May every blessing be with you from our Lord. Good morning, my name is Isaiah. I thought I would introduce myself before I share with you the Lord’s Good Word with you today. His Word, you see, is always good. No matter if it’s a word of judgment or salvation. The Lord’s Word is good because our Lord is good. I’m not all that “good” even though they sometimes call me the greatest of all writing prophets. I don’t know about that…Amos, Hosea and Micah, all my contemporaries aren’t too shabby either. My father was a man called Amoz and my name means, “The Lord Saves” … and indeed He does. Many times in the book that bears my name do I point forward more than 700 years to the coming Savior born in Bethlehem. Jesus and His resurrection remain at the center of our worship lives this Easter Season. That same joy is expressed in the Song of Praise I share with you in chapter twelve, the Old Testament text. “Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.” But it hasn’t been all singing and shouting for joy. Allow me to explain.

You see, in the days that I lived, Assyria was expanding their empire. That was bad news for God’s people Israel. Assyria’s great army led by their king Tiglath-Pileser moved westward and dominated the people Aram. Not long after the kings of Aram and Israel tried to pressure the king of Judah (sometimes known as the Southern Kingdom), Ahaz into joining a coalition against Assyria. It sounded like a great idea…join forces and defend against the enemy. Ahaz, instead of joining forces with Israel and Aram to fight against Assyria, they joined King Tiglath-Pileser. Can you believe it? Assyria and Judah together conquered Israel. Judah, the Southern Kingdom and Israel, the Northern Kingdom were brothers. They were the same people – God’s people. Yet, Judah joined those pagan Assyrians and fought against Israel.

Well, there was not much to stop the eventual destruction of Israel under this amount of force against them. I was so mad. I was downright angry at Judah. I lived right in Jerusalem among all of the people of Judah and I couldn’t believe what they would do to serve their own interests. Judah teamed up with an enemy they were afraid of, in hopes they would not be sacked by these same people. However, this means they ended up turning against their own brothers. How terrible.

Needless to say, I was not going to stand for it – and more importantly – neither was the Lord. This is where the judgment and condemnation from the book that bears my name comes from. Not only were the words of Judgment against the nation of Israel for their continued “faithless” lives they lived despite warning after warning. Not only was it God’s will that Assyria would take Israel captive – I would show how Jerusalem would be taken more than a hundred years later. Babylon would swoop over from the east, besiege the holy city of Jerusalem, destroy the temple and take the people into captivity. This was God’s judgment on His people for taking up other gods and ignoring the ways of the Lord.

Believe me, I have seen it all when it comes to ignoring the Lord. I can remember as a child walking through the streets and watching market venders selling produce and other wholesome goods and then right along side, they would have a stand of idols for any and every situation you could ever imagine. If you wanted great wealth, you would need to buy this idol. If you wanted more kids, you can purchase this other idol. If you wanted more wives, buy this one over here. These gods came from the people who lived among the children of God. The Lord reminded them time and time again to stay away from these false gods. The Lord warned that if they got too friendly with the people they would also start adopting their gods. If they adopted their customs and their ways, they would also start forgetting about the Lord that brought them out of slavery…that gave them the Ten Commandments… that preserved them over all the years… that promised to never forsake them… and start following ways that are self-gratifying.

The gods that I see come in many different forms. I’m sure it’s the same for you. Walk around your village and see what has become gods for the people. Sometimes they look like the most innocent of things. For the people in my day a god might have been a little statue in the family household. And that little statue was placed before the one true God that gave them everything they had. What stands in the place of God in your house? Is your “little statue,” or your “idol,” the busyness of life? Does your god look like all the extra curricular activities that have you “overextended?” Are you a slave to your schedule … to your children’s itinerary? What is your god that keeps you from putting the Lord ahead of everything in your life?

I’ve seen what happens when people forsake the Lord. I remember when I was a younger man there were warnings from all around telling us that a great army from the north is coming to besiege our country. We were helpless. There was nothing we could do. Oh sure, some would pick up everything and run to the south and some to the east away from the army. The prophets of God would call out – “This is a judgment from God because you have forsaken Him and followed other gods.” I kept on thinking, “The prophets are right?” And for sure they were. They would take all of our possessions and treat us like second class citizens. Some of the people would be taken into slavery and never see their homeland again. Some would even die as the Assyrians to the north would come and ravage the land. What a horrible experience this was. I moved to the south and ended up in Jerusalem. The experience was so frightening for me that I was used by the Lord to make sure the people of Israel and Judah would know what is ahead of them because of their unfaithfulness. What a difficult time it was for the people, my people, who were lost at the hand of others.

I don’t want that to happen to you – so I share with you God’s Word. Oh yes, it’s a word of judgment. Listen to the Law of the Lord, keep His Word and obey His Commandments. Do not forsake the Lord your God. The consequences could be fatal.

I’m not telling you all of this because I want you to worry about a threat coming from the north or from the east or the south. No, we already know such threats exist on many different levels in this unstable world of ours. I’m talking about the threat to your eternal life. You see, by having idols, that is, by having the wrong set of priorities, we tend to start believing that we don’t need what is offered here anymore. We forget that when it comes to a spiritual crisis, the ball diamond our kids play on, the work we have at the office or the vacation house will do absolutely no good. We forget that trusting in earthly things can make us rely less and less on the heavenly things. We forget, and then, after a while, it’s not so easy to remember. Be warned, beloved in the Lord, don’t forget. Don’t forget and put your priorities in the right order.

Many times over, in the book of the Bible that bears my name I speak of the one who is to come. The virgin and Immanuel that I speak of in chapter seven are indeed Mary and Jesus. Have no doubts. In chapter nine when I talk about the “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace,” and that He will, “Reign on David’s throne.” I’m talking about Jesus. And read Chapters 49 through 52 sometime. That servant is Jesus.

Through the disobedience of man everything falls apart. Our lives are testimonies of such a fact. But In Christ, the King of all kings, the Wonderful Counselor and the Mighty God all is reconciled with the Father. He is our link that brings us back into a living and lasting relationship with our God. That is why today we sing a song of praise. And you, New Testament people, have the privilege to see what I only could talk about what “will” happen. You have seen the Lord Jesus. You have heard about what He has done. You can see and hear in His Word what has been done for you on the cross. Know, beloved in the Lord, that your Lord loves you so much that He would die a horrible death for you. No longer are you separated from your homeland like Israel was in my day. In Christ your homeland, heaven, will always be, secure by His grace through faith.

Knowing that, just like in my day, when Assyrians came from the north and Babylon from the east, we could still count on our Lord. Our earthly possessions will one day waste away. Put not your hope and trust and priority is such things. Rather, in the midst of the short-comings of our lives and this world, rejoice with a song of praise. “I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my son; he has become my salvation.” And He has. He is. He is your salvation. Amen

May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.