Scripture reading: Psalm 40.

Sermon text: Isaiah 49:1-7.

If you travel to McCollum, Alabama, and visit the place where my great-grandparents lived, you’ll see huge oak trees over a century old towering over the old homestead. Those oaks have weathered more storms than I’ll see in my lifetime. It amazes me that those oaks began their lives as small acorns that fit easily in the palm of my hand.

Our God can take the smallest things in our lives and transform them into beauty and greatness. In today’s sermon text, Isaiah prophesied about such a small start. More than 8 centuries before Jesus’ birth, Isaiah prophesied about one Servant, called while still in vitro, who would bring salvation to the entire world.

First, for the purposes of this sermon, we need to understand that scholars and commentators centuries ago recognized the Servant in this passage refers to Jesus Himself. You don’t have to stretch this passage out of context to see this. In fact, when Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the Temple for His dedication after His birth, they heard this passage applied to Jesus. St. Luke recorded Simeon’s song, sung when he held the infant Jesus (Luke 2:25-32). Simeon quoted Isaiah 49:6 when he referred to Jesus as “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:32). This passage, along with many others in the book, remind us of why so many Christians through the centuries have called Isaiah the “fifth Gospel.”

In this passage, the Servant called to all humanity, from the “coastlands” to the “peoples from afar.” Every person in the world would find both conviction and comfort in the words of the Servant. Today, in Epiphany, the season of proclamation, we can again call on the world to listen to the gospel of Christ.

The Servant next states the timing of His call from God: “The LORD called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.” Like Jeremiah before Him (Jeremiah 1:5) and St. Paul later (Galatians 1:15), Jesus’ calling and mission were established long before His birth to the Virgin Mary. Isaiah had already prophesied that Jesus would be called “Immanuel,” “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14). Jesus would fulfill this role in His life. When the disciples met Jesus, they met God. When the Jewish authorities argued with Jesus, they argued with God Himself. When the Jewish authorities colluded with the Romans for His crucifixion, they killed the God that gave them the Covenant on Mt. Sinai and who prophesied their restoration through Isaiah.

The Servant understood that His message would bring conflict. It amazes me that  people think of Jesus as a pacifist. When we see the conflicts His message brought to us, we understand the words of verse 2: “He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow.” Jesus told the disciples, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10:34). St. Paul, when writing of the Christian armor in Ephesians 6, referred to the “word of God” as a “sword” (Ephesians 6:17). The author of Hebrews would later write, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). The words of Jesus remind us all that we rebelled against God, and the pride that engulfs us refuses to bend to the God who created us. The words of Jesus remind us that we need to restore our relationship with God, even when our pride fights the restoration every step of the way. Restoring our relationship with God means surrendering ourselves to His ways, to His standards, no matter the cost.

It sometimes appears as if the words of Jesus fail to affect sinful humanity. Although God would say of His Servant that in Him “I will be glorified,” the Servant Himself responds, “I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity.” We sometimes think that our Christian walk seems for naught, as if we’re accomplishing nothing. As one commentator put it, “The close of the ministry of Jesus saw the great crowds of Galilean days no longer thronging him, the official religious leaders plotting his death, and the disciples forsaking him in the face of danger; but God would reward him” (The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Frank E. Gaebelein, Editor).

In times when we see no return on our efforts to spread the gospel, we can take comfort  in the next line of Isaiah’s prophecy: “yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God.” We must remember that God calls us to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-20), but we rely on God Himself to accomplish the true work of conversion. Years ago, I finally realized that the most masterfully crafted sermon would never change a person’s heart unless God Himself spoke to the person during the sermon. God’s rewards go to the obedient, not to the ones with the most visible successes.

Anyone who looked at Jesus’ ministry would consider it a failure. Israel rejected Him as their Messiah; the leadership remained corrupt in the Temple; and the Romans would hold onto Judea for another 6 centuries following His crucifixion. Yet, Jesus fulfilled the Jewish covenant with God, proving His “right” living with God. At His ascension, Jesus resumed His place at the “right hand of the Father” (Acts 7:56). When He returns, Jesus will receive the entire universe as His rightful kingdom (Revelation 11:15).

God reaffirmed His call of Jesus in verses 5 and 6: “And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength— he says: ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’” Some translations read “though Israel be not gathered,” as a contrast to the glory Jesus will receive as the nations return to Him. Regardless, the reaffirmation came with a promise. Here we see the small workings of a single Man in a small Roman backwater come to fruition. Israel did respond to Jesus’ teachings. Read the book of Acts in the New Testament. Thousands of Jews turned to the truth of Jesus as Messiah following the Holy Spirit’s coming on Pentecost in A.D. 33. Then, the gospel began spreading to all nations. Again, Simeon’s prophecy came from this verse.

Then, God promised the gospel would go farther than simply calling Israel to return to Him: “Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” Although Jesus would be “deeply despised, abhorred by the nation” before His crucifixion, kings in the centuries following His resurrection have bowed before Him. The gospel doesn’t apply only to the poor; monarchs still follow the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

I especially like the last part of verse 7: “the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” Yes, God chose to send Jesus, His Son, into the world to live among us. I’ll not get into predestination in this passage. Instead, I want you to understand that God has also chosen to give every believer a responsibility to carry the gospel of Jesus in our lives. When you confess Jesus as Lord, believing in His resurrection, you confirm that He has chosen you to spread His light in a darkened world.

This week, I read about the book Mega Shift by Jim Rutz. In his book, Rutz claims that Christianity remains the fastest-growing faith in the world through growth among non-denominational Christians in China, Africa, and Southeast Asia. According to Rutz, Christianity is currently growing at a rate of 8% a year, a rate that will lead to a vast majority of humanity claiming Christianity as its faith by the year 2032 (as reported by Rev. Wade Burleson). We’re living in the age where technology can combine with faithful witnesses to spread the gospel in areas considered off limits for decades.

The words of Isaiah remind us that Jesus has brought light to our lives. He has redeemed us from our sins as we have confessed Him as Lord; He has sent the Holy Spirit into our hearts to guide us in our lives; and He brings us through trials as a testimony to His power so others can see His influence in our lives.

As a result of Jesus’ presence in us through the Holy Spirit, we must join Him in spreading the light to others in darkness. We do this through godly, patient living. Then, when people see us bear the burdens of life, they begin to wonder how we manage so well when others fail. Like the Servant in verse 4, we may think we’ve failed. I encourage you to remember that God counts success far differently than those in the world. God honors faithful witnesses, especially in the eternal life to come.

That doesn’t mean we bear everything without grief or sorrow. Our congregation has lost 2 members in less than a week. We’ll hold another funeral here this afternoon. However, we bear our grief with the comfort of the resurrection of Jesus.

One day, the Light of the Nations will return to earth, and we shall be united with all those who die in the hope of the resurrection to come. Until then, carry the light of Jesus, knowing that He has chosen you for a great task that will bring eternal rewards.