Series: Isaiah
Title: Because God Knew
Text: Isaiah 48: 3-8
Date: June 29, 2012
Place: SGBC, New Jersey
Isaiah 48: 3: I have declared the former things from the
beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them
suddenly, and they came to pass.
The gospel is God declaring
what he purposed to do from eternity—v3: I have declared the former things from
the beginning. In eternity, God chose
whom he would save.
Ephesians 1:3: Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4: According as he
hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before him in love:
In eternity, God chose BY
WHOM he would save his elect--He hath chosen us in HIM—in Christ his Son--before
the foundation of the world
Isaiah
42: 1: Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul
delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the
Gentiles. 2 He shall not cry, nor lift
up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the
smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged,
till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
The gospel is God declaring
that he has accomplished the salvation of his people in his Son just as he said
he would from eternity. Isaiah 48:
3:…and they went forth out of my mouth, and I shewed them; I did them
suddenly, and they came to pass.
Galatians
4: 3 Even so we, when we were children,
were in bondage under the elements of the world: 4 But when the fulness of the time was come,
God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5 To redeem them that were under the law, that
we might receive the adoption of sons.
Acts 20: 28:…the church OF
GOD, which HE hath purchased with HIS OWN BLOOD.
Hebrews
9: 12: Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he
entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for
us.
Galatians
3: 13: Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse
for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
14 That the blessing of Abraham might
come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of
the Spirit through faith.
The gospel is God revealing
these hidden mysteries in the heart of his elect child which the Holy Spirit of
God has created anew… Isaiah 48: 6: Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not
ye declare it? I have shewed thee new things from this time, even hidden
things, and thou didst not know them. 7
They are created now, and not from the beginning; even before the day
when thou heardest them not
Why did God chose to save
his people this way?
Isaiah 48: 4: Because I knew that thou art
obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass;…5:…lest
thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my
molten image, hath commanded them….7:…lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew
them. 8:…for I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called
a transgressor from the womb.
Titled: Because God Knew
I. FROM ETERNITY GOD CHOSE
WHOM HE WOULD SAVE, HE CHOSE TO REDEEM THEM BY HIS SON, HE CHOOSE TO CREATE
THEM ANEW BY HIS SPIRIT--4: Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and
thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass;
Child of God, God foreknew
our sin.
Romans 5: 12: Wherefore, as
by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed
upon all men, for that all have sinned:
This describes the
unregenerate sinner. Sinner, you have heard God speak:
·
In the gospel preached
·
In light of his creation
·
In his providence
·
In his holy scriptures
·
Through godly brethren and godly parents
·
Even your own conscious has screamed at you to listen
Yet, you have been
“obstinate, your neck an iron sinew, your brow brass”; You have “dealt
treacherously and been a transgressor from the womb.”
But this describes believers
as well. Believer, can any say with Paul, “O wretched man that I am.” I read here a description of myself.
Self-willed. I do not hear
the voice of God and obey as I ought. God’s word is plain yet I act as if he
had not spoken. Every word of God is
right—every word for our good—yet when his word does not suit us just right we
act as if we are the wise one.
Self-righteous. We become frustrated with the obstinacy of
our children. But…
at the very same time we sit
before our heavenly Father with a scowl on our face because everything he is
doing in his house doesn’t suit us just right.
Or someone we know has sinned a great sin in our sight—we keep repeating
to ourselves “how dare they.”—let me ask, “how dare I!”
Romans
2: 1: Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for
wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest
doest the same things.
May God teach us not speak
down to a child or to a fellow believer, but as the chief of sinners before my
heavenly Father let me speak as one beneath them.
Self-serving. How much of
our time is spent for self? We call
ourselves by the right name. We make
mention of the name of God. But..
·
How often our heart is far from the Lord.
·
How easily we turn to our idols.
·
How easily we seek warmth in only cold death.
·
How often we seek comfort elsewhere but the Prince of peace.
Self-justifiers. Someone says,
‘Not me. I am faithful to
God”—very treacherous
“I am never lukewarm”—very
treacherous
“I’m always fervent in
prayer”—very treacherous
“I am so holy, I seldom sin”
very treacherous
Application: Let us lie no more before God or to
ourselves. Can we say with Paul, “Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I AM CHIEF. (1 Tim 1: 15)
Psalm
130: 3: If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?
Psalm 39: 5: Behold, thou
hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing
before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity.
Selah.
God chose to save his elect
by his sovereign free grace in Christ because
God knew… thou art obstinate,
and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass
Illustration:
The hard dirt at Taylor—what will melt the iron neck and the brass brow—the
message of salvation by grace.
II. FROM ETERNITY GOD CHOSE WHOM HE WOULD SAVE, HE CHOSE TO REDEEM
THEM BY HIS SON, HE CHOOSE TO CREATE THEM ANEW BY HIS SPIRIT Isaiah 48: 5: I
have even from the beginning declared it to thee; before it came to pass I
shewed it thee: lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my
graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them
God did not choose his people because he foreknew that they would
choose to be saved or that they would repent and believe him or because of any
foreseen merit whatsoever. That is
sinful wretches saying, “Mine idol hath done them, mine idol hath commanded
them.” Sinful man saying, “I knew.” Sinful man dealing, “very treachoursly with
God.” That is the doctrine of works, not grace; the doctrine of man, not
God. Such false doctrine is blasphemy against the
God of grace. It is contrary to the
scriptures which declare salvation is by the grace of God.
Election could not have been based upon
foreknown goodness or foreknown works we would do, because there is no goodness
in fallen man, for God to have foreknown! Even if it would have
been possible to foresee good in us, there would have been enough vileness in
us to have caused him to reject us.
But God foreknew our sin. God
foreknew that man would try to ascribe salvation to himself—turn things upside
down—because God knew man would be born morally depraved—incapable of doing
good apart from God’s power and grace.
Psalm
14: 2: The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if
there were any that did understand, and seek God. 3: They are all gone
aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that
doeth good, no, not one.
God’s election of
grace was not due to any forseen merit in man.
Rom. 9:11:
(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or
evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works,
but of him that calleth;) 12 It was said
unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. 13
As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. 14 ¶ What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? God forbid. 15
For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and
I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 16 So then it is not of him that willeth,
nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Because God knew we would attribute
his grace to our idol called self, God saves by sovereign grace.
III. FROM ETERNITY GOD PURPOSED THAT THE WORKS WOULD BE FINISHED
BY HIS SON AND REVEALED TO HIS CHILDREN, BORN OF THE HOLY SPIRIT THROUGH HIS
GOSPEL. Isaiah 48: 7: They are created now, and not from the beginning; even
before the day when thou heardest them not; lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I
knew them.
God says, “I have
showed thee little by little and not all from the beginning. Because you would brag on your wisdom saying,
Behold, I knew. The gospel is hid to the
natural man and must be revealed through the gospel because God in wisdom knew
his fallen, elect child would need to be brought to nothing so as to depend on
God to teach him. He says, thou didst
not know them.
1
Corinthians 2: 7: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the
hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
There is the word
foreordained—God did foreknow our sin—but because God knew he foreordained that
the world by its wisdom would not know him but that God would save through the gospel. He ordained it in wisdom.
1 Corinthians 1: 20 Where is
the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this
world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world
by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save
them that believe.
1
Corinthians 2: 8 Which none of the
princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have
crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it
is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the
heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10 But God hath revealed them
unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep
things of God….14 But the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto
him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
God says I performed all my
works long before you ever heard of them-and revealed them to you of my Spirit,
lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew
them. Now, the works were finished from the foundation of the world in the
Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Christ came and finished the work
long before the day you heard. But God
in wisdom teaches little by little through the gospel to make his child ever
dependent upon the gospel so that none will glory in self but only in God who
teaches us.
Ephesians 2: 1: And you hath
he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to
the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation
in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh
and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4:
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath
quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
God
foreknew our sin…Christ finished the work and God reveals the mystery in our
hearts…lest thou should say I knew.
IV. GOD SAVES BY HIS GRACE BECAUSE HE KNEW MEN WOULD DEAL
TREACHOURSLY WITH HIM. Isaiah 48: 8: Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest
not; yea, from that time that thine ear was not opened: for I knew that thou
wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called a transgressor from the womb.
Sinners make their boast
that they came to God by their will—God foreknew his elect would try to make
that same evil boast—unless he saved us freely by his power and grace. But he makes us to know:
John
6:44: No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and
I will raise him up at the last day.
Faith is his gift of grace—walking by faith is a
good work God foreordained that his elect shall walk in.
Ephesians 2: 8
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it
is the gift of God: 9 Not of works,
lest any man should boast. 10 For we are
his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them.
Psalm 65: 4: Blessed is
the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he
may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even
of thy holy temple.
Psalm 110: 3: Thy people shall
be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the
womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
Elect according to the
foreknowledge of God does not mean that God foresaw some goodness in us—it
means God foreordained who, and in whom he would save his children.
·
God foreordained his elect unto salvvation.
·
God foreordained that his Son, Christ Jesus, would be the
righteousness and holiness of his people.
·
God foreordained that salvation would not be of man that willeth
or runneth but of God that sheweth mercy.
·
God foreordained that he would draw his elect child to Christ.
Why?
Isaiah 48: 4: Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is
an iron sinew, and thy brow brass; V7:…lest thou shouldest say, Behold, I knew
them….V8:… for
I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously, and wast called a
transgressor from the womb.
V. Now let’s bring this down to where we live.
There are no unknown
things to God past, present or future.
God is Deity. God knows all. All our sin was known to God beforehand.
·
All evil thoughts
·
Unseen malice of the heart
·
Our vilest deeds
·
Our cursed imagination
·
I do not know my sinfulness as God does
·
I do not hate sin as God does
·
I do not see how worthy I am of hell
Yet, he chose us foreknowing
what we would become. He knew our judgment, our conscience, our affections
polluted, our wills would all become perverted.
He knew we would be transgressors from the womb. He knew the neck would be an iron sinew. He knew the brow of brass. Yet he chose us though we would
be transgressors from the womb.
This is the gospel of grace
which makes us adore our God: his electing grace and love. We were the infant cast out into the field
polluted in our own blood. Yet, he loved us.
Ezekiel 16: 8: Now when I
passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of
love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware
unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou
becamest mine.
Believer, this melts our
hearts. This is the lovingkindess, the
goodness of God, that leads sinners to repentance.
Not only his electing grace,
but his redeeming love. Christ knowing
that we dealt very treacherously, yet he redeemed us not with silver and gold,
but with the precious blood of Christ. You
would think we would have been vile in his sight, he says “Since thou west
precious in my sight, thou hast been honorable, and I have loved thee:
therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life?”
Romans 5: 8: But God
commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us.
Think of his adopting
love. When God adopted us he did not do
so with the limited foreknowledge we have.
I have friends who have adopted children. We adopt hoping a child will grow up and be
obedient. But what if we foreknew the
child would grow up to be what God foreknew we would be?
Yet, God adopted us into his
family, gave his name, making us righteous in his Son.
Ephesians 1: 5: Having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself,
according to the good pleasure of his will, 6: To the praise of the glory of
his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Galatians 4: 6: And because
ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts,
crying, Abba, Father.
1 John 3; 1: Behold, what
manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the
sons of God:
Christ took us to be his bride. How many times have you
heard of married folks parting with the excuse, “I just didn’t know this about
them. If I had known it I would not have
married them.” Do you want
security? Do you want assurance? It is to be found in the glorious truth of
God’s sovereign, free grace. God knowing
what we would be in our flesh even after our conversion, yet Christ united
himself to us as a husband and a wife.
Ephesians 5: 30: For we are
members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones…[like as a man leaves his
father and mother, and is joined to his wife, and they two become one flesh] 32:
This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
Believer, when the evil of
sin weighs heaviest, remember God hates putting away. What God has joined together no man can put
asunder. Why? Because everything necessary
Christ is—and Christ has provided—to present us to himself a chaste virgin, not
having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but holy and without blemish.
Go home with this, believer,
we have dealt treacherously with our God.
·
Our sins, we don’t mourn over as we ought
·
We look away from him to this flesh—our idol.
·
Spend so little time in his word—boast of what we know as if we do
not need to be taught of him.
·
So little time thanking him for his benefits to us
·
So lukewarm in our worship of him.
Grace is no excuse to
sin—grace is the cure. Grace is the
message and the power that makes our iron neck submissive. It is the fervent heat of unchanging love
that melts the brass brow.
Get it down in our hearts
and camp out here. God’s love for his own is unchanging,
unvaried, unbreakable, unending love! Nothing makes a child of God more
thankful, more in love, more desirous to honor our Savior than when we behold
his grace in light of our sinfulness.
1 John 2: 1: My little
children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin,
we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
What is your problem? Christ
is the answer. What is your disease?
Christ is the cure. What is your sin?
Christ is the cleansing fountain. God
foreknew all but God provided all in Christ.
Israel ran out of provisions in the wilderness. God provided all in
Christ. God foreknew all our necessities and in Christ God has provided the
full supply. He says, “My grace is
sufficient for thee.” He promises, “As
thy days, so shall thy strength be.” (Deut 33: 15)
To you without Christ, do
you know you are sin? Do you know your
own heart deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked? Has God divinely interrupted the false
security you had? Has the bed become too narrow and the covers too short to
wrap yourself in?
If so realize this, you just
now know what you are, but God has known it all along. But the very wretch you
find yourself to be is the exact kind of wretch God delights to show mercy too,
in fact, the only kind. The good news of the gospel is, “Believe in the Lord
Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” God
the Father did not send his Son to save the righteous, but sinners. There is full
forgiveness, full pardon to every sinner that trusts in the Lord Jesus.
Isaiah
1: 18: Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins
be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they be red like crimson,
they shall be as wool.
Isaiah 55: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the
unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will
have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the
earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your
thoughts.”
Amen!