April 21
Isaiah 54: 11: O thou afflicted, tossed with
tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours,
and lay thy foundations with sapphires.
The Lord Jesus Christ says to his afflicted, tossed and comfortless
church, “Behold, I will.” When he walked
this earth, Christ Jesus was looked down upon as the lowly carpenter’s son, but
Christ is God, the great Architect and Builder of his church, the “city which
hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” (Heb 11: 10)
Then notice, Christ says, “I will lay thy stones”. Christ creates sinners
new in spirit, making us living stones.
He sets us immovable in his church and temple. “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a
spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices,
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” (1 Pet 2: 5) Also, the “stones” Christ uses to save his
people include every precious gift Christ gives to build us up as living stones
including—his preachers (fair colors & sapphires) each article of doctrine (sapphires), the
light he gives (windows of agates), the entrance he gives (gates of carbuncle)
and all his works of providence (borders of pleasant stones)—these are
described here as precious stones for his precious stones.
Next, Christ says, “I will lay thy
stones with fair colors.” The Hebrew
word “with” refers to the means. This phrase refers to an ancient custom of
laying colored stones in black pavement to make a mosaic. The pavement was black so that the stones
stood out against a black backdrop. The stones are Christ, his works and his
final workmanship (his people); the means he uses to set us with is the black
pavement. The means are not meant to be
the focus; but he chose means which make Christ, his works, and his workmanship
standout, so that he receives all the glory.
So the meaning is, “I will lay thy stones using means that give me all
the glory.”
All the precious stones by which Christ makes sinners living stones,
stand out against the black backdrop of our sin. As jewelers lay the diamond on a black cloth
so the diamond shines so much brighter, you and I see Christ’s glory and grace
shine more brilliantly the more we see the black sin we are and from which he
saved us! The last Adam came, not into a perfect garden but to a dark,
sin-cursed world; not made under one law but made under all the law which God
gave to show the blackness of our sins; not to put away one sin but a multitude
of black transgressions; not for one sinner but for a multitude of
black-hearted sinners; the Pearl of great price shines in brilliance against
those three hours of darkness on the cross! “I will lay thy stones using means that give me all the glory.”
Also, the Hebrew word translated “fair
colors” is a black die which women used as eyeliner. The same word is
translated “paint” when Jezebel painted her face. Ladies, you outline the top and bottom eyelid
with black eyeliner. The black is not meant to be seen. It is used to enhance
the beauty of the eye; the eye standouts against the black background. Christ says, “I will set thy stones using
foolish things to confound the wise, weak things to confound the mighty, base
nothings to bring to nothing things that are; that no flesh should glory in my
presence; but he that glories, let him glory in the LORD.” (1 Cor 1: 27-31)
Christ’s preachers are to be unseen, unnoticed, earthen vessels that Christ
uses so that the beauty and the work is all Christ’s. We preach not our word
but Christ’s word; we set Christ before his people not ourselves; we declare
Christ finished the work of redemption for his people but we never put the work
in the sinner’s hands to finish. Christ uses his preachers but we are the
black, unnoticed eyeliner. Christ says, “I will set thy stones using means that
gives me all the glory!”
But
you ladies know that if you put on too much of that black eyeliner then the
eyeliner becomes the focus rather than the eye. So it is with the
preacher. The moment a preacher ceases
to declare the gospel of Christ according to the scriptures; the moment he puts
focus on the sinner and the sinner’s works; the moment he markets to the people
the church’s ministry rather than Christ and his ministry then immediately
Christ ceases to be the focus. But Christ’s preacher, and his church, wants
only Christ, in all his glory, to be the focus!
Now, to those who don’t need Christ, God’s preachers are just sooty and
black. But catch this! Christ says, “and
[I will] lay thy foundations with sapphires.” The “foundations” is Christ in
the doctrine which we preach. The Jews called the articles of their religion “foundations.”
Christ uses his preachers to lay Christ our Foundation in the foundations of
each article of the doctrine of Christ. (Eph 2:20; 1 Cor 3: 10-11) The preachers Christ uses to lay the
foundation are indeed unseen, nobodies, not desiring any glory for themselves
but for that very reason, to Christ, and to sinner’s hungry for Christ, they
are “sapphires.” (Rev 21: 14, 19) There have been times I was so hungry to hear
a word from my Redeemer, as soon as God spoke into my heart through the preaching
of the gospel, I thanked my Savior and I thanked Christ for the preacher who
loved me enough to preach Christ rather than himself. “How beautiful are the
feet of them that preach?” No! “How
beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad
tidings of good things!”
The sapphires in this foundation is Christ himself: the everlasting love
of God our Father in Christ, eternal election in Christ; the everlasting
covenant of grace ordered in all things and sure in Christ; the sure mercies of
Christ our David. All the promises of God are yea and amen in Christ Jesus. The
sapphires of this foundation are Christ’s Deity declared; God the Son joined
with bone of my bones and flesh and of my flesh, the GodMan Mediator. The
sapphires of the doctrine of Christ is his perfect obedience, his blood and his
righteousness; his death, burial, resurrection; justification by his
righteousness; pardon by his blood, atonement by his sacrifice. The sapphires
of this foundation are spelled T.U.L.I.P: total depravity, unconditional
election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, preservation/perseverance of
the saints. Christ is the believer’s one foundation. “For other foundation can no man lay than
that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor 3: 11) Before we can stand firmly
in the truth of God we must have the foundation in truth. And if this
foundation is even preached in truth, Christ gets the glory! He said, “I will
lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.”