Sermon #242 Series: Isaiah

Title: EVERYTHING NEW!

Text: Isaiah 65:17-25

Reading: Isaiah 65:17-25

Subject: Christ’s New Creation

Date: Sunday Morning - June 23, 1996

Tape # S-67

Introduction:

Hold your Bibles open this morning at Isaiah 65:17-25. The title of my message is Everything New. In this passage the Holy Spirit, speaking by the prophet Isaiah, declares that which is the glory of God’s salvation in Christ, both as it now is and as it shall be in its consummation in the world to come.

1. The things spoken of in this chapter have both a present and a future application to God’s elect.

It is a mistake to limit this prophecy either to the restoration of the children of Israel from their Babylonian captivity, or to the present gospel age, or to the time when our Lord Jesus Christ will make all things new at his glorious second advent. There is much in the text that simply cannot be limited to any one of these times. This is one of those rich text that applies to all them all. It cannot be understood in any other way.

Without question, the promises contained in these verses began to have their fulfillment when the Jews, after their return from Babylon, were settled in their own land again in peace. But thy were more fully accomplished in the beginning of the gospel age, when the Lord Jesus Christ brought in the fulfillment and blessedness of the New Covenant. They are even more fully accomplished in each believer personally and in the church of God collectively in the experience of God’s saving grace, as we are made new creatures in Christ. Yet, the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy will come when all God’s elect dwell with Christ in the glory and bliss of the new heavens and new earth.

2. We are now new creatures in Christ.

The gospel of Christ declares that, with regard to believers, old things are passed away and all things have become new. So that those who are in Christ have become new creatures (2 Cor. 5:17). “The former troubles are forgotten,” God says, “because they are hid from mine eyes.” What a blessed, happy change this is, which is accomplished for us and wrought in us by the almighty power of his grace!

· Our old record of sin is gone (Jer. 50:20). God remembers our sins no more (Isa. 43:25). Our “former troubles are forgotten!”

· A new record of righteousness is ours by divine imputation (Jer. 23:6; 33:16).

· The curse of the old covenant of the law has passed away; and all the blessings of the new covenant of grace are ours in Christ (Eph. 1:3)

· The old nature of sin, though it has not yet passed away, is no longer in dominion; but a new nature of righteousness has been imparted to us and grace reigns in us through righteousness. We are no longer the servants of sin, but the servants of righteousness as the sons of God (2 Pet. 1:4; Rom 6:18).

3. Yet, we are looking for a new heavens and a new earth

God says, “Behold, I create a new heavens and a new earth: and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come to mind.” Those who are converted are so transported with the comforts of the new creation, so overwhelmed by the grace of God, that all the comforts of this world become as nothing to them. Not only their former grief, but also their former joys, are lost and swallowed up in their new life in Christ. But there is even greater joy awaiting us in the world to come. The glorified saints in the new heaven and new earth will be so entirely taken up with that world that the things of this world will be entirely forgotten. They shall not be remembered nor come to mind!

4. Here is a display of the inexhaustible omnipotence of our God.

The same God who created this world out of nothing for the comfort and happiness of his people here, will create a new heavens and a new earth suitable to provide comfort and happiness for his glorified saints forever.

5. Those who are blessed of God are blessed indeed and blessed forever, fully, immutably, and eternally blessed.

If you are in Christ, “all things are yours” (1 Cor. 3:21). The world is yours. Life is yours. Death is yours. All things present are yours. All things to come are yours. “All things are yours,” if Christ is yours! Matthew Henry wrote, “The future glory of the saints will be so entirely different from what they ever knew before that it may well be called new heavens and a new earth (2 Pet. 3:13).”

Proposition: The Lord God our Savior makes all things new for his people. “He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21:5).

In this last paragraph of Isaiah 65, the prophet of God sets before us seven aspects of this blessed new creation. Remember, these are all new things of grace begun here and consummated in glory.

I. First, Isaiah describes A NEW WAY.

Isaiah 65:17 "For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."

As I have stated, “This prophecy began to have its accomplishment in the first times of the Gospel, when through the preaching of it a new face of things appeared in Judea, and in the Gentile world, so that the whole looked like a new world; and this was all the effect of creating power, of the mighty, powerful, and efficacious grace of God attending the word, to the conversion of many souls.” John Gill

I do not doubt that there is an allusion to this prophecy in the apostle’s explanation of Christ’s accomplishments in Hebrews 10:19-22.

Hebrews 10:19-22 "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, (20) By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; (21) And having an high priest over the house of God; (22) Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water."

A. Once Christ came, A NEW WAY of worship was established.

The old, carnal ordinances of legal worship were abolished because Christ fulfilled them all. Temple worship, sacrifices, sabbath days, holy days, yearly feasts, altars, and a carnal priesthood were all abolished, giving way to the spiritual worship of the gospel.

John 4:23-24 "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. (24) God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

B. New ordinances were appointed to be continued until Christ’s second coming, and the old ones were abolished.

1. Circumcision, the mark of God’s covenant people in the Old Testament, was abolished; and Believer’s Baptism was established as the identifying mark of God’s elect.

2. The Passover, the Jewish celebration of deliverance, was abolished; and the Lord’s Supper was established as the believer’s celebration of redemption by Christ.

C. The old covenant was entirely abrogated and the new covenant of grace was brought in by Christ.

Hebrews 10:15-18 "Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, (16) This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; (17) And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. (18) Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin."

II. Second, in this new creation God’s saints experience A NEW JOY.

Isaiah 65:18-19 "But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. (19) And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying."

A. The new things which God creates for his people in Christ are and shall be matters of everlasting joy to all believers.

He causes us to be glad and rejoice in that which he has done for us. He makes Jerusalem, his church and people a joyful, rejoicing people. All who know God in Christ rejoice in...

· His Electing Love.

· His Blood Atonement.

· His Gracious Forgiveness.

· His Adorable Providence.

· His Sovereign Goodness.

· His Saving Grace.

He says, “My servants shall rejoice” (v. 13); and we do!

Though now our joy is mingled with mourning, when grace at last brings us into glory our joy shall be full. Our Redeemer will say to us in that day, “Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord” (Matt. 25:21).

B. More that that, we are now and shall forever be the joy of our God.

He says, “I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people.”

Zephaniah 3:14-17 "Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. (15) The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more. (16) In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack. (17) The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing."

C. When, at last, we stand before our God in the perfection of conformity to Christ, in the beauty and full experience of his holiness, there shall be nothing to dampen our joy.

This is God’s promise to us - “The voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her.” He shall wipe away all tears from our eyes. Well may our weeping hearts rejoice in the prospect of such joy!

III. Third, God’s prophet describes A NEW LIFE of satisfaction.

One of the greatest causes of frustration and disappointment in this world is a sense that there is a lack of fulfillment in our lives. Our dreams are shattered. Our plans are frustrated. Our work is disappointing. We so often sink in despair because we feel a terrible sense of worthlessness. We sense that we have done nothing, are doing nothing, and can do nothing meaningful and useful.

To a very great extent, that is true; and we must recognize it. We are sinners. As such we are in ourselves worthless and useless. Painful and humbling as that fact is, it is nonetheless a fact. But our God is so overwhelmingly gracious that when he made us new creatures in Christ, he made us a people with a specific mission to accomplish in his kingdom, for his glory. And when he is finished with us, we shall have exactly fulfilled his purpose. This is God’s promise, not to a few special super saints, but to all his people. Read verse twenty again. It speaks of both the satisfaction and fulfillment of the believer’s life and of the lack of fulfillment and satisfaction the unbeliever shall experience.

Isaiah 65:20 "There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed."

I cannot tell you how many hours I have spent in recent weeks and over the years studying this verse. I have read every commentary I could get my hands on on this text, but found none of them satisfactory. Dispensationalists tell us that this refers to a future millennial age, when a people will live so long that a person living to be one hundred years old shall be considered a child. But I have more than a little trouble believing that Christ is going to establish a perfectly righteous millennial kingdom in which sinners still live and die! That certainly is not the meaning of the text.

Most of the good commentaries suggest that the text teaches the last days life expectancy will be greatly increased. While that may have some merit, it does not fit the context or give a satisfactory explanation of the text. Then, last week, after spending several hours studying and praying for light on this text, the Holy Spirit gave me some help. I said, “That’s it!” And ran into the kitchen to share it with Shelby.

I am confident that this is what the text means, in its essence. You can write it down in the margin of your Bible. It is so simple and clear, I am amazed that I never saw it before. - In so far as God’s elect are concerned, it does not matter whether they die as infants or as old men. They shall all fill their days and their purpose on this earth. The text reads, “There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old.” In other words, Isaiah is telling us that God’s elect who die as infants shall lose nothing by what appears to us to be their untimely deaths; and the wicked who die in old age shall gain nothing by their long lives on this earth. “But the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.”

A. All who are in Christ shall find complete fulfillment and satisfaction with their lives in him.

1. I fully believe that all who die as infants or imbeciles are chosen of God, redeemed by Christ, and shall be sovereignly regenerated by the Holy Spirit.

Illustration: David’s Attitude Toward His Son’s Death

(2 Sam. 12:20-23)

Those blessed souls who do die in infancy will not have any less satisfaction with Christ or with their lives in Christ than the oldest and, in our opinions, most useful of God’s saints.

Matthew Henry wrote, “If an infant end its days quickly, yet it shall not be reckoned to die untimely; for the shorter its life is the longer will its rest be. They dying in the arms of Christ, and belonging to his kingdom, are not to be called infants of days, but even the child shall be reckoned to die an hundred years old, for he shall rise again at full age, shall rise to eternal life.”

2. The old believer also, dying in his old age, though he has lived long enough to have many regrets, when his life on this earth is ended and he has entered into his rest in Christ, shall have none, but only a sense of having “filled his days” by the grace of God and for the glory of God.

This is God’s promise to his saints who live to be old men and women in this world: Psalms 92:13-15 "Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. (14) They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; (15) To show that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him."

B. But the unbeliever shall be unsatisfied and unhappy, though he may live to be a hundred years old.

“The sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” His long life is not a token of God’s blessing or favor. Old age does not shelter people from the wrath of God, but only intensifies it. The longer the sinner lives upon the earth the greater his sins and the greater his condemnation shall be.

Note: It is really insignificant whether we live to be old men and women or die young. The only thing that matters is whether we live and die in Christ.

IV. Fourth, the Holy Spirit here declares that all who are a part of this new creation of grace shall enjoy A NEW BLESSEDNESS.

Frequently, the Jews built houses and others inhabited them. They planted vineyards and others ate the fruit of them. They were often under the judgment of God. But in the new creation of grace, there shall be no such sorrow and no such judgment.

Isaiah 65:21-22 "And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. (22) They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands."

Without question, these verses had a literal, though temporary, fulfillment for the Jews when they returned from their captivity. But the spiritual and gracious fulfillment of them is found in our life in Christ, beginning in this present life of grace and consummately in our everlasting life with Christ in glory.

It is here promised that the work of our hands shall be blessed and made to prosper. We shall at last gain that which we have sought.

· Philippians 3:7-14

· Christ Himself

· Perfect Conformity to Him in Righteousness.

· The Glory of God

This promised blessedness is a matter of absolute security and ought to give us contentment now in the prospect of it. We who have built our house upon the Rock Christ Jesus shall never see our house broken up. We shall eat, and drink, and enjoy the good of our labor, according to the gift of God (Ecc. 3:12-14).

Notice, this promise is connected to our eternal life in Christ. “For as the days of a tree are the days of my people.”

John Gill interprets this to be “an allusion to the tree of life in paradise; and as the tree of life was typical of Christ, who is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon him, it may denote that eternal life his people have by him.”

Christ is to us the tree of life. In him God’s elect enjoy all the spiritual blessings and comforts typified by the abundance of temporal comforts mentioned in these two verses. He is our house, refuge, and strong tower, in whom we live, reside, and find shelter. He is our vineyard, from whom our fruit is found. No enemy shall ever deprive us of him or disturb our enjoyment of him.

V. Fifth, Isaiah speaks of A NEW GENERATION rising up in succeeding ages to inherit and enjoy these blessings.

Isaiah 65:23 "They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them."

We sometimes get to fretting about the future of the church and kingdom of God. But there is no cause for alarm.

A. God’s elect are the seed of the blessed of the Lord.

1. We are the seed of Christ who is the Blessed of the Lord.

· The Chosen Seed.

· The Ransomed Seed.

· The Generation Raised Up in this Age by God’s Purpose and Grace to Serve Him.

2. We are the seed whom the Lord has blessed. The church is the Lord’s spiritual seed. And we are blessed by him.

· Blessed with All Things Spiritual (Eph. 1:3).

· Blessed in All Things Temporal (Rom. 8:28).

· Blessed Forever!

B. Our offspring shall also be the seed blessed of the Lord.

When the prophet says, “and their offspring with them,” he is not teaching household salvation, or a covenant promise to our physical offspring, or that the natural children of God’s elect shall also be blessed with grace and salvation. Those who attempt to teach such things, if they would be consistent, must teach that every child of every saved person will be saved. That certainly is not the teaching of Scripture. And that is not the teaching of this text.

Isaiah is talking about our spiritual offspring, our spiritual children. Those who have been and shall be born again by the grace and power of God the Holy Spirit through our instrumentality shall enjoy the same blessedness and have the same security in blessedness that we do. In every age, God has his seed, his sheep, his elect. As they rise up, generation after generation, the Scripture is fulfilled - Psalms 22:30 "A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation."

VI. Sixth, with the New Creation comes A NEW PRIESTHOOD.

Isaiah 65:24 "And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear."

When Christ came he did away with all earthly mediators. He alone is our Priest before God. However, he did establish a new priesthood. In fulfillment of the promise of the covenant of grace, all God’s saints know him, from the least to the greatest; and all are priests unto God, “A Royal Priesthood” (1 Pet. 2:9). As such, we have immediate access to God through Christ and prevailing efficacy with him in prayer.

Here the Lord God is encourages us to prayer by showing us the readiness of his heart to give us what we need in every time of trouble and need.

Hebrews 4:16 "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

VII. Seventh, in verse twenty-five, the Lord describes A NEW RELATIONSHIP between men and women in this world, a relationship made by grace in the New Creation.

Isaiah 65:25 "The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD."

Three things are here promised.

A. The grace of God proclaimed in the gospel makes a great change in men.

The wolf and the lamb lie down together in Christ, in peace and harmony, just as they did in Noah’s ark. Ravening wolves and raging lions, when converted by grace, are folded with the lambs of Christ. The text suggests...

· A Change of Nature - Regeneration.

· A Dissolving of Prejudices (Col. 3:11; Eph. 2:13-22).

· A Sweet Communion of Believers in Christ.

B. Satan shall be bound.

That great enemy of men’s souls has been bound by the Lord Jesus Christ and shall be bound ultimately and made to eat the dust before the throne of King Jesus.

· John 12:32

· Revelation 20:1-3

C. Nothing and no one shall ever hurt or destroy God’s church and kingdom.

The gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church, his cause, his gospel, or his kingdom. When he is done with this world, when he has made all things new, our God shall put satan and all the wicked in a place where they shall do no harm forever.

“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” AMEN.