Text:
Isaiah 59:1-2:
1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not
hear.
Theme:
It’s All Because Of Our Sin
Introduction:
- The Book of Isaiah is the first of the books of major prophecy in the Old Testament and are written, of course, by the prophet Isaiah, sometime referred to as “Esaias” in the New Testament.
- The book is divided into three sections:
- The first section (35 chapters) is purely prophetic and written during the Assyrian threat.
- The second section (4 chapters) is historical and reflective of the life and times of King Hezekiah.
- The third section (27 chapters) is once again prophetic and written during the Babylonian threat.
- The book has 66 chapters, the same number of chapter as books in the Biblical canon.
- 39 chapters in the first two sections — the same number of books in the Old Testament.
- 27 chapters in the third section — the same number of book in the New Testament.
- The book is divided into three sections:
- The 59th chapter in prophetic fashion expresses to the people that it simply “Ain’t God’s fault”!
- The first two verses that comprise our text “take the sugar off the pill”!
- People often lie to ourselves, blame others, and be in denial to avoid the TRUTH!
- Reading Isaiah 59:1-2 make us face the TRUTH:
- It’s All Because Of Our Sin!
- The first two verses that comprise our text “take the sugar off the pill”!
Body:
- Verse 1 tells us what has not happened:
- Anthropomorphic expression of God’s power and presence
- God’s hand and ear are figurative. God’s power and presence are real!
- Anthropomorphic expression of God’s power and presence
- God has NOT changed!
- Psalms 90:2, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.”
- Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.”
- His Hand is still saves!
- Numbers 11:23, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Is the LORD’S hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not.”
- Deuteronomy 5:15, “And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.”
- John 10:29, “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
- Acts 11:21, “And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.”
- His Ear still hears!
- We cry to God and trust that He “hears” our prayer!
- Psalms 17:6, “I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.”
- Psalms 77:1, “I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice; and he gave ear unto me.”
- God still “hears” the prayers of the righteous
- Psalms 34:15, “The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.”
- James 5:16, “….The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
- Verse 2 tells us what has happened:and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
- “your iniquities” = “your sins”
- Iniquities = wickedness = what’s wrong with us = sin
- Everybody has iniquities or sins
- It’s in our makeup à Psalms 51:5, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.”
- We have sinned before à Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
- We all STILL sin! à Romans 7:19-20, “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.”
-
- Don’t lie to yourself or others!
- 1John 1:8, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”
- Only Jesus was/is without sin!
- Hebrews 4:15, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”
- Don’t lie to yourself or others!
Sin has consequences!
- “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God”
- Sin separates the creation from the Creator
- Romans 8:7, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”
- Exodus 33:14-15 “And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.”
- We sin and separate ourselves from God
- Ezekiel 14:7, “For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:”
- Sin separates the creation from the Creator
- “your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear”
- God’s face = God’s presence
- Psalms 105:4, “Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face evermore.”
- Exodus 33:14-15, “And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.”
- God hides His face from us à takes away His presence from us
- Micah 3:4, “Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved themselves ill in their doings.”
- Matthew 7:23, “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
- Isaiah 54:8, “In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.”
- God does not hear when He is not present!!
- 2Kings 18:12, “Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.”
- But your iniquities have separated between you and your God,
- God’s face = God’s presence
It’s All Because Of Our Sin!
- Our sin is what puts us in the situations that we are in!
- You cannot avoid the consequences of SIN — Numbers 32:23, “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.”
- “Bad Fortune” is because of SIN — Jeremiah 5:25, “Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.”
- Because à If there were no sin, there would be no Bad Fortune in the first place!
- Sin is not the reason for our situation — the CONVICTION of sin
- Romans 6:14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
- SIN is the CONDITION that allows our situation to exist! — the CONDITION of SIN
- Romans 5:12,
- It’s All Because Of Our Sin!
Conclusion:
- After seeing what sin has done, does and will do, we have to Thank God for His forgiveness!
- 1John 1:9,“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
- We can still have rough times — The CONDITION of SIN
- BUT, we know that trouble don’t last always — The CONVICTION of SIN
- Psalms 30:5, “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
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