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Teaching Notes
ISAIAH 9:1-2
As we have seen in our study in the book of Isaiah, things were not going too well for the Northern Kingdom of Israel or the Southern Kingdom of Judah. They had degenerated into idolatry, dead religious activities, and their hearts were far from God.
And when that takes place in a individuals heart, or in the heart of a nation, there will be a departure from the truth of God that is found in His Word. And that is exactly what we see in these two nations, a departure from the truth of God.
Now what takes place in the heart will be manifested in the actions of those individuals or nations. In Israel and Judah they no longer were seeking the Lord for direction, for comfort, for truth, but demons! They had their own psychic hotline, you might say, and they were using mediums and wizards who would contact the dead for them.
And God rebukes them for their evil ways. He tells them "To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Isaiah 8:20. Now understand what is taking place here. These were very religious people, and God is telling them that they have moved away from His truth found in His Word, and because of that, because they have sought eastern religious practices, the contacting of demons, they are in spiritual darkness, even though they thought they were walking in the light. The reality of the situation was as Proverbs 12:15 says, "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes..." And in Proverbs 16:25 we read, "There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death."
Because of their rebellion God was going to bring judgment upon them. Not only the judgment of captivity that was fast approaching, but of famine that was so bad they resorted to cannibalism to survive! And don't think that this famine was just a physical famine, it was also a spiritual famine in regards to the Word of God. They will be spiritually starving to death because they are not feeding on the Word of God, the Law and the Testimony! It is as Amos said to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, "'Behold, the days are coming,' says the Lord GOD, 'That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the LORD.'" Amos 8:11.
Now instead of seeing this as God's judgment upon them for their sins, they became angry with their king for getting them into this mess, and with their God for not getting them out of it. They refused to repent of their sins which resulted in the following: "...they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness." Isaiah 8:22.
This is where we are at, spiritual darkness, calamity, terror, blindness, as we look at the first two verses of Isaiah chapter 9 this morning. For it is out of this blackness, that God is going to burst forth and pierce the darkness with His light!
ISAIAH 9:1-2
"Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined."
The time frame here is 732 BC and the northern portion of Israel, Zebulun and Naphtali, areas around the Sea of Galilee, have been taken into captivity by the Assyrians under the leadership of their king, Tiglath-Pileser. The people were driven into darkness, they were in gloom. And because of this becoming a gentile province, under the control of the Assyrians, the area was called "Galilee of the Gentiles".
And the warning by God was not heeded by the people and they were driven even farther into darkness as the Assyrians came in 722 BC and took the Northern Kingdom of Israel into captivity, and by 669 BC they ceased to be a nation.
With the Northern Kingdom of Israel being an impressive object lesson, you would think that the Southern Kingdom of Judah would have learned the lesson and turned back to God, repenting of their sins. But they did not. And thus, judgment came upon them in 606 BC by the hands of the Babylonians, with their final assault and captivity taking place in 586 BC, as the Babylonians destroyed the city, the walls of the city, the temple, and taking with them the remaining people back to Babylon as their prisoners.
Now as dark as things were in those days, God still sent many prophets to be a light to the people. Prophet after prophet warned them to turn back to God. They were a light in this dark period of time but the people refused to come to the light, they continued to walk in this spiritual darkness.
The Hebrew word used for "walked" in verse 2, is an interesting one. It speaks of locomotion without any direction, and that implies both lifestyle and their relationship with God. Their walk was aimless, out of control, just as a person who is blind can't see where they are going. It was a very dark period of time for both these nations, but God does not leave them hopeless. He gives them hope even in darkness and gloom.
Thus, as we move ahead to the New Testament, we see this ultimately fulfilled by Jesus, as God pierced this spiritual darkness with His light. Jesus said in John 8:12, "...'I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.'"
In fact, in Matthew chapter 4, as Jesus begins His public ministry in the region of Galilee, we read beginning in verse 12, "Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 'The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.' From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 4:12-17. God pierced the darkness!
With the close of the book Malachi, there were no prophets speaking for God. For over 400 years there is silence as the people are in spiritual darkness. And John the baptist comes on the scene preaching repentance. And we are told of this forerunner of Christ in John chapter 1, beginning in verse 6, where we read, "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world." John 1:6-9.
John the baptist came to herald or announce Christ, the true light. And thus, what we see is God piercing the spiritual darkness that was in the land by God coming before them. Yes, they were in spiritual darkness, they were blind to the things of God, but they have now seen with their eyes and have an understanding of what God desires of them. He told them!
It is as the Psalmist said in Psalm 112:4, where we read "Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness; He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous." In other words, it doesn't matter how black things may get, God will always give light to those who desire it. In fact, His light will shine forth, His truth is out there for all to see, but not all will receive it or accept it.
This nation that we are living in has sadly degenerated into darkness, we are walking without any sense of direction. And because we have moved away from God, our actions, our lifestyles are also a reflection of that. We have become a nation that is very religious, very spiritual, but because we have moved away from God and have filled that void with all kinds of dead religious practices, God will not accept them.
And I am truly amazed and saddened by how far we have sunk into sin in this nation. We have leaders that make up their own definition of words to justify their behavior, to justify their sin. We have a majority of people in this nation that supports our president who has lied, committed adultery, and continues to try and diminish what he has done by clouding the issue. People are happy because they have money in their pockets, and toys to play with. And thus, sin is no longer a concern to them, they are satisfied.
We truly have become a nation that calls good evil and evil good. We have become spiritually blind and have begun to "...see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and [we] will be driven into darkness." Isaiah 8:22.
Now many may feel that I am over reacting. That things are not that bad in this country. I would have to disagree. We, as Christians need to remove the blinders we have placed over our eyes. We need to get our head out of the sand and truly see what is happening around us.
Just this past week, Manitowoc police officer Dale Ten Haken was shot and killed near the parking lot of a Manitowoc apartment complex. He was shot after he stopped a car for driving without headlights. The persons who perpetrated this senseless killing of a 27 year-old-man were two 17 year-old kids. They have no sense of remorse for the taking of this life, except that they got caught, I guess. And folks, what has happened here is happening around the nation every single day!
Let me give you a graphic example of how deep we have sunk, how dark we have become, how self-centered we as a people are. This is a case where I can only shake my head in unbelief because it is so disturbing to see the callous attitude of people.
Back in May of 1997 a 19 year-old Long beach resident attacked a 7 year-old girl in the ladies room of a Nevada Casino near Las Vegas. The victim was sexually molested and strangled to death. Now as troubling as that is, as horrible as that crime is, what is even worse is what a friend of this 19 year-old who committed this crime, did.
David Cash, is a University of California at Berkeley sophomore, who is majoring in nuclear engineering. David Cash was with his friend when he followed this girl into the ladies room. Prior to his friend raping and killing this girl, David Cash walked out of the ladies room, not helping the poor little girl, and knowing something bad was going to happen.
After this incident took place, Jeremy Strohmeyer was arrested for the rape and murder of this 7-year-old girl. But David Cash was not charged with anything. Since he was not an active participant in the rape and murder of this girl, only a witness, he was let go!
And it gets worse. David Cash showed no remorse for what he did, or didn't do, but proudly flaunted it. He has been on radio talk shows in Los Angeles and interviewed for the Los Angels times, and he said the following: "I'm not going to get upset over someone else's life. I just worry about myself."
He was more concerned about his jailed friend than what happened to this girl. He said that he was "not going to lose sleep over somebody else's problems" - speaking of this girls death.
And it gets even worse. It seems that all this public attention has helped him get more dates, to pick up more girls. Now I am not sure what girl would want to go out with a uncaring, heartless, unremorseful monster, but, according to him, his social life is better now than prior to this horrible incident. And he is proud of it!
If that is not gloom of anguish, trouble, darkness, then I don't know what is? And I truly believe that unless this nation turns back to God, back to the light, we will be driven farther into darkness, things will even get worse, which is hard to believe when we see where we are today!
As I have said before, it is easy to talk about these problems, point our finger at all those who are destroying this nation, but that won't solve anything. In fact, that is what Isaiah did for the first 5 chapters of this book, blame other people, until he saw God which exposed his heart and caused him to repent of his sins so he could be touched and healed by God.
As King Solomon was dedicating the temple, he prayed that if, or I should say, when his people fall into sin, if they repented of their sin, that God would forgive them and heal them. We read in II Chronicles 7:14 God's response to Solomon's prayer. He said, "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
Now as much as we like to blame everyone else for our nations problems, saying how terrible things are, how wicked things have become, how corrupt our leaders are, God is saying that it is our fault. We, as a people of God need to humble ourselves before God and pray. This is not the responsibility of the unsaved, but the saved! Those that are in Christ. And as much as people like to unite with the unsaved for good causes, it is not their prayers that God hears, for they are not His children.
It is when we turn from our sin, our self-centeredness, our complacency, when we get out of our comfort zone, and turn to God for help, for direction, for healing, that He will hear our prayer and heal our land, both physically and spiritually speaking. But, according to the November 1997 Barna Report, "Christianity seems to be losing influence in people's lives rather than gaining impact. In fact, Christians have had an alarming lack of impact on the national culture as a direct outgrowth of their faith." That should not be!
As I have already said, Jesus is the light of the world. In John 12:35-36, 46 we read "Then Jesus said to them, 'A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.' These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them...'I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.'" As we come to Jesus, look to Him, He dispels the darkness so that we can see clearly. You don't have to walk in darkness, but you can choose to!
Now God has given us the responsibility to be a light to a world in darkness. In Matthew 5:14-16 we read "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."
Now there are two Greek words used for "light". One is PHOS which speaks of the light of the sun, it is the source of light, it radiates. The other Greek word used for "light" is PHEGGOS which speaks of the light of the moon or other objects, it is more of a reflective light.
Now, if you are like me, you might assume that Jesus used the Greek word PHEGGOS when He said we are the light of the world. That we need to reflect the light of Christ. But He did not use that Greek word. He used PHOS!
In other words, we are to radiate the light of Christ to a world that is in darkness. But you can't radiate what you don't possess. As Christians, what radiates from our lives is the presence of Christ in our hearts, and thus we are the light of the world. But, if you don't have Christ in you, then you can't radiate light, for you don't posses the light to radiate it!
Thus, Jesus is the source of light, and as He fills our hearts, our lives, it is like spontaneous combustion taking place, light just bursts forth from us into a world in darkness.
Also, notice that Jesus is not talking to the masses, but the individual. "YOU are the light of the world." You can make a difference in your home, in your work place, in your community, and-so-on.
The Greek word for "world" is KOSMOS, which speaks of setting things in order, the sum total of people living in the world. Thus, your light should impact people and help to set in order the confusion, the blindness that is taking place. People should see what is right and what is wrong.
And the secret to all of this is found in the word that Jesus used for "lamp" in verse 15. It is a hand lamp that is fed with oil. We see in the Scriptures that oil is a metaphor for the Holy Spirit. In I Samuel 16:13 we read "Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward..." In Luke 4:18 we read, "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed." And for us, I John 2:20, 27 says "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things...But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him."
You see, without the fuel to run an engine, you are not going to go anywhere. And without the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, without that oil, we will light nothing! In Luke 24:49 the disciples had all the tools, but they didn't have the power to run those tools, and thus, Jesus said to them, "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."
And then in Acts 1:8, Jesus said "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." The Holy Spirit is the power we need to utilize the tools that God has given to each of us. Without that power, we are using the power tools without the power, and that will only become frustrating, and futile.
But with the Holy Spirit empowering us, we can be WITNESSES of Christ in all we do, in all we say. We can truly be a light to the world.
And we must also remember that we are a light to the WORLD! To often our light shines bright in church, and as soon as we exit the doors of the church, we hit the dimmer switch so no one can tell we are Christians. As one commentator put it: "There can be no such thing as secret discipleship, for either the secrecy destroys the discipleship, or the discipleship destroys the secrecy."
Our Christianity should be a light to all men. All should see the light that is reflected from us and not hid it under a bushel. And as your light shines, it will affect the environment in which you live, the darkness will flee away.
Thus, as people see our good works, the things we stand for, it should not only encourage them, instruct them, but should impact their lives in such a way that it brings glory to the Father.
One of the problems when we do good works, good deeds, is we like taking the credit, we like to pat ourselves on the back. But in doing that you end up taking the glory away from God. Look at Jesus, when He did good, when the sick were healed, and-so-on, the people saw it and they glorified God. They did not ask Jesus for His picture, maybe a group shot with His men. Nor did they put Him on a high powered speaking tour, they just glorified the Father. Why? Because Jesus pointed them in that direction, and we too must point them to the Father through Jesus Christ!
Yes, it is easy to get discouraged when you look at the wickedness that permeates the land. It is easy to become discouraged when you see the senseless killings, drug abuse, rape, wickedness, immorality, and-so-on, running wild. But when was the last time you where on your knees crying out to the Lord for this nation, for this community?
Maybe you don't think you can handle it. Maybe you don't think you are strong enough. Maybe you think you are just one person and really, what influence can you have? Listen to what God is looking for in II Chronicles 16:9. We read, "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him..."
He is not looking for Superman, the Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Spiderman or any other super hero. He is looking for individuals from which He can work through and show HIMSELF strong, and not you! He is looking for people that are loyal to Him, not perfect, but desire to do what is right. And in our frailty, in our weakness, in our shortcomings, He can show Himself strong through.
If you truly don't think your life can influence a community, listen to this story of one man, empowered by God, and what God was able to do in and through him! It is the story of Charles Finney from the 1800's.
"Cataclysmic changes followed the powerful revival labors of Finney from the frontier areas of America to the British Isles. A convert in Rochester, New York, left a description of Finney's revival ministry in that city in which more than a hundred thousand came to saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus within one year. He wrote: 'The whole community was stirred. Religion was the topic of conversation, in the house, in the shop, in the office, and on the street...The only theater in the city was converted into a livery stable; the only circus into a soap and candle factory. Grog shops were closed; the Sabbath was honored; the sanctuaries were thronged with happy worshipers; a new impulse was given to every philanthropic enterprise; the fountains of benevolence were opened, and men lived to do good.'...'It is not too much to say that the whole character of the city was changed by that revival,' wrote this eyewitness. 'Most of the leaders of society being converted, and exerting a controlling influence in social life, in business, and in civil affairs, religion was enthroned as it has been in few places...Even the courts and the prisons bore witness to its blessed effects. There was a wonderful falling off in crime. The courts had little to do, and the jail was nearly empty for years afterward.'"
Can you make a difference in your community? Yes and no. If you allow God to guide you, to work through you, you can't imagine what God can do. If you do it on your own, don't expect much lasting fruit in peoples lives. As Finney said, "The word of God had a wonderful power; and I was every day surprised to find that a few words spoken to an individual would stick in his heart like an arrow."
Be a light to a world that is living in darkness, share the truth of God's Word with people, and ask the Holy Spirit to empower you for the work that He has called you to do. God is looking, searching, for those He can work through, may it be you and me! YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD!