God's Unmerited Favor

One of the three ships that bring the colonists to Jamestown is Godspeed, a three-mast square-rigger that sails the Atlantic nearly five months to get to Virginia. The ship is just 88 feet long—about the length of a double tractor-trailer—and has a top speed of +/- 4 miles per hour. Colonists endure intolerable conditions, with 13 crew members on deck and 39 passengers wedged in the cargo hold with 40 tons of supplies.

Imagine yourself on board the Godspeed, leaving London on a cold winter day, December 20, 1606. You cruise down the Thames River with no problems and reach the English Channel, raked by stiff winds from the ocean. It takes you six full weeks of sailing to clear the channel. You cross the Bay of Biscay and turn south toward the Canary Islands, where you replenish your water supply and catch the strong trade winds that push you across the Atlantic Ocean.

The weeks pass slowly, with nothing to look at, nothing to do. Boredom takes over. Food spoils. Tempers flare. People smell awful.

Finally, you sail into the Caribbean. You land first on the island of Dominica–then to the Virgin Islands, where you hunt and fish for food. According to John Smith, the most famous passenger aboard the ship, you feast every day on iguanas, tortoises, pelicans, parrots and fish.” Yummy. . .

You sail north in search of Virginia. Your calculations indicate that you should be there, yet for three days you see no land. A violent storm strikes, and you must drop sail and ride it out. You cannot steer the ship in such conditions; you fear crashing onto the offshore bars of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, drowning crew and passengers alike in the sea.

Nevertheless, God is with you; the wind drives you into the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. On April 26, 1607, you land at Cape Henry, and on May 14 reach your final destination: Jamestown. Godspeed, a ship whose name means, “May God cause you to succeed,” has delivered you. Godspeed, a good word to remember as we begin a New Year.

I. INTRODUCTION

1. Isaiah 43 provides a wonderful glimpse of God’s love for Israel in the midst of judgment; specifically, the exile from her homeland and the captivity that follows. The problems come from Israel’s inability to recognize and respond to God’s actions in her past (ch. 42).

2. In chapter 43, the prophet declares a new day. God will act (again) on behalf of his chosen people out of the purest grace; though the fire of war once burned them (42:25), it will not do so again (43:2).

A. This is not due to anything Israel has done. There is no indication that the people of Israel have reformed. God’s grace will cause them to succeed; the nation will experience God’s grace because of its special relationship with him. He created and shaped the nation long ago and will not forsake it now.

B. We should read this passage as a promise of God’s love, protection and providence to the nation of Israel, rather than a promise to specific individuals. Yet, what’s granted to a nation benefits those within it; therefore, God’s promises, while given to the nation of Israel, affect its citizens as well.

[There are parallels between God’s relationship to Israel and Christ’s relationship to the church. Christ created and formed the church for God’s glory just as God did with Israel. It is Godspeed: God causing his people to succeed. Look with me at the promises of this relationship.]

II. THE PROMISE OF GOD’S LOVE (43:1, 4). [1a] I created and formed you; I have redeemed you, [1b] I have summoned (called) you by your name; you are mine; [4] you are precious and honored in my sight and I love you.

1. God wants Israel to forget past failures and concentrate instead on their identity as His people—and His resulting love for them. His expression do not fear refers to what will be the deepest pain of the exile, the fear that Israel’s sense of identity as people of the eternal God, is a product of their imagination.

2. It is easy to understand this fear, because we share it. In every crisis we face; sickness, death, financial loss, marital problems, etc., Satan attacks our identity with thoughts like “maybe you just thought you belonged to God . . .”

3. Christ’s love for the Church extends to everyone in the body of believers. Our identity, not our circumstances, assures us of this love. We are God’s children, joint heirs with Christ (i.e., we share in his inheritance); circumstances, terrific or terrible, do not affect his love for us.

III. THE PROMISE OF GOD’S PROTECTION (2, 5a): [2] when you pass through the waters, rivers and fire . . . and [5a] do not fear for I am with you.