›Isaiah 61
›The Rebuilding Light
1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.
(Isaiah 61:1-3, ESV)
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.
5 Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks;
foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers;
6 but you shall be called the priests of the LORD;
they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God;
you shall eat the wealth of the nations,
and in their glory you shall boast.
7 Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion;
instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot;
therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion;
they shall have everlasting joy.
8 For I the LORD love justice;
I hate robbery and wrong;
I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their offspring shall be known among the nations,
and their descendants in the midst of the peoples;
all who see them shall acknowledge them,
that they are an offspring the LORD has blessed.
10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,
so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise
to sprout up before all the nations.
(Isaiah 61:4-11, ESV)
›Main Point
› These verses further establish what God is going to do
› The people will know faith, justice, righteousness, and worship
› God will not contend with darkness forever
› The Light which shines will permeate this world and all those who follow into it
Application Points
›The Rebuilding Light
–Today we glimpse something of incredible significance
– It is the Anointed Servant Messiah of the Lord who comes to proclaim and do the work of the Lord
– That work is to release the prisoners
– To accomplish what no human could
– It is the work of the Anointed Servant Messiah which causes this to occur
– He rebuilds the broken places
– How we are like those broken down buildings because of sin and sorrow
– We can become decrepit because of these things
– What is needed is for the house to be gutted, for the house to be rebuilt with a stronger foundation
– The New Testament uses such imagery as Isaiah
“18 So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple,[c] and will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.”
(John 2:18-22, ESV)
“11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
(I Corinthians 3:11-17, ESV)
“18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
(I Corinthians 6:18-20, ESV)
“4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
(I Peter 2:4-6, ESV)
Application Points
› The Rebuilding Light (2)
– We who are true believers are temples to God
– While we were previously built with straw which was easily burned up
– The more we live in accordance with God’s will…the stronger the houses we possess
– We always come to this conclusion
– This could not be possible without the Anointed Servant Messiah
– He is the cornerstone without which no house could stand
– Because He has come and proclaimed the truth to us, we are capable of being set free
– In knowing Him we can love and cherish and be transformed by His Word
Application Points
› The Rebuilding Light (3)
– This is true Light
– In it we see our redemption
– To not embrace this is to embrace darkness
– Our purpose is not to create our own light, or redefine light
– No, Light is found in God already
– All that is required of us is to be believe that which has been done
– Our chains have been set free, and we are now able to live in accordance with the Light rather than the darkness
– Gaze, then, on the Light of God Himself and be beautified by it
– Gaze and be cleansed
– Gaze and know the truth
– Gaze and be robed in righteousness
– Gaze into the Light which rebuilds our brokenness
Application Points
› The Gospel of Christ
– Origins
– Fall
– Redemption
– Glorification
