Transcription downloaded from https://sermonarchive.gfcbremen.com/sermons/68041/the-lords-earthly-dwelling-place/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] Please take your Bibles and turn to Isaiah, the book of Isaiah, chapter 57. We'll be reading the entire chapter, Isaiah, chapter 57.

[0:19] The righteous perish and no one ponders it in his heart. Devout men are taken away and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil.

[0:32] Those who walk uprightly enter into peace. They find rest as they lie in death. But you come here, you sons of a sorceress, you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes.

[0:49] Whom are you mocking? At whom do you sneer and stick out your tongue? Are you not a brood of rebels, the offspring of liars?

[1:00] You burn with lust among the oaks and under every spreading tree. You sacrifice your children in the ravines and under the overhanging crags.

[1:11] The idols among the smooth stones of the ravines are your portion. They, they are your lot. Yes, to them you have poured out drink offerings and offered grain offerings.

[1:24] In the light of these things, should I relent? You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill. There you went up to offer your sacrifices. Behind your doors and your doorposts, you have put your pagan symbols.

[1:40] For saking me, you uncovered your bed. You climbed into it and opened it wide. You made a pact with those whose beds you love.

[1:52] And you looked on their nakedness. You went to Molech with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away. You descended to the grave itself.

[2:03] You were wearied by all your ways, but you would not say it is hopeless. You found renewal of your strength. And so you did not faint.

[2:16] Whom have you so dreaded and feared that you have been false to me and have neither remembered me nor pondered this in your hearts? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear me?

[2:31] I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not benefit you. When you cry out for help, let your collection of idols save you. The wind will carry all of them off.

[2:43] A mere breath will blow them away. But the man who makes me his refuge will inherit the land and possess my holy mountain. And it will be said, build up, build up, prepare the road, remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.

[3:01] For this is what the high and lofty one says. He who lives forever, whose name is holy. I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.

[3:19] I will not accuse forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would grow faint before me, the breath of man that I have created.

[3:30] I was enraged by his sinful greed. I punished him and hid my face in anger. Yet he kept on his willful ways. I've seen his ways.

[3:42] But I will heal him. I will guide him and restore comfort to him, creating praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel.

[3:55] Peace, peace to those far and near, says the Lord, and I will heal them. But the wicked are like the tossing sea, which cannot rest, whose waves cast up mire and mud.

[4:10] There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked. I'm asking you to open your Bibles to Isaiah chapter 57, the passage that was just read for us.

[4:28] Sometimes people have two homes. One up north, where they spend three seasons of the year, and then one down south to escape this stuff that we're beginning to taste, even this morning.

[4:44] Folks call them snowbirds, and rightly so. The junco is such a bird, and I can just about set my calendar to November 5th every year that they show up.

[4:56] I'm not sure where they're coming from, but I wouldn't want to spend my winter there if this is their winter home. But this idea of two homes, we see it with people. We see it with the birds that God has created.

[5:08] And in our text for today, the Lord tells us about his home, the place where he lives. And what we find is that he's got more than one house, more than one dwelling place.

[5:21] Indeed, he has a heavenly one and an earthly one. And here it is, Isaiah 57 and verse 15. This is our text for today. For this is what the high and lofty one says.

[5:36] He who lives forever, whose name is holy. I live in a high and holy place. But also with him who is lowly in spirit.

[5:47] And who is lowly and contrite. I'm sorry, who is contrite and lowly in spirit. To revive the spirit of the lowly. And to revive the heart of the contrite.

[5:59] Just three points this morning. Number one, the speaker. Number two, where he lives. And number three, why he lives there. So the speaker, first of all.

[6:12] We hear what he says. For this is what the high and lofty one says. He who lives forever, whose name is holy. There we have three divine excellencies.

[6:25] Attributed to him. First of all. He is the exalted one. The high and lofty one. It reads like a title.

[6:37] That's descriptive of who he is. His nature. High and lofty. Exalted in majesty. In authority. In power.

[6:48] And notice he's the high and lofty one. There is none. As high as him. He's above all others. He rules over all as we just sung.

[7:02] The only one. In his class of exaltation. Far, far above us and anything else that is created. He's the exalted one. Then he tells us he's the eternal one.

[7:14] Maybe your version has. He inhabits eternity. He lives forever. Forever. Psalm 90 and verse 2 says that before the mountains were born. Or you ever brought forth the earth and the world.

[7:28] From everlasting to everlasting. You are God. Now that's eternity. From everlasting that way. And to everlasting that way. And he inhabits the whole of eternity.

[7:40] Now that's hard for us to get our minds around. Because. Ourselves and everything else that we see and know. Had a beginning. But God is without beginning.

[7:52] Or end. There was never a time when he was not. The uncreated creator. Who always was. Who is. And is to come.

[8:03] Is the way the Bible speaks of him. He's the eternal one. So the exalted one. The eternal one. And then the holy one. Whose name is holy. Whose nature.

[8:16] All that he is. Is holy. That is. Is set apart from everything else that exists. Yes. In purity.

[8:26] But in every way. He is unlike us. To a degree that is. Unreachable. You remember when. Isaiah was first called in chapter 6.

[8:37] He said. I saw the Lord. High. And lifted up. He was given in vision. To see him. As he is. High. And lifted up.

[8:48] And he heard these sinless seraphs. Shouting. And crying out. Antiphonally. Around the throne. Holy. Holy. Holy.

[8:59] Is the Lord God Almighty. Now when the Hebrew wants to. Emphasize something. It repeats it twice. But this is one of the rare places in scripture where.

[9:12] There is a triple repetition. And it's something that the sinless angels. Are saying about. Our Lord. The speaker of these words. You are holy.

[9:24] But that's not enough to attribute to you. You are holy. Holy. But that's not enough to attribute to you. You are holy. Holy. Holy. Holy. All together.

[9:35] Out of reach. To what we are. We. Even the sinless seraphs. Indeed. The highest archangel. Is Michael. And his name means.

[9:48] Who is like the Lord. Here he is on. On the top of the rung. Of. Of all the angels. And he is in wonderment. And marveling.

[9:59] At. Who's like him. Not. Not caught up with himself. But. The holiness. Of God. Staggered. So he is the exalted one.

[10:10] The eternal one. The holy one. Those are. Those are attributions. Of deity. So. No mistake about it. The one who's speaking to us. Is the only living.

[10:20] And true God. One God. In three persons. Father. Son. And Holy Spirit. So that's the first point. The second point. What is he saying to us?

[10:31] Well. He's telling us. Where he lives. Where does he live? Well. He says. I live in a high and holy place. And isn't that where you would expect. The high and lofty one to live.

[10:43] In a high and holy place. It's a most fitting place for him. A place matching his high and holy character. Now the Bible speaks of three heavens.

[10:56] There's the heavens in which the birds fly. Then there's the heavens in which the stars shine. And then there's the highest heaven. Where God dwells.

[11:07] Where God dwells. The highest heaven. That cannot contain him. He dwells there. But it doesn't contain him. The scriptures say.

[11:18] That's where he dwells. He's chosen to reveal himself. And to make his dwelling place there. So the most high God lives.

[11:30] In a high and holy place. Yes. That's what he tells us. But it's his second dwelling place. That might upon first hearing sound alarming. Even shocking to us.

[11:43] And it's upon this that I want to focus our attention this morning. Now I'm told the Great Britain's royal family owns some 26 dwelling places. And I suppose the most famous is the Buckingham Palace in London.

[11:57] A lavish palace. Fitting place for her majesty. 775 rooms.

[12:08] Wouldn't you like to play hide and seek in that house? 775 rooms. And the other 25 dwelling places are not too shabby either.

[12:19] Castles and palaces and lavish estates. And again this is more or less what you'd expect. Right? Places fitting for kings and queens.

[12:31] Now this morning we're not talking about the Queen of England. We're talking about the King of Kings. The Eternal One. Infinite. Eternal. Unchangeable. And all that he is.

[12:42] Holy. Exalted. Above everything else. We're talking about him. And so we're moving from his high and holy place. Dwelling place.

[12:53] To his earthly dwelling place. So we look around on the earth and we might think. Well he must dwell on some majestic cathedral over in Europe.

[13:05] Or in some mansion. But no. That's not what we find. He tells us in the second part of verse 15.

[13:17] I also dwell with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit. So we learn that his dwelling place is not a building at all.

[13:27] And not so much a place as it is a person. And a certain kind of person. Only those who are contrite and lowly in spirit.

[13:40] Now this idea of God dwelling in a certain type of person on earth. Is something that our Lord Jesus teaches. He taught it to his disciples in John chapter 14.

[13:53] That night before his arrest. He told them he was leaving them. And that he's going back to the father. And he's going to ask the father.

[14:04] And the father will give you another comforter. The Holy Spirit. To be with you forever. Forever. He will live in you. And I will come to you.

[14:17] Isn't that interesting? Christ comes to live in us. When his spirit comes to live in us. And that's not all. There's more.

[14:28] Because he goes on to say. In verse 23 of John 14. If anyone loves me. He will obey my teaching. My father will love him. And we.

[14:39] My father and I. Will come to him. And make our home with him. So there we have it. The three persons of the Godhead.

[14:50] Three separate persons. But all sharing equal divinity. So that when the spirit of Christ. The spirit of the father. Comes to dwell in us.

[15:00] It might be equally said. As Christ does say. That my father and I too. Will come. And make our home. In you. So.

[15:12] That's John 14. You can read it later. But God's dwelling. With his people. Has always been. The promise. Of the covenant of grace. It's a theme. That runs right from.

[15:22] Through our Bibles. From. The garden of Eden. God dwelling. With his people. All the way. To the recovery. Of a people. Dwelling with him. In the new Jerusalem.

[15:32] The eternal state. So here in Isaiah. We find the hallmark. Of the Lord's earthly. Dwelling place. The special character. Of those he's come to live in.

[15:42] It's to be contrite. And lowly. In spirit. Now. Contrite. Is not a word. We use a lot. Is it? Did any of you use it this week?

[15:53] Or this year? Let's look at this word. This word. Contrite. The basic idea. Means to be crushed. To be broken.

[16:04] Shattered. Literally like a clay pot. That would be pulverized. Or like a people. Who are crushed. Under the heat. Heal. Of an oppressive ruler.

[16:16] But here. It's used metaphorically. To describe the spirit. The heart. Of certain people. And it's their response.

[16:27] To God. And his word. Confronting them. With their sin. Through the prophets. Here it's Isaiah. And this. Contrition. Was not the response.

[16:39] Of the greater part. Of the nation. They just doubled down. Locked in. Carried on. In their rebellious. ways. Against the Lord. But these.

[16:50] Where the Lord dwells. Had been made contrite. They had been crushed. Broken hearted. For their sin. Truly sorrowful. These are the people.

[17:02] That the Lord delights. To live. Within. To dwell with. They're humbled. To the dust. They're brought right down. You see. And that brings us.

[17:14] To the closely related word. It's with those who. With him. Who is contrite. And lowly. In spirit. Now we're familiar. With that phrase. I trust. Lowly. In spirit.

[17:24] It needs to be. Humble. In heart. One of the ways. To understand. A word. Is to see. Its opposite. So. I want to read.

[17:34] A verse. To you. From Psalm 138. Six. And you see. If you can. Pick out. The opposite. Of what it means. To be lowly. Psalm 138.

[17:47] Six. Though the Lord. Is on high. He looks. Upon. The lowly. But the proud. He sees. From afar. What is opposite.

[18:02] To the lowly. Well. It's. The proud. The high minded. The one. With the nose. In the air. The one. Who has life.

[18:12] By the tail. The one. Who is just smug. And satisfied. With their life. And. Thinks. I've got it all. Together. And the Lord.

[18:24] Is at home. With the lowly. Not the proud. He is high. He's the high. And lofty one. But he looks low. And he delights. To dwell.

[18:35] With. Those who are lowly. In spirit. Humble. In heart. And this. Humility. Has ever been. The response. Of God's people. When they.

[18:46] Meet their God. They go down. In lowliness. Of spirit. Back to chapter 6. Of Isaiah's prophecy. When he was first called. He sees the Lord. High.

[18:57] And lifted up. And down he went. Crying. Woe is me. I'm ruined. I'm undone. For I. Am a man. Of unclean lips. And I dwell. In the midst. Of a people.

[19:07] Of unclean lips. Down. He went. Lowly. Lowly. And the lowly. In spirit. Are those. Who know their place.

[19:18] Then. Before the high. And lofty one. Indeed. That's what. That's what. Humility. Is. It's simply. The reaction. Of those. Who know God.

[19:28] To be who he is. High and lofty. And know themselves. For what they are. Yet sinful. Coming short. And down they go.

[19:40] Humility. Has always been. The hallmark. Of those. In whom God. Dwells. Indeed. When the Lord Jesus. Would define. Those who belong. To his kingdom. He does so. In eight. Attitudes.

[19:51] And the very first. Is blessed. Are the poor. In spirit. It's a poverty. Of spirit. Before him. And that more.

[20:04] Blessed are those. That more. So. Micah 6. 8. What does the Lord. Require of you. Not. Not tons of oil. And sacrificial animals. But to act justly.

[20:15] To love mercy. And. To walk humbly. Before your God. That's it. Remembering who he is. Remembering who you are. He's full.

[20:27] You're empty. He is all sufficient. You are sufficient. For nothing. Without him. You can do nothing. Without him. And so you find. Your rightful place. Before him.

[20:37] Not haughty. And high minded. But lowly. And humble. Now. Let's try to put some. Meat on these bones. What does it look like. To be contrite.

[20:48] And lowly. In spirit. How can you know. If my text. Is describing you. That this is. One of the places. Where God dwells. In you. Well. Flip back.

[20:58] Hold your place here. And flip back. A few chapters. To chapter 66. And here. The Lord. Is asking. About his dwelling place.

[21:11] A passage. When. Solomon. Was building. The temple. For the Lord. And Solomon. Knew. That this. House. This temple. Would in no way.

[21:22] Be able to. Contain. Lord. The Lord. He dwells. In the highest heaven. And even that. Does not contain him. And here. In. Isaiah 66. We see the Lord.

[21:32] Asking about his dwelling place. Heaven is my throne. And the whole earth. Is my footstool. So where's the house. You'll build me. Where will my resting place be.

[21:43] Is not my hand made. All these things. And so they came into being. Declares the Lord. No. You want to ask. Where I dwell. This is the one. I esteem.

[21:54] He who is humble. And contrite. In spirit. And trembles. At my word. This is the one. He. He takes notice of.

[22:07] This is the one. The high. And lofty one. Sees. The lowly. Sees. With delight. And delights. To make them. His dwelling place.

[22:19] Humble. And contrite. In spirit. And now we have something else. Added to that. Which gives us. A visual. On what it means. And what it looks like.

[22:29] To be. Contrite. And lowly. They tremble. At my word. They tremble. At my word. So. Notice that a humble.

[22:40] And contrite. Spirit. Is expressed. In the way. That we respond. To God's word. Now that's very concrete. You see. We can say.

[22:50] I'm humble. And contrite. But. But what about my word. You see. That's what God is saying. He who trembles. At my word. Isaiah repeats it again. In verse five. Hear the word of the Lord. You who tremble.

[23:01] At my word. Because not everyone. Did tremble. At his word. But the humble. Place themselves. Under it. You see. That's the humble. Contrite.

[23:11] Trembling heart. They don't put themselves. On top of the word. And judge. The word of God. Does it. Does it meet. With what I think. I've never seen.

[23:22] A man walk. On water. So I can't believe. That's true. I can't. You see. No. That's the man. On top of the word. Not trembling. Under. But.

[23:33] But the trembling. Heart. Puts oneself. Under it. And has him. Judge us. To see if we are fit. And if we measure up. To his thoughts. And his. Truths.

[23:44] They tremble. At his word. Letting it. Judge. Us. To see if we fit in. With him. Rather than the opposite. It. And so we cry. Search me. Oh God.

[23:55] Search me. Right here. Let this be the light. That searches me. And knows my heart. And tests my. My mind. To see if there be. Any offensive way. In me. And then lead me.

[24:06] Out of that offensive way. Into the way everlasting. God. To see if. The expression. Of humility. Of heart. Most of the nation.

[24:17] Heard the word of God. They heard the prophet. Sent to them. They heard the rebukes. From almighty God. And they just. Yawned. And went on their way. As if God had never. Spoken to them.

[24:29] But here. Are the people. In whom. He loves to dwell. They revere. God's word. Just because it is. The word of God. The high.

[24:40] And lofty. One. The one. That inhabits. Eternity. Now. There is.

[24:50] A couple. Examples. In Israel's history. Of. Kings. Receiving. The word of God. I think of the time. Of. Josiah. King Josiah.

[25:02] King of Judah. And things. Were at such a low. Ebb in the nation. That they had lost. Their Bibles. Think of that. They had lost. The Bible. But then when they were. Cleaning out.

[25:12] The temple. They found it. They found the law. The book of the law. And they brought it. To King Josiah. And they read. The word of God. And you know. What he did. Tore his robes.

[25:24] The king. And the Lord. Says. This. That. Because your heart. Was responsive. And you humbled. Yourself. Before the Lord. When you heard.

[25:34] What I had spoken. Against this place. And its people. That they would become. Accursed. And laid waste. Because. Because you tore. Your robes. And wept. In my presence. I've heard you. Therefore.

[25:45] I'll gather you. To your fathers. You'll be buried. In peace. Your eyes. Will not see. All these disasters. I'm going to bring. Upon this place. You see. He trembled. Before the Lord's word. Repented.

[25:56] Felt sorry. True sorrow. For sin. Crushed. Broken. Now. That king. Josiah. Had. A son. Who became. King. After him. His name. Was king.

[26:07] Jehoiakim. He was not. At all. Like his father. Josiah. And so. God. Told Jeremiah. To write. On a scroll. All the curses. And plagues. That he was going. To bring.

[26:17] Upon the nation. Because of their. Continuous. Rebellion. And refusal. Subborn. Refusal. To. To repent. So. Jeremiah. I'm sorry. Isaiah. What was it?

[26:28] It was Jeremiah. Jeremiah. Jeremiah. Dictated. To Baruch. And Baruch. Wrote down. All the curses. That. That he had. Pronounced. Against the nation. And Baruch.

[26:38] Went into the. The public places. And. Began to tell the people. Reading. What God. Had said. Is coming. Because of their sins. And some of the king's men. Heard about this.

[26:49] And. And got wind of it. And they. They went. And they got Baruch. And they got the book. And they. They took this. Scroll. Into King Jehoiakim. And they said.

[26:59] King. This is what's being read. In your nation. About disasters. That are coming. Read on. He said. And so. They started reading. And when they had read.

[27:10] Three or four lines. Of the scroll. He took out his knife. And cut it off. And he threw it. Into the fire pot. And he continued. To do so. Until the whole scroll. Was burned.

[27:20] To ashes. That's what he thought. About God's word. You see. The two. Couldn't be. Stronger contrasts. Father. Trembled. At the word of God. Son.

[27:31] Despised. The word of God. And. Burned it. As if it had. Nothing. To say to him. So what does it look like.

[27:42] To be contrite. And lowly in spirit. The word of God. Is the thing that. Means the most. To us. It's the one voice. That has our attention. Above all other voices.

[27:53] Whether coming from within. Or from without. One other. Example. What does it look like. To have a humble. A contrite. And lowly spirit. Come to chapter 51.

[28:03] Of Psalms. We're coming back to Isaiah. But. Psalm 51. Is important. Because it uses. Some of the same language. And you'll recognize.

[28:14] We're turning to the. Psalm of confession. Confession. That's coming from. The man that God says. Is a man after his own heart. So. So let's come to this man. And see what. What it means.

[28:25] To have a contrite. And lowly spirit. He's confessing. His sin of adultery. And murder. So right away. We see that. A contrite.

[28:36] And lowly heart. Does not mean. That you're sinless. No. Not at all. This. He would be disqualified. Then. Right. From the start. It's not about. Sinlessness.

[28:48] It's what you do. When your sin. Confronts you. And when you're confronted. For it. And that's what we see. From. This great man. David. And the more familiar.

[28:58] I become with the Psalms. The more convinced. I am. That he saw himself. As a small man. Before a big God. Not always. Not perfectly.

[29:09] He too fell into. Arrogant sins. Putting his own pleasures. Ahead of God's pleasures. Others. Wanting his way. And thinking his way. Was more worthy. Than God's way.

[29:20] But follow David. After his falls. If you would learn. What a contrite. And lowly spirit. Yes. You know. A lot of people. Down through the ages.

[29:31] I used to work. With a man. They would quote. David's falls. To excuse their sins. And some. Old divine said. Many will.

[29:42] Hold forth. The example. Of David's falls. But who. Do not. Do not follow him. In his repentings. And what we're getting. To see is. His repentings.

[29:53] From his sins. Now. The whole psalm. Is a lesson. In what it means. To be contrite. And lowly. In spirit. I'll leave that to you. To look at more carefully. He confesses.

[30:04] His sins. Not only particular sins. But he confesses. His sinfulness. That he was. Conceived in sin. He has a sinful nature. And that's why he sins. And he sees it more clearly now.

[30:15] After these sins. Than he ever saw it before. Surely. I was conceived in sin. Look what has happened. Look what I have done. So he confesses. He. He's brought low.

[30:26] Is what we see. In Psalm 51. Then it's verses. 16 and 17. Look at verse 16. You do not delight. In sacrifice. Or I would bring it.

[30:37] You do not take pleasure. In burnt offerings. Now let me just pause here. For a moment. David lived under the old covenant. With all the requirements of God. For animal sacrifices.

[30:49] To be offered. As they confess their sins. But though living under the old covenant. David understood the heart of God. What he was after. And he saw to the heart of God.

[31:01] That what delighted and pleased him. Was not just another animal. Burning on the altar. Where? Verse 17. Penetrates to the very heart of God. Revealing what he is after.

[31:13] What does delight him. What does bring him pleasure. And so verse 17. He says. No. No. It's not just more animals on the altar. But the sacrifices of God. Are a broken spirit.

[31:24] A broken and contrite heart. Oh God. You will not despise. But rather will take pleasure in. And delight in. But you know what he does despise.

[31:37] That. Mere outward religion. Of sacrifice and burnt offerings. Without the inner. Contrite broken heart.

[31:49] Heart. And there was plenty of it. In. The nation. Indeed. That's precisely what most of Israel. Was giving to God. In the Old Testament.

[32:00] And what the prophets. Constantly were harping against. As they brought God's judgments. To them. They would bring their outward. Prescribed rituals. But their hearts were far from him.

[32:12] They lack this broken. Contrite heart. That he was after. In their sacrifice. And in their contrition. Or in their confession. And so as Isaiah. Opens this letter.

[32:24] He. He. Right from chapter one. That's the thing. He's putting his finger on. We read about some of their sins. In chapter 57.

[32:34] And you read the whole book. It's just a. A litany of. Of the way that their sinful hearts. Had drawn them away from the Lord. And into idolatry. Rebellion. They're even called Sodom and Gomorrah.

[32:48] If that's a clue to their ethics. And yet. Do you know what? They kept coming to church. And they kept up the sacrificial system. They made sure that. That God had his.

[32:58] His bull on the altar burning. As if. That ought to. Pacify God. And satisfy him. We're good to go. Let's go out. And keep worshiping our idols. On the high places.

[33:09] And keeping these good luck charms. In behind our doors. And treating each other. With hatred. But. We've. We've offered the bullock. God's happy now. God's anger.

[33:21] Burns against that. And so he says. In the first chapter of Isaiah. In 11 to 14. The multitude of your sacrifices. What are they to me? I have more than enough. Of burnt offerings. Or rams. Or fat. Of fattened animals.

[33:32] I have no pleasure. In the blood of bulls. And lambs and goats. When you come. And appear before me. Who's asked this of you? This trampling of my courts. Stop bringing meaningless sacrifices.

[33:45] Your incense is detestable. I can't bear it. My soul hates it. Your. Your assembly. Evil assemblies have become a burden to me.

[33:56] I'm weary. Of bearing them. Now. Now that was the nation. That's the backdrop. But here's David. And here's.

[34:06] A different spirit. It wasn't always this way. He covered his sin. Didn't he? He tried to. But God dealt with him.

[34:17] And brought him to the place. Of this broken and contrite. Heart. For his sins. Against God. Against thee and thee only. Have I sinned. He saw his great sin. Against his great God.

[34:27] God. And so our hearts are exposed. For what's inside. And are seen by our heart.

[34:38] Before God's word. When it points out our sins. Do we want to hear it? Do we come to it humbly? Do we ask it to search us? And when it points out our sins.

[34:50] Do we drop our defenses? Do we humbly own them? And just. As we are. Completing mercy. God be merciful to me. The sinner. That's the humble.

[35:02] And contrite heart. That delights God. So much. That he said. That's. That's what I esteem. That's the one I look to. That's where I love to. To live. And dwell. So we return to our text.

[35:14] In Isaiah 57. And we learn. That these. Contrite and lowly ones. Were not always so. It wasn't that.

[35:25] Well we have. Just the best of Israel here. Wow. They. They really shine. Outshine their fellows. No. In fact. We learn. That these. With a contrite.

[35:36] And lowly heart. Were once as stubborn. And rebellious. As the rest. But God. In sovereign grace. Saved. And transformed. This remnant. Out of the whole nation. He healed.

[35:47] Their rebellious hearts. He created. In them. This contrite. Lowly spirit. Making them. A fitting. Dwelling place. For his holy. Exalted presence. Look at verse 16.

[35:59] Shows us. How. How God. Found. These people. With a contrite. And lowly spirit. He found them. In rebellion. But he was. Unwilling.

[36:09] To accuse. Forever. God. Was unwilling. To always. Be angry. With them. So you see. Where it all begins. Where does salvation begin? Not in the sinner. It begins. In God's unwillingness.

[36:21] To pour out his wrath. On all men. Forever. He's going to save some. That was out of the goodness. The sheer grace. Of his heart. I was unwilling.

[36:32] To accuse forever. Now he says. In verse 17. I was enraged. By his sinful greed. I punished him. I hid my face. In anger. Have you ever seen.

[36:46] Sinners. Getting punished. By God. And. Even in this life. Learning. And finding out. That the way. Of the sinner. Is hard. The way.

[36:56] Of the transgressor. Is hard. And yet. They get pounded. Down. And you say. Surely. Now they'll repent. But no. As he says earlier.

[37:07] You found renewal. Of your strength. And so you would not say. It is hopeless. You were wearied. By all your ways. You were beaten down. But you strengthened yourself.

[37:18] Pulled yourself up. And went on. And he's saying. That's the way you were. I was enraged. I punished him. Hit my face. And we might think. Surely now. The nation repented.

[37:32] Yet. He kept on. In his willful ways. Even after all the discipline. And punishment. God brought upon the nation. They just. As if God hadn't done.

[37:42] Or said anything. And verse 18. I have seen his way. I've seen how he's responded. To my discipline. Just totally wiping it off. He was watching. To see their response.

[37:54] And we might expect. To hear next. So I'm really going to let him have it. With a bigger hammer. This time. Which sometimes. Is what he does. But no. I've seen his ways.

[38:05] But I will heal him. You mean. While he's rebelling. While he's sticking out his tongue. Against you.

[38:16] While he's just. In your face. I've seen his ways. But I'm going to heal him. I'm going to heal him. Of his waywardness.

[38:27] I'm going to heal him. Of that. That stubborn spirit. I will guide him. I will restore. Comfort to him. I will create. Praise. On the lips.

[38:37] Of the mourners. In Israel. I will create. Peace. Peace. To those who are far. And near. Says the Lord. And I will heal them. The rebellious.

[38:47] The stubborn. Those with no fear. Of God. Or his word. So you see. How this was pure grace. It's no small thing. That the most high.

[38:58] Must do. To make us. Sinners. Fitting dwelling places. For the most high. Now. That's not only true. Of. Isaiah's hearers.

[39:10] Who are described. As contrite. And look. That's true. Of every one of us. Who are believers. This morning. What did it take. To make you. A fitting dwelling place. For the living God.

[39:21] To live. Oh. It took. The high. And lofty one. Stooping. Low. He who is.

[39:33] The high. And lofty one. Stooping. To become a man. Humbling himself.

[39:44] Even further. To become a servant. Humbling himself. Even further. To become sin. For us. And to take that sin. Into the cross.

[39:55] And there. To suffer. As the substitute. For his people. And to. Assume. All the wrath of God. And so. To become. Not only sin for us. But a curse for us.

[40:06] And to be damned. In our place. To be crushed. When we. Deserved. The crushing. That's what it took. To make you and me.

[40:17] Fit dwelling places. With a contrite. And lowly spirit. But there's more. It took the Holy Spirit. Coming and regenerating you. And making you a new creature.

[40:28] Taking out that old. Stubborn heart. And putting in. A soft heart. That complies. With the word of God. And trembles at his word. Rather than just ignores it.

[40:39] And goes on. It took a supernatural work. Of the spirit. To bring you to new birth. All of this. That he might save us. And make us his dwelling places.

[40:51] A people. Who are now marked. As those who are contrite. And lowly. In spirit. Does my text describe you this morning? Is that you?

[41:04] Not to perfection. There is no such thing. But really. And radically. That you've gone from the proud. And the self-sufficient.

[41:15] And the self-righteous. And the one who does not tremble. At God's word. To one who. Is low before him. You know your place now. He's God.

[41:25] I'm not. He's holy. I'm not. His word is law. Not mine. And he. The high and lofty one. Has stooped.

[41:37] Low. To make me great. Oh. Here I am Lord. I'm yours. I'm yours. I'm here to serve you. That's my. That's why I exist now.

[41:47] My life is not my own. It's yours. And we are most willing. Subjects. Of the high and holy one. If this isn't you. Why not come to him.

[41:58] Today. Just as you are. Because he takes people. Who are stubborn. And rebellious. And he makes them. He heals them. And he makes them.

[42:09] His dwelling place. We've seen the speaker. We've seen where he lives. Not only in a high. Exalted place. But also. With the contrite. And lowly in spirit. And now lastly.

[42:20] We're asking. Why does he live. Here. Why would he live. In a. In a place like this. With. Lowly. People like us. Contrite.

[42:31] Lowly. Spirit. People. And he tells us. To revive the spirit. Of the lowly. And to revive. The heart. Of the contrite. He tells us. Not once. But twice. For our. Our encouragement.

[42:42] That he lives in us. To revive us. Now everybody here. Knows what it means. To revive. Re. Vive. New. Life. Renewed. Life.

[42:53] It's what you do. When your battery. Is dead. You. You. Charge it up again. It's what you do. When you are dead. In the evening. And you fall into bed. Dead tired.

[43:04] And after a good night's sleep. You wake up. Revived. Restored. Renewed. Revivified. Now this is the good news.

[43:14] For the contrite and lowly. This is the good news. Of our passage. We are so keenly aware. Of our flesh. That down drag of sin. That we heard in Sunday school. About. That whenever we would do good.

[43:26] We always find. There's this pull. Down to evil. And we have a devil. Ever at our heels. Who knows exactly. What we like.

[43:36] He knows what John likes. And he knows what you like. And he offers us what we like. What that sinful nature still likes. That indwelling sin still likes. And we have a world.

[43:47] With attractive. Allurements. Pulling on us. Constantly. Trying to put distance. Between us and our savior.

[43:58] Dousing the fire of our faith. Cooling our first love. For Christ and others. Dimming the power of our hope. Distracting us from seeking first. God's kingdom and righteousness.

[44:10] Cramming our lives so full. That we have little time. To hear his voice in the scripture. To draw aside. And to seek him. With all of our hearts. In prayer. To enjoy fellowship. With the triune God.

[44:21] We have all of that. Working together. Against us. Isn't it scary. How quickly our hearts. Can go from hot to cold. I've been on fire.

[44:33] In church. On Sunday. And I've been icy cold. On Monday morning. That's scary. I've been full of life.

[44:44] One moment. And half dead. The next. With regard to spiritual life. The life of holiness in Christ. Where is it? And this is just the good news.

[45:01] For us then. It shows how great our need is. For this constant reviving. Of a continual. Revivification. Of breathing fresh life.

[45:13] Spiritual life. Into our deadness. It exactly meets our need. When we learn that the very reason. That the high and lofty God.

[45:25] Dwells in us. Lowly ones. Is in order to revive us. To revive us. How much we owe.

[45:35] To the on site. Reviver. And his. Continual reviving. Of our hearts. Think of our faith. Faith's reviving. When we can't see God.

[45:46] In the storm. He's nowhere. He's nowhere. And we're afraid. And we're panicking. And then suddenly. Faith finds some comfort.

[45:58] In a promise. That just comes home to our hearts. With power. And suddenly. It's like. The clouds are split. And the sunshine. The light. Breaks upon our day.

[46:08] And we're ready to trust. That promise. With our lives. Our lives. Suddenly. This unseen Christ. Is as real to us. As anything that we see.

[46:21] Faith's reviving. What about our hope? Hope in the long trials. That we realize. Aren't going away. Anytime soon. If ever. In this life. Darkness.

[46:32] Depression. Sets in. And suddenly. Our blessed hope. Breaks through. With light. The glorious return. Of our great God. And Savior. Who's coming. To restore all things.

[46:43] And to put all things right. When everything. Will be reconciled. To him. And it brings. The adrenaline. Of eternal encouragement.

[46:53] And good hope. To us. Reviving. Our hope. What about our love? We're looking at that triad. Of faith. Hope. And love. What about our love? Love's reviving.

[47:04] When God's love. Is shed abroad. In our hearts. It's. It's. It's. It's just. Permeates. And it's. And it's. And it's. And it's. And it's.

[47:14] And it's. And it's. And it melts. And it melts. And it melts. oh but then when he comes and restores our strength we run in the way of his commandments we run in the way of his commandments we find new strength to soar like eagles to run and not grow weary to walk and not be faint you see it's strength's reviving we owe every step on the long way home to God's reviving of our spiritual strength and that's why every one of his people will go from strength to strength till each one arrives in Zion reviving our strength reviving our endurance to fight temptation to keep saying no to ungodliness and worldly passions and to say it louder each time to live self-controlled upright and godly lives reviving our repentance after a period of backsliding and hardness of heart and then some discovery of our sin smites us crushes breaks us it's the reviving of our God even reviving our broken and contrite spirit it's renewing reviving is renewing us though outwardly we're wasting away with stress with illness with disease with old age moving in on us yet inwardly we are being restored day by day he dwells in there to revive us to restore us day by day renewing a steadfast spirit within us when we've fallen reviving is renewing reviving is restoring he restoreth my soul healing us of our waywardness and our spiritual diseases restore unto me the joy of thy salvation we lost it when we turned away from him and now in a broken and a crushed way we're turning back restore the joy of my of your salvation restoring our peace when worry has made off with it this reviving of patience of kindness goodness faithfulness gentleness every grace we were never meant to live without

[49:56] God himself dwelling in us and dwelling in us to revive us as his people revive us again fill each heart with thy love may each soul be rekindled with fire from above that's the longing and God's dwelling places are the places where that's happening where he dwells and dwells in us to do just that may we take comfort from God's word then this morning you feeling broken you feeling crushed maybe but maybe it's not for sin maybe it's just for for life's hard trials and sufferings and losses and what does Jesus say he says well you all come to me then all you who weary are weary and burdened down and I'll give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn from me because I am the high and lofty one who lives forever no that's not what he says that's who he is but what does he say when he's welcoming us to come because I am lowly

[50:59] I am gentle and lowly in heart that's Jesus the high and lofty one gentle and lowly humble in heart so don't be afraid draw near find in me what you need rest the best kind of rest soul rest you'll only find it with him well in our closing hymn we want to respond to the word of God just spoken to us the Lord has told us he lives in a high and holy place but also with those who are contrite and lowly take your grace hymns and we're going to sing number 28 oh great God of highest heaven occupy my lowly heart stand with me and let's make this our prayer to the great God of heaven 28 and embrace hymns through the Amen.