Isaiah 54 A Time To Rebuild Series

Isaiah 54

Time to Rebuild

Enlarge Your Place Vs. 1-3

Start Fresh Vs. 4-10

Lay a Rich Foundation Vs. 11-17

Intro: Rebuilding Greenwood, Kansas

In 2007 a Cat 5 tornado swept thru Kansas

It set it sights on a tiny town of 1500 people called Greenwood

What made this tornado different was that the typical tornado is 150 wide, this one was 1.7 miles

The same width as the town

As it ripped through it left only two brick buildings standing in the town

Three story houses were ripped off of their foundations

Cars, cows, and trees were flung thousands of feet from where they were

After it passed, long time residents came out of the destruction and couldn’t find their way around town because so many of the landmarks they knew were gone

Soon the town started talking about leaving, there was nothing left, Greenwood would be no more

The mayor pulled together the owners of the 70 businesses in town and asked them who were leaving

He put up three whiteboards saying staying, leaving, undecided

66 of the businesses decided to stay and over the next four years the rebuilt the town better than it was before

Sometimes when things look desolate we have to make a choice; Are we going to leave or are we going to stick it our and make it better than it was

Churches have to make these choices during the life of the church

Many churches don’t die because people leave but because the ones who stay don’t want to make it better

Israel had to make the same choice, sadly only a small portion of the group decided to stick it out

Isaiah 54 is God’s promise to those who decide to stick it out and trust God

Read Isaiah 54:1-3

Transition:

“Try and suck all the sweetness that you can out of this chapter while we read it.

The personal application of a promise to the heart by the Holy Spirit is that which is wanted. C z

I believe that today’s message is a special word for our church

It’s interesting how you can teach verse by verse and God still lead you to the exact word he has for you.

He knew last year when I decided to teach Isaiah that chapter 54 would be taught today because it was the word we needed to hear today

I’ve titled the message “Time to Rebuild’

There has been a period of devastation, moments where it looked hopeless, but we see today how God intends to rebuild afterwards

He doesn’t tells us to close ranks and lick our wounds

Instead he calls us to Enlarge our tents, Start Fresh, and lay a rich foundation

Enlarge Your Place Vs. 1-3

The Babylonian exile and captivity meant more than oppression for Israel; it meant shame, disgrace, and humiliation.

God promises a glorious release from not only the exile and captivity, but also from the shame, disgrace, and humiliation.

We can take those promises for ourselves and our church

Vs. 1 Desolate one

God describes the current situation as a barren woman

In ancient Israel, the barren woman carried an enormous load of shame and disgrace.

Here, the LORD likens captive Israel to a barren woman who can now sing - because now more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman.

The remnant of Israel is looking at a rebuilding process that is hopeless

Nebuchadnezzar didn’t leave one brick on top of another in Jerusalem

God is commanding the Jews to go back and rebuild the temple and the city

It’s no wonder most of the Jews didn’t go back

Typically most rebuilds of cities were to completely demolish the city and then build on top of it

They are know as “Tells” or cities built upon previous cities

In Israel there are multiple man made mountains of demolished cities

This is where they do most of the archaelogical digs and they will often find multiple layers

But God called them to rebuild from the ashes

It looks desolate but God sees it different

If your situation looks desolate remember that God doesn’t see it that way

He can resurrect and rebuild any life that has been devastated

He can resurrect and rebuild any church that has been devastated

How does he do that?

Vs. 2-3 Enlarge your tent

Often times the counsel that God gives goes against logic

He is telling Israel to enlarge its tents

How do enlarge something that is so devastated?

Remember that Israel isn't even at place to rebuilt yet alone a place where tents can be enlarged

The curse and shame of barrenness would be so completely broken, and Israel would be so fruitful, that they would have to expand their living space.