Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Old Testament Lesson just read, from Is. 63. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- People have things all mixed up when it comes to God. We start out thinking that God should not allow any of the discomforting things that we experience, and this includes His judgment upon our sin.
- Then after a time, we perhaps come to agree somewhat that we shouldn’t be doing the things that we have done in the past, and we begin to wonder how we are to make things up to God.
- If we are wise, we then come to recognize that we cannot make up to God or others the things that we have done wrong. We then wonder if God could forgive us, or if God would forgive us – and we come to Him as beggars, as if He is reluctant to forgive us and welcome us back, as if He is cheap and chintzy with His forgiveness, mercy, and love.
- We then think that perhaps we can move Him to forgive us if only we do this or that, or promise this or that to Him. But all of this is grotesque darkness and ignorance of God. Our text shows this clearly to us, and also what the reality is when it comes to God.
- You see, God is love, and He is love all the time. So it is not hard or difficult for God to love us, and we should not doubt His love. The gift of His Son Jesus, our dear Redeemer demonstrates this – how God is love. And so the message from God, the message of Holy Scripture has always been encouragement to human beings, to us as well, to simply “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE.”
- The history of mankind has always been one of rebellion – first and foremost a refusal to “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE.” So let us contemplate and consider carefully what we will do this day. Let us follow Isaiah, God’s servant and:
I. Let Us Recount God’s Steadfast Love For Us
Text: “I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that He has granted them according to His compassion, according to the abundance of His steadfast love.”
A. He Is Our Savior
Text: “And He became their Savior.”
B. He Has Provided Us With Regeneration – Making Us His Dear Children Of Faith
Text: “For He said, ‘Surely they are My people, children who will not deal falsely.’ And so He became their Savior.”
C. He Is Full Of Compassion And Mercy Toward Us, And He Is Our Strength And Deliverance
Text: “In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”
Statement: You see clearly then God’s love for us. None of this depended upon our first doing something for God. All blessings of His love and compassion flow freely to us, by His grace alone – for God is love. We did not do something to induce God to send His Son to be our Savior and Redeemer! Rather, “the fullness of time” simply came and God acted out of love for us!
All that we need He has provided for us – redemption from the guilt of our sin and the punishment we deserve, forgiveness and salvation in His gracious love, and His empathy with us in all that we suffer in this fallen world of sin, and finally His strong arms to carry us all of our days until we reach His heavenly kingdom.
Application: There is really nothing more for us to do than to “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE,” to sit and drink in all of His goodness and kindness toward us. He has given us His Word so that we can see Him clearly, and so that we can also then see our circumstances, our dilemmas, our troubles, and our safety and security clearly. He sent His Son – there is no denying the reality of this! His Son suffered and died for us on the cross – there is no denying the reality of God’s redemption and salvation. He rose again from death – there is no denying our destiny, that as He promised: “Because I live, you also shall live.”
Transition: But some will not receive His love – and this is the greatest tragedy of human being. We also have this to contemplate as we consider God’s love. Note, however, that God is not at fault. He did not lose love for us. People lose faith in God and love for God. But in view of His love we must ask:
II. How Is It That Anyone Could Rebel Against God And Grieve His Spirit?
Text: “But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; therefore He turned to be their enemy, and Himself fought against them.”
Statement: No rational person would fault God for this. Love cannot tolerate and abet evil – this is all contrary to love! God will not forfeit His existence at our demand to engage in evil. It cannot be love to simply allow others to capitulate to evil and rebellion against God, love, and good!
Application: Yet this is exactly what our sinful nature demands – that God should allow us to do as we please, that He should leave us alone to our own sinful pleasures, and that He should affirm us and protect us in our evil. But our evil always impacts others, and God loves them as well – so if He is to protect them He must oppose our evil! And it cannot be consonant with love to leave someone in their own evil – so He must discipline us and call us back to repentance, so that we might once again return to His love, and to once again “RECEIVE HIS LOVE.”
Transition: This too is a matter of God’s character, His love for us, His ongoing and eternal love for us that He wills for us to receive. And so:
III. God Always Remains Faithful, In Order To Make His Name Glorious, And This Is Always For Our Great Blessedness And Good
Text: “So You led Your people, to make for Yourself a glorious Name.”
A. This Refers To God’s Love, Which Is His Great Glory
Text: “You led Your people.” “He brought them up out of the sea . . . He put in the midst of them His Holy Spirit . . . He divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting Name . . . the Spirit of the LORD gave them rest.”
B. If We Receive His Love We Too Are Part Of The Glorification Of God’s Name – By Continuing In Faith And Having God As Our Father
Epistle: “God sent forth His Son . . . to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba, Father!’ So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”
Statement: This is the truth in regard to God’s love, and also in regard to all who “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE.” It is His love, His business, His doing, and ultimately His glory – although we are the real beneficiaries!
Application: So it is the greatest good that we can do to simply “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE.” It is our greatest worship of God, and it brings the greatest good, for those born of God become like Him – they love as He has loved us!
Conclusion: Our sinful nature always gets it wrong when it comes to God, and we too will get it wrong until we simply “RECEIVE GOD’S LOVE.” So let us recount His steadfast love, His redemption, His compassion, His mercy, and His protective love. Let us each call out “Abba, Father,” knowing and believing the love that He has for us. And let us take care not to rebel and grieve His Spirit. God grant each of us such blessedness – as is His will, for God is love. Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.