Isaiah 42:5-42:9
“This is what God the LORD 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. I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you’" (Isa. 42:5-9, NIV).
Last time, we quoted the Bible passage: “He calls his own sheep by name… “(John 10:1-5, NIV). We found out that “He” who calls is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11). And He is also Faithful (1 Thess. 5:24) and Holy (1 Peter 1:15).
We have learned also that His people would recognize His Voice and would follow Him.
Do we also know His Voice? Could we afford to refuse His call?
Let’s continue on to become familiar with the One who makes the call.
We read in Isaiah 42, “This is what God the LORD 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…’”
The Great One who made the call is not only Supremely Good, Faithful and Holy – but He is also the Sovereign God – the Almighty Creator, who created all things – from the smallest particle to the biggest star in the universe, things we see and don’t see, including all forms of life in the physical and the spiritual world.
He also added, “I am the LORD…” -- From the four-letter Hebrew word YHWH, pronounced JEHOVAH, or YAHWEH – which according to The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary could mean "He causes to be, or exist," i.e., "He creates."
On the other hand, according to Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, “The four-letter Hebrew word YHWH was the name by which God revealed Himself to Moses in the burning bush (Ex 3:14). This bush was a vivid symbol of the inexhaustible dynamism of God who burns like a fire with love and righteousness, yet remains the same and never diminishes.”
It continues, “God is the author of life and salvation. His ‘I am’ expresses the fact that He is the infinite and original personal God who is behind everything and to whom everything must finally be traced. This name, ‘I am who I am,’ signals the truth that nothing else defines who God is but God Himself. What He says and does is who He is…”
God also said, “I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols.”
He will not allow anyone or anything to have the honor or praise that is only due to Him. The Glorious God asserted that the Highest Position belongs to Him alone and only He deserves it. No one else.
He continued to adorn His Supremacy, by saying: “See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.”
He knows what is going to happen in the future. He could not just predict it. He could even cause His Will to happen in the future! Remember He is YHWH. He creates all things, all forms of life, and He can also create, or cause events, so that His Sovereign Purpose could be accomplished.
He does not leave His purpose to chance, just as it was in the beginning of this world, it did not happen by chance.
Yes, the future is not just governed by chance – especially, the future of God’s people, or the believers.
Consider 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24:
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.”
Those whom He called would “be kept safe and without fault when our Lord Jesus Christ comes” – not even by their own power. But, as The Everyday Bible translated it, “You can trust the One who calls you to do that for you.”
Also, we read in Isaiah 42:6, “‘I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness…” Of course, in that particular verse, He was referring to the Messiah. But we could also refer it to the “church” – to the assembly of people, He called to belong to Christ (Romans 1:6). They are called “in righteousness” – “to do what is right,” as translated by God’s Word Bible. And, according to Commentary on the Whole Bible by Jamieson, Fausset and Brown – “for a righteous purpose.”
Christ was chosen (Isa. 42:1) and called for a righteous purpose. “In him,” we also read in Ephesians 1:11, “we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will…”
Now, let’s read the next phrase in verse 6 of Isaiah 42 and notice it very well: “I will take hold of your hand.”
If we are also called for a righteous purpose, could we not also claim that the Sovereign Caller “will take hold” of our hands?
The future of those who received an inner calling from God is not in the uncertainty of chances, nor in their own hands.
David prayed, “Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory” (Ps. 73:23-24).
We also read in Romans 8:30, “And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
In the Old Testament, when God was about to destroy Sodom, He sent angels to save Lot and his family. Notice what the angels did when Lot hesitated to leave the city.
We read in Genesis 19:15-16:
“With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, ‘Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.’ When he hesitated, the men (the angels) grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them.” His hands and of the members of his family were grasped by the angels and “led them safely out of the city.”
On our own, our future is uncertain. On our own, we doubt, we hesitate. On our own, as we learned last time, we would NOT even call upon God. In His Mercy, He must first call us and make Himself known to us – making known to us His Voice, as coming from the Good Shepherd, Faithful and Holy – the Sovereign Creator – who created all things, even causes the glorious future of the believers.
Those who recognize that Sovereign Voice will not refuse, or resist the call. As we read in John 10:3-4, “…the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.”
They know the Excellence of the One who calls them. They know He is calling them for a righteous purpose – to belong to Christ, into His wonderful light, into His kingdom and glory, to inherit a blessing, to be free, to be holy – to sum it all, to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
And they know He is “…able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy -- to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen” (Jude 24-25).
PRAYER: Our Merciful Father – the Sovereign Creator – we highly exalt Your Holy Name for preparing for Your people not only this material universe, but even the glorious future that they may clearly behold Your Greatness and rejoice in Your Presence. May You cause us to become more familiar with Your Goodness and be able to rely more on Your Faithfulness. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.
