A Fruitful Vineyard At Last

Isaiah chapter 27, we're going to read the entire chapter. Verse 1.

I am not angry. If only there were briars and thorns confronting me, I would march against them in battle. I would set them all on fire. Or else, let them come to me for refuge.

Let them make peace with me. Yes, let them make peace with me. In days to come, Jacob will take root. Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit.

Has the Lord struck her as he struck down those who struck her? Has she been killed as those were killed who killed her? By warfare and exile you contend with her.

With his fierce blast, he drives her out as on a day the east wind blows. By this, then, will Jacob's guilt be atoned for. And this will be the full fruitage of the removal of his sin.

When he makes all the altar stones to be like chalk stones crushed to pieces, no ashra poles or incense altars will be left standing. The fortified city stands desolate, an abandoned settlement, forsaken like the desert.

There the calves graze. There they lie down. They strip its branches bare. When its twigs are dry, they're broken off and women come and make fires with them.

For this is a people without understanding. So their maker has no compassion on them and their creator shows them no favor. And that day the Lord will thresh from the flowing Euphrates to the wadi of Egypt.

And you, O Israelites, will be gathered up one by one. And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

Well, this chapter of God's word begins with a great sword, a great sword that kills a sea monster.

And it ends with a great trumpet that gathers God's people. And in between we have a great and fruitful vineyard. And so those are our three main divisions for this morning.

Isaiah chapter 27. First of all, a great sword. Verse 1. In that day the Lord will punish with his sword, his fierce, great, and powerful sword, Leviathan, the gliding serpent, Leviathan, the coiling serpent.

He will slay the monster of the sea. So everyone wants to know what is Leviathan. Well, it's certainly one of the great sea creatures that God created on the fifth day of creation.

You can read in Genesis chapter 1 of that. Psalm 104 says, There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number, living things both large and small.

There the ships go to and fro, and the Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there. So it's a creature that God made.

You can turn to Job chapter 41 and have the Lord describe it. Hear the Lord describe it to his servant, Job. We're not going to take the time, but it's an untamable, fierce, great, and powerful sea monster with fearsome teeth, with rows of shields on his back, snorting flashes of light, fire shooting out of his mouth, smoke from his nostrils, thrashing and churning up the sea, leaving a wake behind as he goes.

And God says to Job, If you lay a hand on him, you will remember the struggle and never do it again. Swords, spears, and javelins have no effect on him.

Iron he treats like straw. Nothing on earth is his equal. Now some have guessed it's the crocodile.

Kids, that's not like any croc that I've seen, is it? Like you've seen? We're not sure what this creature was.

Perhaps one of those extinct dinosaurs that we have never laid eyes on. But it was the fiercest creature that God made. And that's the point that God was making with Job.

And we don't have the time to go there. In the book of Revelation, Satan is referred to under the symbol of a great dragon. A great dragon.

Revelation 12, 9. The great dragon was hurled down. That ancient serpent called the devil or Satan who leads the whole world astray. And so here in Isaiah 27, Leviathan appears to be a symbolic figure of Satan.

A gliding, coiling, serpent monster of the sea. What better creature to use as a symbol for Satan than this one that has nothing on earth as its equal.

A superhuman foe. Beyond our ability to cope with. Wreaking havoc on God's people and on the earth with power beyond our own.

Very fittingly then, Martin Luther says of Satan, On earth is not his equal. But he who is beyond our control is not beyond the Lord's control.

Satan is a fierce and great and powerful enemy. But the Lord has a fierce and great and powerful sword. That is more than equal.

More than up to the task of slaying this enemy. And so with his great sword, he will slay this monster of the sea.

The devil himself. Now, look at the verse just before this. The last verse in chapter 26. See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins.

And then we read in verse 1 of chapter 27. In that day, when the Lord comes to punish the people of the earth. In that day, the Lord will punish with his fierce, great and powerful sword, Leviathan.

So not only is he coming to punish unrepentant sinners. He's coming to punish the supernatural powers that lie behind the enemies of Israel and of his people here on earth.

That aggravate and stir up trouble for God's people. There is that unseen spiritual enemy. And so this is great news. This is good news for the people of God.

A great sword for our great enemy. Now, what have we been seeing in Isaiah? We've seen that God saves his people. How?

By destroying our enemies. And that's not only true of the enemy nations that were oppressing Judah. That God would save them by destroying these surrounding nations.

But it's also true of our spiritual enemies. God saves us by destroying our enemy death. We saw that in chapter 25. He will swallow up death forever.

And now here in chapter 27. We see that he saves us by destroying our great enemy Satan. Who is too powerful for us.

Indeed, back in chapter 24, verse 21. In that day, the Lord will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below.

Yes, he comes to destroy his earthly enemies. But also his heavenly spiritual enemies. Who are behind all the evil in this world.

The spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Do you remember on Christmas morning? We looked at that text in 1 John chapter 3 and verse 8. That says that the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

Well, Paul says in 1 Timothy 1.15. That Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Well, John Paul, which is it?

Did he come to destroy or did he come to save? Well, he did come to do both, didn't he? He came to save us by destroying our enemy.

There's no contradiction here. He saves us by destroying our enemies. The reality is that we were born a slave of Satan.

And we were taken captive by him to do his will. And if we're to be set free from his dominion and power, then he must be destroyed.

And we're told here that in that day he will take his great sword and slay this great enemy of his people. Now, that's the poetic language of of chapter 27.

What what does it look like in real life? What does it really look like? This slaying of Leviathan? Well, at the cross, the Lord Jesus triumphed over demonic powers by dying for us.

And by Christ's death for us, Satan lost his power to manipulate us with the fear of death. And so in Christ, we're no longer the devil's child slaves.

He's lost all claims upon us. We're free in Jesus Christ. But in that day when Jesus returns, he will finally destroy all his and our enemies.

And that will include Satan, whom he will throw into the lake of burning sulfur and torment day and night forever and ever. Revelation 20. 10. Yes.

On earth is not as equal. But low, his doom is sure. One little word will fell him. Our Lord Jesus, with his great sword, will bring him down.

One little word, a great sword indeed. So that's the great sword that the chapter opens with to destroy our great enemy. Then we come to a great vineyard.

God's salvation of his people. God's salvation is not an end in and of itself. No, he saves us in order that we might bear fruit to his glory. So we have this future song about a fruitful vineyard in that day.

Verse to sing about a fruitful vineyard. And those words ought to really amaze us. This isn't the first song in Isaiah about a vineyard. You remember back in chapter five, there was a song about God's vineyard, Judah.

And there you remember how the Lord found a fertile hillside and he dug it up and he cleared it of stones and he planted the choicest grapevines.

And he built around it a protective wall and a hedge and he tended it with the greatest of care. And then when harvest day came, he came looking for a crop of good grapes.

But he found only bad fruit, bad grapes. And the rest of the chapter, chapter five, is a sampling of the different clusters of grapes that he found.

And you remember all the injustice and bloodshed that he found in Judah, the greed, the oppression, the drunkenness, the deceit, people calling evil good and good evil.

People wise in their own eyes. He came looking for the fruits of righteousness and he found the fruits of wickedness. And so what did the Lord do with his vineyard?

He judged his vineyard. He removed the protective wall around her and let it be trampled and overrun with thorns and briars.

He turned it into a wasteland, remember, and he commanded the clouds to not rain on it. What an enemy to have, the one who commands the clouds.

And so those judgments pronounced were now starting to fall on the nation of Judah. They're heading into this storm cloud and they're already beginning to feel that judgment upon them.

But the worst is yet to come. And so with the Lord's protective wall gone, what happened? The nations start moving in on Judah.

First Assyria, later it will be Babylon. And they'll take the people away into exile, leaving the land untended. And soon it will become the desolate, totally unproductive, scorched earth that was prophesied.

So that's where chapter five and the song of the vineyard ended. If you just stopped reading there, you would never expect one good grape to come from that vineyard.

I mean, the clouds won't rain on it. And thorns and thistles and briars have overcome it. But here in chapter 27, we're given another song that will be sung in that day, some undisclosed day in the future.

A song about a fruitful vineyard. That means that God is not done with this vineyard. Yes, it must be judged.

But judgment does not have the final word. Grace does. So here is what God will make of them after their own gross failure to bear fruit.

Here's the reason they will be a fruitful vineyard in that day. Verse three. I, the Lord, watch over it. I water it continually.

I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it. I, I, I. The reason.

For the fruitfulness is clear. This vineyard owes all its fruitfulness to the Lord himself. Any good fruit in any church of Jesus Christ, any good fruit in your life is all owing to the vine dresser, Jesus.

It's his work. John 15, eight. Jesus says, it's to my father's glory that you bear much fruit.

Well, how do we bear fruit? It's by his work. And when there's a crop of good grapes coming off of this vineyard, people want to know who's the vine dresser.

And so he gets all the praise. Now, is it not amazing that God gets a crop of good grapes from the likes of scorched earth like you and me?

Our hearts and lives scorched with sin. Turned in upon ourselves. And the divine vine dresser goes to work and he digs up the ground and he makes it good.

And he waters it continually because we have no supply of our own. And he guards it day and night because we're no match for these spiritual enemies of ours.

You see, it's all his provision and protection. Of his people, and it's not something sporadic one day, but not the next. No, it's continual. It's day and night.

It's his constant care of his vineyard. And that's why you bear fruit. And that's why we as a church bear fruit. He's watching over us day and night. He's watering us continually.

You were watered this week. You may not have recognized it. He was watering. He was watching. He never slumbers or sleeps in his watch care over you. Notice the drastic change here in God's behavior toward his vineyard.

The very one who commanded the clouds, don't rain. On her. Now is watering her himself continually. And the one who broke down their protective wall and abandoned them to their enemies is now the one who watches over and guards it day and night.

So no one will harm her. Do you see the change in his behavior towards his people? Now the change in God's behavior is due to the change in his attitude toward them.

And we see that in verse four. I am not angry. Or we could read it. I am not angry anymore. Oh, he had been angry with his vineyard.

Judah for rejecting his law and spurning his word. You can read back in chapter five in that song of the vineyard. Therefore, the Lord's anger burns against his people. His hand is raised and he strikes them down.

The mountains shake and the dead bodies are like refuse in the streets. Yet for all of this, his anger is not turned away. His hand is still upraised. But in that day, but in that day, he will say, I'm not angry anymore.

Blessed good news. It will take chapter 53 to fully tell us how his anger is turned away from us by the substitute sufferer bearing the anger in our place.

But he's no longer angry against Judah like before when he gave them over to their enemies. Now his anger is only directed toward his enemies.

Those briars and thorns that that destroy his vineyard. So now he says, if only there were briars and thorns confronting me, I'd march out against them in battle.

I would set them all on fire. You see how he loves his vineyard. He so loves her and wants to prove his jealous love for them.

Just let a weed appear. And I'll show you how I love you by torching the weed. I remember one day I was studying in the den and I heard this roar behind me. And I looked out the window and there was the neighbor with a butane torch torching the weeds in the driveway.

Made a roar. That's what God says I would do for you. Just let a briar. Let a weed appear. And watch what I'll do. And setting your enemies on fire.

Maybe it's like a young man walking along with his beloved. Just wishing someone would try to attack her. Come on. Just somebody try.

And I could show her how much I loved her by smashing him. Oh, that there was a briar or a thorn, God says. Confronting me.

I would march out against them. Anything threatening my vineyard. I would torch them. Do you think of your divine lover as looking for opportunities to show his love for you?

For his church? Oh, but notice there's a divine or else that follows in verse 5. And or else for the very enemies of God's people.

Or else. I would torch them. I would set them all on fire. Or else. Let them come to me for refuge. Let them make peace with me.

Yes. Let them make peace with me. Now he's just threatened to burn his enemies with fire. But at once. He reveals his willingness to be reconciled to them.

Amazing grace that he invites his enemies. To come to him for refuge. And to make peace with him. Rather than be torched.

By him. What are they to come to him for refuge for? For shelter and refuge. From what?

From his wrath. That's about to destroy them. The only refuge from God's wrath. Is found in God himself.

So you either come to him for refuge. Or you suffer the wrath of God yourself. And it's not like he doesn't care which you do.

So it's up to you. What do you want to do? Do you want to be burned under my wrath? Or do you want to come to me for peace? It's not like he doesn't care. It's not like he doesn't care which you do. Instead of pouring out his wrath upon his enemies.

He would much rather have them stop and turn. And come to him for refuge and peace. Do you see that? Yes.

Let them come to me. And make peace. That's at the core of the heart of God. Even for his enemies. Peace.

How? Through a crucified Savior. For the punishment that brought us peace was upon him. And by his wounds we are healed. Therefore being justified by faith.

We have peace with God. Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Let him come to me. Years ago here in Bremen. There was a fugitive running from the police.

Running through the backyards of Bremen. And one of our law officers. Was in pursuit on foot. And shouted to the man.

Stop or I'll shoot. Well he didn't stop. And the officer shot him in the head. Dead.

This is God. Almighty God. With his enemies. And they're running from him. Perhaps it's you. If you're without Christ. You're one of these enemies of God.

And you're running from him. And every time you hear the gospel. Every time you hear the word of God brought before you. Almighty God is saying. Stop.

Or I'll shoot. How kind of God. You don't deserve another warning. And the thing he would really rather do.

Than shoot. Is to have you stop. Is to have you stop. And turn around. And run for refuge. Right into his arms. To have you make peace with him. For why will you die?

Why will you not turn and live? Yes. Let them make peace with me. That's his heart. He's either your best friend. Or your worst enemy. He would be your best friend.

You see the fugitive running from the cop. What are his options? Stop and spend life in jail. Or I'll shoot.

That's not God. I'll shoot. And you will spend life in the prison of hell. Why not rather stop.

And enjoy peace with God. Eternal life. Forgiveness. Grace. So under this constant provision.

You see this is how he treats his enemies. Because he's protecting his vineyard. His people. And under the constant provision and protection of the Lord. This vineyard will flourish.

Notice how much it flourishes in verse 6. In days to come. Jacob will take root. Israel will bud and blossom. And fill all the world with fruit. And let me just say.

This prophecy is not fulfilled. In the fact that today. We eat grapes and oranges. That grew in Palestine. And in the present day nation. Of Israel.

No. Not at all. It's rather that this vineyard. Of old covenant Israel. Would under God's blessing. Bring salvation blessings. To all the world.

That's why she was called. That's why she's the special people of God. That's why God called her father Abraham. That he would bless him. And through him. Blessing would come to all the ends of the earth.

That she had failed in her calling. And she had not brought forth salvation to the earth. Chapter 26. 18. Oh but in days to come she will. In days to come this vineyard will flourish.

And bud. And be fruitful. And would bless the whole world. With its fruit. So what happened? Well. From her the.

The savior came. To us a child is born. To us a son is given. And he came. And he lived. And he. And he purchased a righteousness for his people.

And he went to the cross and died. He rose victorious. And there was the. The budding fruit. In Zion. What was it? 120. Gathered there in the upper room.

Praying. And the spirit of God was poured out. And 3000. Jews. From all over the world. Had come back for. For Pentecost. And. And they were saved in one day.

And they're budding. And blossoming. And bearing fruit. And they go back to their nations. And the gospel goes out to the Gentiles. And it goes to Europe. And it comes to our land. And here we are.

We're part of the fruit. That started with. Little Judah. Little insignificant. Barren. Scorched. Earth. Judah. But under the blessing of God.

She is bringing forth fruit. All over. The world. Let's plead those promises. As we pray for the gospel.

To flourish. In other nations. Oh God. Would you. Take. The fruit of. The gospel. And make it. To feed. The whole world.

Now there was a problem. It's one thing to talk about. This fruitful vineyard. But remember what Isaiah's hearers. Were looking at. What they were waking up to. Every morning.

The dark clouds. Of judgment. Were hanging over their heads. Assyrians. Already on the march. And destroying. Wreaking havoc. The Babylonians. Will soon. Do worse.

And so as they look. At their broken down walls. And invading thorns. And briars. Of enemy nations. Rushing in. They're wondering.

How can this be? How can we. Ever become. This fruitful vineyard. How are we to. Understand. These present.

Realities. That we're living with. And so Isaiah says. In verse seven. Well has the Lord. Struck her. Speaking of. Judah. The vineyard. As he struck down.

Those who struck her. Has she been killed. As those who were killed. Those were killed. Who killed her. He's saying. Can't you see. That he's not struck you. As he struck your enemies.

He's not. Brought a complete. Annihilation. To you. He's not as harsh. With you. He's been restrained. He's held himself. Back. For his own namesake.

He's not treated you. As your sins deserve. You've had mercy. Where they haven't. There's always. A big difference. Between. God's judgments. Of his people.

And his judgments. With his enemies. Now they may look. The same outwardly. Might. Might be Assyria. And his enemies. Experience.

Assyria. God's rod. And his people. Experience. Assyria. God's rod. Looks the same. But there's a tremendous. Difference. In God's dealings. With his enemies. And his people.

In these judgments. As for your enemies. I struck them. To condemn them. And to destroy them. It was pure punishment. Period. Nothing more. Justice.

But I struck you. In jealous anger. To correct you. In my love. You see. I. I did not strike you.

To destroy you. But to discipline you. Not to condemn you. But to correct you. Not merely to punish you. But to purify you.

Do you see the difference. In his purpose. In his judgments. That he brings. He's out. To make his people. Bear fruit. For his glory. They're like.

Scorched earth. There's no good grapes. But he's determined. To make them. A fruitful vineyard. How does he do it? Well it takes. Discipline. To make. Us fruitful.

And that is the painful. Pruning. That's taking place. To bear more fruit. Our fathers. Disciplined us. For a little while.

As they thought best. But God disciplines us. For our profit. That we may share. In his holiness. No discipline. Seems pleasant. At the time. But painful.

Later on. However. It produces. A harvest. Of righteousness. And peace. For those who have been trained. By it. Hebrews 12. So the Lord knows.

Just the way. To discipline us. To get more fruit. Unto his glory. And I wonder.

Brothers and sisters. If we clearly understand. What the Lord is up to. In our lives. In his discipline. With us. That what he is after.

Is not so much. Our constant happiness. As it is. Our lasting holiness. Not our unbroken. Smiles.

But our persisting. Holiness. As a good father. He disciplines. Those he loves. And so he is willing. To sacrifice. The immediate.

Happiness. To make us grow. In lasting holiness. And he sends us. Painful disciplines. To make us more like Jesus. To get rid of. Rid of the weeds. Of sin.

To develop. In our lives. More of the fruit. Of the spirit. More patience. Kindness. Goodness. More gentleness. Faithfulness. And self-control. Greater.

Love for God. And love for man. Greater trust. Stronger. Perseverance. Divine discipline. Is necessary. To make. Us a fruitful.

Vineyard. And that's what God. Was doing with Judah. Each time. Enemy nations. Invaded. And took away. Captives. That's what he was doing. Verse 8 says.

By warfare. And exile. You contend with her. With his fierce blast. He drives her out. As on a day. The east wind blows. War. Was a severe. Discipline.

Anybody. Who's been to war. Knows that. This was not just a slap on the hand. This was a trip to the woodshed for Judah. This was a major discipline. When God invited the nations.

To come and get it. And fought against his own people. And sided with his enemies. It needs to be painful. To be purifying.

And the deeper the dirt. The harder mom scrubs. With that rough washcloth. And so God says. Though it hurts horribly.

I only designed. Thy dross to consume. And thy gold to refine. So God was taking them. Into this painful exile. To cleanse them. From their sins.

And it was going to have. This purifying effect. Upon them. That we see in verse 9. By this then. Will Jacob's guilt be atoned for. And this will be the full fruitage.

Of the removal of his sin. When he makes. All the altar stones. To be like chalk stones. Crushed to pieces. No Asherah poles. Or incense altars.

Will be left standing. And here we see. What it was. That God was aiming at. In all this discipline. He was taking. Dead aim. At their idols.

Their idols. The sin of idolatry. And by the time. God's discipline. Is over. The idols. Would be. Flattened. And their altar.

Idols. Their idol altars. Pulverized. Kids. Have you had. Chalk. That you draw. On the sidewalk. With. Well if the car. Runs over that. It's. It's. It's gone.

It's powder. Isn't it? That's what God. Will do. To the altars. That they. Worship. Their idols. With. A few things.

Arouse God's jealousy. As much as. Idols. Because they take the place. In our hearts and lives. That he alone. Reserves for. Himself. And sometimes.

The discipline. Is so painful. Because the idolatry. Runs so deep. In our hearts. And pulling out. This weed. We feel like. Our very heart. Is being pulled out. And it just shows us.

How deeply. Entwined. Idolatry. Is in our nature. Our fallen nature. And God's after the fruit. Of single hearted. Devotion to him. Where we'll want him.

More than anything else. And I'll want his will. More than my own will. Do you want anything. So badly. That you will disobey God. To get it.

Or to keep it. It's an idol. And God means. To root it out. And his discipline. To do that. Shows just how much. He loves you.

Just how much. He wants. Your love. For him. Alone. He will not share it. With a rival. Does he love me. That much?

Oh. Then the dearest idol. I have known. Whatever that idol be. Help me to tear it. From thy throne. And worship. Only. The. The fruits of holiness.

Can only grow. Where the weeds. Of sin. Are removed. And so. Idolatrous. Judah. Is to come under. Severe. And purifying discipline. What will Jerusalem. Look like?

Well. She's described. In verse 10. The fortified city. Is not. It's fortified. But it's not strong enough. To keep out. It's enemies. When God. Removes. His protection.

Of it. And so. The fortified city. Stands desolate. An abandoned settlement. Forsaken. Like the desert. It will be like. A ghost town. So abandoned. And depopulated.

By war. That there. The calves. Will graze. There they'll lie down. They'll strip. Its branches bare. And when the twigs. Are dry. Women will come along. And gather them up. For firewood. In their ovens.

And here's the reason. For the discipline. 11b. For this. Is a people. Without understanding. So their maker. Has no compassion. On them.

And their creator. Shows them. No favor. As long as they go on. Leaning on their own. Understanding. Running after their idols. God's.

Compassion. And favor. Will not stop. The discipline. They will not experience. Mercy. And God. Removing. The judgment.

That's falling. Upon them. As long as they. Stubbornly. Persist. In their idolatry. The discipline. Will continue. Without mercy. God. Is just that. Committed. To remove.

Our sins. And our idols. To make us. A fruitful. Vineyard. That's his method. And notice. He will get. The job. Done. How different.

It will be. In that day. When the Lord's. Purging work. Has. Accomplished. Its purpose. And he will have. A fruitful. Vineyard. At last.

We come. Very briefly. To the last point. A great trumpet. In that day. In that day. When the discipline. Is over. And the idolatry. Has been removed.

In that day. The Lord. Will thresh. From the flowing. Euphrates. To the wadi of Egypt. And you. Oh Israelites. Will be gathered up. One by one. And in that day. A great trumpet. Will sound. Those who were perishing.

In Assyria. Those who were exiled. In Egypt. Will come. And worship. The Lord. On the holy mountain. In Jerusalem. A great harvest. Is coming. A harvest.

Of people. Of Israelites. Returning home. From their exile. Some down in Assyria. Some. Over in. Egypt. And you. And they.

Would be gathered up. One by one. And so. What are they coming. Back home. To do. Not just to establish. A political. Nation. No. No. Not at all.

They come. To worship. The Lord. On the holy mountain. In Jerusalem. To no longer. Worship their idols. Now they come. To worship. The Lord. That's what God. Was up to.

In his discipline. And that which calls. And gathers them. To worship. Is a great trumpet. Indeed. A trumpet. Was used. To gather. People. That's what we find.

Gathering them. Here. A great trumpet. Will sound. And from wherever. They were scattered. They will come. That's some trumpet. Isn't it? To gather the exiles. Of Israel home.

Now after their exile. Away. In these other nations. Some Jews. Did return home. To Jerusalem. And they. Did not. Worship their idols.

Anymore. But Jehovah. But that return. Only fulfilled. A small part. Of this prophecy. Prophecy. Because this prophecy. Points us. To an even greater.

Harvest. Taking place. At the end. Of the age. As Jesus says. In Matthew 13. The harvest. Is the end. Of the age. And the final. Gathering. Of the true. Sons of Israel.

The people of God. From all over the world. Gentiles. And Jews. Red and yellow. Black and white. Who have the faith. Of Abraham. They will come. And the trumpet.

Will be used. To call. His people. To harvest. Them home. Where they will. Worship him. Forever. The great.

Trumpet. Is the sign. Of this. Final. In gathering. Jesus says. The son of man. Is going to come. On the clouds. Of the sky.

With power. And great glory. And he will send. His angels. With a loud. Trumpet call. And they will. Gather his elect. From the four. Winds. From one. End of the heavens.

To the other. And we will be changed. In a moment. Paul says. In the twinkling. Of an eye. At the last. Trumpet. For the trumpet.

Will sound. And. The dead. Will be raised. Incorruptible. And we shall. All be changed. For the Lord. Himself. Will come. Down. From heaven. With a shout.

With the voice. Of the archangel. And with the trumpet. Call. Of God. And the dead. In Christ. Will rise first. And after that. We who are still alive. And are left. Will be caught up. Together.

With them. In the clouds. To meet the Lord. In the air. And so. Shall we ever be. With the Lord. And what will we be doing? We will be. Worshiping him. In the new.

Jerusalem. Forever. And ever. Wherefore. Comfort. One another. With these words. Paul says. And you see. That's what Isaiah. Is doing.

With this song. In chapter 27. He's seeking to. Encourage the remnant. In Judah. They're heading into. The severe discipline. To purge them.

From their idols. And though they were. A ruined vineyard. They're told. What God will make. Of them. What they will be. A fruitful vineyard.

Filling the whole world. With fruit. Fruit that will be. Harvested in the end. Gathered home. With a loud. Trumpet blast. To be with the Lord.

And to worship him. Forever. Can you see. The. The psychology. If you will. Behind this chapter. Our glorious future.

Is to impact. Our present living. Why else. Does God. Tell them. This is the song. You'll sing in that day. And tell them. Of how fruitful. They will be. When they're now.

A fruitless. Scorched. Vineyard. What we will be. In that day. Is to affect the way. We live in this day. Is to encourage us. Think of it.

Sing of God's kingdom. As it will look. Then. When he appears. Sing it now. By faith. Like you will sing it. Then. By sight. Because that hope.

Is a purifying hope. And he who has this hope. In him. Purifies himself. Are you one of these. Who will be gathered. By the loud.

Trumpet. Blast. On the last day. Of this age. Not if you're. Not gathered. Sometime.

In your life. By the gospel call. That invites you. To come to Christ. And live. Only those. Who are gathered. To Christ. In life. Will be gathered. To him.

By the last. Trump. On the last day. So what have we seen. This morning. We've seen three things. We've seen. First of all. That they're all a picture. To us. Of our Lord and Savior.

Jesus Christ. We've seen him. First of all. With his great sword. Destroying our great enemy. Satan. In order to save us. An enemy too great for us. But not for him.

And we remember. That in order to slay. The devil. With his great sword. He had to have. The greatest sword. Slay him. The deepest stroke. That pierced him.

Was the stroke. That justice gave. Is that how he slays. The great Leviathan. Satan. To save us. Oh then. Would. Would we not love him more?

Would we not run to him. More quickly. To help us. To fight against Satan. And sin. In our lives. For we are more than conquerors. Through him.

Who loved us so. And then secondly. We've seen our Lord Jesus. Caring for his blood bought church. Haven't we? We've seen him watering it. Protecting it. Pruning it. And all to make us.

A great and fruitful vineyard. That will fill the earth. With gospel fruit. We've seen him disciplining. And correcting his people. To make them more holy. And more fruitful.

To make their love more. Set upon the Lord himself. And their devotion. Unrivaled. And I say. Is that the great goal. That the Lord Jesus.

Is prosecuting in my life. Is that what he's coming to with me? Is that. Is that what he's doing with me? And should I not. Hunger and thirst. For greater holiness.

And greater fruitfulness. Should we not declare war. On every weed of sin in our life. Every idol in our hearts. Should we not ever be coming to this.

Savior. And saying to him. Lord Jesus. I long to be perfectly whole. I want thee forever.

To live in my soul. Break down every idol. Cast out every foe. Now wash me. And I shall be. Whiter than snow.

Now. And lastly. We've seen our blessed Lord. Gathering the harvest. Of his people. Every single one of them. Not one will be missing.

And he's gathering them. From the four corners of the earth. With a great trumpet blast. Gathering them to come home. And to worship the Lord. Forever and ever.

Is that where it's all leading? Should I not then be worshiping him. More right now. And ever saying. Even so.

Lord Jesus. Come quickly. Come quickly. And if you're not ready. For the trumpet blast. Dear friends. Should you not come to him.

Right now. Should this moment. Not be the moment. You stop running. And turn. And run into his arms. Of mercy. And love. And receive.

Forgiveness. And eternal life. And everlasting. Favor. Stop. Or I'll shoot.

But oh. That you would stop. That you would make peace. With me. A great sword. A great vineyard. A great trumpet.

All pointing us. All pointing us to a great savior. I'm going to ask that we spend a moment of silence talking to this great savior. Whatever your need is. Come to this savior.

Talk with him just now. All of us silently in our places. And I'll close in prayer. Let's all pray. Lord.

We thank you for these pictures of our savior. In Isaiah 27. We thank you that we've seen something of his. His great power. To destroy our enemies.

In order to save us. Thank you Jesus. For setting us free from Satan's dominion. Free to serve you.

And to bring forth fruit. And thank you for showing us yourself. As this divine vine dresser. To make us fruitful. That's why we were made. To bear more fruit.

To the glory. Of our God. Thank you that the pruning shears. Are in your wise and loving hands. Thank you that you know what you're up to. Oh come and cleanse us.

And make us to bear fruit to your glory. And then. Thank you that. Even in that picture. Of your protecting your people. We see something of your mighty grace. Toward your enemies.

That you welcome them. To come to you. And be saved. We're concerned that some. Even here. Are not ready for the trumpet blast.

Bring them to stop running now. And to receive Christ. And eternal life in him. Thank you for being our great savior.

Work your will and word in us. We ask in Jesus name. Amen.