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Teaching Notes
THE BATTLE IS AGAINST US!
ISAIAH 54:16-17
In the Sheboygan Press, the following news article was printed on January 25, 1999:
Missionary, sons
buried in India
New Delhi, India (AP) - The charred bodies of a missionary and his two sons were laid out in wooden coffins Sunday amid a wave of outrage at their killings, the first deaths in a string of attacks on Christians in India.
Police arrested 49 Hindu radicals suspected of burning to death Australian Graham Stewart Staines, 58, and his sons Philips, 10, and Timothy, 8, Saturday as they slept in their jeep.
Security was increased in Christian areas as hundreds prepared to attend the funeral.
Sobs broke the silence Sunday at the Baptist Union Church in Baripada, where friends and family gathered for prayers.
Staines, who had lived in the area since 1965, was a secretary of the New Delhi-based Evangelical Missionary Society and had run a home for treating lepers.
"People are filled with sorrow. He was loved and liked by all, not just Christians," Ghosh said.
A mob of 40 people, some armed with bows and arrows, attacked Staines’ jeep as he and his sons slept outside a village northeast of Baripada, where they had attended a Bible study program. The attackers then doused the vehicle with gasoline and set it ablaze, beating up any bystanders who tried to rescue the family, police said.
The killings were in an area that had not experienced the Hindu-Christian violence recently plaguing another region of India where radical Hindus protest that Christian missionaries were converting tribes people to their faith.
When I hear of senseless killings like this one, it makes me angry, as I’m sure it makes you angry. The world is not getting better, but it is getting worse, more violent, and once again, increasingly intolerant of Christians, our beliefs and values.
When you read a story like this one, it is hard to imagine what good can come from it. Senseless killings. And you wonder what in the world is God doing, how can He allow something like this to happen to His servants? To tell you the truth, it is hard for me to always understand what God is doing, for with my finite mind I look at the here and now, He looks at the whole picture, working out His plan as He sees fit. And in the end we will see that it was perfect, it was right, maybe not in this life here on earth, but when we go to be with Him
I truly don’t know what good will come from this tragic event, but God always has a way of taking the bad, and somehow, someway, in His perfect timing, making it good and glorifying Him. The other thing we must never lose sight of is that this father and his two young children are with the Lord in glory, and thus, we can be strengthened through knowing that truth. Their physical death did not come a moment to soon in God’s eternal plan.
In saying that, for the millions of Christians throughout the world who are still here, this kind of violence is very real. It can be very terrifying, cause us to hide, but here in Isaiah chapter 54, God is going to give us some words of comfort, showing us that through it all He is still in control. So lets pickup our story in Isaiah chapter 54, beginning in verse 16.
ISAIAH 54:16-17
God wants His people to remember that He is sovereign, that He is in control of every situation, nothing escapes His watchful eye. God has created evil people in the sense that He has allowed them to come forth, He sustains their life, and they have a choice to either do good or do evil. If they chose evil God will still use them to fulfill His ultimate plan, but His desire is that they would turn to Him and live!
Knowing that God is in control, He now tells them that no weapon will destroy them, no tongue lashing by the enemy will cause them to be in despair. They are the Lords, He is in control, and He wants them to look to Him even when they are in captivity, surrounded by the enemy. And God’s people needed to hear these words for they were going into captivity for some 70 years, and upon their return home the enemy was not going to give up, the enemy wanted to discourage them, cause them to stop the work they were doing and to even intimidate them by the force of their weapons.
The same is true today as we are living in a world that is truly wicked and is getting more anti-Christian all the time. We are being told that Christians are the ones who have caused AIDS, we have caused hate, wars, murders, and-so-on. The reality of that is Christians have not done these things, even though some have called themselves Christians, but they come from a heart that is wicked. Can you imagine what kind of world this would be without Christians being the preserving force? I will tell you this, it would be many times worse than what it is right now.
How many times have you seen the First Atheist Hospital? Or Atheist relief funds? Or atheist food pantry’s? Or atheists standing up for values, and-so-on? You don’t! But you do see Christians stepping forward for these causes and we truly are the preserving force of any society, for without Christian values, you would have anarchy and immorality running ramped!
That means we can’t give up the fight. We can’t run away and hide. We must forge ahead and learn what God would have us to do. And here in Isaiah chapter 54, God is showing us that He wants us to be all that we can be. There are two main points that are being made here in verse 17, and then there is a conclusion as He sums up His points. So lets dig in and see what God has for us this morning.
1. NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST YOU SHALL PROSPER
Now that is a tough one when you read the news reports and hear of Christians being killed for their faith. It does seem like the enemy is winning at times. That those weapons are defeating us. But we must understand that all these earthly weapons can do is destroy these tents our souls are living in. No earthly weapon can destroy our faith in God, cause us to reject God, send us into hell!
In fact, when persecution comes, when the enemy is pressing down hard and trying to destroy believers, it seems that their faith is strengthened rather then crushed. In fact, it causes their faith to spread like wild fire, and instead of just affecting a small group of people in one area, it touches the lives of those in surrounding communities.
Case in point. After the death of Stephen, being stoned for his faith in Christ, Saul, before his conversion to Christ, went on a crusade to destroy Christians. Saul was dragging men and women from their homes and casting them in prison for their faith in Christ. He was causing havoc in the church of Jesus Christ.
And as you see all that persecution coming upon them, you would think they would settle down, keep to themselves, not share their faith, hide away until things cooled down. But not these believers. We are told in Acts 8:4, "Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word."
You see, as Saul was stomping Christians down with his big foot of power, those embers of faith were not put out, but scattered all over the place, spreading the Gospel of Christ to other areas now. You see, this did not stop the spread of the Gospel, but this persecution caused it to spread throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria and eventually to the ends of the earth. If a persons faith is real, if God has truly impacted their lives, nothing will stop them from speaking the truth, not even the threat of death!
Now in saying that don’t come to the wrong conclusion that God never intervenes and rescues His people, for He does. And the key to our victory is not the military might we have, but it is in the Lord we serve!
Remember the story of young David facing the Philistine giant named Goliath. For forty days the Philistines and the army of Israel were at a stand-off. It was more a war of words than a battle at this point, no one really wanted to make the first move. And Goliath challenged the children of Israel to a one-on-one, winner take all fight. But no one from Israel dared come forward to fight against this giant who stood over 9 ½ feet tall, his body armor weighing over 125 lbs. and his iron spearhead weighed over 25 lbs.
Now young David is sent by his father to see how his older brothers were doing and how the battle was going. When David arrived he heard what was going on and how this Philistine giant was mocking the God of Israel and defying the armies of the living God. In fact, David was so upset over their lack of faith in the God of Israel to deliver them, that he rebukes them for their cowardly actions. And so David takes on the challenge that is before him and he steps forward to fight against Goliath despite his brothers coming down on him for taking on that challenge, and king Saul really not to sure that this is a good idea.
In fact, David had no body armor to wear. He tried on the kings, but it was much to big, and he couldn’t even walk in it. Thus, all he had was a sling shot and 5 stones. Listen to what transpired between David and Goliath as they came together at center stage, both the armies watching closely at what was going to take place. Beginning in I Samuel chapter 17, verse 42, we read "And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, ruddy and good-looking. So the Philistine said to David, ‘Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?’ And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, ‘Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!’" I Samuel 17:42-44.
Not a very nice welcome to say the least. Goliath was telling David he was dead meat, sacrificed by his own people because they were too afraid to fight him. But David is an interesting young man. Instead of running in fear, becoming angry and losing his cool, he gets a proper perspective of the situation. We read beginning in verse 45 of I Samuel chapter 17, "Then David said to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’S, and He will give you into our hands.’" I Samuel 17:45-47.
Notice David’s perspective of the situation. This is not David’s problem, it is God’s. David is only an instrument in which God will use to defeat Goliath, but it is the Lord’s battle and thus, in the victory He will get the glory. And that is exactly what happened. Goliath came at David with all his weapons of war, and David stood strong in the Lord and took this giant down with a stone flung from a sling shot.
Yes God did and does deliver His people out of dangerous situations. But why doesn’t He do it all the time? He is sovereign. He has a plan. He knows what is best and He knows what He is doing, even though it seems difficult to understand at times. Our faith must be like that of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, the three Hebrew young men who were taken captive with Daniel to Babylon .
You see, king Nebuchadnezzar set up this gold image standing some 90 feet tall in the plain of Dura, and when the music played, the people were to bow down and worship this image. But these three Hebrew captives refused. Because they refused they were going to be tossed into the fiery furnace, and burned to death. The king was very upset with these guys for not obeying him and he challenged them by saying "And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?" Daniel 3:15. The king thought he was in control, but he would find out later that the God of Israel was in control!
Now how these Hebrew captives responded in this dangerous situation is very interesting. It shows us that their faith in God was real. They said "...’O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.’" Daniel 3:16-18.
They truly believed that God could deliver them but they weren’t sure if that was God’s will in this situation. But whatever the case, they refused to give in and bow down to these false god’s just to save their physical bodies. Their faith was in the living God who was in total control of any situation. May we have that same kind of faith when the enemy is trying to scare us with their weapons of war. May we trust God and follow His direction no matter how difficult things might get. God did deliver them from the fiery furnace after they were tossed into it, but in the midst of the trial we see that the Lord was walking among them. Their God delivered them.
It is as God said of the Assyrians and all the noise they were making, the rumbling of their footsteps against the Southern Kingdom of Judah and yet, in the end Judah stood strong and the Assyrians fled in defeat. In Isaiah 17:12-14 God tells us what would transpire in this battle. We read "Woe to the multitude of many people who make a noise like the roar of the seas, and to the rushing of nations that make a rushing like the rushing of many waters! The nations will rush like the rushing of many waters; But God will rebuke them and they will flee away, and be chased like the chaff of the mountains before the wind, like the rolling thing before the whirlwind. Then behold, at eventide, trouble! And before morning, he is no more. This is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who rob us."
Keep focused on the Lord, don’t turn to the left or to the right, and walk by faith knowing God is in control and in the end, no weapon formed against God’s people will prosper. God’s kingdom will be established, and they will be destroyed!
2. EVERY TONGUE WHICH RISES AGAINST YOU IN JUDGMENT WILL BE CONDEMNED
It is not only the physical weapons that tend to scare us, but the verbal abuse, the verbal threats tend to scare us, discourage us, take us out of the work we are to be doing. Again, we must have a proper perspective so that does not happen to us. Yes words can hurt, and we can become defeated by them if we let them. Don’t let them do that to you, look to the Lord!
Remember the story in Nehemiah, as he returned home after the Babylonian captivity and he began to rebuild the walls of the city of Jerusalem. And as the work of God was started the enemy was right there to discourage the people and to get them to just give up.
Sanballat tells them that they are not going to be able to raise these walls that are in a heap at this point. It will take them years if they could do it at all. And Sanballat mocks them and tries to discourage them. Also, Tobiah tells them that even if the walls are built, they won’t be able to hold the weight of a fox, let alone stop the enemy from crashing through them.
This too is a very effective weapon to get our eyes off of God and to cause the work of God to cease. And there will always be those that are discourages, even in the body of Christ, I’m sorry to say. But our focus needs to be the Lord as Paul said in Philippians 4:13, which says "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Don’t become discouraged in the work, look to the one who will strengthen you to do the work!
What did Nehemiah do in the situation he was in? He brought his requests before God and continued to do the work that God had called him to do. In Nehemiah 4:4-6, listen to how Nehemiah prays. We read "Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of captivity! Do not cover their iniquity, and do not let their sin be blotted out from before You; for they have provoked You to anger before the builders. So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work."
You see, by his example, by his faith put into action, Nehemiah encouraged the people to continue on and complete the work that was before them. They had one heart to do the work, they were in unity, and nothing was going to stop them from completing this task. Now don’t think the enemy gave up, they still tried to stop the work, but the people stayed focused through it all, and in just 52 days the walls, the gates and the doors of the city of Jerusalem were completed.
You wonder how often we have stopped short of completing the work of God in a certain area because the enemy has discouraged us? And, as I have said, many times our brothers and sisters in the Lord can do the same. Keep your eyes focused on the Lord, don’t be discouraged by the amount of work, knowing it is not going to be done by your own strength, but by His. It is as Paul said in I Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."
3. OUR HERITAGE IN THE LORD
The heritage we have obtained from the Lord is that we as believers have the righteousness of Christ imputed to us by faith. And no matter what the wicked may do, no matter what the wicked may say, our fate is sealed in the Lord. We will enter into eternity with Him, and the wicked will enter into eternity apart from Him. They will stand before the Lord in their own righteousness which is like filthy rags. And as "Mr. T." use to say, "I pity the fool!" who stands before God like that! They will be condemned, and we will be with our Lord. It is as Proverbs 1:32-33 says, "For the turning [waywardness] of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; But whoever listens to Me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil."
God has been so gracious to us, for He has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ! Thus, whatever God has for us, may we appropriate that into our lives, into our walk. May our walk not stray from the straight line of simplicity of life, humility of spirit, purity of heart and integrity of character. May our walk be worthy of the calling by which we were called! Psalm 119:110-112 puts it this way, "The wicked have laid a snare for me, yet I have not strayed from Your precepts. Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart. I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever, to the very end."
Yes, times may get tough, they may get overwhelming, but don’t give up. Paul is encouraging us to press on as we face various trials in the ministry that God has placed us in, whatever that may be. He said in II Corinthians chapter 4, "We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed - always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body...Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." II Corinthians 4:8-10, 16-18.
Keep your heart and mind centered upon Christ and see the salvation He will bring to your life. Too often we read of the various stories in the Bible and we have a hard time seeing God work like that today, He does! Listen to this true story of John Paton.
"John Paton was a missionary in the New Hebrides Islands. One night hostile natives surrounded the mission station, intent on burning out the Patons and killing them. Paton and his wife prayed during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came they were amazed to see their attackers leave. A year later, the chief of the tribe was converted to Christ. Remembering what had happened, Paton asked the chief what had kept him from burning down the house and killing them. The chief replied in surprise, ‘Who were all those men with you there?’ Paton knew no men were present-but the chief said he was afraid to attack because he had seen hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords circling the mission station."
That reminds me of what David said in Psalm 34:4-7, "I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them."
May we, as God’s people, stay focused and not be discouraged, defeated, and stop the work that God has called us to do. May we pray as the Psalmist did when he was faced with the enemy before him. He said in Psalm 71, beginning in verse 4, "Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. For You are my hope, O Lord GOD; You are my trust from my youth...But I hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more." Psalm 71:4-5,14.