Christ revealed in the mystery of the incarnation

Notes (not verbatim) of a sermon preached by one of the ministers on Isaiah 49 v1-5: 

'Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. 2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified. 4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. 5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength'.

The incarnation is a great mystery. 'A body has thou prepared for me' said Christ. The body implies to that a soul was prepared as there is no human nature without both. The father and the Holy Spirit had their role in the incarnation but so did the Son Himself. He 'assumed' human nature.

The angel Gabriel announced the pending birth to Mary. (Gabriel tended to be the angel involved with events leading up to redemption, the angel Michael with warfare) Mary beleived what she was told. This must surely rank as one of the greatest exercises of faith in human history.

We don't know what conciousness Christ had while in the womb but some light is shed by the fact John the Baptist leapt in his mother's womb when Christ had been conceived. No means were used in that calling of Christ from the womb, or Jeremiah's. God can use means and is above means.

Christ was eight days alive on the earth before being circumcised and named. He whose name is above every name, had no name for eight days -- this was part of His humiliation here one arth.

The passage refers to a sword. This is His word. The sword has two sides -- one to wound, and the other to heal by repentance. Words are used. Men distort language by using foul language. This is becoming prevalent in our day and in the media. Sometimes the first words people want to learn in a foreign language are the swear words -- that is human nature. Words that corrupt and scarify the conscience. But Christ's word heals. Adam heard this sword and its words in the garden of Eden. The first word it said was 'Where' -- it wasn't 'Adam, where art thou', but 'Where art thou, Adam'. Where are you spiritually? Adam left the garden of Eden having been taught that sin was to be taken away by the blood of sacrifice; he had a shdow of this in the animal killed to provide skins to cover him and Eve.

The 'polished shaft' is an arrow. It is polished so it doesn't catch on the bow-string. Ahab was killed by an arow shot from a bow drawn at venture. An enemy soldier fired an arrow at random above the Israelites and depspite his armour and disguise, it hit the king Ahab between the joint of his armour. Thar arrow was killing him all day. The enemy archer might never have learned that he killed King Ahab. So, the preachers of the gospel sometimes don't know when a sermon has been blessed to some soul - and that's good, the glory should be the Lord's.

There is a thorn in Africa, with barbs. It can pierce the hide of a rhinoceros. It gradually travels into the flesh. It can take weeks or months but often it will reach a vital organ and cause death. So, the word of God can be like that, killing the resistance there is in the natural heart to Himself. The natural heart cannot save itself.

Christ was hidden in the covenant -- His coming to earth in human nature was a mystery hidden in eternity. Satan knew nothing of it until the promise was made in the Garden of Eden of a seed that would bruise his head.

The speaker in the passage was to be named Israel -- that was Jacob's new name -- a 'wrestler with God', an 'overcomer with God'. The whole church of Christ was represented there in Jacob's family the night he wrestled. Jacob had to be weakened, by the thigh being damaged, before he overcame. Christ was weakened in order to overcome.

A reviving for the people of God

Notes of a sermon preached by one of the ministers on Isaiah 44 v1-5 on a Monday of a communion season. Not verbatim.

"Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen: 2 Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: 4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses. 5 One shall say, I am the LORD's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel".

The context was the Babylonian ambassadors who were sent to King Hezekiah. Isaiah's message to Hezekiah from the Lord was the fact that the Babylonian captivity was a fact, that it was to take place. What a dismal prospect and what anguish for the prophet: the Lord's cause low, things only to get worse and the judgements of the Lord coming on the nation. We have all these wonderful promises from Chapter 40 of Isaiah onwards, following on from the the news of captivity and solemn judgements. There is no unfaithfulness in the viisble church which will not meet with chastisement. Isaiah was getting promises, a view of the whole of history, the coming of the Messiah, the spread of the gospel through the world, the Day of Days and even glimpses of heaven.

The three points were:

1. The steadfastness of God's covenant, that immutable security.

2. The promise of reviving for the people of God

3. The effects of reviving in the midst of their bondage.

1. Covenant faithfulness. He addresses Israel in a most gracious way -- the truly Godly would hear, whatever the nation as a whole would do. He had spoken solemnly of their sins in ch43. "Yet now hear" -- I am still speaking, I am not silent, said the Lord.

Isaiah would not have been silent. We in the pulpits nowadays would wish to have unction and preach with a broken heart but we find our own hearts dry; have pity on the ministers of the gospel. But the Lord is not silent: His promises, word, access to the Throne of Grace.

There are plenty helps to understanding the Word. Rev Neil Cameron was once very low in his soul and turned to a book of sermons by the Covenanters and read one in which Guthrie of Fenwick preached on v3 of this chapter -- Mr Cameron said that he was hardly half-way through it when his spiritual mourning was turned to spiritual dancing.

In these verses the Lord is speaking in covenant faithfulness. It was the seed of Abraham and Isaac that God chose -- there was sovereignty in it. The national election of Israel was a picture of God's chosen people in every generation. Rev Jonathan Ranken Anderson said in a sermon that the Lord's people are always looking into themselves for reasons why the Lord chose them -- this is a form of the self-righteousness -- but that the Lord strips them and shows them there is no reason there. Humanly-speaking there are many who are much nicer than those whom He did choose, it's sovereign love, nothing in them. V2...The Lord formed them "from the womb" - the womb of regeneration. "You must be born again". It's your duty to seek Christ and ask that he would give you the new Birth by His Holy Spirit. There is covenant faithfulness seen in Abraham waiting for the promised seed for many years -- don't you despair but plead for the New Birth, seek Him all you days. Life eternal is formed in the womb of regeneration.

V2 also says 'Fear Not'. You still have abundant reasons to take the Lord at His word: it's His faithfulness, word and covenant. The Lord's people are given to Christ by the Father. That's an immutable ground of security. It is purchased by the Redeemer's blood, the merit of Christ's death is signified by it, and that never loses its efficacy. (Hebrews 13 has a sublime account of the connection between the blood and the resurrection) Are you fleeing to the hope set before you by the Crucified Christ? We may grieve away the Spirit but He never leaves the soul with regard to that soul's state. When He enters the soul He takes up residence.

2. Reviving promised. These promises are made to those that are feeling thirsty and dry. Every sinner is welcome to God's promises -- there is no restraint in the gospel call. But these promises in this chapter are for the Lord's people who are feeling thirsty and dry. Tha psalmist knew this when he said: "My thirsty soul longs vehemently and faints thy courts to see" and "Like as the hart for water brooks, in thirst doth pant and bray, so pants my longing soul O God, that come to thee I may". Real thirst is vehement, insatiable, longing for moisture. It is a raging vigorous vehement powerful longing. We are very ready to say we are 'dry' and 'thirsty' spiritually, but if we really felt it, would it not drive us to the Throne of Grace for blessing?

The Saviour had physical thirst on the cross. He thirsted in order to put the Cup of Salvation on the gospel table. You're feeling your dryness and need a long draught of Jesus Christ in the gospel promise. In the past, that gave you strength and purified your desires. But by your own sloth you let it slip. Here is a promise for you: "I will pour waters on him that is thirsty". The second half of the verse shows us what that promise means. The water is a picture of the Holy Spirit. What greater blessing could be desired? The Holy Spirit, that clear crystal river of water. Christ purchased the blessings of the Holy Spirit for His people, He merited the out-pouring of this Person. The Holy Spirit was always in the church from the beginning of time, but there was a greater outpouring after the crucifixion. He sanctifies and purifies the soul and is Christ's marriage bond to the believer in conversion.

We need cleansing as well as invigoration. It's true in the natural realm. In a garden, rain is not enough. It needs weeding round the plants to be fruitful. What need we have to be convicted of sin. He shows them their sins. Surely we should be desiring to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit and when we sense that we are being urged to go on our knees or go and read the Bible we should do that, and not say we have other things to attend to. Everything else will be dealt with later if we go and pray or read at these times; if we don't, then the things to which we gave priority often turn out to be more difficult. The Monday thanksgiving day of the communion was a standing ordinance in the Church of the Reformation in Scotland since the time of the Kirk of Shotts revival. May we never lose the Monday service and may we never lose the communion season.

The Lord Jesus revives by faith laying hold, by the work of the Spirit, on the promises. If you have vehement desires for Christ, the Holy Spirit has not left you. The Holy Spirit is an infinite Person. You remember, dear unconverted friend here today, that there are people here today who have God in them. There is ample sufficiency in Him to meet all their needs.

We need reviving in our church here in the islands. Where are the young people? There is no lack of children in other areas. Have we been negligent, have we failed to shield them for influences, have we not shielded them, for example from the television? That is not enough if we don't have the Spirit. We must plead with the Lord that He would pour out His Spirit on our seed. People on the mainland speak of how well off we are for ministers in our church in these islands; but this may be a last call by the Lord. In twenty years time, unless the Spirit of the Lord is poured out on us, there will be very little left. We do believe in better days in the future but we need an outpouring.

3. The effects of reviving.

The verses mention the willow trees -- these always lean by trunk and by roots towards the river, the water source. There will be a clear witness on the side of Christ. This church was set up in 1893 to pass on inviolate the teachings of Scripture. The principles for which we stand will flourish in the future.

Sin removed by a mighty Saviour

Some notes of a sermon preached by one of the ministers on Zechariah 3v9.... "I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day". 1. the greatness of Christ's suffering; 2. the greatness of the strength of Christ, and 3. the greatness of His love.

Adam's one 'small' act of disobedience had massive repercussions for the millions of his descendants; one sin led to another and the corruption brought in by his one act of disobedience has led to an infinite number of sins. Each sin any one person commits can lead to dreadful results too in future generations.

Christ's sufferings were in his human nature as the divine nature cannot suffer (contrary to the error which is beginning to appear now). Christ had great love to His own people in the great victory wrought.

Samson was a type of Christ. Just as Samson brought down the house of his enemies by heaving down the two pillars which held it up, so Christ leaned His strength against Sin and Death - the two pillars holding up the House of Satan. And just as Samson destroyed more of the Philistines in his death than he did in his life, so Christ caused great destruction to Satan in His own death.

The Prodigal Son

Notes of a sermon preached by one of our ministers on the prodigal son.

The Father saw the prodigal returning while he was 'yet a great way off'. The Most High chose His people in a past eternity and when the time comes for them to be converted in Time, as quick as a flash the Holy Spirit is at work in them.

The garment that was put on the prodigal speaks of the garment of Christ's righteousness which is put on His people. That garment was not complete until the Resurrection. When a person trusts in Christ by saving faith it is as if they put their arms into this garment.

The ring put on the prodigal's hand reminds us of power. Pharaoh put his ring on Joseph's finger although he had just been taken out of prison. A ring speaks of marriage and the Lord has his betrothed. A ring has no beginning and no end, just like eternity. The wandering evangelist, Finlay Munro said that to a lady who showed him the ring on her hand when he met on the moor of Lewis at the Ness shielings.

The shoes are important. Servants and the poor in Israel would not wear shoes. To have shoes meant you were in the house or in the family. It also means that the prodigal was to be obedient; for the Lord's people the shoes signify that they are to walk in a new direction, in the paths of holiness.

The fatted calf was kept for special occasions – family events or the various feasts in Israel. What it means is the best food available.

 

God's Word is God's Weapon

On minister preached on Psalm 19 v7: 

"The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple".

He spoke of God's word in the hand of the Spirit being like the smooth stone which David fired at Goliath from his sling. The stone had been prepared for centuries in the nearby river, worn smooth by other stones and made ready for the day it was to be slung and find an opening in Goliath's armour: so the word has been prepared and made ready as an instrument of the covenant, despite the devil's attempts to distort it (by unreliable versions, Westcott and Hort etc).