Why Do You Believe?
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently;
He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you,
So His visage was marred more than any man,
And His form more than the sons of men;
15 So shall He sprinkle many nations.
Kings shall shut their mouths at Him;
For what had not been told them they shall see,
And what they had not heard they shall consider.
1 Who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,
And as a root out of dry ground.
He has no form or comeliness;
And when we see Him,
There is no beauty that we should desire Him.
3 He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment,
And who will declare His generation?
For He was cut off from the land of the living;
For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
9 And they made His grave with the wicked—
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any deceit in His mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.
11 He shall see the labor of His soul,and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto death,
And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the transgressors.
I love this passage of scripture. For me it's always so easy to see Jesus in these
words. The picture is so clear for me that it's difficult for me to see and understand
why others don't see it. What is most amazing to me about this passage is that
Isaiah wrote it more than 750 years before it happened. In fact, it was written
almost 750 years before Yeshua was even born. There were skeptics that used to
say that the passages were either added or changed after the time of Christ until
the Dead Sea scrolls were found and dated back to as early 200 years before
Messiah. So, let's get into the text.
The end of chapter 52 begins to speak of the one whom God calls His Servant.
You begin to get the idea that somehow this Servant is going to take care of
things. It speaks of how kings and nations are going to see thing they had not
been told about and consider things they had not heard. Now, I believe this
Servant is Jesus. It seems clear to me that the Father is speaking of Him with this
prophecy. When it speaks of how He sprinkles the nations, I can see that it is the
blood of Jesus that covers the sin of the world so this line makes sense to me.
Then when it speaks of seeing things and considering things they had not heard of,
this again, is a clear picture of the Gentiles who had not heard of this covenant with
God or of this Messiah that was to come, seeing and cosidering, and then
accepting this Jewish Messiah.
The next line, however, cuts to the heart of the issue. It is concise and to the point.
Who has believed our report? Isn't that really the bottom line? We have this whole
Bible, all 66 books that believers know is this 4000 year love letter written from our
Father in heaven. Isaiah 52:7 says this:
How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims
peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “
Your God reigns!”
It is good news! We are able to proclaim peace, to bring good tidings, to proclaim
salvation, but if no one believe our report, then what? Why wouldn't they believe
such wonderful news? Could it be because many believers have no idea why they
believe what they believe? Many have no clue what they believe. I've been having
a deep discussion with an atheist on the message board and he compared the
Christian belief in God to people trying to convince him that there is an elephant in
his driveway. He believes that we just have blind faith that God exists and while I do
indeed have faith in God it is definitely not a blind faith. I've always think very
analytically. I love algebra and physics, the kind of things that are exact, that show
cause and effect. When I came to faith in Messiah I came analytically. I had been
in the world and I had tried all the things the world said would bring me happiness
and peace, but none of it was lasting. It always left me wanting....missing something
that I just couldn't put my finger on. So as I read the book of Matthew back in
October 1998, with all the reason that I have I considered that maybe this was the
thing I could never put my finger on. I figured that I had tried everything else so I
might as well give it the old college try. I said, "God, if You're there, reveal Yourself
to me!" And I can tell you that in these past eight years He has shown Himself time
and time again to be faithful and His Word to be true.
So, how do we, as believers, become more confident in what we believe and why we
believe it so we can effectively take this good news to the world in a way that it
doesn't seem like some Santa Claus, easter bunny, elephant in the driveway
delusion? Well, I'm going to read two different scriptures that at first glance may
seem contradictory but they really aren't. In fact, when you move to a deeper level
of understanding, you'll see that they really work hand and hand with each other.
Luke 21:12-15
12 But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering
you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My
name’s sake. 13 But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. 14 Therefore settle
it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; 15 for I will give you a
mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.
I Peter 3:13-16
13 And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14 But even if
you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their
threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to
give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with
meekness and fear; 16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers,
those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.
So, you can see that in the first scripture Jesus tells us not to meditate beforehand
what you will answer because He's going to give you what you need when the time
comes. Then in the second Peter tells us to always be ready to give a defense to
everyone who ask. So, which is it? Are we supposed to not meditate beforehand
or are we supposed to always be ready? Well, I think it's both! Let's first take a
look at what I believe Jesus meant when He said not to meditate on it. Do you
remember what you would do when you were a teenager and you were trying to
figure out how to get away with something? Either by yourself or with a friend or
two you would rehearse what you you would say. If this happens then I'll say this or
if she ask me about this I'll say that. Or if you've ever been in sales you know that
you usually have a script filled with responses to common objections that come up.
They feel so canned, so forced, not real. And that's something that the gospel
should never be. We don't need to prepackage the gospel. We just need to be
honest; both with ourselves and with those we're witnessing to.
So, what does it mean to be ready then? If we're not supposed to rehearse what
we're going to say or script out responses to common objections, how do we do
what Peter says and always be ready? I think it goes back to the theme we've had
for the past few weeks. Read your Bible from cover to cover. Fill yourself up with
the Word of God, and then when the time comes, that's what going to come out.
Jesus explains it like this:
Luke 6:43-45
43 “For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 For every
tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather
grapes from a bramble bush. 45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth
good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the
abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
From the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak. Which would mean the key
to being ready is to fill our hearts with the things of God. In verse 15 Peter hit the
nail right on the head when he says that we should sanctify the Lord God in our
heart. I can not stress enough how important it is for you to have a personal time of
Bible study every day. I know that when I don't spend time in God's word everyday,
I can really tell. It's really not about what you can get from listening to me one day a
week, it is about what you can get from the Holy Spirit each and every day. As long
as your faith is based what other people say, it might as well be just an elephant in
the driveway.
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: January 14, 2007
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently;
He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you,
So His visage was marred more than any man,
And His form more than the sons of men;
15 So shall He sprinkle many nations.
Kings shall shut their mouths at Him;
For what had not been told them they shall see,
And what they had not heard they shall consider.
1 Who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant,
And as a root out of dry ground.
He has no form or comeliness;
And when we see Him,
There is no beauty that we should desire Him.
3 He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4 Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment,
And who will declare His generation?
For He was cut off from the land of the living;
For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
9 And they made His grave with the wicked—
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any deceit in His mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.
11 He shall see the labor of His soul,and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto death,
And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the transgressors.
I love this passage of scripture. For me it's always so easy to see Jesus in these
words. The picture is so clear for me that it's difficult for me to see and understand
why others don't see it. What is most amazing to me about this passage is that
Isaiah wrote it more than 750 years before it happened. In fact, it was written
almost 750 years before Yeshua was even born. There were skeptics that used to
say that the passages were either added or changed after the time of Christ until
the Dead Sea scrolls were found and dated back to as early 200 years before
Messiah. So, let's get into the text.
The end of chapter 52 begins to speak of the one whom God calls His Servant.
You begin to get the idea that somehow this Servant is going to take care of
things. It speaks of how kings and nations are going to see thing they had not
been told about and consider things they had not heard. Now, I believe this
Servant is Jesus. It seems clear to me that the Father is speaking of Him with this
prophecy. When it speaks of how He sprinkles the nations, I can see that it is the
blood of Jesus that covers the sin of the world so this line makes sense to me.
Then when it speaks of seeing things and considering things they had not heard of,
this again, is a clear picture of the Gentiles who had not heard of this covenant with
God or of this Messiah that was to come, seeing and cosidering, and then
accepting this Jewish Messiah.
The next line, however, cuts to the heart of the issue. It is concise and to the point.
Who has believed our report? Isn't that really the bottom line? We have this whole
Bible, all 66 books that believers know is this 4000 year love letter written from our
Father in heaven. Isaiah 52:7 says this:
How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims
peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “
Your God reigns!”
It is good news! We are able to proclaim peace, to bring good tidings, to proclaim
salvation, but if no one believe our report, then what? Why wouldn't they believe
such wonderful news? Could it be because many believers have no idea why they
believe what they believe? Many have no clue what they believe. I've been having
a deep discussion with an atheist on the message board and he compared the
Christian belief in God to people trying to convince him that there is an elephant in
his driveway. He believes that we just have blind faith that God exists and while I do
indeed have faith in God it is definitely not a blind faith. I've always think very
analytically. I love algebra and physics, the kind of things that are exact, that show
cause and effect. When I came to faith in Messiah I came analytically. I had been
in the world and I had tried all the things the world said would bring me happiness
and peace, but none of it was lasting. It always left me wanting....missing something
that I just couldn't put my finger on. So as I read the book of Matthew back in
October 1998, with all the reason that I have I considered that maybe this was the
thing I could never put my finger on. I figured that I had tried everything else so I
might as well give it the old college try. I said, "God, if You're there, reveal Yourself
to me!" And I can tell you that in these past eight years He has shown Himself time
and time again to be faithful and His Word to be true.
So, how do we, as believers, become more confident in what we believe and why we
believe it so we can effectively take this good news to the world in a way that it
doesn't seem like some Santa Claus, easter bunny, elephant in the driveway
delusion? Well, I'm going to read two different scriptures that at first glance may
seem contradictory but they really aren't. In fact, when you move to a deeper level
of understanding, you'll see that they really work hand and hand with each other.
Luke 21:12-15
12 But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering
you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My
name’s sake. 13 But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. 14 Therefore settle
it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; 15 for I will give you a
mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.
I Peter 3:13-16
13 And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14 But even if
you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their
threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to
give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with
meekness and fear; 16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers,
those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.
So, you can see that in the first scripture Jesus tells us not to meditate beforehand
what you will answer because He's going to give you what you need when the time
comes. Then in the second Peter tells us to always be ready to give a defense to
everyone who ask. So, which is it? Are we supposed to not meditate beforehand
or are we supposed to always be ready? Well, I think it's both! Let's first take a
look at what I believe Jesus meant when He said not to meditate on it. Do you
remember what you would do when you were a teenager and you were trying to
figure out how to get away with something? Either by yourself or with a friend or
two you would rehearse what you you would say. If this happens then I'll say this or
if she ask me about this I'll say that. Or if you've ever been in sales you know that
you usually have a script filled with responses to common objections that come up.
They feel so canned, so forced, not real. And that's something that the gospel
should never be. We don't need to prepackage the gospel. We just need to be
honest; both with ourselves and with those we're witnessing to.
So, what does it mean to be ready then? If we're not supposed to rehearse what
we're going to say or script out responses to common objections, how do we do
what Peter says and always be ready? I think it goes back to the theme we've had
for the past few weeks. Read your Bible from cover to cover. Fill yourself up with
the Word of God, and then when the time comes, that's what going to come out.
Jesus explains it like this:
Luke 6:43-45
43 “For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 For every
tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather
grapes from a bramble bush. 45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth
good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the
abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
From the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak. Which would mean the key
to being ready is to fill our hearts with the things of God. In verse 15 Peter hit the
nail right on the head when he says that we should sanctify the Lord God in our
heart. I can not stress enough how important it is for you to have a personal time of
Bible study every day. I know that when I don't spend time in God's word everyday,
I can really tell. It's really not about what you can get from listening to me one day a
week, it is about what you can get from the Holy Spirit each and every day. As long
as your faith is based what other people say, it might as well be just an elephant in
the driveway.
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: January 14, 2007