Arise and Shine!

Isaiah chapter 60. Isaiah chapter 60. We're going to read the entire chapter. Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.

See, darkness covers the earth, and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you, and his glory appears over you.

Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. Lift up your eyes and look about you. All assemble and come to you. Your sons come from afar, and your daughters are carried on the arm.

Then you will look and be radiant. Your heart will throb and swell with joy. The wealth of the seas will be brought to you. To you, the riches of the nations will come.

Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah, and all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense, and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.

All Keter's flocks will be gathered to you. The rams of Nebioth will serve you. They will be accepted as offerings on my altar, and I will adorn my glorious temple.

Who are these that fly along like clouds, like doves to their nest? Surely the islands look to me, and the lead are the ships of Tarshish, bringing your sons from afar with their silver and gold to the honor of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for He has endowed you with splendor.

Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. Though in anger I struck you, in favor I will show you compassion. Your gates will always stand open.

They will never be shut, day or night, so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations. Their kings led in triumphal procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish.

It will be utterly ruined. The glory of Lebanon will come to you. The pine, the fir, and the cypress together, to adorn the place of my sanctuary, and I will glorify the place of my feet.

The sons of your oppressors will come, bowing before you. All who despise you will bow down at your feet, and will call you the city of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Although you have been forsaken and hated, with no one traveling through, I will make you the everlasting pride, and the joy of all generations.

You will drink the milk of nations, and be nursed at royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold, and silver in place of iron. Instead of wood, I will bring you bronze, and iron in the place of stones. I will make peace your governor, and righteousness your ruler.

No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders. But you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise.

The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you. For the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.

Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more. The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end. Then will all your people be righteous, and they will possess the land forever.

They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor. The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation.

I am the Lord, and it's time I will do this swiftly. We began our studies in Isaiah some two years ago last month, and we're coming around the bend now, the last turn for home.

We just have chapters 60 through 66 before we're done with our studies in Isaiah. I want to make two preliminary points before we dig into chapter 60 this morning that are important for our understanding of it.

I have a question, and then an observation. The question is this, who or what is Zion in this chapter? And we've got to settle this question early because the whole chapter is God speaking to Zion.

So that makes the question very important. He's speaking to Zion about glorious, a glorious future that she has in front of her.

Now, in verse 14, we see this, that they are called the city of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Now, Zion in the Old Testament was a name for Jerusalem, Israel's capital city, the city of God, because God was pleased to dwell there in their midst.

But already in the Old Testament, Zion was a representative name for the people of God. It not only represented those living in Jerusalem, but it represented all the people of God.

And here, glorious things are spoken about Zion, the city of God. Things in the future, things in the day of Messiah.

When Messiah comes, these things are going to happen. So how are we to understand these words about Zion? There's an important principle about interpreting prophecy that we must get, and it's this.

that we come to understand the meaning of prophecy better by studying the reality rather than studying the shadow.

Hebrews chapter 10 and verse 1 says, the law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming. They're not the realities themselves. And if we would understand Old Testament prophecies, we are better served by studying the reality more than the shadow.

Now, already in the worship, we've talked about manna. That's in Old Testament. Shadow. What does it really stand for? Well, you've got to come into the New Testament in John 6, and you find that Jesus is the manna that the Father sent from heaven.

Or we read about the good shepherd in the Old Testament. What is this about? It's a type. It's a shadow. And in John 10 and 11, we see that Jesus says, I am the good shepherd, and so on.

So we're better served, if we would understand those Old Testament types and prophecies, we're better served to come to the New Testament and study the reality rather than just forever staring at the Old Testament shadow.

That's true of Zion as well. This prophecy of Zion. Let's say you're in a room, and there's a powerful floodlight, and a man walks into that room, and the light is shining straight in his face.

Well, it casts his shadow behind him on the wall. Now, how will you best come to understand what that man looks like? By walking around behind him and looking at the shadow, the mere outline of the man?

Or by looking straight into his face? The reality, the real man, not just his shadow, but him. Well, you're served better by looking upon the reality.

And so with Zion, we find the reality of this Old Testament shadow spoken of in the light of the New. And when we come to the New Testament, it tells us in Hebrews 12 and verses 22 and following that in coming to Christ, you have come to Mount Zion.

You have come to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God, the church of the firstborn. Galatians 4.26 tells us that the Jerusalem that is above is free and she is our mother if we have been born again by the power of God's Spirit.

Revelation 21 tells us that the holy city, the new Jerusalem, will come down out of heaven from God to inhabit the new heaven and the new earth as a beautifully dressed bride, the wife of the Lamb.

Who is Zion? It's the church. It's the bride of Christ, the wife of the Lamb. And she shines with the glory of God as she lives with Him and reigns with Him forever and ever.

So the important thing for us now is to see that in the clear light of the New Testament reality, this prophecy of Zion in Isaiah 60 has nothing to do with the city of Jerusalem over in the modern state of Israel.

But it has everything to do with the new Jerusalem, the new covenant, people of God, the bride of Christ, the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. And the sooner we grasp that, the sooner we will come to understand how that these things belong to us.

This is Zion. This is the subject of the glorious future here portrayed. And if you belong to God's people, if you belong to Christ's church, this is your future.

This is your future. The second introductory remark is an observation, and it's this, that God loves to show His people the end of the story.

He loves to show His people the end of the story. We've seen this throughout Isaiah. He constantly is taking us to the end of time. Remember, His people are downhearted and dreary and sad.

And so what does He do? He shows them the end of the story. And we're going to see that as He comes to the end of His book. Isaiah will do this over and over. And that's where He'll end this story, in the future.

And that's where we find here in chapter 60. He's going right off into the future. He keeps showing His people the glorious future that awaits us.

Now we've all seen before and after pictures, haven't we? Here He is before braces. Here He is after braces. Wow, what a difference.

Here He is before the diet and exercise routine. Here He is six months after. Wow, what a difference. You mean if I buy that supplement and I do my push-ups, I'll look like that?

We understand why the before and after pictures are there for us. They're meant to motivate us who still look like the before pictures.

Come on! Stick with it! Persevere! Pretty soon you'll be looking like this. Chapter 59 was the before picture of Zion. I'm sorry it's been so long since we studied it.

Chapter 59 of Isaiah is God's people as they were then, the before picture. Sick with sin, truth nowhere to be found in the street, no justice, evil thoughts and evil deeds ruling the day, the righteous being persecuted by the unrighteous, God's people despised and harassed by the world, and the church sadly, spiritually sleepy and sluggish, lethargic, disappointed, downcast, feeling abandoned.

chapter 60 is the happy after picture of this same Zion. God pushes the fast forward button right into the messianic age of the future and he shows us what his people will look like thanks to the coming Redeemer.

This is what she looks like now. Oh, but look what he's going to make her. What a difference. And even so, this picture of our glorious future is meant to motivate us to get on with the Christian life with great expectation of what is to be for the church of Jesus Christ.

So let's begin the after picture. Chapter 60. Rise and shine. Children, how many of you have been rudely awakened out of your sleep by a parent shouting, rise and shine?

You may not have known that that came from our text. Isaiah chapter 60 in verse 1. Mom and dad are being biblical. Rise and shine.

It's time to rouse yourself. Shake yourself out of your sleepiness and shine with the new life and vigor that you get from a night's sleep as you get after the business of the day.

Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. Shake yourself out of that spiritual slumber and sluggishness and shine.

Now this is spoken to a people who were sitting in darkness. You see that back in chapter 59 verses 9 and 10. We look for light, but all is darkness.

We look for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows like the blind. We grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes. At midday, we stumble as if it were twilight.

That's the before picture. And this darkness of sin and sadness is not just a problem for Old Testament Israel, the Zion of God, but rather, as verse 2 shows us, it's a worldwide problem.

See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples. But the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears over you.

So here is our world. This is the picture of the world the way it's always been and always will be until Jesus comes and changes the picture. It's our world languishing in the darkness of sin, and evil, and unbelief, and the consequences of sin, and sorrow, and sadness.

The world lost and without hope in the face of looming death and the judgment to follow. It's pitch dark in the world. But in this worldwide darkness, there is one place where the divine light is shining.

In Zion. Zion, the people of God. The Lord rises upon you. His glory appears over you. Just as the cloud of glory, that shining pillar of fire, stood over the old Israel.

So, He will rise over you. Have we appreciated our privilege living in the dark world to be walking in the light?

having the light of God's salvation brought to shine in our lives. Dispelling sin's gloomy darkness.

You see, this is a prophecy of the coming of Jesus Christ to His people. Chapter 59 and verse 20 at the end of the before picture, we have this encouraging promise.

59, 20, the Redeemer will come to Zion to those in Jacob who repent of their sins. The light is coming and that's what we find shining then in chapter 60. He, the Lord Jesus, is the light rising upon you.

The Lord is my light and my salvation. Just before Jesus was born, Zechariah said, the rising sun, that's a great name for Jesus, the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death to guide our feet into the path of peace.

Jesus is the light. So, rise and shine, Zion, for your light has come. And this brings us to the first lesson.

Those who receive light must give light. Those who receive light must give light. One reason the light rises and shines on us is to enable us to rise and shine to others.

You remember Jesus said one day, I am the light of the world. Whoever believes in me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.

Jesus is the light of the world. But in Matthew 5, he comes to his people, his disciples, and he says, you are the light of the world.

Let your light shine before men. Well, which is it? Is the light Jesus or is the light his people? Well, of course, both.

Both. You cannot have the light of the world living in you without becoming yourself the light of the world. Shining with the light and glory of Christ and his salvation.

The light of his salvation so transforms us into his likeness that we radiate the glory of him into this world in the same way that the moon radiates the glory and shines with the glory of the light of the sun that's shown on it.

It's the light of God's glory in Christ that makes our witness for Christ compelling and that leads us to the second lesson that as Zion shines with God's light the nations will be drawn to it.

As Zion is shining with the Lord's light and salvation the nations will be drawn into it. Verse 3 Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Nations will come to your light. Have you noticed how a light attracts bugs out of the darkness? It's 11 o'clock at night and all the bugs are scattered throughout the yard tucked in for the night or treading air in the darkness or whatever they do out there in the dark and then you flip on your light and every bug in the neighborhood is astir and they're saying there's a party on tonight over at the Heaney's.

Look there's light and they all run to the light. The light attracts them to it. That's what the light of Christ coming upon his people will do to the nations.

You see that in verse 3 Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn. Out of the darkness of sin's night the magnetism of gospel light draws people from all over the world into Christ's church.

Now this magnetism is not natural. Our Lord Jesus told us the problem is yes the light is wonderful and magnetic and attractive but the problem is men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil so they will not come to the light lest their deeds should be reproved.

but God will exert his power with the light so as the light goes out he will draw people to Zion and the light shining in his people.

You see just as the problem of darkness was not limited to Israel so the remedy of light is also not limited to Israel. It started in Israel. God's saving light was never meant to remain in Israel.

but was always the plan of God to go from Israel into all the world from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth to the Jew first also to the Gentile.

That's always been God's plan. And that's by the way just what happened. The light of Christ's salvation first dawned upon his people and his people were Israelites at that time.

The twelve disciples were Jews. They were Jewish believers. The hundred and twenty waiting on the day of Pentecost were Jewish believers. You see he did the Redeemer did come to Zion first to his people who were Israelites Jews.

Three thousand Jews were saved on the day of Pentecost. The church has her beginning you see with Jewish believers but it didn't end there it was never meant to end there.

From there the gospel went out into the ends of the earth and drew in magnetized in the nations as they came to trust in our Messiah.

Within thirty years of Jesus resurrection the gospel had been carried into the entire civilized world and much of the uncivilized world. People were streaming to Zion entering Christ and his church throughout the Middle East in Arabia Asia Africa and Europe arise shine why because nations will come to your light and this is why Grace Fellowship Church we should take this gospel light to the nations with great expectation salvation because they will come to your light Jesus says they are coming to your Savior and his great salvation God's city is growing from converts to Christ all over the world just lift up your eyes and look he says in verse four lift up your eyes look about you all assemble and come to you your sons come from afar your daughters are carried on the arm now this speaks more of a few dispersed

Jews who had been dispersed throughout the Babylonian empire speaks more of just a few dispersed! Jews coming back to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls and the temple of God no this speaks of a great migration of the nations and in gathering from Midian Ephah Sheba Kedar Nebaioth Tarshish Lebanon the nations are coming into Zion coming from every point of the compass forming a multinational multicultural church Gentiles and Jews in Jesus fold there will be one shepherd and one fold was the prophecy and they're coming by land and by sea they're laden they're coming on camels and they're coming in ships and as they come they're proclaiming the praise of the Lord you see these are converts from the nations they had their own national gods but they come forsaking their gods forsaking their religion and giving praise to the

God of Israel the only true and living God there is they're pictured here as doves coming home to their nests I dare say every Christian here knows what that means for in coming to the Lord Jesus and his people you feel like you're coming home you're coming home you're coming to the place you belong I'm just a Gentile but the God of Israel is my God I'm just a sinner but Jesus is my savior I am accepted here in the beloved I'm accepted with his people these people love me this is home and so they come like doves back to their lofts at night have you come home to

God's people Zion have you come to their savior are these your people say this is where I belong I'm most at home among God's people worshiping Christ that's what he's talking about notice this is the joy of Zion to see others coming to Christ in his church verse five then then here's the after picture when this all happens you will look and be radiant your heart will throb and swell with joy I ask you church is there any greater joy in the world than to see sinners coming home to Christ top that this makes our hearts throb this is what makes heaven throb with joy this is what causes heaven to celebrate and rejoice a sinner coming home a sinner repenting I ask is this not the explanation for our joy when we gather at the other end of the building at a baptism service and hear the testimony of another soul that's been gathered into

Christ and his people snatched out of the world brought home to Jesus and we rejoice is that your heart throb is that your joy and notice they're coming drawn to Christ by the magnetic glory of God in his people verse 9 says for the reason they're coming is because he God has endowed you you Zion with splendor he has beautified you his people with the same beauty of God himself the same features of Christ self sacrificing love his grace to the undeserving they see it in you his mercy to enemies his holiness his outgoing kindness his solid joy and stable peace they see it in you and that's part of the attraction of God's people as they adorn the teachings of Christ our

Savior and they bring the nations to the light that enlightens them even Jesus so arise and shine people of Zion how magnetic are you how brightly are you shining with the life and light of Christ who's being attracted to the Savior through your light bearing life and words how zealous for the church's mission in the world are you yes as Zion shines with the light the nations will come the third lesson is that Zion will be enriched by the nations flowing into her because as the nations are coming into Zion they're not coming empty handed but they're bringing great riches with them verse five ends with these words the wealth on the seas will be brought to you to you the riches of the nations will come these are Gentile converts coming to

Christ and they are bringing all that to be devoted to Christ and his church because when Christ has your heart he has your pocket book as well and they come with the riches of the world and they lay it at the feet of Christ and his church camels bearing gold and incense to adorn my glorious temple verse seven flocks of sheep and rams that will be accepted as offerings on my altar ships flying along like clouds and doves laden with silver and gold and more sons of Zion from afar the glory of Lebanon shall be brought into you with its famous timbers of pine and fir and cypress to adorn the place of my sanctuary that I and I will glorify the place of my feet again when when Old Testament prophecy is talking about the temple of God being adorned by Gentile believers we're not to think of a physical structure but rather to see that's the shadow what's the

New Testament reality you are the temple of the living God and God intends to beautify his temple by bringing into her not just those who are Jewish by heritage but by bringing those from all the nations and their diversity will beautify his sanctuary his church your gates verse 11 will always stand open they will never be shut day or night why because of everyone bringing things to you so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations their kings led in triumphal procession the best commentary on this passage this great and gathering to Zion and bringing the wealth the reality is the reality as we see it in Revelation 21 you know that passage takes the glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it nothing impure will ever enter it nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful but only those whose names are written in the

Lamb's book of life what is all this saying well it's saying that the Gentile nations the believers the converts from the nations their coming will in some way or another contribute to the!

of the honor verse 9 to the honor of the Lord your God and to the glory and splendor and beauty of his church for I will adorn my glorious temple he says so God's glory is going to shine in the end far more for having more than just those people from that descended physically from Abraham the Jews from having them in the church God's glory is going to be so much more magnificent by having those from every language tribe and nation saved by the blood of Christ worshiping him there and it's that desire for the greater glory of God that ought to be pushing us to take the gospel to the nations to this nation and to the ends of the earth that

God might be glorified by an international people let that move you as you give and pray and bear witness to see God's dwelling adorned the fourth lesson is that the eternal destiny of nations is determined by their attitude and their treatment of Zion the destiny of nations is determined by their attitude and treatment of Zion verse 12 says for the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish it will be utterly ruined reminds us of what God said to Abraham earlier I will bless those that bless you and whoever curses you I will curse now here he's saying that of Zion and remember what we said of Zion Zion is the people of God yes to start with it was mainly Jewish wasn't church Jews and

Gentiles in the one fold so you must apply it to the church this is not a formula to dictate our foreign policy toward modern day Israel as some of our presidents have been counseled by mistaken pastors it's rather saying that one's attitude toward God's people the church is determinative of their everlasting state whoever does not serve Zion will perish they will be utterly ruined you know a person's attitude toward God's people reveals their true attitude toward God a person's attitude toward God's people reveals their attitude toward God because who are the people who is the church they're the apple of his eye they're his blood bought bride they're the body of

Christ and everyone who loves the head loves his body as well those who are not for his church are against it and against him those remaining aloof and just ignoring the church and not serving it will perish and be utterly ruined whereas those who enter through Christ and serve the church serve God's people will be greatly blessed well one last lesson the rest of this chapter continues to pile up the glorious changes that God is going to make for his people things that looked impossible as they're standing from the before perspective and they're hearing what they are going to be after Jesus comes comes the first time some of these things have to do with what happens after he comes the first time some of these things have to do with what happens after he comes the second time the old test didn't distinguish those two comings as we see it distinguished so clearly in the new but this is all part of the blessed change that

Jesus Christ will bring upon his people and so I have entitled this last point blessings abound wherever Jesus reigns blessings abound you know it's not natural for the nations of the as members themselves how do you explain such changes well verse 10 explains it in this way though in anger I struck you God speaking to Zion in favor I will show you compassion you see my discipline will end but my favor and compassion will never end and this is what it will look like

I'll make the nations come and bless you this is the Lord showing favor and compassion! so verses 14 and following say the sons of your oppressors will come bowing before you all who despise you will bow down at your feet and will call you the city of the Lord Zion of the Holy One of Israel although you have been forsaken and hated with no one traveling through you so desolate so unwanted I will make you the everlasting pride and joy of all generations you'll drink the milk of nations and be nursed at royal breasts then you will know that I the Lord am your savior your redeemer the mighty one of Jacob now Zion before had doubted they'd come to doubt whether the Lord even cared for them anymore!

whether he would ever save them they felt like he had forsaken them like the nations were too strong for him but then but then you will know that I the Lord am your savior I am your redeemer I am the mighty one of Jacob because only I could account for such transformation such things as enemies willingly coming and contributing to Zion men who hated your God and you coming and worshiping your God along with you such a reversal of fortunes is brought about by the Lord's favor for his people and we remember that Pharisee Saul of Tarsus breathing out slaughter against who against the church the people of Jesus he hated them with a passion that took him into foreign lands to kill and persecute them and on his way he is met by our king and he is humbled and now what is he doing he is serving the church he is building the church he is giving his labors to see the church expand and grow among the

Gentile nations and the Lord shining his light upon Zion I know the man in the Phoenix area who was a Muslim terrorist being trained to go on a suicide mission who was converted to Jesus Christ and he now serves God in his church he now serves the living God the Lord Jesus and his church it's the Lord doing these things then you will know!

that I am your savior then you will know that I am your redeemer the mighty one who else can do these things so no matter who opposes the church no matter how low God's people become he will lift them up he will act on their behalf he will glorify them in ways that transcend anything we've ever seen or heard of or can even imagine some of these descriptions!

then are not! to be taken literally they are metaphors to us just to stretch our minds to make us think how glorious Zion will be after the Lord Jesus comes again but the point that's reiterated is that Christ will make everything better better verse 17 instead of bronze I'll bring you gold that's upgrade isn't it silver in the place of iron that's upgrade instead of wood I'll bring you bronze and iron in the place of stones everything upgraded instead of asphalt there are streets of gold revelation 21 tells us instead of violence and ruin and destruction he says I will make peace your governor verse 18 instead of injustice I will make righteousness your ruler can you imagine a world without war and crime where all of our leaders are without sin this is what's coming for

God's people verse 18 you will call your walls salvation and your gates praise instead of walls for security the security of God's completed salvation will cause you endless praise instead of the light of the sun and moon the light of God's presence forever and so the chapter comes to an end as it began with the Lord as the light of the city of Zion and now that forever verse 19 and 20 the sun will no more be your light by day nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you for the Lord will be your everlasting light and your God will be your glory your sun will never set again and your moon will wane no more the Lord will be your everlasting light and your days of sorrow will end that's an upgrade days of sorrow upgraded to uninterrupted joy the light of

God's presence assures and ensures that your days of sorrow are over forever because in his presence is fullness of joy and at his right hand are pleasures forever more and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain and as John sees the church the city of Zion as she will be at the end those are his words about her is shown with the glory of God the city does not need the sun or the moon to shine by its light Revelation 21 23 and 4 Isaiah goes on in verse 21 with the upgrades coming for Zion instead of the mixed multitude within Zion then will all your people be righteous no more hypocrites in the church no more people claiming to be

God's people who aren't all your people will be righteous the chaff will be burned up and only those made righteous by the blood and spirit of Jesus will go in nothing impure will enter this city can you imagine a world in which all the people are as righteous as Jesus Christ that would change a few things wouldn't it as upgrades where all the ransomed church of God will be saved to sin no more that's what we have in front of us instead of being chased out of the promised land because of sin now with sin gone they will possess the land forever they'll possess the land forever and the whole land not just some parcel over in Palestine but as Romans chapter 4 and verse 13 says the earth the whole world they will possess the whole promised!

land the new heavens and the new earth will belong to Zion they're the shoots I have planted they are the shoot I have planted the work of my hands for the display of my splendor you see God's people are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works they're the planting of the divine gardener this is why you know that you're going to make it to the end Christian because God almighty is the gardener who planted you he knows how to get you to the he knows how to make Zion flourish and so you will be there this will be!

God's splendor you see the purpose here the end of verse 21 why has God planted you dear friend brother or sister into his new creation it is for the display of my splendor he says and how God's glory will be put on display as all of his blood bought children from every race gather together in worship of Father Son and Holy Spirit one final word on the remarkable growth of the church verse 22 the least of you will become a thousand the smallest a mighty nation again the before there's one after thousand least whole nation this is the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham Abraham can you count the stars no Lord I can't well so will the number of your descendants be so he is called

Abraham the father of many nations and here they are a multitude that no man can number from every language tribe and nation worshiping the land now these are the staggering promises of Zion's glorious future the full meaning of which we will have to live through in order to exegete Isaiah 60 completely you come to me after five minutes in heaven and you will have a whole lot more light on what Isaiah 60 means and so will I a mighty transformation from the before to the after the work of God himself and God is willing to stake his name and reputation on the fulfillment of these promises dear brother he puts his own name on the bottom line I am the Lord in its time I will do this swiftly you see God's name is on the line and that's why we know it will happen what

God is determined to do will happen in its own time so my question is how do you stand with God's people Zion have you joined them by trusting in their redeemer and bowing your knee to their king Jesus if not you will perish and be utterly ruined and it's God's kindness to warn you this morning about that you see because it must not be that you perish for God so loved this world that he sent his one and only son into the world and gave him that whoever believes on him should not perish but have everlasting life life trust in his death in the place of sinners receive everlasting life he personally invites you and if you come to him asking him to save you from your sins he will his name is on the bottom line and if you are through grace a member of Zion city then we've been looking at your future this is the fast forward on your life brother and sister does this not tell us something about the heart of

God towards his people he knows life can be hard full of disappointments heartaches discouragements troubles abounding and so he does something about it he does something to lift up our hearts along the journey he tells us about our glorious future it were a well spent journey those seven deaths lay between keep going keep going and start rejoicing now in the hope of the coming glory as we saw last week from revelation 5 2 that's the first application rejoice now in the hope of the glory of God to come he knows what a sad shape the church can get herself into how marred by sin and air the church of Jesus Christ is today how weak and worldly how irrelevant and dismissed by the world knows how the world hates our law and hates our gospel and hates what we believe and our morals he knows all of that and he knows it's disheartening to us so he shows us the future and the nations pouring into

Zion it's coming it's coming we're already seeing it you're in Zion you're not from Israel you have gathered in and from the nations they are coming to Christ even now so rejoice now in the hope of the coming glory of God at the end when we all gather together when we all come and worship the Savior rejoice in the hope of the coming glory the second application and last is rise and shine it's high time to rise and shine you're the light of the world Gentiles you're the light of the world he has lit you up with his salvation with his presence his grace his glory don't hide your light under a bushel say what kind of bushels have you been hiding your light on get rid of them let your light shine as he lit you up it was in order!

for you to shine! Don't be intimidated! Don't be ashamed of tempt them to become Christians by your joy in the Savior and work to see Zion prosper don't sit on the sidelines you've seen what Zion will become so come on rouse yourself come on pray and work and give and live in the light of what is coming there's an opportunity this morning afresh brothers and sisters to realign ourselves with the greatest thing going in the world Jesus Christ is building his church his temple the family of God Zion and that's one of the reasons he lit you up with his grace and salvation that you might be a part of it let us realign our lives with that let us invest our life in

Zion's cause the church of our Lord Jesus Christ one story and we're done suppose you had insider information about something that is going to make a certain stock on the stock market soar in value ten times its present worth some of you would be out selling the car to invest the money all of your investments and you would invest well the market value for Zion's stock is not worth much at present the church is mocked and hated she sadly goes in slippers rather than in silver few are interested it seems but we've been given insider information in Isaiah chapter 60 that the tide is going to turn we've been given insider information here about the future of

Zion we've been shown the after and she is going to soar off the chart she's going to become the envy of the nations she is going to become the everlasting pride and joy of all generations now are you going to get in on this opportunity brother sister let us dedicate devote ourselves afresh to Christ and his cause in building the church from the nations let's pray thank you God for being our God and drawing us to the Lord Jesus Christ and faith in his shed blood to make us your people thank you that you know how hard the path is to heaven and you know the state of our heart along the way as we see your church struggling seemingly on the bottom many times and places in history and around the world and thank you for giving us to see the after picture again this morning of what the

Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished and what will be for his people at last oh then bring us to rejoice in hope of this glory and bring us to rise and shine for his cause we pray in his name amen