Sermon Title: The Walking Wounded
Text: Isaiah 1:5-9
Date: July 20, 2003
Context of Scripture:
As we prepare to look into our Scripture in the first chapter of Isaiah this evening, we need to remember that Isaiah was not born into the depths of poverty nor was he raised in religious ignorance. To the people of Isaiah’s time, the past was past on from generation to generation orally. Past failures and past successes were given to the next generation and then that generation would pass it on as well.
Isaiah knew the events that led up to the many victories of his people and he knew the events that took the nation to ruination, whether they be in the realm of religious, financial, or both which was usually the case.
Isaiah had perfect hindsight through the oral tradition of His people – a clear and concise vision of the future from God – and his fingers were on the pulse of Judah at the time of these writings. If anyone was well-informed, it was Isaiah.
Please stand in reverence to the reading of God’s Word!
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 1:5-9
5 Where will you be stricken again, As you continue in your rebellion? The whole head is sick And the whole heart is faint. 6 From the sole of the foot even to the head There is nothing sound in it, Only bruises, welts and raw wounds, Not pressed out or bandaged, Nor softened with oil. 7 Your land is desolate, Your cities are burned with fire, Your fields--strangers are devouring them in your presence; It is desolation, as overthrown by strangers. 8 The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, Like a watchman’s hut in a cucumber field, like a besieged city. 9 Unless the LORD of hosts Had left us a few survivors, We would be like Sodom, We would be like Gomorrah.
Sermon Introduction:
I have entitled this message, “The Walking Wounded”, because we cannot say that we are unaffected by the things that are taking place in our world, no matter how we pride ourselves on our ability to separate ourselves. We are all wounded by the sins of this world to some degree.
Isaiah uses a medical analogy to describe what exactly was awaiting Judah as a result of its behavior as a nation. The medical term for their lack of relationship with the Lord was relapse. They had been healed to a certain degree many times in the past, but the healing was never complete – they continued to do what made them ill in the past and if they continued on – they would get exactly what it was that they had to begin with. If you continue doing the same old thing, can you expect anything other then the same old results?
The problem that Isaiah’s people were facing was that they were getting totally involved in the sin that they were living in. The infection was spreading to every portion of their nation and if the process continued, there would be no hope. Infection is treated easily until it is deeply entrenched in the vital areas. Infection is easily treated until the reason for infection becomes immune and adapts to the course of treatment. If we fail to continue with the medication that we are given the resulting surviving germs are more resistant to the treatment. The heart-hardening of Isaiah’s people was evident. They were involved in a full blown spiritual infection and there was no form of treatment in place.
It wasn’t simply the people that were ill, the places that they lived were sin-filled as well. The Idolatry was fueled by the different idols, the immorality fueled by an acceptance of immoral lifestyles. Godlessness lessened in seriousness due to the number of people who adhered to that frame of mind. The creation beyond man was suffering the effects of falleness.
The signs were on the wall – the strength of the nation was waning, financially things were on a decline, it isn’t that God’s wrath was immanent, it was already quite obviously begun.
Prayer for Spiritual Enlightenment:
I. It is Gonna Happen Again
If we look into our history as a nation, we can see that every time there is a great advancement in our financial, material, or personal quality of life – there is usually a decline in moral and ethical responsibility, which is caused by a shift from reliance upon God to self-reliance, and the end result is a loss of blessings that casue a slide in certain aspects of life in general, which causes a shift back to reliance on God which in turn leads to greater blessings. We see it in the story of the Hebrews in God’s Word, but if we read American history carefully we can see the same pattern mirrored in our nation. Let us look at verse 5:
5 Where will you be stricken again, As you continue in your rebellion? The whole head is sick And the whole heart is faint.
Look at the wording in this passage. It says where will you be stricken, it doesn’t offer the possibility that nothing will happen. There will be consequences, the only question to be answered is where will the consequences take place. Corporate swindling leads to a fiscal blight. Political wrongdoing leads to national mistrust and quarreling. Immorality leads to an increase in certain diseases. It isn’t a matter of if, it is a matter of where.
Isaiah then goes on to tell of the sickness of the head. Wrong thinking and wrong ideas and motives are responsible for the difficult situation that this nation and the world finds itself in today. If you can keep the thoughts off of the things that are immoral, then the action can never take place. If you never allow yourself to get to the point where murder is an issue, you will never take a human life. If the thought never entered your mind seriously to steal something that belonged to another, a theft will never take place.
There is a valuable tool that has been removed from our way of thinking as a nation, and that is the teaching of right from wrong that is the basis of God’s Word. Thou shalt not . . . commit adultery. Thou shalt not . . . murder. Thou shalt not . . . steal. These principles were set aside because they were seen as an infringement of religious freedom, and in so doing, there very moral fibre of this nation has been weakened.
Let us take the next statement in light of this first allegation. Along with wrong thinking, Isaiah brings forward the charge of a weak heart. Brothers and sisters, he isn’t talking about heart disease here, Isaiah is charging his fellow countrymen with having “no guts” to change things.
How has the church in America lacked intestinal fortitude? We have failed to call sin what it is. The problem with this recognition of sin seems to be based on what different churches view as important. If you feel that numbers are important, in regards to attendance and offering, there are some that will overlook for the sake of their fellowship. Wrong thinking in the manner of numbers and faint of heart for shirking from the responsibility of holding a brother or sister accountable for fear of losing them as a member or missing out on their offering. Some are so focused on the external, that they overlook the needs of a poorly dressed seeker of Jesus in favor of the well dressed hypocrite. Wrong thinking in the manner that outward appearances are always true to their relationship with Jesus and faintness of heart because of the projected spirituality of a brother or sister that is straying from the path of internal righteousness.
Perhaps a rough translation of what Isaiah is trying to get across to us, is that we are going to fall flat on our faces again, if we don’t get our heads screwed on straight and have the guts to do what we know that we ought to do. The longer we wait, the worse things are going to get.
II. The Infection is Total – No Treatment in Place
The totality of this nation’s moral and ethical corruption is largely due to the lack of action in the past that is compounded by our lack of action in the here and now. Read Isaiah’s description:
6 From the sole of the foot even to the head There is nothing sound in it, Only bruises, welts and raw wounds, Not pressed out or bandaged, Nor softened with oil.
You are sick from head to toe. That is a pretty dismal prognosis if it were to have come from our doctors. Let us look at this description in light of what we see in our country today. If think of the binding of a muscle and joint that has slipped out of the location that it was designed to be in. Without the restrictive wrapping or a cast, the healing will never take place properly. We are a nation without moral and ethical boundaries. If you are allowed to do whatever you wish, the consequences will continue as long as the freedom aspect continues. Until the boundaries, the wrappings, the restriction is in place and left in place, God ordained morals and ethics will not happen. If a protective covering is not placed over an open wound, the infections that are surrounding us will set in and cause the open wound to worsen. There needs to be a protective covering. The covering of the shed blood of Jesus Christ is sufficient for all wounds of all proportions. The problem that many have in seeking this treatment is the boundaries that are in place to prevent any further injuries of the same nature. It goes against the “do as you please” mentality of this day. There is nothing placed on the wound to soften the resulting scab. How many have cut themselves on the knuckle of one of their fingers? When that wound is healed, unless there is a softening of the area, it keeps ripping and tearing open. Yes, it usually heals but the resulting scar is often readily visible and more pronounced then need be. Let the anointing of the Holy Spirit’s guidance be the anointing oil to the wound, and allow it to soften as it heals, and lessen the scars that are left behind.
Nothing slows the growth of a new convert more then the course and uncaring remarks from some of the saints of the church who expect instant sanctification of a soul that was deeply entrenched in sin on their way out of the depths of the society in which we all live.
III. Beyond the Body – Your Habitat is Sick
Without a doubt, we live in a sick and perverted world. All you need to do is watch a portion of the nightly news and that truth becomes obvious. Isaiah writes in verses 7 and 8:
7 Your land is desolate, Your cities are burned with fire, Your fields--strangers are devouring them in your presence; It is desolation, as overthrown by strangers. 8 The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, Like a watchman’s hut in a cucumber field, like a besieged city.
Everywhere that we look, our nation seems to be spiritually desolate. Where it used to be a part of the culture to attend church throughout the week in many worship settings, it is almost rare that many attend a single solitary Sunday morning service. This in a nation that was founded on Godly principles! Our cities are consumed with sin. Most people don’t even dare go into the downtown sections of their cities anymore – they have been taken over by pushers, pimps, prostitutes and the like as well as those who seek out pleasures of the darkness. These were once the areas that were the pride and joy of the surrounding community. This was the center of business. This was the center of culture. This was to have been the best of the best that the community had to offer, and now it is the center of sinful actions and behavior.
Those in control are no longer in alliance with the godly, the good, and the decent. The enemy has taken control, and it was all allowed through wrong thinking by those with a faint heart. And everywhere we look, the churches are deserted. Every time we turn around, another congregation votes to close the doors. The once great congregations who pleaded the blood and called sin what it is, are decreasing in numbers and growing old. One by one, the watchman’s hut is being abandoned. One by one the shelters in the vineyards are falling in disrepair.
IV. God’s Judgment isn’t in the Future – His Wrath has Already Begun
There are so many that proclaim that God’s judgment is close at hand, but if we look carefully, I believe that most of us might believe that it has already begun. Reading this evening’s final verse:
9 Unless the LORD of hosts Had left us a few survivors, We would be like Sodom, We would be like Gomorrah.
In the dismal context of this section of the book of Isaiah, I say that this is a glimmer of hope. We have a few survivors that are holding on, and as such we have not yet faced the consequences as did the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. Just as evil as the Ninevites were when the Lord called His reluctant prophet Jonah into service, this nation might yet heed the call to righteous and holy living and be spared like the Ninevites, at least for a time.
Conclusion:
We have an advantage, living in the time that we do. We have a wealth of past history that we might use to guide us from making the same mistakes again. We believe in the total accuracy and applicability of the Word of God. It wasn’t only for the days in which it was written, it is equally valid for all of the decisions that we need to make in our lives today. God did create the world out of nothing. God did send His only Son to die on the cross for us. Jesus was raised from the dead, just as the Scripture and He Himself has foretold. He is coming again, on a day of the Father’s choosing, and things as we know them will end. In many cases, we are in much the same position as Isaiah. We have a good idea about what happened in the past and how these things happened as they happened. We are not blind to the things that are going on around us. If there was ever a time in human history where the fallen ness of man is obvious, it is now. We have a vision or at least an understanding of the “End Times”. We know that there will come a time when enough will be enough and Jesus will return.
We can’t stop the return of Jesus, but there are many souls in this world that could have a totally different outcome for their eternity. There may have been those in the past that have slipped into an eternity separated from God, but we can do much to prevent that from happening to others. If we fail to act on the knowledge that God has blessed us with, it is going to continue to happen. Satan’s fold will get bigger and bigger if we fail to act.
As we look around us, we see total moral and ethical deterioration. The sacred bond of marriage is scoffed at, and those that seem the most interested in uniting are the gay and lesbian factions. It used to be that a man’s word was his contract, but even now, with myriads of papers filed, signed sealed and witnessed by many, contracts are made to be broken. A man’s Word is not even worth the breath that is expended to exclaim it. The sky is polluted, the water is polluted, the land is contaminated, the resources are waning, the rain pours down acid, and the food that we eat is more artificial then natural and it requires a chemistry degree to figure out the ingredients of a Twinkie. The fallen ness of creation is total, and there are really no serious efforts to return the land to the glory that God once meant for it to hold. The infection of sin is all encompassing and there is no true antidote being sought. We know Jesus is the answer but the world is saying no thanks.
Everywhere we look, we can see the effects of the ravages of sin in the world. Power hungry nations have contaminated huge areas with radiation and the effects have been devastating to the population. The hunger for oil has led to many a war and the aftermaths of huge oil spills have forever changed the habitat of many of God’s creatures. God’s judgment is not only in the future, but perhaps we are already seeing the beginnings of it as well.
For some, until the hardships of lost blessings are experienced, there will be no movement toward the ever open and loving arms of Jesus.
Call to Commitment:
I want to focus on the opening comments of Isaiah in this section of our text. Where will you be stricken again, As you continue in your rebellion? The whole head is sick And the whole heart is faint. When are the thoughts going to change? We know that if we train our minds on the Word of God, then our thoughts will become more like the thoughts that God would want for us to have. If we read it, if we contemplate it in the way that we can display it, then we will eventually live it, and the world through us will understand it. The thoughts, however have to change. We must grow strong of heart. If we have the courage to stand up for the things that we have read, understood, and begun to live in God’s Word, then we will demonstrate that we have the authority to call the remainder of the world to the same standard. God’s thoughts and His empowering us to display courage.
Let us open the altar of prayer this evening.
