Sing Of The Lord's Merciful Servant Isaiah 42

Ash Wednesday                                                                       5-March-2025
Sermon Series Theme: Sing of the Lord’s Servant!
Sermon Text: Isaiah 42:1-4
Sermon Theme: Sing of The Merciful Servant! I. Look to Him Alone For Salvation!(vs.1) II. Listen to Him Alone For Comfort! (Vs.2-3) III. Rejoice in His Strength Alone!! (vs.4) By Rev. Nathan J. Rusert

I.N.R.I. “Psa 103:14 For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.” The Lord God knows you. He remembers what you are made of - dust -ashes. We forget. Deceive ourselves. Listen to the lying whispers of Satan. Buy into the failing philosophies of our time. We follow our fleshly feelings. All three chain us to idolatry’s lie that “we are our own gods.” We are not “dust” we are “divine” with our own “inner light” we lie scratching our itching ears. “Man is his own god - man invented god” - “science holds all the answers to all problems.” Lies popular in our age. These lies promise freedom only to bring tyranny and death.
      We forget history’s lessons. Nations before us turned away from the Truth that God created our world out of nothing. The truth that man is dust - sinful from the moment of conception - bent on doing evil and rebelling against the Lord God who created them. Nations before us followed leaders promising to fix the economy and create jobs. National socialism was tried in Germany - its constitution circumvented by directives issued by its leader, until he went ahead and dissolved its legislative body to rule as a tyrant. Redistribution of wealth was tired in Russia, China, North Korea, Cuba,Vietnam, Cambodia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, to name a few. Man promised to solve all suffering and make a perfect society according to Marx, Lenin, and Mao Tse Tung. What resulted from their promise of freedom? Tyranny, starvation, persecution, and death. Over 90 million were slaughtered under the promise of free government help in the Soviet Union and China alone.
      Under the lie of empowering women to be their own gods - to hold the power of death over their unborn babies - we as a nation stand on the graves of 65 million slaughtered unborn baby persons. Following our lusts an desires we shut our ears and eyes to the truth. Deceived puffing up our pride, pretending to be gods, butchering our bodies to deny the truth of biology, and inventing our spirituality. It is all a sad lie leading us to slavery and death.
      The Lord God remembers. He knows our frame, He knows we are dust. His heart broke the day that Adam choose the Lie. Turned our Creator and His Life sustaining Word. The Lord told Adam, Gen 3:19 “In the sweat of   your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return." All Adam’s longing to become god through his own wisdom, ways, and feelings only left him and us to enslavement in sin and the dust of death.  
      Deceiving ourselves we cry out, “Not fair! God! Adam sinned, so why do I have to suffer?” We forget the truth that in Adam all sinned and died. We forget our sinfulness. The Bible is clear - Rom 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned–“ I am a sinner. I am dust before the only true and Living God. I am nothing but a poor miserable begging sinner.
          Lent’s focus isn’t on you. It isn’t your public prayers, your gifts to the poor that pay for a single sin. It is the Father’s gift - His Son. David sang of this mercy , Psa 103:10-14 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. (11) For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; (12) As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. (13) As a father pities his children, So the LORD pities those who fear Him. (14) For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.
          Repent! Turn from self deception! Never trust in good things you’ve done for God. Repent of idolizing self! Learn as a broken sinner to : Sing of The Merciful Servant! I. Look to Him Alone For Salvation!(vs.1) II. Listen to Him Alone For Comfort! (Vs.2-3) III. Rejoice in His Strength Alone!! (vs.4)
I.   What’s your greatest need? Money to pay your bills? Health care to cure illness? Time to get it all done? Friends? Better advice? Therapy so you make things right? Ask the majority of people and they are certain their greatest need is to change something outside of themselves! The problem is things, circumstances, and others - they are certain of one thing - THEY are not the problem. That is fallen Adam’s thinking - “Lord it’s that woman You gave to be with me.” “I’m not the sinner - she i    
      Self-deceived we redesign Christianity into a self-help program. Therapy leading us in the right steps to purge what eats at us. Jesus becomes a guru, or a therapist, but not a Savior....we’re not that bad.
Stop following lies. Sin cannot be reformed, tamed, or made acceptable by therapy or a majority. Sin must be killed. It must die or it will kill you.
      Here’s the problem! You can’t die for your sin - you were dead from conception. Conceived in sin - Adam’s sin. Our Creator’s Word is clear - man is dead spiritually in trespasses and sins. Born spiritually blind we are unable to know or find the only Living God by our thinking and doing. Captives of Satan born at war with God constantly rebelling running from life to death.
      Our Creator doesn’t give us a therapist. Jesus comes to serve sinners and once and for all accomplish our salvation on the cross. The Prophet Isaiah is instructed by the Lord God to “comfort” God’s people. Judah would be driven into 70 years of captivity in Babylon. Where coul the find comfort? In the Lord’ s servant! Isaiah sings out. (Vs.1). Salvation is never found in your doing, but by heeding God’s Word to “Behold!” Look away from self! Look to Jesus! See why He comes into human history born of the Virgin Mary. He doesn’t come for you to serve Him! Mar 10:45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
    Christianity is not about doing a good deed for Jesus. It is about Jesus doing all to save you - upon the cross and now in His Church! St. Paul preached, 1Co 2:2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”   Behold Jesus! The Lord’s Servant sent by God the Father to serve us sinners and bringing us comfort by the Holy Spirit through sins forgiven by His holy precious blood.  
        Jesus alone is the Lord’s Elect One - the spotless Lamb of God on Who bears the sins of the world. The sewage of our sins was washed upon Him as He was baptized by John in the Jordan. He takes our filth out of that water, so that the waters of our baptism might be life giving waters, rich in grace, a cleansing in His blood poured out upon the cross, a renewal of the Holy Spirit shed on us sinners abundantly sealing to us the peace and victory of His resurrection from the dead. On Jesus God the Holy Spirit descends and remains bodily in the form of a dove. God the Father testified of Jesus on that day, “Mat 3:17, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  
        Jesus comes bringing justice to us Gentiles. Justice not by damning us to hell, but by taking our sins into His own sinless body. Here is the incomprehensible justice and mercy of our God. Paul preached, 2Co 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. God the Father in love gave us His only begotten Son. In love Jesus willingly became our Servant and to bear our sin in His body. Sin must be killed - Jesus killed it in His own innocent suffering and death. Now from His wounds He brings forth justice - forgiving us - by His Word through the Spirit - our debt is settled by His blood.
II.   Before Jesus began His journey to the final Passover in Jerusalem He took Peter, James, and John apart with Himself and went up on a mountain to pray. There the veil was taken back, and Jesus’ divine nature shone through His human nature. Moses and Elijah appeared talking with Jesus about His crucifixion for us sinners. When Peter wants to do something for Jesus, God the Father overshadows him in a bright cloud and speaking of the true praise worship of Jesus! "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!" (Mt. 17:5).
          Listen! Hear Jesus’ Word preached! This is the highest praise worship of the Gospel. Learn to be quiet and listen! (Vs.2-3). Jesus wasn’t a revivalist holding tent meetings in streets. Instead He always preached and taught in the synagogues and the Temple where all Jews assembled. He didn’t thunder forth fire from heaven, but sought out sinners - calling them to repentance and faith. He spoke to the bruised reed of the paralyzed man lowered through the roof, Mat 9:2 "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you." He didn’t snuff out the smoldering wick of the sinful woman washing His feet with her tears. Instead He spoke ,”Your sins are forgiven.”(Lk 7:48). He didn’t break the sinful woman caught in the very act of adultery, He forgave - freeing her from returning to the slavery of sexual sin.
          Sunday after Sunday - daily and richly within this Christian Church Jesus brings forth justice for truth. God the Holy Spirit daily and richly applies to sinners the blood of Jesus washing away our sins. Breathing forth peace in words of absolution - we stand forgiven through the pastor as from God Himself! Listen to His Word - let it comfort you - you are forgiven - reconciled to your loving heavenly Father - now nothing can separate you from God’s love which is certain in the wounds that still mark Jesus’ resurrected and glorified body!
III.   This Good News of the Gospel offends many good people. They don’t want a Savior - they lie to themselves that they don’t need one - they’re good people afterall. Stop your self deception. Jesus calls you to His side He knows you - a broken, miserable, begging sinner. Cry out to Him - “God, be merciful to me, the sinner!” Look to His cross! Hear Him pray for you, “Father forgive!” He is your comfort and strength on your journey through death towards life eternal.
          You will fail. Sin. Get discouraged. Give up. Be a sinner like Paul confessing that the good that you want to do, you don’t. The evil you don’t want to do, you do. You are a wretched human being who cannot deliver yourself from your body of death - exactly - Jesus is Your Savior who still serves you. His grace alone is sufficient for us who are crushed by our sins. (Vs.4)
        He doesn’t fail! He doesn’t loose heart! Upon the cross, once for all He finishes it - reconciles you. Now He invites you to His feast of victory - Take eat and drink! His body and blood is your strength as He serves you still here within His Church. Amen