ISAIAH 22-23 22:15-23:182008 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Isaiah 22-23 22:15-23:18

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2008. As we continue our study in Isaiah, we're in chapter 22 now, and we start out in verses 15 and 16 with a new instruction being given to Isaiah.

And God is telling Isaiah to go to a specific man in the nation of Judah. Last week we looked at the first part of chapter 22, verses 1 through 14, and how God was giving instruction and really a prophecy against Judah, the nation of Judah, prophesying that judgment was going to come.

that Babylon was going to conquer them, that their young men would not be slain mighty in battle, courageous in battle, but would be slain by fleeing from battle and by retreating and running from and trying to escape from battle, and that the Babylonian army would be victorious in conquering the nation of Judah.

Well, within the nation of Judah, at the time of Isaiah's life, there was this man named Shebna. And we don't know a whole lot about this man named Shebna. He's only mentioned here in Isaiah chapter 22. He's mentioned another time in 2 Kings chapters 18 and 19.

And one more time in Isaiah chapters 36 and 37. Each time he's mentioned, it's usually added on that he is a scribe. And so we know him to be a person of authority. He was involved in dealing with the Assyrian army when Assyria was trying to attack Judah. And he was involved in the negotiations along with a couple other men. And so he was a man of authority within the nation of Judah.

of Judah. But God has some words of rebuke and correction for this man named Shebna, this man who had authority in the nation of Judah. And they're not good words. In fact, they're very, very bad words. He's rebuking Shebna really for his pride. Now, Jewish tradition holds that

Shebna was involved in one of two things. That either he was involved as a traitor, that he was working behind the closed doors with the Assyrian army, trying to surrender the city of Jerusalem to Assyria.

or another school of thought among Jewish tradition is that he was wanting to and trying to persuade people to form an alliance with Egypt in order to fight off the nation of Assyria. And so whatever the case was, both were contrary to what God had given instruction for

and what God desired to do with the nation of Judah. And there's this man who has authority in the nation of Judah that is out of line, and so God begins to deal with him. He says in verse 16 to Isaiah, Go proceed to the steward, to Shebna who is over the house. He has authority within the house of Judah. And he says in verse 16, What have you here, and whom have you here, that you have hewn a sepulcher here?

Here's the situation. Shebna, we have an indication here that he might be a foreigner because God's saying, who do you have here and what do you have going on here? But he's there, he's in authority. The Assyrian army is coming in.

They've just received the prophecy that Babylon is going to be successful in conquering, that the nation of Judah, the city of Jerusalem, is going to be conquered. But Shebna does not receive that word. He doesn't receive that prophecy. Instead, he doesn't prepare to be conquered. He prepares...

A monument to himself. And this is something that they would do in that time. If you wanted to make sure that you were remembered, you would make for yourself a glorious grave. And he's up on the rocks, up high, indicating that he wanted everybody to know his position, his status. He's up there on the mountains and making sure he has this nice, elaborate, glorious burial place so that his name would be known long after his death.

It's really a sense or a statement of rebellion against God saying, no, we're not going to be conquered. No, we're not going to be destroyed. Like you said, we're going to last. And to prove that I'm going to put my burial site up here and make it magnificent for all to remember, for all to remember me. He was lifted up in pride, full of himself, full

And God is going to deal with him. In verse 17, God says, Verse 19, Verse 20,

And from your position, he will pull you down or I will pull you down. Here, verses 17 through 19, we find the judgment that's pronounced upon Shebna. God says, here's the problem. You're not listening to me. You're high. You're puffed up and full of yourself. You're full of pride. And so what does the scripture say in Proverbs 16, 18? Pride comes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.

Pride goes before destruction. And it's proven here in the prophecy that's given towards Shebna. As he is lifted up in pride, well, it comes before his destruction. God says, here's what's going to happen. I'm going to throw you away violently. You're not going to die all peacefully and have this glorious burial and be put in this grave that you're carving out for yourself in the mountain. No. Instead...

I like the wording that God uses here. I'm going to toss you like a ball into a large country. Just going to throw you out. And you're going to be out there in the field, out there just in the midst, in the middle of nowhere in a large country. There you're going to die. You're glorious chariots. Now, this is what leads me to believe that he was seeking to make an alliance with Egypt because Egypt was known for their chariots. His master, he said he'll be the shame of his master's house.

seeking to make that alliance with Egypt possibly, that he's going to be ending up in a position of shame. He's going to be thrown out. He's going to be removed from his office, he says in verse 19, and be pulled out of his position, thrown violently out of the country, into the field, just like you would throw a ball. God's going to just rip him out of there, take him out of that place of authority, and put him back where he belongs.

Out in the middle of nowhere. Pride comes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. He's lifted up in pride, perhaps because of his position of authority, perhaps because of his great negotiation skills. Who knows? But there is he is making sure he wants everybody to know that he was and that he had this role and how great he was before.

God says, no, it's not going to happen that way. Pride will go before destruction. But God is good. He doesn't leave his people without a leader. He doesn't leave his people without authority. And so we find that he replaces Shebna in verse 20. It says, then it shall be in that day that I will call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah.

I will clothe him with your robe and strengthen him with your belt. I will commit your responsibility into his hand. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.

Verse 22, the key of the house of David, I will lay on his shoulder so he shall open and no one shall shut. He shall shut and no one shall open. I will fasten him as a peg in a secure place and he will become a glorious throne to his father's house.

Shebna is thrown down. Now Eliakim is going to take his place. Now I should mention, these men were not the kings of the nation of Judah. The king of the time was Hezekiah. But they were part of Hezekiah's leadership. They were part of those who were in authority in the nation of Judah. And

Shebna is going to be replaced by this man, Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah. It's interesting in verse 20 that God calls him, my servant, Eliakim. He's not just another replacement. He's not just another man. But God is setting up this man, this role of authority to be fulfilled by someone who serves him.

And to this servant of God's, he says in verse 21, I will clothe him with your robe. These are all pictures of God giving him all of the authority that Shebna once had. Clothing him with your robe, strengthening him with your belt. I will commit your responsibility into his hand.

and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. He's going to be like a father to those that he leads. He's going to instruct them and help them and encourage them and build them up and lead them in the right direction. God is making sure that there is someone there to protect and take care of the people of Judah.

In verse 22, he makes reference to the key of the house of David being laid upon his shoulder. And in those days, what they would do is the person who would be in charge would have a key that would be attached to their vest or attached to their garment. And this would be the key to the city or the key to the house, the key indicating that they had authority, that they had and they were the ones who are authorized to open the doors.

For many of you, you come here and you don't have authority to open the doors of the church. If the church is all locked up,

You can't just come right in. But there are those who have authority, those who the church has given authority. Yes, we trust you. We believe you're not going to steal anything or rip us off. You're going to take care of the property. And so you have authority to open up and to close up. And what you open, then no one can shut. And what you shut, no one can open. It's not the ultimate sense like Jesus Christ has.

We see that in the book of Revelation and it's much similar terminology. But the idea here is that Eliakim has ultimate authority within the nation. That his authority really is not questioned. That he's able to go where he needs to go and make decisions and those decisions will stand. And so it's a very powerful place of authority within the city and within the nation.

God says, I will fasten him, in verse 23, as a peg in a secure place, and he will become a glorious throne to his father's house. God is sovereign. Did you know that? God is sovereign. That means that he is on the throne, that he is in control. He is the one who ultimately calls the shots.

He is the one who can truly shut and no one will open or open and no one will shut. God is in control. And under God's control, there's this servant, Shebna, who is out of line, who's abusing his authority, who's lifted up in pride and rebelling against the words of God. And so God, being sovereign, is able to take care of this leader that's gone astray.

And he's able to replace that leader with someone who truly will serve him, with someone who will minister and help the people of Judah, who will be a father to the house of Judah, someone who will make good decisions, someone who will represent God and honor God. And God says, I will secure him. I will fasten him as a peg in a secure place.

This would be a vivid picture to the mind of the people in that day because...

We often have bookshelves and shelves like that in our homes, and that's how we store things. But in those days, they wouldn't do that. What they would do is they would put pegs in their wall. And so you could imagine if you went and there was these pegs in the wall, and they would hang the stuff that was important to them on those pegs within their home or within the buildings that they would make.

And so fastening him as a peg in a secure place is the idea of the important things. They would hang there and they would be secure. They would be established and they wouldn't have to worry about them. Plus, they'd always know where they are. And so I think we need to fasten a peg in a secure place for Pastor Sisko's keys because he always loses his keys.

So if we fastened a peg and he hung his keys on there, there they would be. They would be secure. They would be safe. And the idea here, God is saying, is he's going to be safe. He's going to be secure. He's going to be established. I'm going to strengthen him. He will become a glorious throne to his father's house. He's going to have a great ministry. He's going to use his authority well. He's going to be a great replacement for this man, Shebna. But God is sovereign.

Psalm chapter 75 verses 6 and 7 makes it very clear to us that exaltation does not come from the east or from the west. But it's God who raises up and it's God who casts down. We see that here. God is casting down Shebna and raising up Eliakim.

God is sovereign. When it comes to an individual, when it comes to a role of authority, when it comes to nations, God is sovereign. He raises up and he casts down. We see the example in biblical times of the nation of Assyria.

We've been studying the nation of Assyria as we've been going through Isaiah because Assyria was an instrument of God to be used to bring judgment upon the nations of the Middle East. And so God raised up Assyria and used them for a particular purpose, to bring judgment on those nations that were at a place of rebellion against him.

And then, after Assyria, God raised up Babylon. And he makes it very clear. He prophesies about it in advance so that we know that it's him all the way. He raises up Babylon. He uses Babylon to deal with Assyria, to deal with Judah, to deal with these other nations. God raises up and he casts down because he is sovereign. And so we see that taking place in this role of authority in the house of Judah.

Let's finish up the chapter in verses 24 and 25. They will hang on him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the posterity, all vessels of small quantity from the cups to all the pitchers. In that day, says the Lord of hosts, the peg that is fastened in the secure place will be removed and be cut down and fall. And the burden that was on it will be cut off for the Lord has spoken.

Here as God is wrapping up this prophecy, He's going on in verse 24 to say, this is going to be the extent of His authority, of His impact upon the nation of Judah. They're going to hang on Him all the glory of His Father's house.

All the offspring, all the posterity, all vessels of small quantity. That is a pictorial way of talking about the little people. Those who maybe aren't that significant. They're not royalty. They're not kings. They're the small, the little vessels. They will be hung on this man, Eliakim. As well as the cups and the pitchers, the more noble or the more useful people.

will also be under his authority and hung upon him. But even this man Eliakim, his authority, his time will come to an end. Because as we looked at last week, although Assyria is coming against Judah, they are not going to be successful. But there was going to come another attack by the nation of Babylon, and that attack would be successful.

Judah was going to be dealt with because of their rebellion to God. And so what God is saying in verse 25 is in that day, at that time, when God deals with the nation of Judah, the peg that is fastened in the secure place will be removed. Eliakim's time will be finished at some point. And everything that was hanging on that peg, the burden of the house of Judah, it will be cut off.

For the Lord has spoken. And so God is going to deal with the nation of Judah because of their rebellion against God, because of their refusal to hear what God has been saying to them. And we looked at that last week in the first part of chapter 22. But we see this man, Shebna, lifted up in pride, although in a place of authority, and being replaced by Eliakim. Let's move on to chapter 23, verse 1. It says, "...the burden against Tyre."

Wail, you ships of Tarshish, for it is laid waste so that there is no house, no harbor from the land of Cyprus. It is revealed to them. As we move on now into chapter 23, we're dealing with the nation of Tyre. This is a nation. It's a land. It's a people that is full of pride.

Tyre is a city actually in just north of Israel and the area we know as Lebanon today. And Tyre was a very influential, very powerful merchant city. And to be rich and powerful within Tyre, you just had to be successful at business.

It was located right on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, and there was two parts to the city of Tyre. Part of the city of Tyre was inland. It was on the coast. It was on the mainland there, north of Israel. But then there was a second part of the city that was on a little island half mile out from the shore. And so part of the inhabitants and the ports and everything were on the island, and then the other part were on the mainland. And those two together made up the city of Tyre, the land of Tyre.

And so this burden is against this city that's there on the Mediterranean Sea. And God is bringing judgment against this city as well. For the same reason that he was bringing judgment against Shebna. And that is because of their pride.

If you want a little bit more detail on the background to what was going on in Tyre, I would encourage you to check out Ezekiel chapters 26 through 28. Ezekiel 26, 27, and 28. There God spells out what was going on within Tyre. They were full of pride. You could say that Tyre was inflated. Get it? Tyre was inflated. They were full of pride. Okay, dumb joke.

Cisco laughed, but oh well. Okay.

This is the burden against Tyre because they're full of pride. And as a result, we know pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall, Proverbs 16, 18 says. And so destruction is going to come. And so he says in chapter 23, verse 1, Now, again, Tyre was a merchant city. They were involved in all kinds of trade and they impacted the known world at that time.

Everybody traded with and dealt with this city of Tyre. It was an ideal location and very prosperous in its trade. Tarshish would be on the west side of the Mediterranean Sea, probably the area of Spain that we know today.

And so Tarshish was kind of a great distance away, but they would be trading with Tyre. And God says, wail, you ships of Tarshish. Why? Because it's laid waste. There is no house. There's no harbor. The city of Tyre has been judged. It's been destroyed. And he says, from the land of Cyprus, it is revealed to them.

Cyprus was an island that's in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. And the idea, the picture is there's the sailors there from Tyre and they're hearing about what's taken place there from Cyprus where they're at. They've heard about the destruction of Tyre and they begin to wail and to weep because of that great destruction.

Pride goes before destruction. And not only does it affect you, but it affects all those around you. Going on in verse 2 and 3, the judgment continues. He says, Be still, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whom those who cross the sea have filled, and on great waters the grain of Shihur, the harvest of the river is her revenue, and she is the marketplace for the nations.

Tyre was the marketplace for the nations. She was the center of commerce. And so he says, be still, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon. Now, Sidon was located very close to the city of Tyre. Tyre and Sidon are often linked together. It's in the same area, the area of Phoenicia or the area of Lebanon today. And so he's calling out for all the people around them to wail, to be filled with sorrow.

Pronouncing that they will be filled with sorrow because she was the marketplace for the nations. Now in Ezekiel chapter 27, it gives a little bit more detail. In fact, it lists 38 different peoples, 38 different cities and nations by name that were wailing and moaning and weeping and sorrowing because of the destruction of this city of Tyre, this center of commerce, this marketplace of

that has been destroyed because of their pride. Verse 4 and 5 says,

So we're seeing all the surrounding areas, the cities right next to Tyre, Tarshish all the way across the Mediterranean Sea, down towards the south. Egypt now will be in agony at this report. The devastation and destruction is vast. The impact is huge. Verse 6 says,

Verse 8.

who has taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honorable of the earth. Verse 9, the Lord of hosts has purposed it to bring to dishonor the pride of all glory, to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth. Again, it's a cry of woe. It's a pronouncement. There's going to be great wailing.

And he's asking the question, is this your joyous city? Why are you wailing now? This was the city that you rejoiced in. This is the city that has been of old. Who has done this? Who has taken counsel against this city? Who is the one who has caused this judgment to take place and this destruction to happen? And he answers the question in verse 9. It's the Lord who has purposed it. Why has he purposed it?

We've seen this already in Isaiah. The purpose of judgment is to bring low the haughty. Pride goes before destruction. Judgment is as a result of pride. Pride.

It brings destruction as we are lifted up in pride, as we rebel against God, as we do our own thing, as we are full of ourselves, inflated like a tire.

Judgment will be the result of that. Destruction will come as a result of that. And God's judgment on all of the nations that we've been studying here in Isaiah is as a result of all of these nations that have been lifted up in pride, valuing their own word, their own opinion, their own ideas over what God has said and choosing to do and live their way instead of God's way.

And so God has purposed that Tyre will be destroyed. He's going to bring dishonor, the pride of all glory. This was the crowning city of the land at that time. She was the marketplace for the nations, the place that everybody loved and rejoiced in and prospered as a result of.

And God is going to show that only he is high and lifted up. That he is the one who is worthy of all honor and glory. And so he's going to bring dishonor to the pride of all glory. He's going to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth. All those who think that they're just so great and wonderful. All those who are full of themselves. God is going to show with destruction, with judgment, that he is the one who is high and lifted up.

That He is God and that we are not. In fact, in Ezekiel chapter 28, the first part of the chapter, God is speaking to the king of Tyre. And He says, You who have said, I am a God and not a man. The king of Tyre was in such a prideful place, looking at his own wealth, looking at his brilliant business plans and his great success.

I am a God and not a man. I don't need to listen to God. I am a God. I know what's right. I know what's best. He was intent on doing his own thing, full of pride, bringing God low. And God says, I'm going to bring dishonor, the pride of all glory. He will show beyond any doubt that he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and that we are not.

Going on, verses 10-12, he says,

God says, I purposed it. I'm the one who did this. I'm knocking down Tyre. He's telling us in advance so that we know. He says, I'm purposing judgment upon all the land of Canaan. You're not going to rejoice anymore. You're going to try to escape. You'll cross over to Cyprus. But there you will still have no rest. You will not rest until you know that I am God.

And that's true for any one of us. We will not rest. We will not have peace. We will not be satisfied until we know that He is God and we surrender and submit to Him.

Verse 13 and 14. Behold the land of the Chaldeans. That's the area of Babylon. So the land of the Chaldeans, this people which was not, Assyria founded it for the wild beasts of the desert. They set up its towers. They raised up its palaces and brought it to ruin. Wail, you ships of Tarshish, for your strength is laid waste.

So God says, I'm the one doing this. I've purposed this. This is my plan. I'm bringing low the haughty, making sure that all know that I am God. And I'm telling you who I'm going to use to do it. And that is the Chaldeans, the nation of Babylon, who are the ones who are conquering the city of Tyre. Now, Assyria tried to attack Tyre and conquer Tyre, but they were unsuccessful.

Babylon was successful, but only to an extent. They were successful in conquering the city and the part of the city that was on the coast, but they were not successful in conquering the island. That happened a couple hundred years afterwards with Alexander the Great, with the Greek army as they came in, and they built a causeway out to the island, and they actually finally conquered the island, and all of Tyre was laid waste.

Ezekiel chapter 26 tells us that God is going to bring many nations against Tyre. And so he's using these different nations to humble them, to bring them low, to demonstrate that he is God and rebuke them for their pride. Their strength is laid waste, verse 14 says. And again, he says, wail, you ships of Tarshish. All the ships, the merchants, this was a great port. This was somewhere that was the center of commerce for

The whole rest of the known world would be affected and impacted by this great and terrible fall of the city of Tyre. Verse 15. Now it shall come to pass in that day that Tyre will be forgotten 70 years according to the days of one king. At the end of 70 years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot.

Verse 16, Verse 17, Verse 18,

Verse 18, her gain and her pay will be set apart for the Lord. It will not be treasured nor laid up for her gain will be for those who dwell before the Lord to eat sufficiently and for fine clothing.

Here God says, I'm going to deal with them. I'm going to wipe them out. It's going to be for a time. And then they're going to rise again and begin to deal and to trade with some of the surrounding areas. And there was a season where Tyre was not able to trade under the rule of Assyria and Babylon, that they were not able to trade with the surrounding nations because they were paying tribute to Babylon. They were under subjection to Babylon. And so their trading and all of that was cut off.

But then after that season was over, they were again allowed to trade and to have commerce and to seduce again, to go about and make arrangements with and profit from the surrounding nations. But here's what's interesting in verse 18. God says, here's what I'm going to do eventually, though.

All of her pay, everything, is going to be set apart for the Lord. Now, as Isaiah is writing this, as Tyre is being prepared for judgment, they are amassing treasure. They're amassing great wealth to themselves. They're the center of commerce and they're full of themselves, full of pride. They have this great treasure, these great storehouses. But God says, there's going to be a time. Here's what I'm going to do. It's going to be great.

Everything that they make, everything that they have, it's going to be used for the Lord, to provide for those who serve the Lord. We find another prophecy of this in Psalm chapter 45 verse 12, where it tells us that the daughters of Tyre will bring gifts to the Lord in Jerusalem. Something that will be looking forward to be fulfilled during the millennial period, during the time when Jesus establishes his throne.

But this evening as we see Tyre, the judgment that's pronounced against Tyre, and we see this other man named Shebna, this person of authority in the nation of Judah, they had the same issue, the same problem, the same reason that God was bringing judgment. And it was the issue of pride.

Sheba, rebelling against the word of God and seeking to establish a name for himself and set up a monument to himself and say, no, God's not right. We won't be conquered. He built an elaborate monument to himself in a grave high on the mountain and tire rebelling against God saying, I'm not a man. I am a God.

Look at how wealthy I am and how well I've done and how awesome the things that we've accomplished. They're full of pride and lifted up. But in the city of Tyre in chapter 23, we see the results of that pride. And that is great destruction. And really, here's the results of that pride.

We find these words, they were wailing, there is no house and no harbor, there is great destruction, they were ashamed, they're in agony, again they're wailing, there's no more strength in them, they rejoice no more, they have no rest, again they wail, and their strength is laid waste.

They're completely wiped out. And this is what you and I need to know this evening. And as we prepare our hearts now to hear from the Lord and spend time together ministering to one another, it boils down to this. Are you full of pride? Are you high and lifted up? Are you like Shebna or are you like Tyre? Because pride comes before destruction.

And you may not have a place of authority like Shebna. You may not have that type of role. But when our hearts are that we don't listen to God, we disregard His word and what He says, we don't spend time with Him, we don't walk in relationship with Him. When our hearts are such that we ignore His commands and do our own thing and build our own kingdoms and make our own monuments unto ourselves, we, like Shebna, are lifted up in pride.

When we begin to think that we don't need God because look at our great successful businesses, our great prosperous bank accounts, our great deals over here and the things that we've accomplished, we become like Tyra to be lifted up and full of pride. Now we've been studying about grace on Sunday mornings for the past seven weeks or so. You know how to receive grace? Turn with me, we'll close here in James chapter 4.

In James chapter 4, what you and I need is grace. We need God's favor. Whether you like it or not, we're weak. Our wisdom is faulty. Our ideas, our plans, they fail. What we need is God's plans, His wisdom, His strength, His direction. We need God's favor, not our own understanding and strength. And we gain that

Not by being lifted up in pride. Not by being so full of ourselves. But we gain it. James chapter 4 verse 6 says, But he gives more grace. Therefore he says, God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. How do you receive grace? By humbling yourself. By casting your cares upon him. By looking to God. By relying upon God.

By being full of Him instead of full of ourselves. By listening to Him instead of listening to our own selves. By walking in His ways instead of walking in our own. And so he says in verse 7, Therefore, submit to God.

Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he will lift you up. We need to be humbled. We need to submit to God.

Be obedient to His instruction. And part of that is being submitted to authorities. We saw that God is sovereign with Shebna.

He was not doing right. He was abusing his authority. So God cast him down and raised up another one. What does that mean for you and I? If you have authority, it means you need to be a servant of the Lord like Eliakim. That you would honor God with the authority that he's given to you. But if you're a person under authority, and all of us are, that means we need to be submitted to that authority.

Because if God wanted a different authority in there, he's the one who raises up and he's the one who casts down. We need to be submitted to the Lord. We need to be submitted to the authority. Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee. Draw near to God. This is how we humble ourselves. By submitting to God, being obedient to him. By drawing near to God, spending time with God. By cleansing our hands. By repenting.

By turning our joy into mourning. Now, that doesn't mean we have to walk around, you know, with a bummer attitude all the time and everything is gloomy. Hey, no, we can rejoice that we've been set free in Jesus Christ. But what he's saying is there's a time to mourn, to weep and to repent. Don't rejoice in your sin. Don't rejoice in that for which you should be ashamed. Let your laughter, your mockery,

Against God, be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourself before the Lord. Confess your need to the Lord. Cast yourself upon the mercies of God. I want to challenge you this evening to humble yourself. That God would be able to say of you, my servant, as he calls your name. If God's talking about you, he says, my servant, so and so. This person lives their life to serve me, to honor me.

They don't amass goods for themselves. They have these resources that they're willing to use for my glory. They're not full of themselves and abusing their authority, but they have this authority that they're willing to use to bring glory to my name and be obedient to me. They don't make big monuments and names for themselves, but they make sure that the world knows that I am Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Are you His servant? Have you humbled yourself before the Lord?

God's calling us this evening to humble ourselves, to submit to Him, to draw near to Him, to cleanse our hands, to repent that He might lift us up in due time. Humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up. God gives grace. He wants to pour out His blessings upon your life. He wants to pour out His favor. It's undeserving. You don't deserve it. And what He calls for us to do in order to receive this grace is

is to simply recognize and admit and confess and agree with God, I don't deserve it. I need you, Lord. You save me. You do the work. Humble yourself before the Lord. The worship team is going to come up right now, and I want to challenge you as they lead us in this first song, that this is a time for you to,

to seek the Lord and spend time with the Lord. It's a time for us to humble ourselves before the Lord. If you need to repent, then repent. Turn from your ways. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy to gloom. If you need to spend time with God and draw near to God and His Word, then do so.

If you just need to get on your knees and pray before the Lord, then do so. If you need to stand and worship Him as they sing, then do so. This is a time between you and the Lord for you to humble yourself and be obedient to Him and submit yourself to Him. And so let's spend these next few moments just humbling ourselves before God, allowing Him to be God, recognizing Him as God, and giving Him our own selves as His servants. Amen?

Let's worship the Lord.