Isaiah 46-47 I Will Carry You Series

Isaiah 46-47

I Will Carry You

I Can Bear Your Burdens vs. 1-7

I Can Make You Righteous vs. 8-13

I Lift Up the Humble vs. 1-15

Intro: Castaway

Tom Hanks character is shipwrecked

Learns how to survive on a deserted island

Makes a raft and is recovered in the ocean, in the process loses Wilson

Comes home with everyone moved on in their lives

The movie ends with him delivering a package to a lady way out in the middle of Texas

You almost leave the movie with the thought that is was a commercial for Fed Ex

We will take care of your package until it gets to its destination

Sometimes it seems like we lose everything that is important until we realize that God is carrying us

We lose all those things we felt were important, people who we thought were close dessert, and we’re not quite sure how we are making it through everyday

Then God shows us that he was not only with us but carrying us the whole time

That is the message to the Israelites today

They are in captivity, everything they held dear has been wiped away, and they feel helpless

Then God tells them that they have been borne by Christ but even when you have gray hairs I will carry you

What an encouragement that God never desserts us but also works for us thru our whole life

Read Isaiah 46:1-4

Transition:

Legend has it that when Cyrus invaded Babylon the powers that be put their two idols on a cart pulled by two ox and headed them out of town so that they wouldn’t be taken

They didn't get very far and Cyrus apprehended them

Bel was the Babylonian sun god, and Nebo was his son, the god of writing and learning.

But both of them together could not stop Cyrus!

As the Babylonians fled from the enemy, they had to carry their gods; but their gods went into captivity with the prisoners of war!

God assures His people that He will carry them from the womb to the tomb

How comforting it is to know that our God cares for us before we are born, when we get old, and each moment in between!

Ps 139:13-14 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

I Can Bear Your Burdens Vs. 1-7

Vs. 1 Who are Bel and Nebo?

The Bible has already introduced us to them indirectly through the Babylonian names Belshazzar and Nebuchadnezzar.

Bel was the god of wisdom and Nebo was the god of strength

But God starts right off the bat and says these gods you have to carry

In a way he is asking the Israelites when have they carried Him?

Quite the opposite He has carried them

These great god’s of Babylon had to be carried out of the palace and put on carts to be pulled by animals

When it is all said an done they could not save Babylon and went into captivity

Isaiah sees the obvious. What’s that?

If a god has to be carried, how can it carry you? If a god can’t help itself, how can it help you?

If a god needs your strength, how can it strengthen you?

God often asks us how long we will trust in our own strength and wisdom?

How long are you going to try to carry your life?

The world is pretty impressed with its strength and wisdom

Strength isn't just physical but emotional, spiritual, and financial

We cheer on those who can persevere and make something of themselves

On the other hand we look down with pity on those who are weak

We will often feel compassion but many of the times it is intended to make us feel better

We also admire those who are smart and rightfully so

Knowledge is power in its own way and can get us farther than the average masses

Harvard did a study of its graduates and followed them for 20 years

They asked one simple question: "Do you have any goals?"

Only 13% of its students had goals

That means that 87% of the finest students in the country didn't have goals

Those who had goals accomplished 50-100% more in their life than those who didn't

So often times those who have the smarts aren't able to convert it into wisdom

Vs. 3 God says “Listen, I have carried you since you were born and I will carry you until you die

I have carried you since you were born

This blows thru the theory of God is waiting in the wings for us to call