Sermon Notes: Isaiah 30:15-18 (KJV) For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not. [16] But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift. [17] One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill. [18] And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

Audio of Sermon: 

Israel had fallen away from God. Her economy was teetering. Enemies surrounded her. Civilization had become uncivilized. There was a movement to “Make Israel Great Again” (also called MIGA), and politicians suggested numerous ways to bring Israel back from the brink of disaster. What hope did they have? Their hope is in God. The Psalmist David – a man after God’s own heart – wrote:

Psalm 33:12 (KJV) Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

Israel can be great again, but only when the majority of that nation turns to God. American can be great again, but only when a majority of this nation returns to God. God says to His nation:

In returning and rest shall ye be saved;
in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength:
and ye would not.

God has not made us for destruction. He wants us to be blessed, to be saved. He has said:

1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 (NKJV) For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

God took extraordinary measures to bless us all. Yet God gives us freedom of choice. We see that in the four words at the end of verse 15:

and ye would not

There are four words here, and the Fourth Commandment is to take a day to rest and worship God. God calls us to His side. He wants to bless us. Will we do as He asks, or will we refuse Him?

God Is Waiting For The Sinner

In our world today it is inappropriate and politically incorrect to call anyone a “Sinner”. There are no Sinners anymore. The phrase we must use now is “Seeker”, and as a Church we must be “Seeker Sensitive”. We have changed the hymns to make God appear more appealing to the Seeker. We no longer “Repent” from sin, but “make a decision” for God.

But God calls to all sinners. He calls to the lost. Jesus seeks out the lost. God says to the lost world:

In returning and rest shall ye be saved

God has an R&R Program that will bless you.
He calls on everyone who will to return and rest.

What are we to RETURN to? We are to walk away from sin, from life as we want it, and to RETURN to the God Who made us. God made each and every one of us, and He did not make us to be entertained in sin’s playground. God created you with purpose. The Psalmist said:

Psalm 139:13-18 (NKJV) For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. … 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You.

God made us to walk with Him and to be cherished of Him. The Bible says of our creation that the Triune God said:

Genesis 1:26 (NKJV) Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness”

We are all made in the image and likeness of our Creator.
We were not made to be gods, but were made to be God’s Possession and Companion.
We belong to Him. He made us to walk with Him.
We were made to rest in Him.

God says in RETURNING and REST you shall be saved. To RETURN means to walk away from where you are and to come back to Him Who loves you.

In Luke 15 our Lord Jesus tells an interesting story of the Prodigal or Wandering Son.

Luke 15:11-13 (NKJV) … A certain man had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. 13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.

The younger son took everything that the Father gave him, his entire inheritance, and then left the quiet blessing of home. We all have been prodigals at one time or the other. Everything we have, we have from God. If we have beauty, we have this from God. If we have brains, we have this from God. If we have successful businesses and large bank accounts we have this from God. God formed you in your mother’s womb. God gave you the talents and abilities that you have. Life itself is a gift from God:

Ecclesiastes 5:19 (ESV) Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power TO ENJOY THEM, AND TO ACCEPT HIS LOT AND REJOICE IN HIS TOIL—this is the gift of God.

The young son, the wandering son, went to a far country, far away from where he should be. There he took his inheritance and let the world make merchandise of him. His life began to fall apart. Things began to look bleak. His inheritance began to dry up. Jesus went on to say:

Luke 15:14-16 (NKJV) But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. 15 Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16 And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.

So it is with the world. While you have much, the world will supply you many friends … until the money dries up. The young man’s life began to get worst and worst, eventually to the point where he was eating slop from the hog-pen. I cannot imagine that! But then in the midst of his suffering:

Luke 15:17-20 (NKJV) But when HE CAME TO HIMSELF, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’ 20 AND HE AROSE AND CAME TO HIS FATHER.

The young man first CAME TO HIS SENSES then he CAME TO HIS FATHER. Oh sinner, this is what God requires of you. He said:

In RETURNING and REST shall ye be saved

Return to the God Who made you.
Run into the arms of Jesus.
Christ came to this earth to save sinners.

He could not save Pharisees, nor could He save the self righteous, but He came to

Matthew 18:11 (NKJV) For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.

Luke 5:32 (NKJV) I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.

God says return and rest. Return to Him Who loves you, and Rest in His provision of salvation. Trust Him Who gave His life for you. The Prodigal Son said “I will ARISE AND GO TO MY FATHER”. What will the young man say? “I have SINNED against Heaven and against YOU. I am NOT WORTHY to be called your Son. Just make me a servant, that will be fine.” So the Prodigal Wandering Son heads home, his speech memorized, willing to humble himself. As he came home we read:

Luke 15:20-21 (NKJV) And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

The Father was waiting for His Child to come home. When He saw him, He met him half way. He fell on the Child’s neck, kissed him, and heard His son’s repentance. “Father, I have SINNED against Heaven and in Your sight. I am not worthy.” How did the Father respond?

Luke 15:22-24 (NKJV) But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.

The Heavenly Father waits for you. In RETURNING and REST YOU SHALL BE SAVED. While you are wandering far from God in a far country God cannot bless you. God has His arms open for you. GOD IS SEEKING YOU. The Great Preacher C.H. Spurgeon wrote:

“What you need, in returning to God, is to rest in Him. Here is the answer to the question which we asked just now concerning your sin. “Listen,” says God, “do not let your past sin keep you back from Me, for I laid My sin upon the shoulders of My Son. I allowed Him to be scourged as though He had been the guilty one. I gave Him up to the executioners as though He had been a malefactor. I even drew My own sword from its scabbard, and smote My well-beloved Son with it. While He was bearing your sin, I left Him alone till He cried, in His anguish, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’ I gave Him up to endure the bitter pangs of death that He might bear the wrath that was due to you. Now, then, as He has borne the punishment for all your sin, come unto Me, and rest in Me!

Jesus came for you. Jesus seeks you. I love the Parable of the Prodigal, but I also love the story told of a tax collector name Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was a horrible person, a sinner of the first order. But one day he heard that Jesus was coming into his town. So when Zacchaeus heard the crowd following Jesus he climbed up a tree. The Bible tells us:

Luke 19:5-6 (NKJV) {Jesus} looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So he made haste and came down, and RECEIVED HIM JOYFULLY. 7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”

Perhaps you are afraid to walk with Jesus and make this known to the world today. “What will they think of me if I receive Christ as my Lord and Savior”. If they are genuine Christians they will rejoice with you, not judge you. If they are self righteous hypocrites – well, who cares what they think! The self righteous hypocrite is going to hell anyway (see Matthew 23:13-15). Jesus said of the self righteous hypocrites:

Matthew 23:27 (ESV) Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness.

Don’t let a self righteous hell bound hypocrite keep you from God’s invitation. “In RETURNING and REST you shall be SAVED”. When Zacchaeus let Jesus into his life he said “I will return everything I have taken unlawfully, and I will give half my goods to the poor”. Salvation is always accompanied by sanctification. The saved return and rest in their God. Jesus told that crowd that day:

Luke 19:9-10 (NKJV) Today salvation has come to this house … for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.

This is what “Seeker Sensitive” is. God seeks you. Christ reaches out for you. If life has got you up a tree, listen to Him. Come down from the tree. Get out of the hog slop. In RETURNING and REST you shall be SAVED. Come to Jesus in faith, trusting His promise. He is there for you. He has said:

Matthew 11:28-30 (NKJV) Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

In RETURNING and REST shall ye be saved

God Is Waiting For The Saved

Isaiah 30:15 (KJV) For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel;
In returning and rest shall ye be saved;
in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength:

In the first part of the text God spoke to the lost sinner, but in the second half of the invitation God speaks to the Saved Who have drifted off course. He says:

in QUIETNESS and in CONFIDENCE shall be your strength:

There are many who profess to know Christ as Savior but have wandered away from the Lord. God tells His people to do two things. To be QUIET or to SHUT UP and rest in God’s faithfulness. We see this frequently throughout the Scripture:

Psalm 46:10 (NKJV) Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

Life is filled with trouble, but the saved life is filled with God. When trials and tribulations come we are not to frantically run about seeking a solution. In QUIETNESS and In CONFIDENCE shall be your strength. Do not go down to Egypt for help, but look up to Christ. Hold loosely to all earthly things, but cling to the Lord Who saved you. Jesus said:

Matthew 6:22-23 (NKJV) The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Where are your spiritual eyes focused when troubles come? Let your focus be on your Savior. God is faithful. God always faithful. Everything that comes your way comes under the watchful care of the Lord Who gave His life for you. Be still – be quiet. Take hold of your soul. King David, a man after God’s own heart, often took control of his soul when it wandered from God. David said – TWICE –

Psalm 42:11 (NKJV) Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God.

Psalm 43:5 (NKJV) Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God.

How horrible to have a Cadillac salvation but to ride through life on a Schwinn bike!
To fight your way up every hill and mount when you could ride in luxury trusting Him.

When we are quiet in Him we do not panic in the midst of the trial, but look to the Lover of our souls. He will fight our battles. When God is with us:

Isaiah 30:17 (KJV) One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.

Then we are always in the majority. The great winners of Scripture were those individuals that trusted in God, that looked for Him in the midst of adversity.

The Great WINNERS of Scripture Were Not Great WHINERS But Great TRUSTERS

I remember the story of that great prophet Elisha who was surrounded by his enemies. His servant cried out in fear.

“Alas my master! What shall we do?”

What was Elisha’s reply?

“Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

The servant looked – I am sure – at Elisha as if he were crazy. But then Elisha prayed:

2 Kings 6:17 (NKJV) … “Lord, I pray, open {my servant’s} eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, THE MOUNTAIN WAS FULL OF HORSES AND CHARIOTS OF FIRE ALL AROUND ELISHA.

God is with His people. I am not Elisha but my prayer is that God will open your eyes to see this. God has promised:

Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) … “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

John 10:28 (NKJV) … And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

Worrying about what is presently in your life does no good at all. “In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength”.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV) Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

The devil cannot defeat the believer focused on his Savior. The world cannot confuse the follower of Christ. Be still. Be quiet. Be confident in your Savior and Lord.

God Is Waiting For YOU

Isaiah 30:18 (KJV) And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

God loves you, and is waiting on you. Will you, dear Sinner, return to the God Who loves you so? Will you, dear child of God, cast your life upon Him Who gave Himself for you? God is waiting for you that He might bless you. Come to Him through Christ today.