Receive Rest For The New Year Isaiah 30 8 17

The Eve of The Circumcision and Naming of Jesus   31-December-2024
Sermon Text: Isaiah 30:8-17
Sermon Theme: Receive Rest For The New Year! I. The Written Word Is Truth! (Vs.8-11). II. Despising His Word Destroys You. (Vs.12-14) III. Stop, Listen, Return, and Rest In Jesus! (Vs.15-17) by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert

I.N.R.I. “Blessed are those servants whom the Master finds awake when He comes!” Stay awake! Jesus preaches as He promises His final coming at an hour we don’t expect. “Rest!” God the Holy Spirit preaches assuring us through the pen of Paul that nothing “shall be able to separate s from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” So are we here to “stay awake” or to “rest”?
    The goal of tonight’s sermon is to put you to sleep! “Isn’t that the goal of all your sermons,” you may smirk to yourself. Biologists tell us that sleep is necessary for life. Sleep deprivation impacts mental and physical health. Teens who don’t get enough sleep learn at a slower rate. Sleep deprived adults struggle with solving problems and decision making. Our bodies and brains need sleep to heal and repair the damage done to them during our waking hours.
    If sleep is important to our physical health, perhaps it is also important to our spiritual health. During His earthly ministry Jesus called His disciples away from the crowds so that they could rest. Jesus preaches, Mat 11:28-30 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (30) For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
    Tonight, as 2024 ends and many will stay awake to welcome in 2025 - listen to receive: Receive Rest For The New Year! I. The Written Word Is Truth! (Vs.8-11). II. Despising His Word Destroys You. (Vs.12-14) III. Stop, Listen, Return, and Rest In Jesus! (Vs.15-17)
I. Israel had it all figured out, they didn’t need to gather to hear the prophets preach God’s Word. When enemies attacked they would run to Egypt trusting in foreign alliances to save them. The southern kingdom of Judah was no better. They trusted in their political alliances to bring them peace in the future. They rested in their own reason and strength.
    The Lord God called Isaiah to preach to them in 740B.C.. He put His Word into the prophet’s mouth. The people would fall asleep as Isaiah preached. God tells him, Isa 6:9-10 And He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.' (10) "Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed." They listened to the prophet’s preaching like any other entertainment. An amusement to pass the time, but it made no difference in their daily life.
    Graciously the Lord God has risen up early and stayed up late sending prophet after prophet preaching His Word. They choose to spiritual slumber rather than listening. Judgment would destroy their nations, but God would remain present among them! (Vs.8) God’s Written Word isn’t according to man’s thinking. It isn’t truth for a time past. It is true Truth, absolute Truth - for all peoples, languages, nationalities, for all ages. The written Word -the Holy Bible is the Creator’s revelation of Himself to this entire creation! It stands!
    God is present in His Word. 2Pe 1:20-21 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, (21) for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of Truth preaches, Heb 4:12-13 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (13) And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
    Man slumbers in his illogical fantasies searching for the Truth. Our flesh refuses to search the Scriptures for they testify of Jesus! The Holy Word of God exposes our sinful insanity. (Vs. 9-11) Israel and Judah were a rebellious people - children of their rebellious father Adam. Are you honest enough to look into the mirror of Truth to see your rebellion? Your lying lips? Your deafness to hear the Law fo the Lord? Creation cries out that God exists - a Designer’s fingerprints are found in the complexity of life. But we slumber in evolution’s fantasy that life arose from non-life. Creation’s ordered laws reveal the wisdom and power of our Creator - arranging all things necessary for life on this planet - but we slumber in science fiction dreams of life carried here by aliens or an asteroid. Foolishly we say in our hearts, “There is no God.”
    We excuse ourselves from gathering to hear God’s Word preached. The Truth of God’s Law shakes us from our dreams of our own goodness. The Law preaches there is no one who does good, all have turned aside, no one seeks God, all of us are unprofitable.
    We gather only to hear preachers who will say what we want to hear. We don’t want them to preach the Truth. We want smooth words so we can leave to slumber in our pet sins wallowing in deadly deceit.
      Faithful pastors are deposed. Removed from office for not gathering a crowd of slumbering sinners! We cast them out of the way! Demanding that they “Cause the Holy One of Israel to cease before us!” Don’t speak the Truth - He is present in His written Word!
II. Satan, the fallen angel’s lie, from the beginning is that despising God’s Word brings freedom, power, and self-autonomy. No God - everyone can decide for themselves what is right in their own eyes. No one dare judge us for our perversion or abuse that we shower upon other human beings.
      If you take this spiritual lie that your flesh loves to tell itself and applied it to traffic laws - how would that work for you? Traveling down the highway at 100mph only to collide head on with someone who decided he wasn’t going to be restricted to driving on the right side of the road. It would be utter insanity. How about a football game with every player deciding the rules for themselves. The referees only blowing the whistle if you tried to hold someone accountable to the rules of the game. The game would turn into a bloody melee - players and fans destroying each other.
    Rejecting the Truth - the Only True God is present in His Written Word - His revelation of Himself to all humanity - brings destruction. (Vs.12-14) Those slumber in oppression and perversity self-destruct. Israel’s self-destruction came in 722B.C. under the Assyrians - their false gods couldn’t save them, their financial savings couldn’t rescue them. Judah’s self-destruction came in 587B.C. when the Babylonians took them captive for 70 years. Both nations trusted in the walls of their cities as their defense. A wall that begins to fail because its foundations erode away - may appear sound. A bulge high up isn’t spotted, until suddenly it falls in an instant - the wall is breached - all security is gone - the enemy pours through the defenses slaughtering all.
    What is your high wall of security as 2025 approaches? How have you prepped for the future? Financial freedom? Health? Family? Have you built it high enough to rest? Everything that the world and our flesh run to for security is temporary. It doesn’t endure. Don’t rely on your own power, political power from your party, oppression of other human beings. Perversity may cause you to slumber in your sin, but iniquity will be your downfall. Suddenly all you are, and have will be like a potter’s vessel - shattered since it’s filled with flaws - not even a fragment of our imagined security will be left to gather a coal from the fire or a drop of water from the cistern.
    Don’t despise the Word of the Holy One of Israel! Jesus preaches, Luk 21:33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

III.   Not much to slumber over yet in the sermon...where is rest found? (Vs.15) It was the 11th hour for God’s children. Judgment approached! He calls them back to Himself! Return! Repent! Turn away from self-imagined lies. Turn away from the illusion that it is up to you to set things right. Stop! Listen to His Word!
      Tomorrow morning, the 8th day of Christmas, the Gospel is one verse. Listen! Luk 2:21 And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called JESUS, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.” Jesus - the Lord Saves - He saves His people from their sins! 8 days after His birth He sheds His innocent blood obeying the Law FOR YOU! Return to Jesus! Rest in Jesus! His is the only Name give under heaven and earth to save sinners - me, you, the world through His scared flesh and blood poured out to pay our price in full! The Baby Boy Jesus rests in His mother’s arms. Though He is God, He humbly trusts her love and care for Him. Rest in His arms! Be still! Know that He is God! He is with you!
    Judah wouldn’t rest in the Word of God made flesh! (Vs.16-17) They trusted their plans. Horses couldn’t save them. Repent, Listen, Learn, and rest as you sing the lullaby with David, Psa 20:7-9 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the LORD our God. (8) They have bowed down and fallen; But we have risen and stand upright. (9) Save, LORD! May the King answer us when we call.” Israel and Judah’s plans destroyed their nation - destroyed - reduced to One - left to stand as a pole on the top of the mountain, a banner on the hill.
      Where is the banner of rest found? Jesus sheds His blood under the Law for you! He preaches FOR YOU! Joh 12:31-32 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. (32) And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself." Rebellious and idolatrous Judah and Israel are reduced to One Man - Jesus! He carries all their sins to Calvary. He is sacrificed once for all - the Lamb of God taking away the sins of the world. Laying down His life - He rests for us in our grave. His resurrection is our peace! Slumber in His living wounds. Baptized into Him He is your Rest! 1Th 5:9-11 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, (10) who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. (11) Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.
    Every night trace His Name that He sealed upon you in baptism. Confess reality - the Truth of the Apostles’ Creed - listen as Jesus prays through you to our Father by the Holy Spirit in His Word. Then go to sleep at once in good cheer as you sleep in heavenly peace. Amen.