Dan Herold | Isaiah 42:1-7 | 1/8/2017
The saying goes…”Don’t judge a book by its cover.” That phrase is usually spoken to show someone that they have jumped to an improper conclusion. They took a little bit of information and made up a story to go around that little bit of truth.
Chances are you’ve been on both sides of that statement. We all, in one way or another, have judged books by their covers. The human mind doesn’t like things that are incomplete. We have a natural desire to finish things and that leads us to judge books by their covers. If we only know a little bit about something our minds want a complete picture so we fill in what’s missing and sometimes the things we use to fill in the story are nowhere near what the story actually is.
Also, you’ve probably had someone judge you by your cover. Someone, at some time or another, has probably done this very same thing…they knew a little bit about you and then in their mind filled in the missing pieces which may not have been the most accurate. You know what that feels like…the confusion, the frustration, and maybe the anger also that go along with that experience.
Well, the reason I brought that up is because we do that a lot with God. Not just us…but mankind in general. For the entire history of its existence mankind has been unwilling to take God at his Word and let him tell us who he is. We judge God by his cover—by the little bit of information that is readily available to us. There’s any easy way to avoid doing that and getting a false idea about who God is though. It’s real simple, but it takes a little bit of work—simply look at what God does and listen to what he says. That’s the fool-proof way to safeguard yourself against any false idea about who God is.
Today is the beginning of a new part of the church year. Today is the First Sunday after Epiphany. The word “Epiphany” means to be shown or revealed. This season of the church year is one in which we celebrate the fact that God revealed himself to the world through his Son Jesus. In our gospel reading this morning we heard about a time when God clearly revealed himself in his Son—we heard about John baptizing Jesus. John even called Jesus
“the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”
The text that we are going to take a close look at is the first lesson we heard this morning from Isaiah 42. In those verses God identifies Jesus as his servant. God tells us to watch the things his servant does and he tells us to listen to what God has to say about his son.
Throughout Scripture there are other people whom the Lord calls his servants. Moses and David are most commonly referred to as servants of God, but even Nebuchadnezzar (an unbeliever) is given that title. Cyrus the Great, the king of Persia, is sometimes referred to as God’s servant as well and some people think that this is whom God is talking about in Isaiah 42. There’s some good evidence, though, that shows that God is talking about his Son in these verses.
First of all, verse 1 talks about God’s servant in a very unique way. God says,
“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations.”
God saying that he delights in this particular servant and that he upholds this servant and that he puts his Spirit on him are all unique statements God does not make when he talks about his other servants.
So can a persons mood be influenced by the nerve signals coming from the gut? Yes of course, it is absolutely crucial that the victim receive treatment at the earliest possible time. get cialis without prescriptions http://deeprootsmag.org/2013/10/28/first-creation-one-loss-but-many-gains/ The cause of cheap levitra this condition could be put up with. Vigorelle’s creamy and silky texture creates a warm “tingling” sensation that speeds up arousal time and brings on your viagra samples uk http://deeprootsmag.org/2016/03/25/seven-voices-on-seven-stanzas-2016-edition/ body’s natural lubrication. Previously, erectile dysfunction was considered as an innovative treatment for its unique cialis uk no prescription action mechanism. If you made a list of the people whom God refers to as his servants there would be one that stood out. There would be one who was as unique as the words God uses to describe his servant in Isaiah 42—Jesus. So, using what God has told us and not just judging the book by it’s cover, it makes good sense that God is telling us about our Savior in these verses.
Now, this is what God tells us our Savior will do. He will bring justice to the nations. That doesn’t mean that Jesus is gonna get back at every person that ever hurt your feelings. What God is talking about is much more significant than that. What God is saying that Jesus does for us is that he delivers a verdict—a final proclamation—to us and for us that is just. God didn’t just send Jesus to lean on the scales and overpower our sin. The sacrifice Jesus made for us was not a tricky way through a loophole in God’s law. What Christ does for us is deliver justice. The not-guilty verdict that we will hear spoken from God’s throne of judgement won’t come with a wink and a nod—it will be true and just.
Then, in verses 2-4, God explains how Jesus will go about doing that.
“He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets.”
Jesus was not the type of person that needed a team of publicists managing his public image and scheduling strategic appearances for him. He would simply go about the business set before him and let his actions speak for themselves.
“A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice…”
Jesus wasn’t going to trample over anyone. He came to seek and to save the lost and to heal the sick. The people Jesus came to save—people like us—were already beat down. The Law shows us our sins. It shows us how greatly we fail in God’s eyes and how we deserve nothing but punishment.
Jesus did not come to remind us of that, but to bring us good news of forgiveness and salvation. Jesus didn’t come to ostracize sinners, he came to bring all mankind back into the arms of their loving Heavenly Father. He would have had every right to scold sinners and to put them down, but God says that is not how his servant would go about his business. Instead he would be faithful and bring about justice and he would not be discouraged before he had completed that goal.
Finally in verses 5,6, and 7 God tells us how his servant was going to accomplish this great task of bringing justice to the nations. He says,
“He who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.”
God says that he is the one who has given Jesus the authority to bring justice. Jesus wasn’t sneaking behind God’s back to save sinners. The whole trinity—Father, Son, and Spirit—are united in this cause. There is not one part that condemns sinners and another part working against the first to save sinners. They are all united and want all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.
God the Father is the voice speaking here and he is speaking to his Son much like he did at Jesus’ baptism. He says that he called him in righteousness and will guide him in his work. The Father will establish his Son as a new covenant for his people and a light for the Gentiles. The old covenant would no longer be valid because mankind was sinful and broke that covenant. So, God sent his Servant—Jesus—to be a new covenant for us. Since Jesus was to be the covenant—not be a part of it, but be the covenant—Jesus is all we need. There is nothing we need to do or can do to fulfill this new covenant of justice. Jesus embodies it!
That message is what we celebrate today and will be our focus for the next several weeks. God has revealed his new covenant to us in the person of Jesus Christ. He hasn’t left us in the dark guessing at where or how we will find salvation. There’s no need for us to fill in information or judge a book by its cover because God has revealed the contents of the book. He has told us his plan to save us. Though we may be tempted to twist God’s word, add to it, or subtract from it there’s no reason to. Simply watch what God does and listen to what he says.
Amen.