The Uniqueness of God and the Life of Believers (Isaiah 46:6-13)
Rev. Myung-Sin Choi
“6 Some pour out gold from their bags and weigh out silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, and they bow down and worship it. 7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry it; they set it up in its place, and there it stands. From that spot it cannot move. Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer; it cannot save them from their troubles. 8 Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels. 9 Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. 10 I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ 11 From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do. 12 Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted, you who are now far from my righteousness. 13 I am bringing my righteousness near, it is not far away; and my salvation will not be delayed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel.”
Introduction
In Korea, many celebrities are being afflicted and suffering mentally and spiritually. Many singers in Korea confess directly that they see “ghosts.” They are suffering so much that these celebrities became shamans themselves. They go to these paths because they cannot find the answers to their problems. One of them is named, Jung Ho-keun and he showed up on TV. Jung Ho-keun met up with a basketball player, Hur Jae, and he was famous for his nickname of “Basketball CEO.” Hur Jae was seen as one of the best players and won many medals but this basketball player started experiencing different incidents in his life. Hur Jae is not able to show up on TV because of his past incident of drunk driving. He also experienced some financial problems as well as not being able to keep his promises so he is on the brink of being kicked out of the basketball association. I knew that this person was going to experience these kinds of incidents in his life because when he visited the shaman, Jo Ho Kyeong, this shaman predicted something in this basketball player’s life. The moment the shaman entered his room, the shaman said that his ancestral spirits were following him. He had a lot of fame in his life but the shaman kept telling him that his ancestral spirits followed him. When I saw this, I knew that incidents were going to come in his life no matter what. Right now, we can’t see this basketball player on TV anymore. What is more concerning is that more problems will come into his life. He needs to solve these problems quickly. Many people go to church but they are still experiencing problems. They are living a religious life and with this kind of life, you cannot solve your problems. If we don’t hold onto God’s covenant firmly, then we cannot solve our problems. With the word of God, we need to find the answers to our problems today. Today we can see the life of those who worship idols through the Biblical Scripture.
1. The True Nature of Idols
1) Man-made things
Verse 6 - When idol worshipers make idols, they pour out all of their gold to make their idols. They stake everything to make their idols. Why is that? They think that these idols are giving them blessings and luck. They are pouring out all of their gold to their idols and they are boasting about it. They devote all of their gold to their idols and they think that their idols will bless them a hundredfold. We as church goers don’t believe in this but these idol worshipers have absolute faith and hope in their idols. We may think that these idols hold no meaning and value but these worshipers are staking their entire lives for their lives. Calvin once said that idols have two fathers, the person who takes all of their gold for their idols and the father who makes the idols. It takes those two things to make an idol. Idols are made by the thoughts of those who make them, the person who crafts them. There are idols where they are smiling or an idol that looks scary but they are worshiping them in the end. The idols that are smiling, they feel good when they are worshiping them. If they worship idols that look scary, they think that darkness is being broken down when they are worshiping them. People are being deceived.
God said in Exodus 20:4-5 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me.” - God said that those who worship idols, God said He will punish them. We need to relay the correct gospel to these people.
2) Powerlessness of idols
Isaiah 46:2 “They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but have themselves gone into captivity” and verse 7 - Why is that? Idols contain no life. No matter how much you yell at it and pray towards it, the idol cannot answer your problems.
Elijah confronted all of the idol worshipers of Baal. All of them were yelling and crying out to the idol of Baal, and hoping that Baal could answer them. But all of this was pointless. The idol is just a mere creation but they were hoping that it would answer them. This is the delusion of idol worshiping. What about Elijah? Elijah just prayed once and he received answers right away.
2 Kings 18:37 “Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him the words of the Rabshakeh.” - The moment Elijah prayed, God poured down fire. This shows the proof that God was alive. The moment we pray in the name of God, then we will receive answers. This is because God is alive.
2. God's Justice
1) The spiritual reality for idol worshipers
Verses 8-9 - The rebels are referring to those who left God. The moment you leave God, you become bound by God and darkness.
2 Corinthians 12:2 “You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led.” - We need to hold onto this. The idols that cannot speak, you are being dragged by these idols. If that is so, the being that is behind these idols and that being is darkness.
The being that is deceiving people and Jesus said in John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” - Satan hides behind these idols and deceives people. In other words, darkness is tricking and playing with people when they worship idols. Satan is making people fools when they worship idols. What happens if you keep worshiping idols, you become fools and foolish. That is why Satan is making people more foolish when they keep worshiping idols. This starts when you depart from God’s word and start worshiping idols. We need to look at this correctly. People think that nothing will happen if they skip worship services and think that they believe in God, and that is all that they need. But people are being deceived. Through the word, we need to make a resolution. We need to take this within our hearts and not be deceived.
Verse 9 - It is not telling us to remember the incident but to remember the work of Jesus. God who is alive, remember this and the answers that He has given to us. To the Israelites, they experienced the works of the Red Sea splitting and Jericho event but we also experienced those miracles and works in our lives as well. When problems come, remember what God did for you. Remember all of the answers that He had given to you in the past. What does that mean? God is saying that He will answer you so come to Him. God is God and there is nothing like Him. Hold onto this. God will always protect and guide us. Hold onto this.
2) God's salvation
Verses 10-13 - God said that He will break down the head of the serpent, God promised this. This covenant is being fulfilled. God did the same thing for the Israelites. God promised that He will make them go into slavery but He will free them from captivity. God said that the Israelites will become captured by Babylon but they will be freed. This is astounding. Only God can make a promise like this.
Verse 11 - God is watching us like an eagle. God will save us like an eagle. How? An eagle, when they capture their prey, they capture their prey by snatching them in an instant. God is saying that He will scoop down and protect and save us in an instant. Eagles will watch and scoop down from a far distance to catch their prey. This means that no problem or a limitation is a problem for God. Do you have a problem? It is nothing before God. We may think that there is nothing that we can do but don’t feel disappointed when you feel barriers and closed doors in your life because God can open any door and nothing is impossible for God. From here, God said that He will summon someone from a far away land. God already prophesied that He will bring forth Cyrus from Persia to free the Israelites from the Babylonians. Israelites who were going to fall into destruction, God was already saying that He will free and save them. God was showing them His plan of salvation in advance. This is the absolute plan of God. Then, how can we solve this?
Verse 12 - The method of repentance is seen here. The reason why we fell into confusion and fell away from God’s word is because you fell into stubbornness. You have become a person who always complains, judges, and grumbles towards others. The reason why you became stubborn is because you have become far from righteousness. That is why God said for them to listen.
Verse 13 - To those who are wicked and rebels, God was giving them His word and warning. God was giving them a way to live. This is God’s grace that He will pour down His righteousness even those who are within wickedness. God was saying that He will reveal His glory upon Israel. Even though Israelites were wicked in their sin, because of His grace and love, God said that He will restore their righteousness. This was realistically fulfilled. It didn’t end there. God said this to us for us to receive salvation.
Romans 3:21-22 “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference.” - God gave His law so that He could bless and love them. But the Israelites failed to keep the law and kept breaking them. God said to discard all things and to come before Him, and believe. Then you can be saved. God was giving them this simple method, to hold onto Jesus Christ. I told you in the introduction, people who are suffering mentally and spiritually, there is a way out. Hold onto Christ. Then, you can come out of your suffering and afflictions. Hold onto the covenant that was given to us through the 1st headquarter’s message. There are three things that we need to confirm.
3. The Standard of a Believer's Life
1) Three things to confirm
2 Corinthians 10:4 “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” - Our fight is not physical warfare. We just need God’s power. Don’t be deceived by problems and incidents. Look at the church of Corinth, they were complaining and pointing fingers at each other. They were splitting into different groups and they were saying that they were people of Paul, people of Priscilla and Aquila, and People of Jesus. They all become split and divided. But all of this was making them deceived and Paul was saying that all of this was worthless. They were losing hold of all of their blessings because of this. Don’t become like this.
2 Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers.” - When you try to help others, people accuse you of legalism. People think that they are making them stray from the gospel when you try to help them with the guidance of God’s word. People say that their salvation is eternal so they can do whatever they want. But God tells us to listen to the word of God that He is trying to tell us.
Psalm 1:2 “But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.” - Don’t look for the word that you want to hear but hold onto God’s word and meditate on it. Think about why did God give you this word? When you meditate on God’s word, then the greatest blessings will come to you.
2) Take hold of the hidden contract
2 Corinthians 2:10 “Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ.” - This was what Paul said. Paul said for us to forgive. This is what we always pray about in the Lord’s prayer. But, Satan always makes you think that you shouldn’t forgive others and makes you hold grudges against others. There was a story in the Bible where a servant owed his master ten thousand talents but he scolded someone else for not paying him back his hundred denarii so the servant ended up going back to prison. We need to break down the bartizan of Satan and darkness that is blocking us. Don’t ever be deceived.
1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” - The power of the gospel is able to save those who have fallen into the path of destruction and death. Through the work of the cross, may we raise up the bartizan of Christ.
Hold onto Acts 19:21 “When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, 'After I have been there, I must also see Rome.' ” - Hold onto the watchtower that we must build. The hope that God wants us to hold onto is Acts 1:8. We need to become God’s witnesses to the end of the age. When you hold onto this covenant, then God will bless you no matter what. May you truly be blessed.
Conclusion
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” - The message on Friday was about prosperity and the story of Joseph. The reason why Joseph was able to become so prosperous was because He always held onto Galatians 2:20. Even though he faced incidents of death, he held onto Galatians 2:20. He had no way out but God saved Joseph. Joseph always held onto this. Joseph always had joy in the fact that God saved him. That is why he always had no choice but to give thanksgiving and glory to God. That is why he lived a life of thanksgiving and glory to God because God saved him. May we also experience Galatians 2:20 in our lives. If we cannot experience Galatians 2:20 in our lives, then we cannot live a new life. We are just living a fake life. When we die before God, then God will shine a new life and His light into our lives.
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