Hang on, Change is Coming
Isaiah 41:1-20
Do you ever turn on the news and say to yourself, “We are in trouble!”? Or maybe you spend some time on social media, such as Twitter, and come to the same conclusion? With all the ways to stay connected to what’s happening in the world, it’s causing many fears and anxieties.
Chapman University in Orange, California for the past few years has done a yearly survey on what Americans fear the most. What is interesting is that Dr. Christopher Bader, professor of sociology at Chapman, and the one who oversees the survey has seen a trend in the survey since they started it. It’s not surprising that what they have noticed is that people tend to fear what they are exposed to in the media. Many of the top fears of one year were the top stories of the previous years.
The number one fear since 2016 has not changed: over seventy percent of people surveyed feared government corruption. I’m not an expert, but our government is corrupt on so many levels. In 2016 terrorist attacks and terrorism were both in the top ten fears. However, in the 2018 survey neither make the top ten. Instead, they have been replaced by pollution and global warming.
A combination of corrupt government, climate change, financial insecurity, escalating international tensions, and even the lack of social interaction is causing a fear and anxiety time bomb across our nation, even globally. As a result, it has created what experts are calling an “anxiety economy.” Fears and anxieties are spilling into and saturating our culture. This leaves God’s people with the challenge of responding to this “anxiety economy” in a way that represents and glorifies the Lord. Naturally, we face the challenge by turning to the scriptures.
Imagine you are living twenty-five hundred years ago in Israel, during the time of the prophet Isaiah. You don’t have CNN, Fox News, or social media to keep you updated on the times you are living in. Instead, you have a prophet named Isaiah, and what he has been prophesying is causing great fear and anxiety.
You are afraid because God is declaring judgment and deportation for his people if they don’t repent and return to him. If his people don’t repent he will cause the Babylonians to attack Israel, bringing judgment upon the people, the city of Jerusalem, and the temple, and ultimately he does exactly what he says he will do. Yet, in the promise of judgment and deportation is also the promise of return and restoration for God’s people. It’s no wonder that Isaiah is fondly referred to as the “prophet of promise.” God balances judgment and deportation with comfort and hope.
In chapter forty God gives his people the comfort of knowing that God will strengthen them so they can walk through despair. In chapter forty-one, he promises to help them walk through the fear and anxiety that will characterize the culture. Sound familiar?
In the first seven verses of chapter forty-one, the Lord is summoning the nations to what seems to be a courtroom setting. However, there is no third-party to pronounce judgment. In verse one, the Lord invites them to the courtroom, and in verses two through four he presents his case: “Who stirred up one from the east whom victory meets at every step? He gives up nations before him so that he tramples kings underfoot; he makes them like dust with his sword, like driven stubble with his bow” (Isaiah 41:2).
Verses two and three are a prophecy concerning the king of Persia, Cyrus. Though he is not named in these verses, in subsequent chapters he is named. The verb “stirred up” or “aroused” in some translations is in the perfect verb tense. In Hebrew, it is called a prophetic perfect. A prophetic perfect speaks of a prophecy that, though it is future, it’s already done. The book of Isaiah is full of prophetic perfects.
The calling of King Cyrus is significant to the unfolding plan of God’s redemption. The Lord is going to call King Nebacanezor to bring judgment, destruction, and deportation upon Israel in the first thirty-nine chapters, which God did do around 590 BC. God will use the king of Persia, Cyrus, to bring judgment upon the Babylonians, bring the exiles back to Jerusalem after seventy years of captivity, and rebuild the temple.
The point that God is making as he presents the prophecy about Cyrus is this: He is in control of history, not King Nebacanezor, not King Cyrus, but King Jehovah. The Lord drives this truth home in verse four: “Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he” (Isaiah 41:4). The Great I AM is in control. He pervades and permeates all of history. He is above all history. He is above all his creation. The implication of verse four is significant: no matter how chaotic life may be or become, God is in control. Verses two through four exemplify beautifully the sovereignty of God.
The nations turn on the news and what do they hear? The prophet Isaiah is declaring the coming of Cyrus. How do they respond? Verse five reveals their reply: “The coastlands have seen and are afraid; the ends of the earth tremble; they have drawn near and come” (Isaiah 41:5). They are fearful, afraid, and trembling. They are creating an “anxiety economy.”
Unfortunately, instead of surrendering to the sovereignty of God, and trusting God, they take things into their own hands in verses six and seven: “Everyone helps his neighbor and says to his brother, "Be strong!" The craftsman strengthens the goldsmith, and he who smooths with the hammer him who strikes the anvil, saying of the soldering, "It is good"; and they strengthen it with nails so that it cannot be moved” (Isaiah 41:6-7). The blind nations have lost their sense of God, and are fearful. In their fears and anxieties, they look for new meanings and myths to sustain them. The late G. K. Chesterton said, “When people stop believing in God, they don’t believe in nothing; they believe in anything.”
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish sixteen-year-old climate activist, gave a speech at the United Nations Climate summit that illustrates the fearful response of people when belief in God is gone. In her speech to the nations, she passionately said, “You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are at the beginning of mass extinction, and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!” When people don’t believe in God they believe in anything. But how do God’s people respond to chaos?
In verse eight there is a very important word that contrasts the response of the godless nations to chaos and God’s people. It’s the word “But.” The nations may respond in fear and anxiety, but not God’s people. Three times in verses eight through twenty God tells his people not to fear. Verse ten, “Fear not.” Verse thirteen, “Fear not.” Verse fourteen, “Fear not.” When you find repetition you find a message, and the message for God’s people is not to fear.
If the declaration of God’s sovereignty in verses one through seven is not enough to help you walk through your fears and anxieties, then the assurances, commitments, and promises that God makes to his people in verses eight through twenty are given to embolden the people of God to do so.
First, God makes a promise of possession. He, in essence, says to his people, to us, “You are mine.” Verses eight and nine: “But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, "You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off” (Isaiah 41:8-9). Notice the use of the possessive pronouns: “My servant...my friend...my servant.” The Lord is communicating to his people that their identity is found in him. He’s communicating to us that we are his! We are his because he chose us and he called us.
As a pastor, I have been called many things. Some call me “brother.” Some call me “Reverend.” Some call me “preacher.” Some call me “pastor.” But the most affectionate, assuring, and comforting term I can be called is “my pastor.” It emboldens me in my calling. It cast out any doubt a may have about my calling. And it amazingly dispels any fear or anxiety I may have about my calling. It’s when church members move from “my pastor” to “the pastor” that I’m often consumed with anxiety. When God says “you’re mine,” it’s intended to drive out fear.
Second, God makes a promise of presence. Verse ten: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). It’s comforting to know that God is with us, and based on his presence, we are not to fear. Not only does he promise his presence, but he reiterates his possession, that we are his people and he is our God: “Be not dismayed, for I am your God.” On account of God’s grace, he possesses us and we possess him. I love how the NASB translates his statement: “Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.” We have the promise of God’s possession, we are his, and he is ours. We have the promise of his presence.
Third, God makes the promise of deliverance. Verses eleven through thirteen: “Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, "Fear not, I am the one who helps you” (Isaiah 41:11-13). These verses give us a powerful picture of God as our defender and deliverer.
Whatever comes against us, God says he will put to shame and confound. Anything or anyone that opposes us does not stand a chance because God will defend us and deliver us, and verse thirteen is why: “For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who so to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you.’” In verse ten God upholds us with his right hand. In verse thirteen, God holds our right hand. Put verses ten and thirteen together and you have a beautiful picture of God the father defending his people with his right hand while holding on to our right hand with his left hand. He’s with us, he defending us, and he will not lose us.
When my oldest daughter was learning to walk, I took her to a store in downtown Athens, Texas. We had to park in the back of the store, and the parking lot was made up of these fist-sized rocks. The size of the rocks made it a difficult walk for a little girl learning to walk. I offered to carry her, but being a stubborn child, she refused. I even offered my hand, but she wanted to do it on her own. It didn’t take long for her to reach out and grab my hand, yet even holding on my hand she struggled. Even though she was holding onto my hand, she started to fall. That is when my hand grabbed her hand preventing her fall. At that moment, I became her deliverer. Don’t fear, in the same way, God is your deliverer.
Fourth, God gives the promise of strength. We see this promise in verse fourteen through sixteen: “Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff; you shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the Lord; in the Holy One of Israel, you shall glory” (Isaiah 41:14-16).
When God calls Israel “worm” it is not a derogatory term. It is a term that denotes weakness. By worldly standards Israel is weak, but with God’s help, though weak, Israel becomes strong. The Lord uses some interesting imagery in verse fifteen: “Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them…” The power is not in the threshing sledge, but the one who is wilding it, which is the Lord. God promises that when we are weak, he will make us strong.
Fifth, God promises resurrection. Verses seventeen through nineteen: “When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the Lord will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane, and the pine together” (Isaiah 41:17-19).
When Isaiah is preaching these words, he is doing so before the events ever happened. It’s called a prophecy. These verses anticipate a people who have experienced the judgment, destruction, and deportation that the Lord promised through Isaiah. They are located in Babylon. Isaiah describes the people as “poor” and “needy.” This condition is not limited to material needs.
The needs that God’s people have encompasses physical, emotional, and spiritual. The condition involves suffering and severe needs that human means can’t meet. Notice how the conditions are described: “parched with thirst...bare heights...valleys...wilderness...dry land… the desert.” The imagery that Isaiah is using portrays a condition that is barren and unproductive. It’s dead, but God’s not dead.
In the seasons of drought, the seasons of death is when God’s people begin to question the goodness of God. We begin to think that God has abandoned us, that God is not answering our prayers. The Lord assures us in verse seventeen that not only does God hears our prayers; he answers them There is no need that God can’t meet.
Verses eighteen and nineteen reveal how God answers our suffering and painful season. He answers with a complete reversal of the condition. What is dead comes to life. That is what God is declaring in these verses, a renewal, a revival, a restoration, and resurrection of his people.
You see, God allows us to experience dead seasons, barren and unproductive seasons, dry seasons, and seasons that cause fear and anxiety. Why? So that he can bring a reversal to our situations, a resurrection to our dead circumstances, and peace to our frustrating outlook.
The imagery of water and trees represent God’s presence. Some commentators believe that the seven trees presented in verse nineteen represent the glory of God, his presence. God himself becomes our refreshment, our restoration, our renewal. Jesus spoke of this when he said: "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37-38).
God himself becomes our resurrection. Jesus said outside the tomb of Lazarus: "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).
One morning, a few years back, I was spending time with the Lord. As I was praying, I started to gaze upon a picture hanging on our wall. The artwork by Thomas Kincaid is called “The Passing Storm.” It consists of a lighthouse after a storm has passed. This print is special to us because it was given to us after a very, what seemed long at the time, trial. It was and is a sign of God moving us out of a dead season to a new season of life.
As I looked at the picture I started to weep, wondering if the present season would every pass. While looking at the picture it went from being a lighthouse to being a tomb, at least it did in my mind. I found myself standing outside of the tomb, and next to me was Jesus. In the tomb was my calling and gifting, and my passion to advance the kingdom of God. I asked Jesus will my dead dreams ever come back to life? He then began to call them out. I could see them coming back to life. I’m still waiting.
I have a man cave at my house, and it’s not your typical man cave. Mine consists of my Library. It doesn’t have a television, but if it did, I would watch Hallmark movies on it. A couple of weeks ago I was spending time with the Lord. As I looked at my bookshelves this fear and anxiety came over me. I started to question my calling, wondering if I would ever prepare sermons and preach again. I was scared that I would forget how to preach and prepare sermons. As I was overcome with anxiety, the Lord spoke to me these words: “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" (John 11:40). The very same words that Jesus spoke to Martha and Mary before he raized Lazarus from the dead.
Why does God allow things to die in our lives? Why does he allow seasons in the desert and wilderness? Notice verse twenty: “That they may see and know, may consider and understand together, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it” (Isaiah 41:20). We get the mercy, and God gets the glory! God’s ultimate purpose of restoration and resurrection is to lavish himself upon us.
Are you poor and needy? Do you find yourself in a fearful and anxious wasteland, wondering if God hears you, or is he near you? Are you spiritually parched and thirsty? I have a word for you: Hang on. Change is coming. Hang on. Don’t you worry about a thing!
