Sermon
# 193 Series: Isaiah
Title: Gathering The Outcasts
Text: Isaiah 56:8
Subject: God’s Work of Gathering His
Elect
Date: Sunday Morning – October 16, 1994
Tape #: Q-56
Introduction:
“The
Lord God which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others
to him beside those that are gathered unto him” (Isa. 56:8). The title of
my message is Gathering the Outcasts. Without question, there is an allusion in out text to God’s
gathering of Jews into their own land after they had been carried away into
Babylon. The Jews were often carried into captivity. Tyrant after tyrant invaded the land of Israel and
carried away captives. But the Lord always promised to gather them again into
their land. And he always fulfilled his
promise. By marvellous power those
restorations were made. God sovereignly used pagan
kings who knew him not, like Cyrus, to accomplish the deliverance of his
people. (Isa. 45:13). Certainly, there is an allusion to God’s
restoration of the Jews to the land of Israel after their long Babylonian
Captivity.
But I
did not come here today to give you a lecture on the troubles of the ancient
Jews. And that is not the message of
Isaiah 56:8. These deliverances and
restorations of the Jews were nothing but types and pictures of the redemption,
deliverance, and salvation of God’s elect, his true Israel, and our being
gathered by his almighty grace to the Lord Jesus Christ. God who brought Israel out of Babylon can
bring his elect out of sin. He who
delivered the Jews from the tyrant’s grasp can deliver ransomed souls form the
dominion of satan. He who led his
people by a way that they knew not back to the land of blessedness can lead
lost sinners through the mazes of providence to Christ their Savior.
Proposition: Our text speaks of God’s gracious effectual gathering
of his elect to Christ in saving grace as a matter of absolute certainty.
Divisions:
I. First, I want to talk to you about The Gatherers.
The Gatherer spoken of in this text is the Lord God himself. Hear this and rejoice, gathering is the work of God himself.
A. There was a time when his work
was scattering.
Men
built a tower by which they hoped to establish a place of unity, power,
dominion, and worship, a tower that would be the center of the universe, by
which they hoped to save the human race from destruction. But the Lord would not allow it. Infinite wisdom baffled the plans of finite
worms. God confounded their language,
divided the races of men into nations which have ever since inhabited the
earth, and thus, by the arrangement of unerring providence, God scattered his
elect among all the nations so that he might gather them in mercy. There was a time of
scattering. And this scattering was
God’s work.
God
scattered his elect throughout all the earth in judgment that he might gather
them in everlasting salvation to Christ.
B. This gospel age is what is
spoken of in the Scriptures as the time of gathering.
In
this present day and age God is gathering together in One, even in Christ his
Son, the children of God which have been scattered abroad. The Lord Jesus Christ who came
into this world, brought in everlasting righteousness, and obtained
eternal redemption
for us by his death upon the cursed tree. Now risen from the dead, ascended up into heaven, and exalted at the right hand of the Majesty on High, the God-man yonder in glory is God’s appointed Center – “Unto Him shall the
gathering of the people be” (Gen.
49:10).
1. Christ is the only true “melting pot” for
the races of fallen mankind – In him alone men and women are one (Eph. 2:13-10’ Col. 3:11).
· One Hope!
2. God is gathering his people everyday and will continue to do so until time shall be no more.
I
want to say a little more about that in a few minutes. But I mention it now because I want to pray that the Lord God will drop the magnet of his grace
in our midst and gather some of his elect here today. It is my earnest hope that some of you will be gathered to Christ
today.
C. The Gather is God himself, the
Three Persons of the Holy Trinity.
1. We are Trinitarians (I John 5:7).
2. All Three Persons in the Holy Trinity are
involved in the salvation of chosen sinners, in the gathering of the outcasts-
(Eph. 1:3-14).
a. They are gathered by God the
Father, whose
purpose and plan it was to gather together all his elect in Christ. He promised it. And he set up Christ to be an Ensign unto whom the gathering of
the people must be.
b. Sinners are said to be
gathered by the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, too.
C. God the Holy Spirit in
regeneration grace and by the irresistible power of his effectual call, gathers
every chosen, redeemed sinner to Christ at the appointed time of love.
II. Secondly, I want you to notice briefly how
our text describes The Gathered.
They
are described as “the outcasts of Israel,” as “others,” and as “those that are
gathered unto him” already. The fact is the whole human race has been divided by God
into two groups. The division was made
in eternity and is made manifest in time.
But there is a great gulf fixed between these two groups. So that it is impossible for anyone to pass
from one group to the other. These two
groups are variously described in the word of God.
· The Israel of God and the Nations of the World.
In
our text God’s elect are described as “The outcasts of Israel,” not the
outcasts of literal Israel, but of spiritual Israel, the church and family of
God. And “the
outcasts of Israel” are divided into two groups.
· “Those that are gathered unto him “are all the elect who have already been saved by the grace of God.
I
want you to take special notice of the way in which God’select are here
described. They are called
“the outcasts.”
A. God’s elect are always “the
outcasts” of the earth.
Illus: The Anointing of David – “This is he!”
(I Sam. 16:11-12).
B. In their natural, unregenerate
state God’s elect are outcast children of wrath, even as others (Eph. 2:3).
Before
he saved us, we were far off from God, alienated from him, without God, without Christ, without hope, destitute of his Spirit,
like lost sheep wandering away from God, strangers to the people of God, and aliens from the commonwealth of Israel.
C. Though chosen of God and
redeemed by Christ until they are called by the Holy Spirit, God’s elect appear
to be outcasts, without one claim upon his mercy, love, and grace in Christ.
Like the infant Ezekiel describes (Ezek. 16-18), we appeared to be anything but the objects of God’s love and grace.
D. When chosen sinners are
convinced of their sin by the Holy Spirit they look upon themselves as
outcasts.
· The Publican in the Temple.
E. And the people of this world
look upon God’s saints as outcast, worthless people.
What
fools we are when we crave the applause and approval of the world. The only way we can ever gain the world’s
approval is to have God’s disapproval!
Let the world count me an “outcast!”
What does that matter, if God counts me gathered?
III. The Gatherer is God himself. The gathered are all God’s elect. Now, in the last place, let me talk to you
for just a minute or two about The Gathering.
The
Lord God says, “Yet will I gather others to him beside those that are gathered
unto him. “Those others
are the ones I am looking for today. They are the “other sheep” who have not yet been called (John 10:16). They are the many who were ordained unto eternal
life who have not yet believed the gospel (Acts 13:48). They are all the rest of
God’s elect, of
whom Paul speaks when he says, “And so all Israel shall be saved” (Rom. 11:26).
A. Here is an unconditional
promise of grace – “Yet will I gather others to him.”
Need
I pause to tell you again that the “him” to whom God gathers his elect is the
Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man Mediator, our Substitute, the Son of God? Those whom God gathers are gathered to HIM!
· Not to Me!
Let
me show you five things about this promise of gathering
chosen sinners to Christ.
5. This Promise
is the Preservative of This World (II Pet. 3:9).
B. How is God now gathering these
other chosen, redeemed sinner to the Lord Jesus Christ?
3.
By Graciously Calling His Saints Up to Glory. – John 17:24
Illus: Mr. Coleman
C. Then there shall be a glorious
gathering together unto him in the resurrection.
Application:
1. You and I who believe should ever be asking, “Where
are the others?”
a.
Pray for them.
b.
Expect them to be gathered.
c.
Be on the look out for them – After the Service – At Dinner – At Home.
2. If you are yet without Christ,
if you are
not yet among those who have been gathered to him, this message ought to
inspire you with hope and inspire you to seek him – “Others”
· Other Thieves!
3. Let all who know him give
thanks to God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for his sovereign grace by which he has
gathered our outcast souls unto Christ!
How I thank God for fetching, gathering grace! I am sure glad he hissed for me!