God is faithful (Isaiah 41:22-27)

God is faithful (Isaiah 41:22-27)

²² Let them bring them forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.

²³ Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

²⁴ Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought: an abomination is he that chooseth you.

²⁵ I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.

²⁶ Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.

²⁷ The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.

 

Intro)

1. There is a polemics about God’s existence. It is simply about if God keeps his word or not. For example, a father who is going to go to long business trip to foreign country tells his family that he will send money every month, and will send nice presents on his children and wife’s birthdays. So after he left the country, his family gets monthly money trasfered and presents on their birth days. So, do you think he is alive? Of course he is, otherwise he could not send money and presents.

2. The other example, If there were couple in Watertown, boyfriend is a solider, and he deployed to the Afghan. Before he was deployed, he told his girlfriend that he will send e-mail everyweek and send flowers on her birth day. Few month later, girlfriend did not received e-mail from her boyfriend all of sudden. Does her boyfriend still alive? We cannot really say.

 3. The same reasoning method can be used to prove existence of God. The Bible is full of God’s promises. Some say there are about 3,200 promises. We divide book of bible with two names Old and New Testaments.

4. We often say God is sincere. What is that mean? God keeps his promises. God is faithful.

Today I want to show you that God is alive by today’s text

A) If God is real, He should able to predict future and keeps His promises.

²² Let them bring them forth, and shew us what shall happen: let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare us things for to come.

²³ Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that ye are gods: yea, do good, or do evil, that we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

These two verses were towards the people who are worshiping Idol. While people of Israel were prisoners of Babylon for 70 years, they got used to worship Idols. God warns them about their foolishness, then He send Persian King Cyrus. Fallen of Babylon is well discrived in history B.C. 539, Babylon was collapsed

²⁵ I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.

²⁶ Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know? and beforetime, that we may say, He is righteous? yea, there is none that sheweth, yea, there is none that declareth, yea, there is none that heareth your words.

²⁷ The first shall say to Zion, Behold, behold them: and I will give to Jerusalem one that bringeth good tidings.

This is metaphor of Babylon as the mixture of lime, which implies that Babylon is fragile.

 

King Cyrus: He freed Israel from Babylon and he was chrisiran. Also King of Persian empire who was close with Israel.

 2. I’ll give another significant example.

The other example is Independent of Israel. The two most amazing miracle in bible is exodus and Independent of Israel.

The book of Ezekiel describes Israel as very dry bones. Because of Israel was not even in the world map for 1900 years. Let’s go to Ezekiel chapter 37.

37 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,

² And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.

³ And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.

⁴ Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.

⁵ Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:

⁶ And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.

⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.

⁸ And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.

⁹ Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.

¹⁰ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

¹¹ Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.

¹² Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.

¹³ And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,

¹⁴ And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.

3. Ezekiel 37:14Predicts more details about accomplishments of god’s word. ⁸ After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

Bible says there will be a big war in the land of Israel. They invaders will be the Russia and Iran, Then the united nation will come to help Israel, how the bible described this?

This is describes exactly what happen in 1948 may 14^th

Before the world war 2, people thought Israel people as corrupted people who sold Jesus. So for 1900 years the one thing people of Israel can rely on was the money. And they used money to England when there was WW1 broke out and England promised Israel that they will help Jewish people to take back their country after war is over. The is called The Balfour Declaration.

The Balfour Declaration is a letter sent from Balfour who was minister of Foreign affair to Zionist Sir, Ross Child in Nov, 2, 1917.

The content was, British government will give Palestine area to the Jewish if they won the war. In return of financial help from Jewish people. Zionist and Jewish helped British as hard as they can, because it was matter of reclaim their ancestors land. After WW1 some high class Jew people moved into Isreal. Later, after WW2, Many Jewish were held in special area by Germans. The condition of the area was really bad; I think everyone knows about the Camp. Approximately 3,000,000 Jewish people died because of the Germany. Internationally, Jewish people earned sympathy from many other countries, and finally, by Vote in U.N they earned their country back.

 (Agreed 33 Disagree 13 withdraw 1: England)

4. Bible also said that the independence of Israel is bigger miracle then Exodus.

Jeremiah 16:14~15 says

¹⁴ Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;

¹⁵ But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers.

 

2) Independent of Israel was real miracle, before their independence, people praise God as “God who saved us from Egypt, but now they praise God as, God who guide every one of us back to Israel from every part of world. There are many interesting stories related to this, but I will not tell you anymore because we have to eat lunch.

Conclusion

This amazing and living God, made promises over hundreds times about Jesus, that He will send the savior. And Jesus came to this world to save all of us. He promised that he will make us His child. Today we will do communion to remember Son of God, Jesus and His blood shed. Let’s praise the Lord, love Him more, and rely on Him. Hallelujah.