Sermon #13                                                             Series: Isaiah

         

          Title:       Man Humbled, God Exalted

          Text:       Isaiah 2:17

          Subject: God’s Determination to Slay the Pride of Man and

                        to Exalt the Glory of His Grace

          Date:     Sunday Morning - June 11, 1989

          Tape #       

 

          Introduction:

 

          The religion of the world is calculated to make men and women feel good about themselves.  Preachers everywhere call upon those who hear them to stand up and be counted.  Churches and preachers bow and scrape before men to make them feel important, valuable, and needed.  People like to be recognized, so the give recognition to them for just about anything.    

 

·        First time Visitors.

·        Father’s Day.

·        Mother’s Day.

·        Youth Day.

·        Women’s Day.

·        Men’s Day.

·        Deacon’s Day.

·        Pastor Appreciation Day.

 

          People like to be honored, so churches and preachers invent some way to honor people every week.  People like to have a good time, so they co-ordinate activities to show everybody a good time.  People like to be pampered, so preachers spend most of their time wiping noses, washing wounds, and mending fences.  They call it “pastoral counseling.”  But  the job basically is that of an expensive baby-sitter for immature men and women whose god is too weak to help them.

 

          Even the doctrine of the religious world is calculated to dignify the flesh and give man a sense of power, goodness, and self-worth.

 

·        The will of man is made to be sovereign and omnipotent.

·        The works of men are made meritorious.

·        At best, salvation is set forth as a co-operative effort between God and man - but the whole work is determined not by God, but by man.

 

          The religion of the world, the religion of man, the religion of antichrist is man centered, man exalting, and man pleasing.  The religion of the Bible is exactly opposite.  Hear the words of God by the Prophet Isaiah , as he describes what happens in the day God saves a sinner by his almighty grace - “The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low:  and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”

 

Proposition:  It is God’s purpose in all things to humble the pride man and to exalt the glory of his grace in Christ - and you may be sure of this:  what God has purposed he will bring to pass.  Man shall be humbled.  And God shall be exalted.

 

          Sooner or later, by one means or another, either in mercy or in grace, God will humble every child of Adam.  Sooner or later, God will break your pride and mine.

 

          In all his works of providence up to this day, if you analyze the pages of history, you will see that God has been causing the loftiness of man to bow down and the haughtiness of men to made low.  Spurgeon once wrote, “If any man should say to me, ‘What is God doing?’ I would answer, ‘He is lifting up the lowly, and he is casting down the proud; he seemeth always to be engaged in this, as though it were his natural work, and he delighted in it.’”  Men build their nests among the stars.  God tears them down.  Then he stoops, in the almightiness of his love, to lift the beggar from the dunghill to set him among princes, even the princes of his people.

 

·        God knows how to humble the proud - Nebuchadnezzar!

·        And He knows how to get honor to himself alone - Pharoah!

 

          Throughout the history of man, since the fall, this is what God has been doing.  And he will continue his work until at last the haughtiness of men has been driven out of the world, until there is no place in the universe for any majesty, except the majesty of the King of Kings.  Yes, there is a day coming when, under the canopy of heaven, “The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low:  and the Lord alone shall be exalted.”  In that day, when God has thrown down the high looks of men, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess, in heaven, earth, and hell, “That Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God.”  “The Lord alone shall be exalted in that day!”

 

          But our text is talking about the day of grace particularly.  Isaiah is describing what God does in the hearts of his elect when he saves them by his grace.  There is a day appointed when God will save each of his elect - “And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low:  and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”  I pray that for some of you the day of grace has now come.

 

Divisions:  With as much brevity as possible, I want to show you that God’s method of saving sinners by his sovereign grace in Christ is designed to humble man and exalt the Lord alone.

 

1.   The Purpose of Grace is Humbling to Man and Exalts God.

2.   The Revelation of Grace in the Gospel is Designed to Strip Men of All Pride and Self-righteousness and Exalt the Lord Alone.

3.   The Experience of Grace in Salvation Humbles Man and Exalts the Lord Alone.

4.   The Distinction of Grace in the Judgment Will Lay All Flesh Low and Exalt the Lord Alone.

 

I.      GOD’S ETERNAL PURPOSE OF GRACE IS HUMBLING TO MAN AND EXALTS THE LORD ALONE.

          Natural men rebel against sovereignty, denounce predestination, and ridicule God’s immutable purpose of grace.  Proud men can never rejoice in a sovereign God, because the fact of God’s sovereign purpose robs man of all possibility of adulation.

 

A.  God’s purpose of grace presupposes the fallen, ruin, lost condition of all men.

 

          God’s covenant was made in anticipation of the fall.  Redemption was planned in anticipation of man’s ruin.  The Lamb was slain before the world began in anticipation of man’s sin.

 

          Anyone who acknowledges God’s sovereign purpose of grace in Christ must also acknowledge man’s total depravity and inability by reason of personal sin.  God, from eternity, devised a way to deliver men from the pit, because men, from eternity, were looked upon by God as a race fallen into the pit of destruction (Job 23:34).  God made an everlasting covenant of peace, securing pardon and life for his elect, because men were looked upon by him as a race of transgressors and a seed of evildoers (Jer 31:31-34). 

 

B. God’s purpose of grace is humbling to man because it is an unconditional, immutable purpose (Rom. 8:28-30).

 

          Nothing in God’s covenant and purpose of grace is, in any way, determined by, dependent upon, or conditioned on anything in man.

 

1.   God’s Love is Unconditional and Immutable.

2.   God’s Election is Unconditional and Immutable.

3.   God’s Purpose in Predestination is Unconditional and Immutable.

4.   God’s Gifts and Callings of Grace are Unconditional and Immutable (II Tim. 1:9).

 

C. The whole purpose of grace is to exalt the Lord God alone, in the Trinity of His Sacred Persons (Eph. 1:3-14).

 

1.   The Father’s Purpose is “To the praise of the glory of his grace” -  (6).

2.   The Son’s Purchase is “That we should be to the praise of his glory” -  (12).

3.   The Spirit’s Performance is “unto the praise of his glory” - (14).

 

          In God’s purpose of grace, “The loftiness of man (is) bowed down, and haughtiness of men (is) made low:  and the Lord alone (is) exalted.”

 

II.   Secondly, THE REVELATION OF GRACE IN THE GOSPEL IS DESIGNED TO STRIP MEN OF ALL PRIDE AND SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TO EXALT THE LORD GOD ALONE.

 

          Chemists have a means by which they test water for acids and alkalines.  It is litmus paper.  When it is dipped in water, if the water has acid in it, it turns red.  Now, here is a litmus test, by which you may test and prove every doctrine and every preacher you hear, if the doctrine you hear causes your face to glow with pride, it is not of God.  Anything that lifts up man, anything that lowers God, is not of God and is not the gospel.  The gospel of the grace of God abases the flesh and glorifies God.  Let me show you how it does this.

 

A.  The gospel of the grace of God is always addressed to men and women as sinners.

 

          Grace is never offered to good men.  Mercy is never promised to righteous people.  Christ came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Matt. 1:21; I Tim. 1:15; I John 1:9).

 

          Thomas Wilcox was right when he said, “Christ came to save everybody except the self-righteous.”

          If you are not a sinner, there is nothing in the gospel for you.  But if you are a sinner, I have good news for you - Christ died for sinners - Christ saves sinners.  Your sinfulness will never keep you from Christ.  Only your “goodness” can do that.  Your sin will never keep you out of heaven.  Only your righteousness can do that.

 

·        There is pardon for the guilty!

·        There is a robe for the naked!

·        There is bread for the hungry!

·        There is water for the thirsty!

·        There is rest for the weary!

·        There is grace for the needy!

·        There is cleansing for the dirty!

·        There is help for the fallen!

 

          But there is nothing in the gospel, not one word of good news, for the good, the great, and the righteous.

 

B. Moreover, the gospel is addressed to sinners who are spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1-3).

 

          Talk about helpless!  What is more helpless than death?  Talk about hopeless!  What is more hopeless than death?  Talk about obnoxious!  What is more obnoxious than death?  There is not a complimentary, dignifying, honorable word between the covers of the Bible to fallen man.  If you want a picture of humanity, as the Bible describes man, you must go to the cemetery, dig up a coffin, open the box, and look upon the rotten, decayed body of corruption - the gospel of Christ is addressed to men and women who are dead.

 

·        Your works are dead works.

·        Your religion is dead religion.              Until  Christ  gives  you

·        Your doctrine is dead doctrine.                   Life.

·        Your faith is dead faith.

 

C. Another humbling revelation of the gospel is the fact that the sinner’s only hope of salvation is the finished work of Christ, the sinner’s substitute (I Cor. 1:29-31).

 

          Our works, good or bad, have nothing whatever to do with salvation.  Salvation is the gift, the free, unconditional gift of the grace of God, bestowed upon helpless, hell-deserving sinners by the merits of Christ.

 

1.   Christ is our only Righteousness.

2.   Christ is our only Redemption.        “This is my beloved Son,

3.   Christ is our only Acceptance.            in   whom   I   am   well

4.   Christ is our only Sanctification.         pleased.”

    

          The gospel calls upon us to look to Christ for everything -

 

          Illustration:  The Brazen Serpent.

 

D. And this is a humbling revelation of the gospel - Even the will to look to Christ and be saved by Him is determined and given by God (Rom. 9:16; Ps. 65:4).

 

          No man will ever come to Christ of his own “free-will.”  Those who come know, and gladly acknowledge,

 

                             ‘Tis not that I did choose Thee

                                                For, Lord, that could not be;

                             This heart would still refuse Thee

                             Hadst Thou not chosen me.

 

III. Thirdly, THE EXPERIENCE OF GRACE IN SALVATION HUMBLES MAN AND EXALTS THE LORD ALONE.

 

A.  Holy Spirit conviction is a humbling experience (John 16:8-11).

B. Repentance is a humbling experience (Ps. 32:1-2).

C. Conversion is a humbling experience (Lk. 14:23-35).

D. Faith is a humbling experience (Mt. 7:13-14).

 

          Illustration:  The Rich Young Ruler.

 

E.  And, perhaps more than anything else, the most humbling experience we have is the fact that the grace of God does not change, alter, or improve our old nature.

 

          Grace gives us peace, pardon, and life.  Grace gives us hope, joy, and righteousness.  Grace gives us a new nature, a new hope, and a new will.  But grace does nothing to change our old nature (Rom. 7:14-24).

 

1.   We grow in grace, but our growth is humbling to man and honors God alone - we grow by grace.

2.   We persevere in grace, but our perseverance is the work of God’s grace (Phil 1:6; John 10:27-30).

3.   Even our blessed times of communion with Christ are humbling to us and exalt our Lord alone, because he will not allow us to leave him (Song 5:2).

4.   All that we experience of chastisement and affliction is humbling to man, but exalts the Lord alone (Heb. 12:5-11).

 

          Illustration:  The Shepherd breaking the lamb’s leg!

 

IV. And, lastly, THE DISTINCTION OF GRACE IN THE DAY OF JUDGMENT WILL LAY ALL FLESH LOW AND EXALT THE LORD ALONE.

 

          Illustration:  What right have you to enter in?

 

Application:

 

          I Cor. 4:7

          Ps. 115:1

          Rev. 5:9-10