WEBVTT 00:00:02.220 --> 00:00:06.379 We come today to the last service of this year, 00:00:06.580 --> 00:00:14.400 2025. And I'd like to end the series that I've 00:00:14.400 --> 00:00:19.079 been going through by speaking on joy to the 00:00:19.079 --> 00:00:23.280 world, the prophecies of the worship of Jesus 00:00:23.280 --> 00:00:30.160 in all the world. Our texts are from Isaiah chapter 00:00:30.160 --> 00:00:35.710 49. and from Matthew chapter 2. We'll begin with 00:00:35.710 --> 00:00:42.109 Isaiah chapter 49 in verse 1, and then reading 00:00:42.109 --> 00:00:53.350 down through verse 18, and then verse 23. Listen, 00:00:53.649 --> 00:00:58.369 O coastlands, to me, and take heed, you peoples 00:00:58.369 --> 00:01:02.100 from afar. The Lord has called me from the womb. 00:01:02.320 --> 00:01:05.060 From the matrix of my mother he has made mention 00:01:05.060 --> 00:01:08.540 of my name. And he has made my mouth like a sharp 00:01:08.540 --> 00:01:11.700 sword. In the shadow of his hand he has hidden 00:01:11.700 --> 00:01:16.019 me. And made me a polished shaft. In his quiver 00:01:16.019 --> 00:01:19.420 he has hidden me. And he said to me, You are 00:01:19.420 --> 00:01:22.159 my servant, O Lord, in whom I will be glorified. 00:01:22.519 --> 00:01:26.109 Then I said, I have labored in vain. I've spent 00:01:26.109 --> 00:01:28.909 my strength for nothing and in vain. Yet surely 00:01:28.909 --> 00:01:31.530 my just reward is with the Lord and my work is 00:01:31.530 --> 00:01:35.519 with my God. And now the Lord says, who formed 00:01:35.519 --> 00:01:38.519 me from the womb to be his servant, to bring 00:01:38.519 --> 00:01:41.099 Jacob back to him so that Israel is gathered 00:01:41.099 --> 00:01:44.299 to him, for I shall be glorious in the eyes of 00:01:44.299 --> 00:01:47.459 the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. Indeed, 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:51.079 he says, it is too small a thing that you should 00:01:51.079 --> 00:01:53.980 be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob 00:01:53.980 --> 00:01:56.780 and to restore the preserved ones of Israel. 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:00.319 I will also give you as a light to the Gentiles. 00:02:00.879 --> 00:02:03.640 that you should be my salvation to the ends of 00:02:03.640 --> 00:02:07.060 the earth. Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of 00:02:07.060 --> 00:02:10.560 Israel, their Holy One, to whom man despises, 00:02:10.740 --> 00:02:13.900 to him whom the nation abhors, to the servant 00:02:13.900 --> 00:02:17.939 of rulers, kings shall see and arise, princes 00:02:17.939 --> 00:02:21.099 also shall worship, because of the Lord who is 00:02:21.099 --> 00:02:24.300 faithful, the Holy One of Israel, and he has 00:02:24.300 --> 00:02:28.009 chosen you. Thus says the Lord. In an acceptable 00:02:28.009 --> 00:02:31.129 time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation 00:02:31.129 --> 00:02:34.189 I have helped you. I will preserve you and give 00:02:34.189 --> 00:02:38.289 you as a covenant to the people to restore the 00:02:38.289 --> 00:02:40.949 earth, to cause them to inherit the desolate 00:02:40.949 --> 00:02:43.949 heritages, that you may say to the prisoners, 00:02:44.009 --> 00:02:47.050 Go forth. To those who are in darkness, show 00:02:47.050 --> 00:02:49.770 yourselves. They shall feed along the roads, 00:02:49.830 --> 00:02:53.490 and their pastures shall be on all desolate heights. 00:02:53.770 --> 00:02:56.349 They shall neither hunger nor thirst. Neither 00:02:56.349 --> 00:02:59.469 heat nor sun shall strike them, for he who has 00:02:59.469 --> 00:03:02.030 mercy on them will lead them. Even by the springs 00:03:02.030 --> 00:03:05.270 of water he will guide them. I will make each 00:03:05.270 --> 00:03:07.830 of my mountains a road, and my highways shall 00:03:07.830 --> 00:03:10.729 be elevated. Surely these shall come from afar. 00:03:11.090 --> 00:03:14.009 Look, those from the north and the west, and 00:03:14.009 --> 00:03:17.449 these from the land of Sinim. Sing, O heavens, 00:03:17.610 --> 00:03:21.069 be joyful, O earth, and break out in singing, 00:03:21.250 --> 00:03:24.590 O mountains, for the Lord has comforted his people. 00:03:25.069 --> 00:03:29.490 and will have mercy on his afflicted. Now we'll 00:03:29.490 --> 00:03:33.909 go to verse 22 and 23. Thus says the Lord God. 00:03:34.479 --> 00:03:37.800 Behold, I lift my hand in an oath to the nations 00:03:37.800 --> 00:03:41.180 and set up my standard for the peoples. They 00:03:41.180 --> 00:03:43.280 shall bring your sons in their arms and your 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:45.199 daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. 00:03:45.620 --> 00:03:49.259 Kings shall be your foster fathers and your queens 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:52.300 their nursing mothers. They shall bow down to 00:03:52.300 --> 00:03:55.199 you with their faces to the earth and lick up 00:03:55.199 --> 00:03:58.539 the dust of your feet. Then you will know that 00:03:58.539 --> 00:04:01.699 I am the Lord for they shall not be ashamed who 00:04:01.699 --> 00:04:06.050 wait for me. And now we turn over to the book 00:04:06.050 --> 00:04:09.509 of Matthew, chapter 2, beginning in verse 1. 00:04:11.110 --> 00:04:14.550 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea 00:04:14.550 --> 00:04:17.930 in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men 00:04:17.930 --> 00:04:21.750 came from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where 00:04:21.750 --> 00:04:24.850 is he who has been born king of the Jews? For 00:04:24.850 --> 00:04:28.250 we have seen his star in the east and have come 00:04:28.250 --> 00:04:31.689 to worship him. When Herod the king heard this, 00:04:31.980 --> 00:04:34.579 He was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 00:04:34.740 --> 00:04:36.779 And when he had gathered all his chief priests 00:04:36.779 --> 00:04:39.459 and scribes of the people together, he inquired 00:04:39.459 --> 00:04:42.300 of them where the Christ was to be born. So they 00:04:42.300 --> 00:04:45.160 said to him, In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus 00:04:45.160 --> 00:04:48.519 it is written by the prophet, But you, Bethlehem, 00:04:48.519 --> 00:04:51.500 in the land of Judah, are not the least among 00:04:51.500 --> 00:04:53.939 the rooters of Judah, for out of you shall come 00:04:53.939 --> 00:04:57.620 a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel. When 00:04:57.620 --> 00:05:00.100 Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, 00:05:00.480 --> 00:05:02.720 determined from them what time the star appeared. 00:05:03.079 --> 00:05:06.060 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go and 00:05:06.060 --> 00:05:08.699 search carefully for the young child, and when 00:05:08.699 --> 00:05:11.120 you have found him, bring back word to me that 00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:14.040 I may come and worship also. When they heard 00:05:14.040 --> 00:05:16.850 the king, they departed. And behold, the star 00:05:16.850 --> 00:05:19.589 which they had seen in the east went before them 00:05:19.589 --> 00:05:22.329 till it came and stood over where the young child 00:05:22.329 --> 00:05:26.050 was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with 00:05:26.050 --> 00:05:28.689 exceedingly great joy. And when they had come 00:05:28.689 --> 00:05:31.329 into the house, they saw the young child with 00:05:31.329 --> 00:05:34.810 Mary, his mother, and fell down and worshipped 00:05:34.810 --> 00:05:37.610 him. When they had opened their treasures, they 00:05:37.610 --> 00:05:41.870 presented gifts to him, gold, frankincense, and 00:05:41.870 --> 00:05:44.819 myrrh. Then being divinely warned in a dream 00:05:44.819 --> 00:05:47.660 that they should not return to Herod, they departed 00:05:47.660 --> 00:05:50.680 for their own country another way. Now when they 00:05:50.680 --> 00:05:53.680 had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:57.339 to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, take the 00:05:57.339 --> 00:06:00.160 young child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and 00:06:00.160 --> 00:06:03.019 stay there until I bring you word, for Herod 00:06:03.019 --> 00:06:06.040 will seek the young child to destroy him. When 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:08.360 he arose, he took the young child and his mother 00:06:08.360 --> 00:06:11.290 by night and departed for Egypt. and was there 00:06:11.290 --> 00:06:14.110 until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled 00:06:14.110 --> 00:06:16.430 which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, 00:06:16.589 --> 00:06:21.470 saying, Out of Egypt I called my son. Then Herod, 00:06:21.509 --> 00:06:24.689 when he saw that he was deceived by the wise 00:06:24.689 --> 00:06:29.170 men, was exceedingly angry, and he sent forth 00:06:29.170 --> 00:06:33.949 and he put to death all the male children who 00:06:33.949 --> 00:06:37.870 were in Bethlehem and in all its districts from 00:06:37.870 --> 00:06:41.180 two years old and under. according to the time 00:06:41.180 --> 00:06:44.360 which he had determined from the wise men. Then 00:06:44.360 --> 00:06:46.639 was fulfilled what was spoken of by Jeremiah 00:06:46.639 --> 00:06:50.120 the prophet, saying, A voice was heard in Ramah, 00:06:50.220 --> 00:06:54.839 lamentation, weeping, and a great mourning, Rachel 00:06:54.839 --> 00:06:58.279 weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, 00:06:58.279 --> 00:07:03.579 because they are no more. Let's come to the Lord 00:07:03.579 --> 00:07:06.980 and ask for his blessing in this time. Our Father, 00:07:07.019 --> 00:07:10.110 we thank you. for the word of God which we have 00:07:10.110 --> 00:07:13.290 read. We thank you for the great and precious 00:07:13.290 --> 00:07:18.490 promises, the glorious promises. And yet, Lord, 00:07:18.529 --> 00:07:22.670 we also are reminded that those promises are 00:07:22.670 --> 00:07:26.610 not unaccompanied at times by grief or persecution 00:07:26.610 --> 00:07:30.170 or sorrow. We ask, Lord, that as we look at your 00:07:30.170 --> 00:07:33.449 promises today, that we would look at them in 00:07:33.449 --> 00:07:36.230 reality, that our hearts would rise with great 00:07:36.230 --> 00:07:39.240 joy. But also, Lord, we pray that you would give 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:42.699 us faithfulness in times of difficulty. We pray 00:07:42.699 --> 00:07:45.620 for your blessing on this time. We ask in Jesus' 00:07:45.759 --> 00:07:54.040 name. Amen. All was quiet for a time after the 00:07:54.040 --> 00:07:57.259 birth of Christ and the visitation by the shepherds 00:07:57.259 --> 00:08:00.459 who came and worshipped on the night of Christ's 00:08:00.459 --> 00:08:04.300 birth. Mary and Joseph continued to live in Bethlehem, 00:08:04.300 --> 00:08:06.980 perhaps for a year or more, maybe even two years. 00:08:07.819 --> 00:08:10.699 Other than the circumcision in the temple and 00:08:10.699 --> 00:08:13.939 the prophecies of Simeon and Anna, we read of 00:08:13.939 --> 00:08:16.980 nothing else between that and the strange occurrence 00:08:16.980 --> 00:08:21.360 of which I will now speak. Life most certainly 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:25.060 became routine, and yet Mary probably pondered 00:08:25.060 --> 00:08:27.560 over all the life -changing things that had happened. 00:08:28.019 --> 00:08:31.800 The visitation from Gabriel. The pregnancy without 00:08:31.800 --> 00:08:35.100 a man involved. The prophecy of Elizabeth, the 00:08:35.100 --> 00:08:38.019 mother of John the Baptist, to her. And of Mary's 00:08:38.019 --> 00:08:41.519 response with a song of praise. The Magnificat 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:45.820 in which she herself prophesied that all generations 00:08:45.820 --> 00:08:49.539 will call me blessed. Then there was the birth 00:08:49.539 --> 00:08:53.580 and the shepherds coming to worship. There was 00:08:53.580 --> 00:08:57.000 the prophecy of Simeon that this child is destined 00:08:57.000 --> 00:09:00.309 for the fall and rising of many in Israel. and 00:09:00.309 --> 00:09:02.730 for a sign which shall also be spoken against. 00:09:03.690 --> 00:09:07.929 Your own soul also, yes, a sword will pierce, 00:09:07.970 --> 00:09:11.210 he says, that the thoughts of many hearts may 00:09:11.210 --> 00:09:15.009 be revealed. So much was unknown, and surely 00:09:15.009 --> 00:09:18.309 questions might have risen up in her mind, but 00:09:18.309 --> 00:09:23.269 she was a woman of resolute faith. Then one day, 00:09:23.330 --> 00:09:27.629 a number of wise men came from the east to Jerusalem. 00:09:28.840 --> 00:09:31.899 These are called magi, that is Gentile philosophers, 00:09:32.179 --> 00:09:38.019 priests, or astronomers. They were the learned 00:09:38.019 --> 00:09:42.139 men of the eastern nations, devoted to astronomy, 00:09:42.440 --> 00:09:46.899 to religion, and to medicine. Held in high esteem, 00:09:46.899 --> 00:09:49.960 most likely in the Persian court, they were admitted 00:09:49.960 --> 00:09:52.860 as counselors and followed the camps in war to 00:09:52.860 --> 00:09:56.129 give advice. There were likely more than three 00:09:56.129 --> 00:09:59.009 and they probably had an entourage with them, 00:09:59.049 --> 00:10:02.870 servants and so forth. They started asking around, 00:10:03.370 --> 00:10:08.370 where is he who is born king of the Jews? They 00:10:08.370 --> 00:10:11.750 spoke about a star they saw in the east and how 00:10:11.750 --> 00:10:15.250 they traveled from the east to worship him, to 00:10:15.250 --> 00:10:24.809 give him homage and to worship him. To give him 00:10:24.809 --> 00:10:28.090 that homage and worship which means to kiss the 00:10:28.090 --> 00:10:31.309 ground with the forehead as an expression of 00:10:31.309 --> 00:10:35.529 profound reverence. This star was prophesied 00:10:35.529 --> 00:10:39.330 by Balaam in Numbers chapter 24 verse 17 and 00:10:39.330 --> 00:10:42.850 was probably not an actual star as one of the 00:10:42.850 --> 00:10:46.049 heavenly bodies that we see in the sky. It could 00:10:46.049 --> 00:10:49.289 have been a comet or a meteor but as John MacArthur 00:10:49.289 --> 00:10:52.090 says it is more likely a supernatural reality. 00:10:53.319 --> 00:10:56.620 similar to the Shekinah glory that guided the 00:10:56.620 --> 00:10:59.580 Israelites in the days of Moses, as in Exodus 00:10:59.580 --> 00:11:03.740 13 and verse 21. Whatever it was, the star was 00:11:03.740 --> 00:11:06.039 visible to them when they lived in the east, 00:11:06.279 --> 00:11:10.120 possibly Arabia, but most likely Persia, and 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:12.940 they came to Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel. 00:11:13.440 --> 00:11:16.539 Now Herod, the one called Herod the Great, ruled 00:11:16.539 --> 00:11:20.639 at this time, and he heard about these men. Given 00:11:20.639 --> 00:11:22.980 the restless nature of the Jews who wanted to 00:11:22.980 --> 00:11:26.120 throw off the yoke of bondage, and the history 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:28.580 of the wars that had happened in the intertestamental 00:11:28.580 --> 00:11:33.200 time, and as a strong ruler and a tyrant, this 00:11:33.200 --> 00:11:37.629 concerned him greatly. Being troubled along with 00:11:37.629 --> 00:11:40.309 all Jerusalem, he gathered the chief priests 00:11:40.309 --> 00:11:42.750 and the scribes together and inquired of them 00:11:42.750 --> 00:11:45.730 where the Christ was to be born. They, able to 00:11:45.730 --> 00:11:48.830 read and search the prophetical writings, answered 00:11:48.830 --> 00:11:51.029 him that the ruler who would shepherd the people 00:11:51.029 --> 00:11:53.769 of Israel would come from Bethlehem, quoting 00:11:53.769 --> 00:11:57.169 Micah chapter 5 and verse 2. He secretly met 00:11:57.169 --> 00:12:00.029 with them in order to determine what time the 00:12:00.029 --> 00:12:02.840 star appeared. And then figuring the time of 00:12:02.840 --> 00:12:05.580 travel, which was probably at least two or three 00:12:05.580 --> 00:12:09.000 months, and allowing time for preparation, Herod 00:12:09.000 --> 00:12:11.679 estimated about how old this young child was. 00:12:11.960 --> 00:12:15.659 He sent them off to Bethlehem and told them that 00:12:15.659 --> 00:12:18.100 after they had found him, to come back and to 00:12:18.100 --> 00:12:20.320 report to him that he might come and worship 00:12:20.320 --> 00:12:24.019 him also. And as they departed, lo and behold, 00:12:24.220 --> 00:12:28.139 the star came again. And it led them to Bethlehem. 00:12:28.159 --> 00:12:31.029 It took them right to the house. where the young 00:12:31.029 --> 00:12:35.330 child is. This entourage probably excited the 00:12:35.330 --> 00:12:38.350 townspeople as they saw this desert caravan of 00:12:38.350 --> 00:12:41.750 either horses or camels, probably quite beautiful 00:12:41.750 --> 00:12:44.769 and illustrious given the state and the status 00:12:44.769 --> 00:12:47.750 of these people, of these men. They rejoiced 00:12:47.750 --> 00:12:51.230 with great and exceeding joy, joy to the world 00:12:51.230 --> 00:12:55.009 on seeing the star. And they came to the house 00:12:55.009 --> 00:12:57.570 where they see the young child with Mary his 00:12:57.570 --> 00:13:01.279 mother, and they fell down. and they worshipped 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:06.440 him. They gave him great treasures, gold and 00:13:06.440 --> 00:13:10.700 frankincense and myrrh. These three gifts were 00:13:10.700 --> 00:13:14.519 extraordinarily valuable in the ancient world. 00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:17.860 Gold symbolized kingship and wealth. It was a 00:13:17.860 --> 00:13:21.159 standard royal tribute. Frankincense and myrrh 00:13:21.159 --> 00:13:25.159 were aromatic resins from trees in southern Arabia 00:13:25.159 --> 00:13:27.940 and the Horn of Africa. And they were often even 00:13:27.940 --> 00:13:31.120 more expensive than gold by weight due to their 00:13:31.120 --> 00:13:34.919 rarity, their medicinal uses, and their religious 00:13:34.919 --> 00:13:37.860 significance. They were used as incense for temples 00:13:37.860 --> 00:13:40.419 and embalming and perfumes. And then there was 00:13:40.419 --> 00:13:43.139 great danger in transporting and harvesting them. 00:13:45.179 --> 00:13:48.299 The Roman historian Pliny the Elder noted that 00:13:48.299 --> 00:13:52.429 these resins made Arabia immensely wealthy. Now 00:13:52.429 --> 00:13:55.669 the Bible does not speak of quantity, but the 00:13:55.669 --> 00:13:58.490 Magi opened their treasures, Matthew 2 verse 00:13:58.490 --> 00:14:01.990 11, implying substantial amounts worthy of a 00:14:01.990 --> 00:14:05.950 long journey from Persia or the East. Historic 00:14:05.950 --> 00:14:09.049 parallels, that is in tributes to kings or to 00:14:09.049 --> 00:14:12.490 gods, suggest generous portions, not mere tokens. 00:14:13.230 --> 00:14:16.210 Conservative estimates indicate that these could 00:14:16.210 --> 00:14:18.889 have been worth anywhere from one to three million 00:14:18.889 --> 00:14:23.700 dollars. In today's dollars. Now while the story 00:14:23.700 --> 00:14:26.419 continues with the Magi not returning to Jerusalem 00:14:26.419 --> 00:14:29.919 in order to escape Herod, being warned in a dream, 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:33.340 Herod flies into a rage when he realized they 00:14:33.340 --> 00:14:37.159 duped him and he ordered all the sons, all the 00:14:37.159 --> 00:14:41.320 males, two years old and under in Bethlehem and 00:14:41.320 --> 00:14:48.639 its surrounding villages to be slaughtered. Joseph. 00:14:49.259 --> 00:14:52.000 Being warned in a dream, takes Mary and Jesus. 00:14:52.059 --> 00:14:55.700 He fled to Egypt, and thus Jesus escaped the 00:14:55.700 --> 00:14:59.080 slaughter. And they lived there until God appeared 00:14:59.080 --> 00:15:01.620 again to Joseph, telling him that Herod had now 00:15:01.620 --> 00:15:05.120 died. They returned, but are again warned by 00:15:05.120 --> 00:15:08.240 God that Herod's son Archelaus is reigning. So 00:15:08.240 --> 00:15:11.419 they travel to Nazareth in Galilee, an obscure 00:15:11.419 --> 00:15:15.519 and small rural agricultural village with an 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:19.460 estimated 1 ,000 people or less. There Jesus 00:15:19.460 --> 00:15:22.100 lived with his parents and half -brothers and 00:15:22.100 --> 00:15:27.379 sisters, known as the carpenter's son. This account 00:15:27.379 --> 00:15:30.519 is the first fulfillment of how illustrious men 00:15:30.519 --> 00:15:34.960 will come to Christ and worship, and therefore 00:15:34.960 --> 00:15:39.039 it is an illustration of what will continue to 00:15:39.039 --> 00:15:44.519 come to pass. Great prophecies of old. prophecies 00:15:44.519 --> 00:15:48.299 that foretell the greatness and the glory of 00:15:48.299 --> 00:15:51.919 the reign of Christ, and that many kings and 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:55.580 rulers and notable persons would come and bow 00:15:55.580 --> 00:15:59.120 the knee to him, and they would understand that 00:15:59.120 --> 00:16:03.919 they are to worship and to serve him. We have 00:16:03.919 --> 00:16:06.460 already considered the prophecies of Jesus as 00:16:06.460 --> 00:16:10.940 king a few weeks ago. My intention today... It's 00:16:10.940 --> 00:16:13.659 to look at a major prophecy of how the people 00:16:13.659 --> 00:16:16.980 will respond to that kingship. And how they will 00:16:16.980 --> 00:16:21.279 become worshippers who bow down and serve him. 00:16:21.460 --> 00:16:26.220 And that this will include kings, rulers, and 00:16:26.220 --> 00:16:29.340 princes. We're now going to turn to Isaiah chapter 00:16:29.340 --> 00:16:32.919 49 to look at the details of this prophecy in 00:16:32.919 --> 00:16:38.049 the Old Testament. We will see. Some of the fulfillment 00:16:38.049 --> 00:16:41.090 and reiteration in the New Testament and in the 00:16:41.090 --> 00:16:44.570 centuries afterward still continuing to this 00:16:44.570 --> 00:16:49.409 day. And this is the passage that I just read. 00:16:50.029 --> 00:16:53.870 Now, in the preceding verses or chapters of Isaiah 00:16:53.870 --> 00:16:57.789 prior to Isaiah 49, God had promised Israel that 00:16:57.789 --> 00:17:01.289 a king named Cyrus would arise and would be an 00:17:01.289 --> 00:17:03.529 instrument in God's hand to bring back the Jews 00:17:03.529 --> 00:17:07.180 to their land. The Chaldeans and Babylon would 00:17:07.180 --> 00:17:09.700 be conquered and humiliated and Israel would 00:17:09.700 --> 00:17:12.759 again be able to escape. We know that this came 00:17:12.759 --> 00:17:15.539 to pass and eventually around 40 ,000 returned 00:17:15.539 --> 00:17:19.140 to the land of Israel. The wall and the temple 00:17:19.140 --> 00:17:22.279 in Jerusalem were rebuilt. We read of this in 00:17:22.279 --> 00:17:26.200 Ezra, in Nehemiah, and in Haggai. But in chapter 00:17:26.200 --> 00:17:30.099 49, the focus changes in the book of Isaiah. 00:17:30.839 --> 00:17:33.880 And now the prophecy turns to the far off lands. 00:17:34.200 --> 00:17:38.559 And the words proceed directly from Jesus, from 00:17:38.559 --> 00:17:42.059 the servant of the Lord. Isaiah is prophesying 00:17:42.059 --> 00:17:46.660 the word of the Lord as Jesus speaking, the servant. 00:17:46.759 --> 00:17:52.140 He begins, verse 1, Listen, O coastlands, to 00:17:52.140 --> 00:17:56.950 me, and take heed, you peoples from afar. Now 00:17:56.950 --> 00:18:00.089 the word coastlands is also translated as islands 00:18:00.089 --> 00:18:04.089 or isles or region. And it was used to refer 00:18:04.089 --> 00:18:08.309 to the distant lands beyond the sea, unknown 00:18:08.309 --> 00:18:12.990 regions in the world. The location of this prophecy 00:18:12.990 --> 00:18:15.990 was in Israel. So the mention of these distant 00:18:15.990 --> 00:18:18.329 lands meant countries across the Mediterranean 00:18:18.329 --> 00:18:21.569 and the oceans, the continent of Africa, the 00:18:21.569 --> 00:18:25.690 lands of Asia, of India, China, the 17 ,000 islands 00:18:25.690 --> 00:18:29.970 of Indonesia, or Malaysia, Japan, Korea, Thailand, 00:18:30.430 --> 00:18:33.970 Mongolia, and Siberia, or across the Atlantic 00:18:33.970 --> 00:18:37.490 Ocean to the North, Central, and South Americas, 00:18:37.730 --> 00:18:40.990 over the South Pacific to Australia. and New 00:18:40.990 --> 00:18:46.269 Zealand, and all other far -flung places. The 00:18:46.269 --> 00:18:49.970 whole context of verse 1 is to the people who 00:18:49.970 --> 00:18:55.430 are afar off, these distant lands, pagans, peoples 00:18:55.430 --> 00:18:58.930 and tribes who do not know God and are steeped 00:18:58.930 --> 00:19:02.910 in idolatry and darkness, some in cannibalism 00:19:02.910 --> 00:19:07.710 or child sacrifice, those who have not received 00:19:07.710 --> 00:19:11.400 the revelation of the truth. Of the word of God. 00:19:12.559 --> 00:19:17.039 Jesus goes on then. In verse 2. I'm sorry this 00:19:17.039 --> 00:19:20.700 is still in verse 1. To say that he is. The chosen 00:19:20.700 --> 00:19:23.799 one. The called one. The one called from the 00:19:23.799 --> 00:19:28.599 womb. In the matrix of his mother. His name as 00:19:28.599 --> 00:19:32.799 Isaiah prophesied. In chapter 8 and 9. Is Emmanuel. 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:39.930 God with us. And he speaks. In this word. Revealed 00:19:39.930 --> 00:19:43.329 by Isaiah. The word that he brings in verse 2 00:19:43.329 --> 00:19:47.490 will go out to the far off nations. That word 00:19:47.490 --> 00:19:50.690 is described as a sharp sword going out of his 00:19:50.690 --> 00:19:53.769 mouth. We read that again in the book of Revelation 00:19:53.769 --> 00:19:57.549 and other places. He is an arrow and a polished 00:19:57.549 --> 00:20:02.970 shaft piercing the darkness around. But then 00:20:02.970 --> 00:20:06.930 in verse 4. Jesus speaks of the abandonment that 00:20:06.930 --> 00:20:09.450 would come in the days of living in Israel as 00:20:09.450 --> 00:20:13.609 a man. And he says, I have labored in vain, spent 00:20:13.609 --> 00:20:16.750 my strength for nothing and in vain. And sure 00:20:16.750 --> 00:20:20.009 enough, many depart from Jesus during his life 00:20:20.009 --> 00:20:23.529 on earth. And he ends up standing alone under 00:20:23.529 --> 00:20:28.410 trial, accused before all men, with no one standing 00:20:28.410 --> 00:20:33.079 by him to defend him. He stands before Pontius 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:36.160 Pilate and he attests that he is the king of 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:39.680 the Jews. But where is his entourage? Where is 00:20:39.680 --> 00:20:44.500 his kingdom? He stands there alone. Where are 00:20:44.500 --> 00:20:47.299 those who surround him and who will stand by 00:20:47.299 --> 00:20:50.359 him in order to defend him? They have all run 00:20:50.359 --> 00:20:53.680 away, one of them even denying that he ever knew 00:20:53.680 --> 00:20:57.890 him. And yet Jesus places trust in the Father 00:20:57.890 --> 00:21:02.529 for he continues in verse 4 saying, Then I said, 00:21:02.750 --> 00:21:05.849 I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength 00:21:05.849 --> 00:21:09.650 for nothing and in vain, yet surely my just reward 00:21:09.650 --> 00:21:14.309 is with the Lord and my work is and my work with 00:21:14.309 --> 00:21:17.900 my God. But then the Lord God Almighty... The 00:21:17.900 --> 00:21:20.700 Lord Jehovah answers him and says in chapter 00:21:20.700 --> 00:21:24.759 6, indeed he says, it is too small a thing that 00:21:24.759 --> 00:21:27.359 you should be my servant to raise up the tribes 00:21:27.359 --> 00:21:31.119 of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of 00:21:31.119 --> 00:21:33.940 Israel. What God is saying there to the son is 00:21:33.940 --> 00:21:37.440 saying, Israel is not enough. The people gathered 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:42.000 here, they're not enough. Then he says, I will... 00:21:43.069 --> 00:21:46.089 also give you as a light to the gentiles that 00:21:46.089 --> 00:21:51.569 you shall be my salvation to the ends of the 00:21:51.569 --> 00:21:55.450 earth not only will jesus be glorified in israel 00:21:55.450 --> 00:21:58.410 but he will be a light to the gentiles a light 00:21:58.410 --> 00:22:00.670 to the nations and he will bring salvation to 00:22:00.670 --> 00:22:03.470 the very ends of the earth to the very far off 00:22:03.470 --> 00:22:07.349 places of the world including the southernmost 00:22:07.349 --> 00:22:11.250 tip Of New Zealand. Which is about the very furthest. 00:22:11.329 --> 00:22:17.609 Any land point is. From Jerusalem. There. The 00:22:17.609 --> 00:22:21.230 gospel will come. And Jesus will be known. There's 00:22:21.230 --> 00:22:24.210 actually a marker there. And what will happen 00:22:24.210 --> 00:22:27.150 to the one. Who is despised and rejected of men. 00:22:27.730 --> 00:22:31.630 Who was nailed. To the cruel cross. The Lord 00:22:31.630 --> 00:22:35.109 Jehovah continues. In verses 8 to 13 saying. 00:22:35.410 --> 00:22:38.480 Thus says the Lord. In an acceptable time, I 00:22:38.480 --> 00:22:41.339 have heard you. And the day of salvation, I have 00:22:41.339 --> 00:22:44.440 helped you. And he goes on to describe what all 00:22:44.440 --> 00:22:47.759 is going to come to Jesus. And we're going to 00:22:47.759 --> 00:22:50.519 consider just for a moment what all Jehovah says 00:22:50.519 --> 00:22:54.039 to the son in verses 8 to 13, but in outline 00:22:54.039 --> 00:22:57.160 form. What will he do? He will give him for a 00:22:57.160 --> 00:23:00.079 covenant to the people, all of the people. This 00:23:00.079 --> 00:23:03.019 covenant is not just to the Jews, but it is for 00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:06.400 all the people and nations of the earth. Remember 00:23:06.400 --> 00:23:09.019 that Malachi said he is the messenger of the 00:23:09.019 --> 00:23:12.640 covenant. And here Isaiah says, quoting God, 00:23:12.720 --> 00:23:16.000 God speaking to the son, that he would give him 00:23:16.000 --> 00:23:20.480 for a covenant to the people. He would then also 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:24.160 restore the earth. He will restore the earth. 00:23:24.220 --> 00:23:25.920 And this, of course, is through the power of 00:23:25.920 --> 00:23:28.920 the gospel. He will cause them to inhabit the 00:23:28.920 --> 00:23:31.859 desolate places, the places that are a wilderness 00:23:31.859 --> 00:23:36.480 that seem to be abandoned. He will inherit. Furthermore, 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:39.220 he will set the prisoner free. He will bring 00:23:39.220 --> 00:23:42.039 light to the darkness and he will shepherd them. 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:45.539 He will have mercy on them and lead them to green 00:23:45.539 --> 00:23:48.740 pastures. He says that he will make each of his 00:23:48.740 --> 00:23:51.799 mountains a highway. This is called a highway 00:23:51.799 --> 00:23:55.900 of holiness in Isaiah chapter 35 verse 8. It 00:23:55.900 --> 00:23:58.259 will be throughout the world a place where all 00:23:58.259 --> 00:24:00.779 the peoples will know him and the word of God 00:24:00.779 --> 00:24:03.299 goes forth throughout the world bringing this 00:24:03.299 --> 00:24:07.079 holiness, delivering people from sin and renewing 00:24:07.079 --> 00:24:09.839 and restoring them in a right relationship with 00:24:09.839 --> 00:24:13.839 God. This highway of holiness extends everywhere. 00:24:14.299 --> 00:24:16.980 And so what happens because of this? Everything 00:24:16.980 --> 00:24:20.920 breaks forth into singing. Verse 13. Sing, O 00:24:20.920 --> 00:24:24.339 heavens, be joyful, O earth, and break out in 00:24:24.339 --> 00:24:28.079 singing, O mountains, for the Lord has comforted 00:24:28.079 --> 00:24:32.000 his people and will have mercy on the afflicted. 00:24:32.680 --> 00:24:37.420 But note well, this does not only go to the people 00:24:37.420 --> 00:24:39.720 on the bottom of the langur, to those languishing 00:24:39.720 --> 00:24:42.619 in darkness, to those who are downtrodden by 00:24:42.619 --> 00:24:46.660 all or pressed. It is also prophesied, it is 00:24:46.660 --> 00:24:49.599 prophesied to them. It is prophesied to the common 00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:53.420 man, but it does not stop there. It extends to 00:24:53.420 --> 00:24:57.420 those who rule, to those who are kings and princes 00:24:57.420 --> 00:25:00.759 and notables. This is specifically prophesied 00:25:00.759 --> 00:25:04.029 in three verses in this chapter. First in chapter, 00:25:04.230 --> 00:25:07.190 in verse 7, Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer 00:25:07.190 --> 00:25:10.630 of Israel, their Holy One, to him whom man despises, 00:25:10.789 --> 00:25:13.289 to him whom the nation abhors, to the servant 00:25:13.289 --> 00:25:17.529 of rulers, kings shall see and arise, princes 00:25:17.529 --> 00:25:21.130 shall worship, because of the Lord who is faithful, 00:25:21.369 --> 00:25:24.529 the Holy One of Israel. And then again in verse 00:25:24.529 --> 00:25:28.410 22 and verse 23, thus says the Lord, I will lift 00:25:28.410 --> 00:25:31.130 up my hand in an oath to the nations and set 00:25:31.130 --> 00:25:33.849 my standards for the peoples. They shall bring 00:25:33.849 --> 00:25:36.269 your sons in their arms and your daughters shall 00:25:36.269 --> 00:25:39.130 be carried on their shoulders. Kings shall be 00:25:39.130 --> 00:25:42.170 your foster fathers and their queens your nursing 00:25:42.170 --> 00:25:44.650 mothers. They shall bow down to you with their 00:25:44.650 --> 00:25:48.940 faces to the earth and lick up the dust. Then 00:25:48.940 --> 00:25:51.500 you will know that I am the Lord, for they shall 00:25:51.500 --> 00:25:55.680 not be ashamed to wait for me. What this is prophesying 00:25:55.680 --> 00:25:57.980 is that as the Spirit and the Word of God and 00:25:57.980 --> 00:26:00.819 the presence of Christ is diffused among the 00:26:00.819 --> 00:26:04.240 nations, that kings and rulers will go from being 00:26:04.240 --> 00:26:07.259 tyrants and from crushing their subjects with 00:26:07.259 --> 00:26:10.480 cruelty. And instead, they will become foster 00:26:10.480 --> 00:26:13.759 fathers and queens, nursing mothers, that is, 00:26:13.799 --> 00:26:16.259 supporters of the faith, protectors of the church, 00:26:16.440 --> 00:26:19.640 bringing blessings to their people rather than 00:26:19.640 --> 00:26:22.750 cursing. These rulers and leaders will learn 00:26:22.750 --> 00:26:25.630 of God and of his law, and they will understand 00:26:25.630 --> 00:26:28.910 how to reward and protect and promote the good, 00:26:28.970 --> 00:26:31.690 and they will punish the wicked so that the righteous 00:26:31.690 --> 00:26:35.329 can flourish. Remember the passages in Proverbs 00:26:35.329 --> 00:26:39.170 28, verse 5. Evil men do not understand justice, 00:26:39.509 --> 00:26:43.930 but those who seek the Lord understand all. And 00:26:43.930 --> 00:26:47.089 again in chapter 29, verse 2. When the righteous 00:26:47.089 --> 00:26:50.230 are in authority, the people rejoice. But when 00:26:50.230 --> 00:26:54.759 a wicked man rules, the people groan. These rulers 00:26:54.759 --> 00:26:58.920 will not be ashamed to confess Christ openly 00:26:58.920 --> 00:27:02.779 and will seek to rule, to guide, and to govern 00:27:02.779 --> 00:27:08.420 according to his word. Now, as an aside, the 00:27:08.420 --> 00:27:12.619 address of Paul to the Romans in chapter 13 about 00:27:12.619 --> 00:27:16.779 civil government must be understood in this light. 00:27:17.140 --> 00:27:20.880 In this light. This is what rulers are called 00:27:20.880 --> 00:27:25.019 to. Romans 13 is not simply describing what is 00:27:25.019 --> 00:27:28.200 there. For many rulers in his day were terrors 00:27:28.200 --> 00:27:31.099 to the righteous and were rewarders of the wicked. 00:27:31.259 --> 00:27:34.559 But it is prescriptive. It sets forth a standard 00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:38.059 describing what ought to be. That rulers are 00:27:38.059 --> 00:27:40.599 number one. They are servants of God. And they 00:27:40.599 --> 00:27:43.259 know what evil is and they punish it. And they 00:27:43.259 --> 00:27:47.220 know what good is and they praise it. Adam Clark 00:27:47.220 --> 00:27:51.980 sums up this passage with these words. Jesus 00:27:51.980 --> 00:27:56.900 here is introduced in person in Isaiah 49, declaring 00:27:56.900 --> 00:28:00.359 the full extent of his commission, which is not 00:28:00.359 --> 00:28:03.480 only to restore the Israelites and reconcile 00:28:03.480 --> 00:28:06.559 them to their Lord and Father, from whom they 00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:10.400 had so often revolted, but to be a light to the 00:28:10.400 --> 00:28:14.720 Gentiles, to call them to the knowledge and obedience 00:28:14.720 --> 00:28:19.500 of the one true God. and to bring them to be 00:28:19.500 --> 00:28:23.779 one church together with the Israelites, and 00:28:23.779 --> 00:28:28.299 to partake with them of the same common salvation 00:28:28.299 --> 00:28:34.140 procured for all by the great Redeemer and reconciler 00:28:34.140 --> 00:28:40.039 of man to God. This is what Isaiah 49 is talking 00:28:40.039 --> 00:28:43.779 about. Now there are many other passages in the 00:28:43.779 --> 00:28:46.980 Old Testament that I could turn to. It's quite 00:28:46.980 --> 00:28:49.940 a number of prophets and prophecies who speak 00:28:49.940 --> 00:28:52.559 about this very thing. But I'll give you just 00:28:52.559 --> 00:28:56.759 a few more. The theme of the earth being filled 00:28:56.759 --> 00:28:58.680 with the glory of the Lord and the worship of 00:28:58.680 --> 00:29:03.599 God is in many places. Habakkuk 2 verse 14. For 00:29:03.599 --> 00:29:06.359 the earth will be filled with the knowledge of 00:29:06.359 --> 00:29:09.000 the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the 00:29:09.000 --> 00:29:15.750 sea. Psalm 22 verse 27 to 31. all the ends of 00:29:15.750 --> 00:29:18.650 the earth all the ends of the world shall remember 00:29:18.650 --> 00:29:21.329 and turn to the Lord and all the families of 00:29:21.329 --> 00:29:24.089 the nations shall worship before you for the 00:29:24.089 --> 00:29:27.490 kingdom is the Lord's and he rules over the nations 00:29:27.490 --> 00:29:30.509 all the prosperous of the earth shall eat and 00:29:30.509 --> 00:29:33.970 worship All those who go down to the dust shall 00:29:33.970 --> 00:29:37.509 bow before him, even he who cannot keep himself 00:29:37.509 --> 00:29:41.430 alive. A posterity shall serve him. It will be 00:29:41.430 --> 00:29:43.730 recounted of the Lord to the next generation. 00:29:44.009 --> 00:29:46.349 They will come and declare his righteousness 00:29:46.349 --> 00:29:50.390 to a people who will be born that he has done 00:29:50.390 --> 00:29:54.089 this. Then there's Psalm 72, verse 10 and 11. 00:29:54.289 --> 00:29:57.230 The kings of Tarshish and of the Isles. There's 00:29:57.230 --> 00:30:02.670 the word Isles again, or the nations. They will 00:30:02.670 --> 00:30:05.869 bring presents. The kings of Sheba and Seba will 00:30:05.869 --> 00:30:10.690 offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before 00:30:10.690 --> 00:30:14.920 him. All nations shall serve him. Then there's 00:30:14.920 --> 00:30:18.839 Isaiah again in chapter 11, verse 9 and 10. They 00:30:18.839 --> 00:30:21.539 shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain. 00:30:21.640 --> 00:30:24.880 For the earth shall be full of the knowledge 00:30:24.880 --> 00:30:28.619 of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. For 00:30:28.619 --> 00:30:31.579 the Gentiles shall seek him and his resting place 00:30:31.579 --> 00:30:34.960 shall be more glorious. There are many, many 00:30:34.960 --> 00:30:37.759 more. There's Isaiah chapter 60, which we read 00:30:37.759 --> 00:30:39.920 this morning. There's prophecies in Joel, in 00:30:39.920 --> 00:30:44.369 Ezekiel, in Daniel. But this will suffice. And 00:30:44.369 --> 00:30:47.589 we'll move on to the fulfillment, number two, 00:30:47.650 --> 00:30:53.450 the fulfillment in the Apostles' Day. Now this 00:30:53.450 --> 00:30:56.509 is just prior to the Apostles' Day, but in the 00:30:56.509 --> 00:30:59.849 time of Jesus, we just see the Magi, recorded 00:30:59.849 --> 00:31:02.410 in Matthew 2, of whom I have already spoken. 00:31:02.809 --> 00:31:06.150 But notice again, the great joy that these... 00:31:06.400 --> 00:31:09.039 that these notable people had, they come with 00:31:09.039 --> 00:31:12.579 exceeding great joy. When they saw the star and 00:31:12.579 --> 00:31:15.460 it led them to the house, the scripture says 00:31:15.460 --> 00:31:19.519 they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. How many 00:31:19.519 --> 00:31:22.059 more superlatives can you put in there? It is 00:31:22.059 --> 00:31:26.000 such an abounding joy that they had in finding 00:31:26.000 --> 00:31:31.259 the Christ child. We also know that the gospel 00:31:31.259 --> 00:31:34.480 penetrated to Caesar's household during Paul's 00:31:34.480 --> 00:31:37.319 first imprisonment in Rome. For Paul says in 00:31:37.319 --> 00:31:40.440 Philippians chapter 4 verse 22, All the saints 00:31:40.440 --> 00:31:42.819 greet you, but especially those who are of Caesar's 00:31:42.819 --> 00:31:46.839 household. Now keep in mind, Jesus spoke about 00:31:46.839 --> 00:31:48.980 the seed of a mustard seed and then it growing 00:31:48.980 --> 00:31:51.640 to be a tree that fills the whole earth. But 00:31:51.640 --> 00:31:55.660 remember that the seed was very small. How many 00:31:55.660 --> 00:31:58.299 were in the upper room? There was 120 in the 00:31:58.299 --> 00:32:01.180 upper room. They were gathered together. And 00:32:01.180 --> 00:32:03.880 from that then, several thousands were converted 00:32:03.880 --> 00:32:07.339 to Christ in the next few days or weeks. And 00:32:07.339 --> 00:32:09.099 then we see this growing, but this was very, 00:32:09.160 --> 00:32:11.740 very small. When you look at the immensity of 00:32:11.740 --> 00:32:13.839 the population of the world, one would think, 00:32:13.940 --> 00:32:16.819 what difference is this going to make? How can 00:32:16.819 --> 00:32:19.200 this ever affect? How can this go to the ends 00:32:19.200 --> 00:32:22.759 of the earth? This is so small. And yet, it did. 00:32:23.000 --> 00:32:26.680 And we see the seeds starting to sprout in the 00:32:26.680 --> 00:32:30.829 book of Acts. When Paul wrote the book of Romans, 00:32:30.950 --> 00:32:33.569 he was residing in Corinth. And at the end of 00:32:33.569 --> 00:32:36.109 Romans, he sends greetings from one Erastus. 00:32:36.269 --> 00:32:38.890 Now, Erastus is an interesting person, except 00:32:38.890 --> 00:32:41.609 we hardly know anything, except that he was the 00:32:41.609 --> 00:32:44.250 treasurer of the city of Corinth. So he was a 00:32:44.250 --> 00:32:47.930 notable person in Corinth at that time. And he 00:32:47.930 --> 00:32:52.089 came to know Christ. We also see an example of 00:32:52.089 --> 00:32:55.490 this as the goal of Paul in his conversations 00:32:55.490 --> 00:32:59.990 with Felix. and also with King Agrippa in the 00:32:59.990 --> 00:33:03.470 book of Acts. What does he do? He reasons with 00:33:03.470 --> 00:33:06.569 them of righteousness and judgment, and they 00:33:06.569 --> 00:33:10.150 tremble before him with King Agrippa saying, 00:33:10.430 --> 00:33:15.250 almost you persuade me to be a Christian. Paul 00:33:15.250 --> 00:33:18.269 there is going after him. He is preaching the 00:33:18.269 --> 00:33:20.990 word of God to him. He's pleading with him to 00:33:20.990 --> 00:33:24.930 come and to know Christ and to bow before him. 00:33:26.059 --> 00:33:28.700 And it's like Agrippa is on the verge, but he 00:33:28.700 --> 00:33:32.799 just doesn't go that far. He doesn't make it. 00:33:33.759 --> 00:33:37.400 By the end of the first century, the gospel to 00:33:37.400 --> 00:33:40.660 the Gentiles had spread with the aid of the well 00:33:40.660 --> 00:33:45.019 -built Roman roads to Syria, to Asia Minor, which 00:33:45.019 --> 00:33:48.000 is modern -day Turkey, to Greece and the Balkans, 00:33:48.059 --> 00:33:52.180 to Italy, to Egypt, to Ethiopia, and possibly 00:33:52.180 --> 00:33:56.450 other parts of North Africa and Armenia. Most 00:33:56.450 --> 00:33:58.190 of these are mentioned in the New Testament, 00:33:58.349 --> 00:34:00.690 and at the end of the book of Romans, Paul was 00:34:00.690 --> 00:34:03.529 planning to journey to Spain, which he most likely 00:34:03.529 --> 00:34:06.490 did after his first imprisonment in Rome, and 00:34:06.490 --> 00:34:08.969 possibly even going to Britain, although the 00:34:08.969 --> 00:34:11.070 actual journey is not mentioned in the Bible 00:34:11.070 --> 00:34:14.050 other than Paul's illusion in his desire to go 00:34:14.050 --> 00:34:16.510 to Spain. But there's some history that would 00:34:16.510 --> 00:34:19.269 indicate that he actually did. The letters to 00:34:19.269 --> 00:34:22.389 the church breathe the very spirit of expansion 00:34:22.389 --> 00:34:25.889 to the world. And of the word sounding forth 00:34:25.889 --> 00:34:29.289 with letters to the scattered Jewish and Gentile 00:34:29.289 --> 00:34:32.570 Christians. Such as the introduction of 1 Peter. 00:34:32.889 --> 00:34:36.409 And then the great multitude spoken of in the 00:34:36.409 --> 00:34:41.380 book of Revelation. The Apostle Thomas is said 00:34:41.380 --> 00:34:44.320 by early historians such as Eusebius to have 00:34:44.320 --> 00:34:47.679 traveled all the way to India and planted a church 00:34:47.679 --> 00:34:51.900 there by 52 AD. There's also the possibility 00:34:51.900 --> 00:34:55.739 of Andrew to Greece, of Bartholomew to Armenia 00:34:55.739 --> 00:34:59.519 or northwest India, of Matthew to East Africa, 00:34:59.739 --> 00:35:02.820 to Simon the Zealot, to possibly either Britain 00:35:02.820 --> 00:35:07.260 or Persia. It's not clear. Throughout the New 00:35:07.260 --> 00:35:11.420 Testament, Psalm 2 and Psalm 110 are alluded 00:35:11.420 --> 00:35:14.239 to and quoted, and most importantly, they are 00:35:14.239 --> 00:35:16.880 emphasized that they will be fulfilled. What 00:35:16.880 --> 00:35:19.619 do these two psalms prophesy? That the nations 00:35:19.619 --> 00:35:22.780 belong to Christ, that his enemies will be conquered, 00:35:22.920 --> 00:35:26.050 because the nations are his possession. In the 00:35:26.050 --> 00:35:30.429 high priestly prayer of John 17, Jesus prays 00:35:30.429 --> 00:35:33.449 for all those who will believe in him through 00:35:33.449 --> 00:35:36.909 the word of the apostles, praying that all would 00:35:36.909 --> 00:35:40.489 be one in us, that is in the triune Godhead, 00:35:40.610 --> 00:35:44.949 so that the world may believe that Jesus was 00:35:44.949 --> 00:35:48.800 sent by the Father. In Acts, in 1 Corinthians 00:35:48.800 --> 00:35:52.820 15, in Ephesians, in Colossians, in Philippians, 00:35:52.820 --> 00:35:55.320 in Hebrews several times, and in the book of 00:35:55.320 --> 00:35:59.159 Revelation, Jesus is proclaimed as the king who 00:35:59.159 --> 00:36:02.280 is seated at the right hand of God and that he 00:36:02.280 --> 00:36:05.659 is the head of all principalities and powers 00:36:05.659 --> 00:36:10.639 and that he will reign until his enemies become 00:36:10.639 --> 00:36:15.159 his footstool or bow to him. Remember what I 00:36:15.159 --> 00:36:18.360 taught in the Kingdom series when preaching on 00:36:18.360 --> 00:36:21.760 the destruction of Jerusalem. I said that the 00:36:21.760 --> 00:36:24.639 New Testament, in order to understand the New 00:36:24.639 --> 00:36:27.360 Testament well, we need to understand two things. 00:36:27.599 --> 00:36:31.420 It is weighed down with foreboding and it is 00:36:31.420 --> 00:36:36.840 buoyed. with hope it is foreboding at the soon 00:36:36.840 --> 00:36:40.300 coming tribulation and destruction of the apostate 00:36:40.300 --> 00:36:42.639 old covenant jewish order in the destruction 00:36:42.639 --> 00:36:45.920 of the temple and the city of jerusalem which 00:36:45.920 --> 00:36:50.079 happened in ad 68 to 70 but it is also filled 00:36:50.079 --> 00:36:53.059 with the hope that has come through the full 00:36:53.059 --> 00:36:57.380 scale inauguration of the multinational multi 00:36:57.380 --> 00:37:02.139 -ethnic victorious global church of Jesus Christ. 00:37:02.519 --> 00:37:06.920 And as the gospel spreads, light dawns and joy 00:37:06.920 --> 00:37:12.400 abounds. Finally, let's go to the end of the 00:37:12.400 --> 00:37:16.980 Bible, to Revelation chapter 21. What do we see 00:37:16.980 --> 00:37:20.039 entering this great city, the holy Jerusalem, 00:37:20.199 --> 00:37:24.760 descending out of heaven from God? Verse 24 through 00:37:24.760 --> 00:37:29.239 26 of Revelation 21. Hear these words. And the 00:37:29.239 --> 00:37:33.380 nations of those who are saved will walk in its 00:37:33.380 --> 00:37:37.300 light. And the kings of the earth bring their 00:37:37.300 --> 00:37:41.340 glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not 00:37:41.340 --> 00:37:44.260 be shut at all by day. There shall be no night 00:37:44.260 --> 00:37:47.559 there. And they shall bring the glory and the 00:37:47.559 --> 00:37:52.619 honor of the nations into it. Saved nations, 00:37:53.079 --> 00:37:56.639 kings of the earth, the glory and honor of nations. 00:37:56.880 --> 00:38:02.809 What a cause. for great joy as we see this portrayed 00:38:02.809 --> 00:38:07.949 in Revelation chapter 21. Well, I'll consider 00:38:07.949 --> 00:38:10.190 very briefly just the fulfillment historically. 00:38:10.670 --> 00:38:16.269 What can I say? This is astounding in many ways. 00:38:16.840 --> 00:38:19.300 And unfortunately, because of our lack of historical 00:38:19.300 --> 00:38:22.500 knowledge, we know so little about this, about 00:38:22.500 --> 00:38:25.719 the great deeds of Christendom. There are some 00:38:25.719 --> 00:38:29.500 amazing and wonderful stories. George Grant is 00:38:29.500 --> 00:38:32.380 a great historian. I encourage you to look up 00:38:32.380 --> 00:38:35.000 some of his writings or listen to some of his 00:38:35.000 --> 00:38:39.440 speeches recounting some of these. Wordmp3 .com 00:38:39.440 --> 00:38:41.719 is a good place. There's a number of others, 00:38:41.780 --> 00:38:44.730 and I can give you additional links. where he 00:38:44.730 --> 00:38:47.389 speaks about Scotland and he speaks about some 00:38:47.389 --> 00:38:49.469 of the early days. He speaks about people I never 00:38:49.469 --> 00:38:51.869 heard of before. It's like, where have I been? 00:38:52.030 --> 00:38:54.730 Why have I not learned some of these in history? 00:38:55.550 --> 00:39:01.019 But I'll just touch on a few. I will say the 00:39:01.019 --> 00:39:06.159 medieval time period understood this much more 00:39:06.159 --> 00:39:09.179 than we do today about kings bowing to Christ. 00:39:09.440 --> 00:39:12.739 I believe that we will recover this, but especially 00:39:12.739 --> 00:39:16.280 before the rise of secular humanism, this was 00:39:16.280 --> 00:39:19.869 done. Again, albeit imperfectly. From Constantine 00:39:19.869 --> 00:39:22.670 the Great, who ended persecution, he ended the 00:39:22.670 --> 00:39:25.750 practice of sacrifice to the gods in order to 00:39:25.750 --> 00:39:28.230 be a civil servant and ruler, and he started 00:39:28.230 --> 00:39:31.170 protecting the church. He had many flaws, but 00:39:31.170 --> 00:39:33.889 he also did some great things for the church. 00:39:34.090 --> 00:39:36.449 And there's also King Alfred, who established 00:39:36.449 --> 00:39:38.969 a law code for England from the Bible in the 00:39:38.969 --> 00:39:42.949 800s and was a very faithful king. Ben Merkle 00:39:42.949 --> 00:39:47.000 wrote an excellent book, White Horse King. Excellent 00:39:47.000 --> 00:39:50.019 history of King Alfred in the 800s and what he 00:39:50.019 --> 00:39:53.440 did in England. There was King Gustavus Adolphus 00:39:53.440 --> 00:39:56.119 the Great, who was a Christian king and commander 00:39:56.119 --> 00:39:59.719 from Sweden in the early 1600s. He was called 00:39:59.719 --> 00:40:02.159 the Lion from the North, and he greatly aided 00:40:02.159 --> 00:40:05.199 and defended the Protestants during that time 00:40:05.199 --> 00:40:08.599 period. as well as some of our own presidents 00:40:08.599 --> 00:40:12.780 loved the Lord Jesus and bowed before him. I 00:40:12.780 --> 00:40:15.400 would include in them, and this is not comprehensive, 00:40:15.800 --> 00:40:18.880 George Washington, John Quincy Adams, Teddy Roosevelt, 00:40:19.199 --> 00:40:22.949 and James Garfield. I also see a recovery coming 00:40:22.949 --> 00:40:25.829 in our own nation. In fact, I believe that not 00:40:25.829 --> 00:40:27.690 only in our nation, but throughout the world. 00:40:27.750 --> 00:40:32.409 I read a headline recently that even China could 00:40:32.409 --> 00:40:35.829 possibly be 15 to 20 years from great upheaval 00:40:35.829 --> 00:40:39.230 and from Christianity really taking hold there 00:40:39.230 --> 00:40:42.170 and then becoming a Christian nation. Just think 00:40:42.170 --> 00:40:44.449 of that. There are millions and millions of Christians 00:40:44.449 --> 00:40:48.429 there. Communism is going to come to an end in 00:40:48.429 --> 00:40:54.190 that country. There are many others. I do not 00:40:54.190 --> 00:40:56.530 have time to go into greater detail on this, 00:40:56.590 --> 00:40:58.750 but I just give you enough to whet your appetite 00:40:58.750 --> 00:41:01.989 to go after and to learn of these things. So 00:41:01.989 --> 00:41:04.650 let's close and let's look then at a few applications 00:41:04.650 --> 00:41:10.809 from this great truth. First of all, joy to the 00:41:10.809 --> 00:41:16.269 world. The Lord has come. Let us rejoice. Christmas. 00:41:16.880 --> 00:41:20.039 The incarnation, the celebration of the birth 00:41:20.039 --> 00:41:26.019 of Christ is the hinge pin of history. The birth 00:41:26.019 --> 00:41:30.760 of Christ is the hinge pin of history. Notice 00:41:30.760 --> 00:41:33.420 that, what does our calendar date itself to? 00:41:33.699 --> 00:41:35.960 I mean, it's off by a couple years now, but it 00:41:35.960 --> 00:41:42.400 was to his birth, to the birth of Christ. Without 00:41:42.400 --> 00:41:45.380 Christmas, without the incarnation, there is 00:41:45.380 --> 00:41:48.079 not the death of Christ. There is no atonement. 00:41:48.079 --> 00:41:50.940 There is no resurrection. There is no ascension 00:41:50.940 --> 00:41:53.800 to the Father and the sending forth of the Holy 00:41:53.800 --> 00:41:58.519 Spirit. At God's right hand are pleasures forevermore, 00:41:58.599 --> 00:42:01.219 and we need to live like it. We are not sour 00:42:01.219 --> 00:42:03.960 -faced prunes or dried -up pips, but should be 00:42:03.960 --> 00:42:06.260 well -nourished, flourishing, and overflowing 00:42:06.260 --> 00:42:10.260 with cheer and goodwill, for our God has prepared 00:42:10.260 --> 00:42:16.960 for us a feast, a feast of joy and delight, Has 00:42:16.960 --> 00:42:22.519 come. And the spirit of God. Has come. And Christ 00:42:22.519 --> 00:42:25.760 is seated. At the right hand of the father. He 00:42:25.760 --> 00:42:28.619 is ruling the nations. He will bring down the 00:42:28.619 --> 00:42:31.179 evil ones. And destroy them. And he will raise 00:42:31.179 --> 00:42:35.400 up the righteous. And he will reign. Until his 00:42:35.400 --> 00:42:42.409 enemies bow before him. Psalm 16. Verse 11. 9 00:42:42.409 --> 00:42:46.150 says, Therefore my heart is glad and my glory 00:42:46.150 --> 00:42:49.969 rejoices. My flesh also will rest in hope. And 00:42:49.969 --> 00:42:52.530 again in verse 11, You will show me the path 00:42:52.530 --> 00:42:55.869 of life. In your presence is fullness of joy. 00:42:56.050 --> 00:42:59.210 At your right hand are pleasures forevermore. 00:42:59.750 --> 00:43:02.349 Brothers and sisters, it's my desire that this 00:43:02.349 --> 00:43:05.949 church would be known for its joy, for its cheer, 00:43:06.110 --> 00:43:08.630 for its goodwill, for its delight in the things 00:43:08.630 --> 00:43:12.530 of God. And that that joy would splash over to 00:43:12.530 --> 00:43:15.690 our community, to those around us, to our friends 00:43:15.690 --> 00:43:18.969 and our neighbors. If you want to read more about 00:43:18.969 --> 00:43:21.329 this, I encourage you to read or listen to Doug 00:43:21.329 --> 00:43:24.170 Wilson's book, God Rescue Mary, Why Christmas 00:43:24.170 --> 00:43:29.599 is the Foundation for Everything. We look at 00:43:29.599 --> 00:43:32.539 this joy. We look at the prophecy about the kings 00:43:32.539 --> 00:43:36.679 and the desire and the vision for God to do great 00:43:36.679 --> 00:43:40.860 things, bringing the nations to himself. And 00:43:40.860 --> 00:43:43.119 we think about it over the last century. What 00:43:43.119 --> 00:43:49.480 happened? Where did that joy go? Why was so much 00:43:49.480 --> 00:43:55.820 of it lost? Our own Civil War and the World War 00:43:55.820 --> 00:43:59.019 I did much to set back the understanding that 00:43:59.019 --> 00:44:02.840 I'm teaching here. With the rise of a dispensational 00:44:02.840 --> 00:44:06.500 theology, the removal of the understanding of 00:44:06.500 --> 00:44:10.659 Jesus as King now, the church, not everywhere, 00:44:10.800 --> 00:44:13.219 but in many places in the U .S. and in Britain 00:44:13.219 --> 00:44:17.840 and in other places, it fell into miasma of pessimism. 00:44:18.659 --> 00:44:22.449 It's like, oh, all is lost. I forget to put the 00:44:22.449 --> 00:44:24.849 quote from Spurgeon here, so I'm not going to 00:44:24.849 --> 00:44:28.550 give this exactly, but he said one time, the 00:44:28.550 --> 00:44:30.690 end of all things is at hand and there's to be 00:44:30.690 --> 00:44:33.869 no prosperity, there's to be no reign of Christ 00:44:33.869 --> 00:44:36.969 and there's to be no joy on the earth if you 00:44:36.969 --> 00:44:39.429 listen to what some of our brethren say. And 00:44:39.429 --> 00:44:42.489 then he goes on to expound further on the great 00:44:42.489 --> 00:44:45.750 joy of the lands of the earth coming to know 00:44:45.750 --> 00:44:53.789 Christ. What happened? Well, As we are sometimes 00:44:53.789 --> 00:44:56.710 prone to do, we start interpreting the Bible 00:44:56.710 --> 00:45:01.329 through current events instead of interpreting 00:45:01.329 --> 00:45:04.809 current events through the Bible. We interpret 00:45:04.809 --> 00:45:07.889 the Bible through current events. We see what's 00:45:07.889 --> 00:45:11.090 happening around us, and then we go and say, 00:45:11.150 --> 00:45:13.070 well, that's what this is speaking of here, and 00:45:13.070 --> 00:45:17.349 so this is all we can expect. Now, it is true 00:45:17.349 --> 00:45:21.670 that there is persecution. There still is persecution. 00:45:22.070 --> 00:45:24.489 We have begun a habit here of praying for the 00:45:24.489 --> 00:45:27.230 persecuted church. And I'm giving you more information 00:45:27.230 --> 00:45:31.369 as we pray for these countries. Persecution is 00:45:31.369 --> 00:45:36.769 a reality. We know that. And that is something 00:45:36.769 --> 00:45:40.369 that Jesus even tells us to rejoice. But the 00:45:40.369 --> 00:45:44.590 persecuted church is looking forward to the glorious 00:45:44.590 --> 00:45:49.570 church. Because sometimes, Triumph comes through 00:45:49.570 --> 00:45:53.170 great pain and difficulty. And so do not think 00:45:53.170 --> 00:45:56.469 that because there is persecution that all of 00:45:56.469 --> 00:45:58.530 these wonderful passages of scripture do not 00:45:58.530 --> 00:46:01.289 mean anything anymore. That is not the case. 00:46:01.489 --> 00:46:04.550 We must understand that it is through great trial 00:46:04.550 --> 00:46:08.070 and persecution that the kingdom advances. And 00:46:08.070 --> 00:46:10.630 obviously that is under the lordship of Christ 00:46:10.630 --> 00:46:14.190 as well. One of the things that we can pray for 00:46:14.190 --> 00:46:17.710 is that of lesser magistrates who will stand 00:46:17.710 --> 00:46:20.869 up and protect the people that are in their care 00:46:20.869 --> 00:46:24.309 and protect them against the tyrant. There's 00:46:24.309 --> 00:46:26.530 a whole doctrine and theology of that. I don't 00:46:26.530 --> 00:46:28.530 have time to get into it all today. I do need 00:46:28.530 --> 00:46:32.730 to do that. But the doctrine of the lesser magistrate 00:46:32.730 --> 00:46:37.690 protecting those who are under him against the 00:46:37.690 --> 00:46:41.590 tyranny of the greater magistrate. This is really 00:46:41.590 --> 00:46:44.349 what happened in the whole Declaration of Independence 00:46:44.349 --> 00:46:48.230 of our own country and many other places. There's 00:46:48.230 --> 00:46:50.789 books written about it, some excellent ones, 00:46:50.989 --> 00:46:54.190 but I'm just going to mention it here. The great 00:46:54.190 --> 00:46:59.989 works of God will not come about through legislation 00:46:59.989 --> 00:47:04.860 or education, although both are important. This 00:47:04.860 --> 00:47:08.420 great work of God in the world comes by the Spirit 00:47:08.420 --> 00:47:11.760 of God renewing the face of the earth. By the 00:47:11.760 --> 00:47:14.599 work of Christ redeeming and calling to himself 00:47:14.599 --> 00:47:18.760 a people from every nation, every tribe, and 00:47:18.760 --> 00:47:21.760 every family. And through a transformed people, 00:47:21.960 --> 00:47:25.260 they do good works. They meet together for worship. 00:47:25.340 --> 00:47:30.119 And Christ builds his church. And the gates of 00:47:30.119 --> 00:47:34.650 hell will not stand against the onslaught. of 00:47:34.650 --> 00:47:38.489 Christ and of his kingdom. We think, when we 00:47:38.489 --> 00:47:41.769 think of that passage, we often think of the 00:47:41.769 --> 00:47:44.909 gates of hell coming out against us. But no, 00:47:45.010 --> 00:47:48.590 the gates of hell are defensive. And what Jesus 00:47:48.590 --> 00:47:50.909 is saying to Peter and to the apostles in that 00:47:50.909 --> 00:47:53.630 passage is that the gates of hell won't stand. 00:47:54.329 --> 00:47:57.849 They should not stand against Christ's church. 00:47:59.309 --> 00:48:05.010 They will be torn down. The rise of secular humanism, 00:48:05.050 --> 00:48:08.510 as we have seen in our own country, is a temporary 00:48:08.510 --> 00:48:12.170 setback. It too will self -destruct. The curse 00:48:12.170 --> 00:48:15.750 of abortion will come to an end and children 00:48:15.750 --> 00:48:18.949 will be loved and valued. The nations who do 00:48:18.949 --> 00:48:23.670 not serve God will perish and God will raise 00:48:23.670 --> 00:48:27.170 up a people and nations in their stead wherein 00:48:27.170 --> 00:48:33.480 the true worship of God will abound. Just a couple 00:48:33.480 --> 00:48:37.579 more closing thoughts, applications. As we consider 00:48:37.579 --> 00:48:40.960 our own political involvement here in our own 00:48:40.960 --> 00:48:46.159 country, we seek to do that which is best. And 00:48:46.159 --> 00:48:48.519 obviously, some of the candidates that we might 00:48:48.519 --> 00:48:52.849 choose... to rule over us are not necessarily 00:48:52.849 --> 00:48:55.010 the best, but they're better than others. And 00:48:55.010 --> 00:48:57.690 sometimes we have to make decisions about that 00:48:57.690 --> 00:49:00.489 as to what is in the best interest for us at 00:49:00.489 --> 00:49:02.610 this time, even though this particular candidate 00:49:02.610 --> 00:49:07.130 may not be ideal in all respects. But I will 00:49:07.130 --> 00:49:10.210 say this, a biblical political theory does not 00:49:10.210 --> 00:49:13.369 just seek to conserve, but it rather seeks to 00:49:13.369 --> 00:49:17.949 be obedient to Christ in our practice and to 00:49:17.949 --> 00:49:22.670 choose. Rulers and magistrates who will humbly 00:49:22.670 --> 00:49:26.130 fulfill their duties while bowing and acknowledging 00:49:26.130 --> 00:49:32.710 Jesus as Lord. That is what we desire. Conservative 00:49:32.710 --> 00:49:36.489 values are not enough. They need to kiss the 00:49:36.489 --> 00:49:40.489 sun in light of Christ's authority. Hear the 00:49:40.489 --> 00:49:44.030 instructions of Psalm 2 verse 10 to 12. Now therefore 00:49:44.030 --> 00:49:49.090 be wise. O kings, be instructed, you judges of 00:49:49.090 --> 00:49:52.889 the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice 00:49:52.889 --> 00:49:57.489 with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry 00:49:57.489 --> 00:50:01.429 and you perish in the way when his wrath is kindled 00:50:01.429 --> 00:50:04.630 but a little. Blessed are all those who put their 00:50:04.630 --> 00:50:08.650 trust in him. Perhaps God will raise up out of 00:50:08.650 --> 00:50:13.530 this congregation someday some judges or senators 00:50:13.530 --> 00:50:17.019 or representatives, Or maybe even a governor. 00:50:17.199 --> 00:50:19.760 We don't know what the future holds. But what 00:50:19.760 --> 00:50:22.380 we want to do though. Is to lay the foundation. 00:50:22.420 --> 00:50:25.739 For good governance. For good ability. But of 00:50:25.739 --> 00:50:29.300 confession of Christ. And of bowing before him 00:50:29.300 --> 00:50:34.000 as Lord. In submission. The outworking of these 00:50:34.000 --> 00:50:37.739 prophecies. Are yet. to be completely fulfilled. 00:50:38.099 --> 00:50:41.380 The work of Jesus conquering the nations until 00:50:41.380 --> 00:50:45.719 all submit will likely take a very long time. 00:50:46.059 --> 00:50:51.179 We could be yet in just in the infant stage of 00:50:51.179 --> 00:50:54.980 the church with thousands of years to come. We 00:50:54.980 --> 00:51:00.219 do not know this, but we must seek to build lasting 00:51:00.219 --> 00:51:05.349 things. Let us build for many generations. Lay 00:51:05.349 --> 00:51:09.289 the foundations now for many years to come of 00:51:09.289 --> 00:51:13.949 which I will preach next day, Lord willing, in 00:51:13.949 --> 00:51:16.150 the first Sunday of the year. Let's pray.