Hope in our Darkness

Turn with me in your Bibles to Isaiah chapter 50.

Isaiah 50 · chapter mention

I want to welcome you if you're visiting in town for the holiday or here with family members or friends.

Glad that you've joined us this morning.

This month, the month that we anticipate and celebrate the coming of Jesus into the world.

We've been doing a sermon series in the prophet Isaiah on messianic prophecies from the book of Isaiah.

How the prophecy of Isaiah points to the person of Christ.

Isaiah lived about 700 years before the coming of Jesus in the late 8th century BC.

And yet the New Testament quotes from the book of Isaiah more than almost any other book.

Over 75 times.

And it refers and alludes to it even more than that.

But what we're doing this month is looking at five of these texts that are used in the New Testament to help us understand the significance of Jesus.

So as we look at these texts that were written hundreds of years before Jesus.

And were studied for hundreds of years in anticipation of someone who would come.

We are looking at how they shed light on the significance of Jesus coming into the world.

So this morning we're looking at Isaiah chapter 50.

Isaiah 50 · chapter mention

And I'm going to read the entire chapter.

Isaiah 50.

And if you're looking in the pew Bibles, the page number is in your bulletin if you're looking for that.

Isaiah 50.

Thus says the Lord.

These are God's words to the people of Israel.

Where is your mother's certificate of divorce with which I sent her away?

Or which of my creditors is it to whom I have sold you?

Behold, for your iniquities you were sold.

And for your transgressions your mother was sent away.

Why when I came was there no man?

Why when I called was there no one to answer?

Is my hand shortened that it cannot redeem?

Or have I no power to deliver?

Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea.

I make the rivers a desert.

Their fish stink for lack of water and die of thirst.

I clothe the heavens with blackness and make sackcloth their covering.

The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught.

That I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary.

Morning by morning he awakens.

He awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.

The Lord God has opened my ear.

And I was not rebellious.

I turned not backward.

I gave my back to those who strike and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard.

I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.

But the Lord God helps me.

Therefore, I have not been disgraced.

Therefore, I have set my face like a flint.

And I know that I shall not be put to shame.

He who vindicates me is near.

Who will contend with me?

Let us stand up together.

Who is my adversary?

Let him come near to me.

Behold, the Lord God helps me.

Who will declare me guilty?

Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment.

The moth will eat them up.

Who among you fears the Lord?

And obeys the voice of his servant.

Let him who walks in darkness and has no light.

Trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.

Behold, all you who kindle a fire.

Who equip yourselves with burning torches.

Walk by the light of your fire.

And by the torches that you have kindled.

This you have for my hand.

You shall lie down in torment.

Let's pray.

God, we thank you for assembling us together this morning.

We thank you for this text which has been preserved for us for literally thousands of years.

We pray that you would speak to us by the power of your spirit through it.

We pray that you would speak the message that each of us needs to hear this morning.

And we commit this time to you in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Have you ever felt like you were walking in the darkness?

Maybe you've walked or maybe you are walking through the darkness of trouble.

Perhaps you're battling sickness or chronic pain.

Maybe it seems like you can barely make it physically from one day to the next.

Perhaps you're in a season of loneliness or loss.

Maybe it feels like nobody else really understands.

Nobody else really knows.

Perhaps nobody else really cares what you're going through.

Perhaps you're dealing with disappointment as you look into the past.

And as you look into the future, the future only seems bleak.

Maybe you're walking in the darkness of trouble.

But perhaps you're also...

Another kind of darkness.

Maybe you're walking in the darkness of sin.

Perhaps you're caught in habitual sin.

One of those things that you've said over and over.

I'll never do it again.

And yet you still go back to it.

The Bible says that sin darkens our minds.

In other words, it confuses and distorts our perception of reality.

Maybe you've been living in the darkness of deception.

And half-truths and avoidance.

You tell lies because you feel ashamed.

You feel powerless to deal with reality so you run away from it.

Maybe you've said to yourself, my sin is so great.

How could God ever rescue me from it?

Or even if he can, would God even want to rescue me?

Maybe your sin and your trouble are tangled up together.

Your trouble reminds you of your sin.

And it's like a knot that you can't untie.

And it just gets more and more tangled up.

Well, this section of Isaiah was written for a group of people who were in a lot of trouble.

Because they had sinned a lot.

It was written for a group of people who felt like they were walking in the darkness and had no light.

They couldn't see any hope.

Any way forward.

This morning I want to look at this passage in three parts.

Verse 1 to 3 speaks about the people's sin.

Verses 4 to the darkness that they were walking in.

Verses 4 to 9 speaks about a servant's obedience.

And verses 10 and 11 speak about our hope.

The people's sin, the servant's obedience, and our hope.

So let's jump into the first part.

Verse 1 begins rather abruptly.

Where is your mother's certificate of divorce with which I sent her away?

Or which of my creditors is it to whom I have sold you?

Behold, for your iniquities you were sold.

And for your transgressions your mother was sent away.

You might say, what in the world is Isaiah talking about here?

Well, he's speaking to the people of Israel.

And he's speaking to them.

He's speaking about the time of the Babylonian exile when they were removed from their homeland.

When the temple was destroyed.

The kingdom was abolished.

The cities were ruined.

Everything was gone.

They were given into the hands of their enemies.

They were taken hundreds of miles away.

It was a terrible disaster.

And that's why Isaiah compares it to a divorce or to a bankruptcy proceeding.

Except in the ancient world, a bankruptcy proceeding meant you basically became the slave of your creditor.

It was even worse than bankruptcy today.

It's something that leaves you reeling and trying to recover for not just days, not just months, but for years to come.

And the section of Isaiah is speaking to the people who are in this situation.

And if you look back at chapter 49, because chapter 50 doesn't come out of nowhere.

It's in a longer section.

Chapter 49, verse 14.

This is what the people were saying.

In other words, the people were saying our sin and our trouble is just too much.

God must have given up on us.

God must have left us behind and gone on to someone else for good.

Now, if you read the rest of chapter 49, which we're not going to look at in detail this morning,

God basically says two things.

First, he says, I want to help you.

Verses 15 to 21.

God says, I love you even more than a mother loves her baby.

I have not forgotten you.

And then God says, in verse 22 to 26, I can help you.

I don't just want to help you.

I can.

I have the power to help you.

I am your redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob.

I have not forsaken you.

And I have not forgotten you.

Even in the middle of all your trouble, and even though all this trouble is your own fault,

I am with you.

And then we come to the beginning of chapter 50.

Now, these first three verses of chapter 50 are a bit of a hard word.

Basically, God is getting in the people's face a little bit.

He's saying, let's be real about why you're in all this trouble that you're in.

For your iniquities, you were sold.

For your transgressions, your mother.

So the mother is referring to the prior generation of Israel.

Okay?

For your transgressions, your mother was sent away.

In other words, Isaiah is saying, the trouble you're in is your own fault.

And it wasn't just because of a mistake you made or even a failure.

No, he uses a far more serious word.

Your iniquities.

That is your transgressions.

Your flagrant, ongoing, serious violations of my covenant.

And then verse 2 he says.

He says, I didn't just leave you alone.

I came calling.

I came knocking at your door.

And no one answered.

God is saying, don't act like your trouble came out of nowhere.

Don't say that I didn't want to help you.

And don't say that I can't help you.

The second half of 2 and first half of the rest of verse 3.

Is my hand shortened that it cannot redeem?

Or have I no power to deliver?

God is saying, remember who I am.

I'm the Lord of the universe.

I'm the God who holds all things together.

And I'm also the Lord who brought judgment on the land of Egypt.

Who turned the river to blood and made the sky dark so that I could redeem you.

And set you free from your slavery there.

In other words, God is saying, don't say that I don't want to help you.

Don't say that I can't help you.

God is saying to his people, we need to get real.

Now let me be very clear here.

In this fallen world, sometimes trouble comes upon us through no direct fault of our own.

The Bible acknowledges that in many places.

The book of Job is an entire book all about that theme.

When all kinds of trouble comes upon someone and it wasn't a direct result of anything he did.

So if you're dealing with all kinds of trouble, sickness, loss, disappointment, or even worse,

if other people are attacking you or falsely accusing you or trying to take advantage of you,

that does not necessarily mean that you are on the wrong path or that God is disciplining you.

Sometimes people blame themselves for things that they never had any control over

and that were never their responsibility in the first place.

And if that's you, you might need to be reminded today

the specific trouble you're walking through is not your fault.

On the other hand,

many times we are the cause of our own troubles.

At least in part.

And many times we don't want to face up to our own part.

Instead, we want to pity ourselves and say,

I deserve better.

Why is the world so unfair?

Or we blame God and say that if we ran the universe,

we would do so slightly differently.

Or we want to blame everybody and everything else in the world before we look at ourselves.

We're not willing to acknowledge that we have dug the pit that we now find ourselves in.

When I was a boy in second grade,

I was always looking for ways to correct my teacher.

It's probably my lowest point in that regard.

Because I was clever and I had a technical mind,

sometimes I succeeded.

It was a hard year for my teacher.

And I think a year or two later,

I don't remember exactly the chronology,

but at one point I finally went back and apologized.

But sometimes God is trying to teach us something

and we don't want to listen to him.

Sometimes God is knocking at our door

and we are not answering.

And sometimes God lets us experience some of the consequences of our own sin.

He gives us over

to the idols that we have worshipped.

He gives us over to the masters of our own making

and the result is not pretty.

Our sin can get us into a whole lot of trouble.

Sometimes we need to get real about our sin and its consequences.

We need to get real with ourselves,

with others,

and with God.

That's the first part of this passage.

God confronting the people

with the reality of their sin

and its consequences.

But then,

in the second part of this chapter,

the tone abruptly and unexpectedly changes.

It's no longer God confronting the people with their sin,

but in verses 4 to 9,

we hear the voice of a servant,

a human being,

declaring his faithful obedience.

It's as if you're listening to an orchestra

and you hear the crashing cymbals

and blaring horns of God

confronting his guilty people

and suddenly they give way

to the voice of a solo violin,

a haunting but beautiful melody

of faithfulness

in the midst of chaos

and disaster and darkness.

It's a bit like

if you're walking through a neighborhood

with broken windows

and bullet holes

and boarded up houses

and vacant lots

and trash everywhere

and then you come upon a block

where the houses are freshly painted

and the sidewalks are swept clean

and children play freely

in each other's backyards

and neighbors look out for one another.

It's not what you'd expect.

It's an oasis of hope

in the midst of darkness.

So far we've heard God

declaring his people's guilt

but now we hear the voice

of a human being

proclaiming his innocence.

The Lord God has given me

the tongue of those who are taught,

verse 4,

that I may know

how to sustain with a word

him who is weary.

Not only is this servant obedient

but he gives help

and sustaining grace

to people who are weary.

Now you might be wondering

who exactly is speaking

in these verses,

verses 4 to 9.

Now if you read

the book of Isaiah,

in the second part of Isaiah

which is chapters 40 to 55,

Isaiah 40 · chapter mention

the prophet introduces us

to this figure

who is called

the servant of the Lord.

And the servant

speaks and is spoken about,

the servant speaks

basically four times.

Or there's sort of four passages

that are particularly focused

on this figure

but there's even other references

throughout these chapters.

It's sort of a major emphasis

of these chapters.

And at first it's sort of mysterious,

who is this servant?

The first reference

to the servant

is back in chapter 41,

verse 8.

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.

So at first,

it seems like

the people of Israel

as a whole

they are

the servant of the Lord.

So the figure of the servant

represents the whole people.

But then here's the problem.

Throughout these chapters,

not only in chapter 50,

verses 1 through 3,

but in several other places,

Isaiah,

he castigates the people.

He says,

you failed to live up

to your calling

to be the servant of God.

You've turned to idols.

You've been unfaithful.

You're in all this trouble

because you've transgressed

God's covenant.

You've seriously violated,

you've messed it all up.

Now, other people say

Isaiah was speaking

about himself

as God's servant.

Especially if you read here

in chapter 50.

The servant,

one who listens to God,

who speaks for God,

perhaps that could be true

of Isaiah.

But chapter 50,

verse 5,

the servant says,

I was not rebellious.

I turned not backward.

Now, if you go back

to the beginning of Isaiah

in chapter 6,

Isaiah has a vision

of the Lord.

And you know what he says

when he sees the Lord

on his holy throne?

He doesn't say,

I have not been rebellious.

He says,

woe is me.

I am ruined.

Because I am a man

of unclean lips

and I live among a people

of unclean lips

and my eyes have seen

the Lord God Almighty.

Isaiah had a very clear sense

that he was not,

that he was in the mess

along with the people.

And yes,

he was speaking for God

and yes,

God had set him apart.

But the servant

can't just be

the people of Israel

even though some of it

applies to them

and the servant

can't just be Isaiah

even though some

of the description

could apply to Isaiah.

Beginning in chapter 49,

the figure of the servant

begins to emerge

more and more clearly

where the servant

is both identified

with the people

but also stands out

from the people.

Now, let's look at chapter 50.

As we,

let me put pause

on the question

of who the servant is

and let's look at what 50,

chapter 50,

how chapter 50

describes the servant

and then I'll get back

to who actually

fits the description.

Chapter 50,

verses 4 to 9

basically show us

three things

about this servant.

First,

he obeys.

Verse 4 to 5.

Unlike the people

who were sent into exile

for their iniquities

and transgressions,

this one says,

I was not rebellious.

He's different

from all the rest

of the people.

Unlike the people

whose ears had been closed,

this one says,

verse 5,

the Lord God

has opened my ear.

The servant here is,

you might say,

a model disciple,

excuse me,

of the Lord God himself.

What's a disciple?

A student.

A student who's closely

associated with his master

and who takes into himself

all that his master knows

and then gradually

becomes like his master.

like a student

of a great artist

or who closely observes

his master teacher.

And yet this servant's teacher

is the Lord himself.

So the servant obeys.

He speaks for God

because he listens to God

and he speaks words of hope

and encouragement

to people who are weary.

But second,

the servant not only obeys.

In verse 6,

we see that the servant suffers.

I gave my back

to those who strike

and my cheeks

to those who pull out the beard.

I hid not my face

from disgrace

and spitting.

Rather than being rewarded

for his obedience,

the servant suffers

for his obedience.

And he endures public humiliation

and physical abuse

and he does not run away.

And he does not retaliate.

But in verse 7 to 9,

we see the third thing.

The servant obeys,

the servant suffers,

and the servant triumphs.

He can stand up in court

confident of his innocence.

He can withstand public humiliation,

confident that one day

he will be vindicated

and he can challenge

his adversaries

because he knows,

as he says

in verse 7 and verse 9,

the Lord God helps me.

Who is this servant

who obeys

and suffers

and triumphs?

In all of human history,

there's only one person

who completely fulfills

the whole description.

And that is Jesus Christ.

He obeyed.

Morning by morning,

Jesus listened

to the voice of his father.

He would often rise early

and go to solitary places

to pray

and be alone with God.

And day by day,

he sustained

the weary with his word.

People hung on his words.

Not just because he was intelligent,

but because his words fed them.

Because people found life

in his words.

And because he spoke

with authority.

His words carried weight.

And his words made a difference.

But he not only obeyed,

he also suffered.

He set his face

like flint

with resolute determination

to go to Jerusalem.

Despite knowing

that opposition

awaited him there,

when he arrived,

he was betrayed,

he was falsely accused,

he was arrested,

and he was condemned to die.

You know,

if you think of it,

almost every other

religious leader

in the world

lived a long life

and their life

ended in honor

and victory.

They were recognized

by their followers.

they were praised

by others.

And they lived

a long life.

Only Jesus died

at the young age

of 33

in humiliation.

Strung up

on a cross.

Executed

as a criminal.

And before he was killed,

he was publicly mocked,

beaten,

spat upon,

struck on the head.

Sometimes the

humiliation

is even worse

than the pain.

And yet,

through it all,

he triumphed.

Like this servant,

when he stood

before his accusers,

he calmly

and confidently

maintained his innocence.

When he hung

on the cross

and took his last breath,

he cried out

in a loud voice,

it is finished.

And three days later,

his followers testified

that God raised him

from the dead.

And the world

has never been the same

ever since.

Jesus obeyed,

Jesus suffered,

and finally,

Jesus triumphed.

You know,

maybe you're here,

maybe you're not a Christian.

Maybe you're just

visiting today.

Let me challenge you.

What do you make

of a passage

like this?

Isaiah wrote

these words

hundreds of years

before Jesus lived.

We have manuscripts

of the book of Isaiah

from the Dead Sea Scrolls,

from 100 or 200 years

before the birth of Jesus.

These words

were not doctored up

by Christians

after the fact.

And if this passage

by itself

is not compelling,

go on to chapter 53.

The climax

of the servant songs,

which describes

the servant's suffering

in even greater detail.

Here's some of what

chapter 53 says.

He was despised

and rejected

by men.

A man of sorrows

and acquainted

with grief.

As one from whom

men hide their faces,

he was despised

and we esteemed

him not.

Surely he has

borne our griefs

and carried

our sorrows.

Yet we esteemed

him stricken,

smitten by God

and afflicted,

but he was pierced

for our transgressions.

He was crushed

for our iniquities.

Upon him was

the chastisement

that brought us peace

and by his wounds

we are healed.

All we like sheep

have gone astray.

We have turned

everyone to his own way.

And the Lord

has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed,

he was afflicted,

yet he opened

not his mouth

like a lamb

that is led

to the slaughter

and like a sheep

that before its shearers

is silent,

so he opened

not his mouth.

By oppression

and judgment

he was taken away.

And as for his generation,

who considered

that he was cut off

out of the land

of the living,

stricken for the transgression

of my people,

and they made his grave

with the wicked

and with a rich man

in his death,

although he had done

no violence

and there was no deceit

in his mouth.

Yet it was the will

of the Lord

to crush him.

He has put him

to grief.

When his soul

makes an offering

for guilt,

he shall see

his offspring,

he shall prolong

his days.

The will of the Lord

shall prosper

in his hand.

Out of the anguish

of his soul

he shall see

and be satisfied.

By his knowledge

shall the righteous one,

my servant,

make many

to be accounted righteous

and he shall bear

their iniquities.

How does a man

living hundreds of years

before Jesus

in a society

where crucifixion

had not even

been invented yet,

how does he describe

Jesus' crucifixion

and its meaning

so powerfully

and poetically?

Some people might

want to dismiss

these passages

as mere coincidence

or Christians

seeing whatever

they want to see

in the Old Testament

but I think that's

a very superficial judgment.

The more I read

these passages,

the more compelling

I find them.

they're uncanny,

strange,

mysterious,

eerie

and yet real

and powerful messages

from God himself

that point

to his ultimate work

in the person

of his son Jesus.

What do you make

of passages like these?

For those of us

who are Christians

let me say

two additional things.

And if you're not

a Christian

these are really

about the meaning

of these passages

and the difference

they make.

First,

the way this passage

speaks about

the servant's suffering,

the servant suffers

and triumphs

all alone.

One of the commentators,

John Oswalt,

who I found very helpful

in Isaiah,

says one aspect

of what is being said here

that should not be overlooked

is this,

the aloneness of God

in the work of redemption.

What do I mean by that?

Read through verses four to nine

and notice all the pronouns.

They're all first person singular.

I,

me.

Now many times

you can read

lots of passages

in Isaiah

and the prophets

like to go back and forth.

I,

we,

he,

they,

singular you,

plural you.

That doesn't even come through

in the English

but sometimes there's a note

that makes you see that.

But here it's

one lone individual

speaking.

The suffering,

the obedience,

the suffering

and the triumph

is the accomplishment

of one person

who did it

without the help

of any other

human being.

With only

the help

of the Lord

God.

The servant

accomplished,

in other words,

the servant

accomplishes something

that nobody else

can

and nobody else

will do.

All right,

if you go back

to verse 2,

God says,

why when I came?

Why when I came

knocking at your door

did no one answer?

Only one answered

with perfectly

faithful obedience,

this servant.

Chapter 59,

verse 16,

Isaiah picks up

this same theme.

He says,

the Lord saw

that there was no man

and he wondered

that there was no one

to intercede.

There was no one

to stand in the gap

between God

and his people.

So,

his own arm

brought him salvation

and his righteousness

upheld him.

And chapter 53

speaks of the servant

as the arm

of the Lord.

The power

of the Lord

himself

in this

human being.

Working

deliverance.

Working

salvation.

You see,

when God decided

to redeem his people,

he sent his one

and only son

to do the work

that nobody else

could

and nobody else

would do.

To bear our sins

on the cross

and to triumph

over them

in his resurrection.

That's why

Christians call it

the finished

work

of Christ.

He did it

without our help

and he doesn't

need you

to add

something on

to his saving

work either.

You can't.

Because it's

complete.

He accomplished

the work

of redemption

alone

so that we

might enjoy

the fruits

of his labor

with him.

Second,

Jesus knows

how to sustain

the weary

with his word.

Just as the servant

does in verse 4.

Jesus has a word

to sustain you

today

if you are

wearied

by your troubles.

A bruised

reed

he will not

break

and a smoldering

wick

he will not

snuff out.

Matthew says

when Jesus

saw the crowds

he had compassion

for them

because they

were harassed

and helpless

like sheep

without a shepherd.

Jesus has

compassion

compassion

for those

who are

weary

and troubled.

And Jesus

said to his

disciples

do not

fear

those

who

can

kill

the

body

but

cannot

kill

the soul.

Rather

fear God

who can

destroy

both soul

and body

in hell.

Are not

two sparrows

sold for a

penny

and not

one of them

will fall

to the ground

apart from

your father?

But even

the hairs

of your

head

are all

numbered

therefore

fear

not.

You

are of

more

value

than

many

sparrows.

Jesus

has a

word to

sustain

you

today

if you

are

wearied

by your

troubles.

And Jesus

has a

word to

sustain

you

today

if you

are

wearied

by

your

sins.

I

am

the

Lord

and

besides

me

there

is

no

savior.

I

am

he

who

blots

out

your

transgressions

for my

own

sake

and

I

will

not

remember

your

sins.

Return

to

me

for

I

have

redeemed

you.

Jesus

said

come

to

me

all

who

are

weary

and

burdened

and

I

will

give

you

rest.

Jesus

also

has a

word

to

sustain

you

today

if

you

have

become

weary

in

doing

good

for

his

name's

sake.

He

says

take

my

yoke

upon

you.

Learn

from

me.

I

am

gentle

and

lowly

in

heart

and

you

will

find

rest

for

your

souls

for

my

yoke

is

easy

and

my

burden

is

light.

Jesus

knows

how to

sustain

the

weary

with

his

word.

And

if you're

weary

today

he

has

a

word

for

you.

Finally

that

brings

us

to

our

third

point

we've

seen

the

people

sin

we've

seen

the

servants

obedience

and

finally

we

see

our

hope

when

we're

walking

in

the

darkness

verse

10

and

11

when

we

feel

like

we're

walking

in

the

darkness

verses

10

and

11

say

that

we

basically

have

two

options

verse

10

says

that

we

can

trust

God's

character

even

though

we

might

not

understand

his

ways

and

verse

11

says

we

can

instead

of

doing

that

attempt

to

create

our

own

light

that

will

save

us

from

the

darkness

that

we're

in

in

verse

10

Isaiah

paints

a

picture

of

someone

who's

walking

in

the

darkness

without

any

light

and

yet

this

person

relies

on

God's

character

the

name

of

the

Lord

that

is

God's

character

and

follows

God's

word

obeys

the

voice

of

his

servant

verse

11

is a

contrast

picture

Isaiah

says

behold

all you

who

kindle

a

fire

who

equip

yourselves

with

burning

torches

now

that

second

line

equip

yourselves

with

burning

torches

is hard

to

translate

because

literally

it

could

be

translated

who

gird

on

flames

so

most

likely

I

think

the

picture

is

of

someone

who

instead

of

walking

through

the

darkness

without

any

light

lights

a torch

and

straps

it

to

their

belt

so

as

to

walk

by

the

light

of

their

fire

as

it

says

in

verse

11

and

to

keep

their

hands

free

while

they're

walking

through

the

darkness

now

the

problem

is

strapping

a

flaming

torch

to

your

belt

is

a

dangerous

way

to

operate

okay

Isaiah

gives

this

picture

because

he

says

you're

going

to

get

burned

by

the

fire

you've

kindled

if

you

refuse

to

obey

the

voice

of

God's

servant

if

you

refuse

to

rely

on

God

and

instead

think

I'm

going

to

light

my

own

fire

and

find

my

way

out

of

this

and

save

myself

God

says

the

very

thing

you

think

will

save

you

will

burn

you

up

in

the

end

and

it

will

wear

out

like

a

garment

that

gets

more

and

more

old

and

full

of

holes

and

ruined

so

here's

the

question

who

will

you

trust

when

you're

walking

in

the

darkness

who

are

you

trusting

or

what

are

you

trusting

what

are

you

looking

to

bring

you

through

the

darkness

to

give

you

hope

to

rescue

you

to

go

with

you

who

will

you

trust

in

the

darkness

of

your

trouble

remember

that

the

servant

whose

voice

you

are

called

to

obey

has

gone

ahead

of

you

through

the

darkness

you

are

not

blazing

a

trail

on

a

lonely

road

you

are

following

a

path

that

has

been

beaten

by

the

servant

himself

he

has

obeyed

and

he

suffered

for

his

obedience

and

he

triumphed

in

the

end

and

because

he

has

done

all

this

you

can

trust

his

voice

you

can

trust

Jesus

voice

even

when

your

depression

won't

lift

even

when

the

loneliness

seems

unbearable

even

when

the

pain

seems

relentless

and

overwhelming

even

if the

future

seems

completely

dark

and

from

a

worldly

point

of

view

life

seems

no

longer

worth

living

even

when

the

path

of

obedience

might

lead

to

public

humiliation

salvation

Jesus

has

walked

that

path

ahead

of

you

and

he

has

sent

his

spirit

to

abide

with

you

will

you

trust

him

in

the

darkness

of

your

trouble

will

you

trust

him

in

the

darkness

of

your

sin

or

will

you

try

to

make

your

own

way

out

to

light

your

own

fire

to

do

all

the

things

that

human

beings

do

to

minimize

and

hide

and

deny

and

blame

and

manipulate

and

control

and

distract

and

attack

or

will

you

trust

the

one

who

has

taken

all

your

sin

on

the

cross

for

you

will

you

say

I

will

fix

up

my

life

first

and

then

come

to

Jesus

later

but

if

you

say

that

you

will

never

come

at

all

or

are

you

tempted

to

despair

and

conclude

that

there

is

no

way

out

that

your

sin

is

far

too

great

Christ

is

willing

to

save

you

and

Christ

is

mighty

to

save

you

rest

on

him

today

if

you're

trusting

in

Jesus

what

is

true

of

him

will

become

true

of

you

as

well

he

obeyed

and

suffered

and

triumphed

and

in

him

he

will

give

you

the

strength

to

obey

and

he

will

enable

you

to

endure

suffering

and

he

promises

that

the

end

is

a

triumph

in

verses

7

and

8

the

servant

challenges

his

accusers

with

three

questions

who

will

contend

with

me

who

is

my

adversary

who

will

declare

me

guilty

and

in

Romans

Romans 8 · chapter mention

chapter

8

in

the

new

testament

the

apostle

Paul

asks

three

very

similar

rhetorical

questions

who

shall

bring

any

charge

against

God's

chosen

people

it

is

God

who

justifies

who

is

to

condemn

Christ

Jesus

is

the

one

who

died

more

than

that

who

was