and put their hands To their
mouths, Job 40, behold, I am insignificant. What reply can
I say to you? There were those throughout the
world that knew the sentiments of the stopped mouth. But what
had not been told them, they will see what they had not heard,
they will understand. See, what was never related.
They would come to know. kings, obscure nations, obscure
people. They would be presented with
the gospel as they never before had. They would be given the
glimpse into the mysteries of the ages. That God was going
to take on human flesh and that he was going to come bodily to
the earth. And that he was going to walk
the earth. And that he was going to live a life that testified
of salvation. And then he was going
to give his life as a sacrifice for many. What was never communicated to
them before now has been communicated and they see, they saw, they
understood who Christ was. It had gone beyond all that had
ever been communicated. Turn if you would to Hebrews
for a moment. One of my favorite passages in
Scripture. Hebrews chapter one. See if I can do. Justice to unfolding some of
what’s behind this passage. Look at verse one God after he
spoke long ago to the fathers and the prophets and many portions
and in many ways has spoken to us in his son whom he appointed
heir of all things. and whom also he made through
whom also he made the world. The fascinating. Thing to discover
about this amazing passage. Is that if you narrow it down
to a simple sentence for those of you that I’ve shared the Bible
study methods with. That’s the first thing you want
to do. What’s the simple sentence and the simplest sentence In
this entire section is God has spoken. What a beautiful, even
if you just stopped right there, you know, you know what? It’s
time to worship. It’s the time for speculation,
the time for scrutiny, the time for wondering, the time for doubting. It’s over. God has spoken, it’s
it’s all over, it’s all been communicated. But the interesting thing about
the passage is the simple sentence isn’t even completed until verse
two, God, that little word stands at the head. God has spoken,
but there’s this. Insertion there in verse one. God. after he spoke. But it tells
us that you know what God has been communicating all along.
God is a God of revelation. God wants to communicate. God
wants relationship. God wants to be intimately in
communion with people. God after he spoke. Well, when? Long ago. From day one as God began to
interact with Adam and Eve and others In ensuing days and circles,
God communicated. God spoke long ago. And God spoke
to the fathers. God spoke to the leaders of the
nation of Israel. God spoke to the leaders of clans. God spoke to the fathers. And
He spoke in the prophets. God used men to communicate to
men. God used these intermediators
Just as he had in the time of the judges, just as he had in
the time of kings, he would use prophets. He would raise them
up as he did Moses for a certain specific purpose to communicate
to his people. He wanted to commune with them.
He wanted them. To understand who he was, God
was yearning. To cultivate that relationship,
God, after he spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets,
In many portions, there were times where the prophets came
with just a brief word, repent. Very simple message. And there
were other times where God sent and came with detailed prophecies,
lengthy, overwhelming prophecies. God, after He spoke long ago
to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and in many
ways. There were times where visions
were used. There were times where images, great, fantastic theophanies were displayed. The
pillar of fire. There were times where even donkeys
were used to deliver messages. There were used there were times
where even great moments of silence, great occurrences in the skies,
God delivered his message in many ways, including even the
still small voice. The vision. God, after he spoke
long ago to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and
in many ways in these last days, has spoken. And there is a finality
to that people. We don’t need any more revelation.
We don’t need anybody telling us God told me we don’t need
to read their books. We don’t need to hear their report.
We don’t need it. We don’t need it because God
has spoken. God, after he spoke long ago
to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and in many
ways in these last days, has spoken. And that has a finality
to it because he says that it’s in his son. He has spoken to
us in his son. It’s what we needed the most. We needed a savior. We understood
religion. We understood the concept of
sacrifice. We understood the concept of
law. We understood that we could never
live up to it. What we needed was a savior.
We needed a mediator, we needed somebody to step in and intervene
between. The results of God’s law, the
awful wrath that it brought down. Because of our sins. And it says
that God has spoken. God has done that. God has spoken
to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things. There’s that
exaltation again. Just as we read about in Ephesians
last week, where God highly exalted Him and placed Him above everything
that is made, through whom also He made the world. What is this
Christ? Look at verse three, he is the
exact radiance of his glory. Pardon me, he is the radiance
of his glory, God’s glory. He is the exact representation
of his nature. We shouldn’t be focused on Jesus
hair color. We shouldn’t be focused on what
Jesus looked like. We should be focused on what
is God like. What is Christ like? Because if we see Christ in those
terms, we know what God is like. He is the exact representation
of His, that is, God’s nature. And He upholds all things by
the word of His power. Everything has been given over
to Christ. Does He still astound you? When He had made purification
of sins, He sat down. There’s a finality to that. It’s
finished. No more sacrifice. No sacrifice
needs to be made. When he had made purification
of sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high.
Having become as much better than the angels. As he has inherited
a more excellent name than they. When this opening section. Of the servants, astonishing
reception says that he will sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut
their mouths on account of him in absolute worship. For what had not been told them,
they will see. And what they had not heard,
they will understand. Does Christ still astonish you?
Has he ever? Have you ever come to the point
where? You say with the great hymn writer. And can it be that I should gain
an interest in my Savior’s blood? Died he for me that I should
gain? God has spoken. And he’s spoken the same message
that he had echoed to Israel for centuries. Same message that
so many were blinded to and ignorant of for those same centuries and
yet in time began to see. That God had given. God had given
a savior. That many would be astonished. If you bow before Him with me. Our merciful God, we do not deserve
Your kindness, Your goodness. We do not deserve the Savior
that You sent, and we are astonished. We sit, as it were, with closed
mouths. We’ve been surprised and our
mouths gaped, and now we sit with closed mouths for all of us who know Him, in
humble worship. But for those who do not worship,
who do not know Him, and cannot possibly bring Him acceptable
worship, if their hearts have not yet placed their faith in
Christ, Lord, for those, I pray, in our midst this morning, whether
young or old, If we do not know the Savior, let us know that
God has spoken. God has done. God has said everything
that He is going to say. The last word on His lips was
that of Christ. He has told us of Christ. And
He has called us to repentance because of that. Father, grant
everyone in this room to fully consider what God has done. in
the sending of His Savior. Let us be astonished. Let us
close our mouths. Let us place our faith in Almighty
God for what He has provided by way of this Savior. Let us
worship. It’s in Christ’s name that we
pray. Amen. I’ve never claimed to be the
brightest of bulbs But I can take…