DATE: MARCH 17, 2013 SERMON TEXT: ISAIAH 43:18-25 SERMON TITLE: Finding Our Way Out of the Darkness

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1 1 DATE: MARCH 17, 2013 SERMON TEXT: ISAIAH 43:18-25 SERMON TITLE: Finding Our Way Out of the Darkness I have been watching the History Channel s series entitled The Bible. When compared to other cinematic attempts to tell the Bible s story, this production is much different. Gone are the clean-cut characters. They have been replaced by the smudge-faced and shabbily dressed, which is most likely more realistic. One thing that hasn t changed is the presence of God. When Charlton Hesston I mean Moses went up on Mt. Sinai to meet God it was a real encounter. God spoke and Moses listened and there was no doubt what was taking place. The same is true in the presentation of The Bible. The voice is loud and clear and there is no mistaking that it is God. There are times in scripture when God has not been seen or heard with such certainty and clarity. There are many occasions in the biblical text when Israel cried out to a silent God, Where are you? Why have you forsaken us? Our sermon text for today is one of those dark times for Israel. In our sermon text this morning, God is speaking to Israel through the prophet Isaiah during a dark period of Israel s history. Having been taken captive by the Babylonian Empire, Israel had lost hope in their God. They were confused about the activity of God in their lives. After all it was Yahweh who had been so

2 2 faithful to their ancestors, delivering them from the chains of bondage in Egypt. Why had the same God not delivered them from the hands of the Babylonians as well? Where were their swarms of locusts? Where were their rivers of blood? Where were their gnats and their boils and their frogs? The plagues had worked to their credit in Egypt. Why would they not work against Babylon as well? The question on the hearts of all of Israel was Why, Lord, why have you forsaken us? In the 43 rd chapter of Isaiah, Isaiah is definitely speaking to a depressed and hopeless house of Israel dwelling in a world of darkness. These stories of feeling abandoned and hopeless are not only the stories of Israel, but metaphorically speaking they are our stories as well. For what one of us has not experienced times in our lives when we too have wallowed in the darkness of doubt and feelings of aloneness? For some it is more real than for others; regardless of the intensity we have all most likely been there. This morning I would like to spend some time talking about how to navigate our way through the dark days of our lives using the words of the prophet as our guide. Hopefully you may find these words helpful. Our ability to find our way out of the darkness begins with our ability to be future-oriented. Israel was down in the mouth because as they surveyed their history they could not understand why God was not being faithful to them as God had been to

3 3 their ancestors. They were unable to see their future because they could only focus on their past. But through the prophet God encourages Israel not to dwell in the past because the only way out is to focus on where you are going, not where you have been. In other words, God is saying, Look up. That is where your future is; that is where the light is; that is where the greater possibilities lie. I am deathly afraid of heights. It is a phobia that I was confronted with from time to time when I was farming, especially during silo-filling time. I just dreaded having to climb up the outside of a silo 60 feet tall. The only way I could do it was to keep my eyes focused on what was above me, not what was below me. If I looked down, I was paralyzed by my fear. Climbing out of an emotional pit of despair is no different. If you are standing on a ladder prepared to climb out of that pit, what good does it do you to look down? All you see is where you have been, and it was those things that put you in the pit to start with. In order to get out of the pit you must not dwell on the former things; instead you must put your past behind you and look forward to the future. In order for you to be this forward-thinking you have to believe that God is capable of doing new things in your life. Israel tied the hands of God by not expecting God to do something greater for them than what He had done for their ancestors in Egypt. It was almost as if

4 4 they believed that God had pulled out all the stops in Egypt; God had performed His greatest magic, fired all the big guns, and now there was nothing new left for God to do for them. But Israel s God was a much bigger God than that, and God did not allow them to wallow in their past. Through the prophet God promised them that He would do a new thing for them. Using the desert as a metaphor for their emotional despair, God reminded Israel that they would enjoy streams of living water just as refreshing and just as life-giving as their ancestors had enjoyed in their desert experience. The reason a lot of people cannot find their way out of their darkness is because they cannot comprehend a life any better than what they are experiencing right now. People become stuck in a time warp, unable to comprehend any kind of hope for the future because they are so focused on their past. If your expectations for your life s future are based solely on how your life was, how can you expect your life to be any better than it ever was? Navigating our way through the darkness begins with having enough faith and trust in God that God will do new things in our lives. Our God is an awesome God who created this universe and all things that are contained in it. Do you actually think that the same God is incapable of doing a new thing for you? Seek out, brothers and sisters, the new thing that God is doing in your life.

5 5 Perhaps the most important piece of our ability to find our way out of the darkness has to do with our spirit. A healthy and spiritual center is important in our efforts to transcend the darkness. When I first read this text from Isaiah, it read as though sin was the reason Israel had found herself in a pit of despair. But after a closer reading, it became clear that the reason for Israel s lament had more to do with her indifference toward God. Hear God s complaint against Israel once more: You have not called upon me, O Jacob, You have not wearied yourselves for me, O Israel. You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings, nor sacrificed me with your sacrifices. You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me, Or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifice. It is obvious that there was a gaping hole in Israel s spirit. What was missing was an intimate relationship with their God. Israel had stopped loving her God. Israel had stopped doing those things that demonstrated how they truly felt about God. And as a result their spirit had been depleted. And as we all know, it is very difficult for a depleted spirit to navigate through any adversity; it simply does not have the energy. It does not have the energy because what energy it does have it uses up worrying about what was. A depleted spirit is a spirit that has no vision for the future. A depleted spirit cannot comprehend a God who can do new things in its life.

6 6 Our ability to navigate the darkness will require a spirit that is right with God. And a right spirit with God is a spirit that spends time with God, praising God, worshiping God, adoring God with our gifts of time and treasure. A right spirit is a spirit that does not simply burden God with the sins we have committed, but praises God for the wonderful things that God has done for us and will continue to do. Being right with God is where our wholeness really begins, for only then can we truly find the hope, the trust, and the faith in God that will place our feet on solid ground. You know, brothers and sisters, there are times we will all find ourselves in a pit of despair. But remember this: a pit is nothing more than a hole in the ground. It is important in life when you find yourself in a hole to stop digging before your hole becomes a pit and before your pit becomes your grave. Be a forward-looking person. Do not dwell in your past; instead look to God, and yes, even demand from your God that a new thing will come into your life, a new thing that restores you as a whole and healthy child of God. And above all, take stock of your spirit this day. Do not make the mistake of being indifferent toward your God, but give God the love and the devotion our God deserves.

7 7 Look expectantly for the new thing God is about to do in your life and embrace it with the calm assurance that our God is a God of grace and hope and peace and promise.