The Servant: God’s Plan for Redemption • 01.26.25
The Servant: God’s Plan for Redemption
Isaiah 42:1-25
Beholding God’s answer to humanity’s sin
- When hope seems lost, God promises to send his servant
- Let the nations give God his due glory
- God’s grand plan considered the inadequacy of his first servant
What a sweet morning of worship!
Dismiss 4th + 5th graders
Ushers + Bibles (Isaiah 42; page 715)
As we dive into our study of God’s Word, I want to re-establish the context of what has been going on in the previous chapters. There is so much to remember from week to week that I think it is best to try to do a little recap each Sunday to keep us current and to aid in our study of the Word. In chapters 40-41, God has been speaking through the prophet Isaiah to the people of Judah who are in exile in Babylon.
Chapter 40 was the transition from foretelling the exile to Babylon into inviting the exiles to find comfort in their God. He is going to return! It is a certainty. And man is nothing in comparison to him! They are called to BEHOLD their mighty God. The incomparably great God who is also a gentle shepherd to his sheep. BEHOLD the nations are nothing in comparison to him. Idols are NOTHING in comparison to him! God is not far off, but near and able to renew the strength of those who wait on him. But the people need to beware the temptation to grumble and complain against God. As we heard in 40:27, God knew that they were grumbling about God not seeing or caring about their situation.
Chapter 41 began with a summons for the nations to put their trust in Yahweh. They too needed to recognize that he is the one who has authority over the nations and, more specifically, Cyrus, King of Persia. Yahweh provided the path of success to Cyrus. While many of the people encourage one another in idolatry, God calls his people to trust in Him. He will strengthen, help, and uphold them! BEHOLD all who are against them will be put to shame/confounded/perish. God will do this! BEHOLD he will make them a threshing sledge. He is the one who transforms creation to provide for the needy. He mockingly invites idols to prove their reality but knows they cannot! BEHOLD they are nothing and their work is less than nothing. Those who trust in them are an abomination!
These are some powerful chapters that contrast the incomparable greatness of God and his plan of redemption to the impotence of idols and the great folly of trusting in them! Yet, as we will see in chapter 42 today, the nation of Judah persists in stubborn idolatry/rebellion!
This chapter is all about a God who is mighty to save and has a specific plan to save, yet the people stubbornly stay in their sin. God even provides tremendous evidence of his authority and power and “realness”, but they continue to be spiritually blind/deaf/and dumb! There is no doubt that left to themselves, they would have no hope. But God has an idealized Servant whom he will send to give them hope. Forget your idols, BEHOLD the servant! The servant nation needs the idealized Servant to rescue and redeem them because they are not capable nor willing to humble themselves.
If you haven’t noticed, what you BEHOLD is of the utmost importance – either idols, who are a delusion, or the Servant, who brings justice and salvation. With that in mind, let’s read our text.
Isaiah 42:1–9 (ESV)
Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my Spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2 He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
3 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a faintly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
4 He will not grow faint or be discouraged
till he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his law.
5 Thus says God, the Lord,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people on it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
6 “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness;
I will take you by the hand and keep you;
I will give you as a covenant for the people,
a light for the nations,
7 to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
8 I am the Lord; that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to carved idols.
9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth
I tell you of them.”
What an incredible start to this chapter of Scripture! This section is known as the first of the four Servant Songs found in Isaiah. Here we find God revealing an incredible component of his grand redemption plan. As we study this and the rest of the chapter this morning, our focus is on…
Beholding God’s answer to humanity’s sin
Rather than wasting their lives beholding idols who are all a delusion, whose works are nothing, they should turn their attention to behold God’s servant! The one who has God’s Spirit upon him, who will bring forth justice to the nations… This servant is described in such an idealized manner that it cannot be the nation of Israel. The language of verses 2-4 describe a servant who is meek and mild – he does not cry aloud or lift up his voice; a servant who is gentle and encouraging – a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; a servant who is not spiritually blind/deaf/dumb but one who faithfully brings forth justice in the entire earth! These idealized characteristics are what the nation was intended to be but consistently failed to achieve. But God does not forget his covenant promises and he has a plan to raise up an offspring from the seed of Abraham through whom all the nations would be blessed!
For those who have heard Isaiah’s earlier prophetic words, this was not an entirely new revelation. We’ve heard throughout the book that God has promised to send the Immanuel child (Isa. 7:14), a child who would break the rod of the oppressor and have the name Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:1-7). This child will rule from the throne of David and preside in peace forever. He will be a shoot from the stump of Jesse who has the Spirit of the LORD upon him and who judges the earth with righteousness as he brings the nations together to worship God. (Isa. 11:1-16)
This revelation in Isaiah 42:1-9 only adds to the anticipation and excitement! God does have an answer for our sin! God has not forgotten us! For the people in Isaiah’s day, it was a powerful reminder…
- When hope seems lost, God promises to send his servant
For a people stuck in exile, wondering if God had forgotten them, this was a wonderful promise! “I haven’t forgotten you! I am still at work accomplishing my plan of redemption!”
The identity of this servant is concealed from the people, but his mission is quite clear. He is sent by God to establish justice in the earth. Justice meaning God’s beneficial order. God knows that things are not as they should be. He is not indifferent to the unrighteousness plaguing the earth. Unlike their accusations of a God who does not see or care about their plight, God reveals that he is always at work to bring about justice and righteousness. He desires and intends for divine truth and order to rule all of creation!
All of this is grounded in his character. Verses 5-9 are a sweeping declaration of God’s creative and sustaining power and grace. He reminds them of who He is and then declares that He is the One who has called and guided the Servant. God gives the Servant as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon… This is idealized language representing someone far greater than the nation of Israel! This Servant will bring about spiritual transformation in a people that are spiritually blind/deaf/dumb.
God’s answer for humanity’s sin and brokenness is to send His Servant to make a way of salvation for them. Notice he is a “light for the nations”. This fits into what we heard in the prophecy in Isaiah 9 where the promised child brings light to the nations who walk in darkness. This is God’s plan and what He plans He accomplishes! Verse 9 is another invitation to BEHOLD what God is doing – the things he said previously have happened, now he is declaring new things ahead of time, so that they may consider and know that He alone is God.
God is demonstrating his authenticity in light of the idols who could predict nothing nor accomplish anything! The way he speaks throughout these chapters builds upon itself and provide proof that He is the One, True God.
Realize that God is calling the original audience to consider whom they would look to and trust in! They didn’t like their situation, and yet they were continuing in idol worship while in Babylon! God is saying, “TURN YOUR EYES FROM WORTHLESS IDOLS AND BEHOLD MY SERVANT THE SOURCE OF YOUR SALVATION!”
Will they listen? Will we listen?
What do you turn to in time of need? When you are hurting or distressed, where do you expect to find help or comfort? God has promised his Servant as the source of justice; the one who deals delicately with the bruised reed and preserves the faintly burning wick (aka the broken and despairing persons).
Consider the implications of what is being revealed about this Servant. Not only is he meek and mild, but he is able to establish justice in the earth. This is a tremendous feat that requires incredible power and authority. This Servant is not to be taken lightly or overlooked! Verse 4 ends with, “the coastlands wait for his law.” Who is this Servant?! Surely someone of great importance if the nations are waiting for his law. It hearkens back to something we heard at the very beginning of this book.
Isaiah 2:1–4 (ESV)
The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be lifted up above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
3 and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide disputes for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore.
God’s plan is to bring the nations together to listen and learn his law – that his justice may be established in the earth! The Servant is clearly someone of great importance if the nations are waiting for his law. Piecing some clues together, we also know that God does not share his glory with another. Who is this Servant?!
We’ll share more about him soon. For now, let’s turn our attention back to the text and hear the expected response to the revelation of the servant.
Isaiah 42:10–17 (ESV)
10 Sing to the Lord a new song,
his praise from the end of the earth,
you who go down to the sea, and all that fills it,
the coastlands and their inhabitants.
11 Let the desert and its cities lift up their voice,
the villages that Kedar inhabits;
let the habitants of Sela sing for joy,
let them shout from the top of the mountains.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord,
and declare his praise in the coastlands.
13 The Lord goes out like a mighty man,
like a man of war he stirs up his zeal;
he cries out, he shouts aloud,
he shows himself mighty against his foes.
14 For a long time I have held my peace;
I have kept still and restrained myself;
now I will cry out like a woman in labor;
I will gasp and pant.
15 I will lay waste mountains and hills,
and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn the rivers into islands,
and dry up the pools.
16 And I will lead the blind
in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do,
and I do not forsake them.
17 They are turned back and utterly put to shame,
who trust in carved idols,
who say to metal images,
“You are our gods.”
The expected response is…
- Let the nations give God his due glory
Isaiah bursts into praise and calls the rest of the earth to join him in it! Knowing that God has a promised Servant who will establish justice in the earth is just too great a reality to remain silent about! From the sea to the desert and the cities and villages, let all the inhabitants of the earth sing for joy. Shout from the top of the mountains! Give glory to the LORD!
You see, in contradiction to the accusations that God does not hear or care, he goes out like a mighty man, he shouts aloud and shows himself mighty against his foes. I love how Commentator John Oswalt puts it:
The immediate cause of the praise is the recognition that although God may often appear to be silent and inactive, he is not truly so. At the right time and in the right circumstances, God will burst forth on behalf of his own, and no difficulty, neither the power of his foes (v. 13) nor the weakness of his people (v. 16), will present the slightest hindrance to his action. (John Oswalt, New International Commentary on the Old Testament)
God is not absent or aloof. He is aware of everything that happens on the earth. He has a plan that is being worked out across the globe every single moment of every single day. And in his timing and for his purposes, he acts and reveals himself in the necessary and appropriate ways. The promises in this passage indicate that God will deliver them at the appointed hour. He will lead the blind nation out of darkness into light because he does not forsake them! (Main Points)
This is even more incredible when you consider that he is speaking to people who have habitually rejected him and exchanged his glory for idols! God is patient and long-suffering, preparing a way of salvation for those who are unworthy of it. He intends to establish justice in the earth, not because we are deserving, but because He is good and glorious!
Isaiah is presenting the promised hope of God to a weak and weary people. People who had given themselves over to sin. People who are despairing that God has forgotten them. And for these weak and weary people who have been led astray and endured the shame of worshiping idols, the promise of the Servant was a great hope indeed! *pause*
As we’ve discussed in previous weeks, idolatry is not solely a problem for ancient Israel, it is still alive and well in our day and age. When we put our trust and hope in anything or anyone other than the One, True God, we have created an idol and begun to worship it. This can happen so quickly in our lives and in ways that we probably overlook or excuse.
Last week, I put it this way… When life gets hard, we open the pantry and worship… or turn on the TV and worship… or grab a bottle of wine/whiskey and worship… or dive back into work and worship… Where do you turn when life gets hard? If it is to anything other than God, then there is an idol in your life that needs to be dealt with.
The One, True God has made himself known and calls everyone, everywhere to worship him. He is far better and far greater than any idol that we can make or turn to for rescue. If your practice is turning to something other than God for help, will you confess that and ask him for help today?
These chapters continue to drive home the point that God alone is THE worthy source of your trust and hopes. He alone is unchanging and infallible. He alone is stable and secure. He keeps his promises and fulfills his plans. And God has revealed himself so that we might see him more clearly and respond to him appropriately! Let the nations give God his due glory. Let US give God his due glory!
God is worthy of praise/glory/honor, and he will have it. Will you give God his due glory? *pause*
That goes beyond just saying yes to a question… This is about a life committed to Him. One of the way’s God’s Servant establishes justice in the earth is by commissioning his servants to live for his kingdom! We give God his due glory as we commit each morning to live for him that day and then get busy walking in obedience throughout the day. And this is not a drudgery but a delight because we know the God who rescues and redeems! We know and believe that God’s will and ways lead to life! I want to encourage you to make it your daily prayer – “Lord, help me give you your due glory today. Help me joyfully walk in your ways today!” *pause*
With that in mind, let’s now consider the rebuke that we find in the remainder of this chapter. In this final section, we hear Isaiah confront the servant nation for their spiritual dullness. Let’s read it now.
Isaiah 42:18–25 (ESV)
18 Hear, you deaf,
and look, you blind, that you may see!
19 Who is blind but my servant,
or deaf as my messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as my dedicated one,
or blind as the servant of the Lord?
20 He sees many things, but does not observe them;
his ears are open, but he does not hear.
21 The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake,
to magnify his law and make it glorious.
22 But this is a people plundered and looted;
they are all of them trapped in holes
and hidden in prisons;
they have become plunder with none to rescue,
spoil with none to say, “Restore!”
23 Who among you will give ear to this,
will attend and listen for the time to come?
24 Who gave up Jacob to the looter,
and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned,
in whose ways they would not walk,
and whose law they would not obey?
25 So he poured on him the heat of his anger
and the might of battle;
it set him on fire all around, but he did not understand;
it burned him up, but he did not take it to heart.
Isaiah gives a great call to the spiritually deaf and blind people of Judah to understand what the LORD has done and continues to do, yet they are stuck in their spiritual stupor. Just as God had said would happen when he called Isaiah into ministry. Do you recall this from Isaiah 6?
Isaiah 6:9–12 (ESV)
9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people:
“ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull,
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”
And he said:
“Until cities lie waste
without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
and the land is a desolate waste,
12 and the Lord removes people far away,
and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
To understand the significance of what is happening in this book, you need to consider the people’s history. Realize that hundreds of years earlier, God magnified his law through the prophet Moses and commanded it be kept throughout their generations. When they later demanded a king, one of the king’s responsibilities was to write a copy of the entire law so that he would spend considerable time with it, storing it up in his own heart and ruling righteously! The point was that both nation and leadership were intended to glorify the Lord through magnifying his law, but instead they exchanged the glory of the Lord for created things – manmade idols and earthly pleasures/treasures. And this sinful behavior continued for hundreds of years. The result of this awful exchange was exactly what God had warned them it would be – defeat in battle and exile to a foreign land.
A fascinating observation as you study the Bible is that God has never been surprised by mankind’s choices and sin. He has always had a grand plan of redemption that took into account our sinful ways and need for a savior. Which brings us to our last point in beholding God’s answer to humanity’s sin…
- God’s grand plan considered the inadequacy of his first servant
God was not surprised by Israel/Judah’s choice to harden their hearts in sin. He knew that this would come to pass. And he had a plan of redemption that considered this fact. Though his servant nation would fail him, he would make his law glorious through his idealized Servant.
This Servant would bring God’s justice to the earth in a way that leads to complete holiness and joy throughout the earth. He would bring the creation back into order, where everyone and everything everywhere fulfilled its God-given and good purpose!
And while the people of Isaiah’s day were still in the dark about who exactly this would be… We know who fulfilled these prophecies. We have the privilege of putting a name and additional revelation to the idealized Servant. He is none other than the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. The Son of God who came to take away the sin of the world.
About Jesus it is said:
Matthew 12:15–21 (ESV)
15 Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all 16 and ordered them not to make him known. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:
18 “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
20 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
21 and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”
Jesus is the fulfillment of Isaiah 42. And Jesus further personally claimed to be the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecies:
Luke 4:16–21 (ESV)
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus’s life and ministry were dedicated to proclaiming good news to the poor and liberty to the captives. He made it possible for spiritually blind/deaf/dumb people to be restored to God! He fulfilled the Scriptures by providing a way of salvation and transformation for all who believed in him. Men and women who were previously enslaved to sin could now be forgiven and freed through faith in him! This grand redemption allows them to serve their new master, King Jesus. Contrary to what the world would mockingly say this is not missing out on the good life but is the way to the good life!
Jesus is the one who faithfully brings forth justice. The nations wait for his law. As the Son of God, he shares the glory of God. He revealed God’s justice to the earth during his first coming and we know God’s justice is what he will finish establishing at his second coming. A day is coming when all will be rightly ordered, and sin, suffering, and death will be no more. Those who continue to reject God will be justly judged, while those who repent and believe in Christ will taste and see of the goodness of God’s ways.
These things I speak of today are no laughing matter. Many throughout history have rejected God’s Servant thereby cutting themselves off from God’s plan for redemption. Will you repent and believe in King Jesus, the idealized Servant? *pause* Today can be the day of salvation for you! I’d love to speak with you more about that after the service. If you have questions or objections, I’d love to set up a time to grab coffee and talk through them.
If your faith is already in him, will you reaffirm your commitment to following Him? He has paid the ultimate price to rescue and redeem you from your sin and the wrath it had earned you. He is worthy of your daily pursuit through joyful obedience, passionate worship, and purposeful discipleship. What will it look like for you to joyfully obey him, passionately worship him, and purposefully disciple others to follow him this week? *pause*
Communion
We are going to close out our services today by worshiping the Lord through the celebration of communion or the Lord’s table.
Communion is an opportunity for Christians to remember all that the Lord has done for us through his death, burial, and resurrection. This is an opportunity for Christians to remember that we have embraced the promised hope of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins and salvation of our souls!
We will celebrate by partaking of both the bread and the cup as a symbol and reminder of Jesus’ body broken in our place and his blood shed for the forgiveness of our sins. Communion is an opportunity to remember how great a price was paid so that we could be saved from our sin. It is a sobering, yet joyful celebration for Christians. Sobering that the Son of God would give himself for us as a ransom. Joyful that he did, and the result is a living hope that cannot be taken from us! Jesus is victorious; therefore, we have the hope of heaven with Him!
At this time, I’d like to invite the ushers forward with the elements.
Before we pass them, I want to share the biblical requirements for joining in this celebration.
This celebration was given by Jesus to his followers. We invite anyone who has trusted in Jesus Christ alone for salvation to join us in this celebration today. If your faith is not in Jesus Christ alone, then we would encourage you to let the elements pass by you and simply consider what you’ve heard so far during the service this morning and reflect on what is keeping you from trusting him for the forgiveness of your sins and salvation of your soul.
The second requirement we see in Scripture is a call to examine ourselves. This is the idea of making sure that you’ve confessed any known sins and sought to turn away from it. It would not be wise to partake of the table if you have sin in your life for which you are not repentant. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 11 that taking the table while living in sin is eating and drinking judgment on yourself. I would ask you not to do that, for your sake and the sake of God’s glory. Instead, I would encourage you to use this time to confess that sin and make a plan to address it right away. If you know you need to be reconciled to someone else in this church, please take care of that during this time. The table is time to protect the unity of the church.
The ushers are going to pass the elements now as we have a time of silent reflection and prayer to prepare for the table. Please use this time to reflect on all that we’ve talked about today and to prepare yourself to take communion by confessing and repenting of any known sin. After the elements have been passed, I’ll lead us in prayer and taking communion together.
Ushers pass elements
Silent prayer. Corporate prayer.
1 Corinthians 11:23–26 (ESV)
23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
Take bread.
25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Take cup
Hallelujah, thank you, Jesus!