Sin, Saviour and Choice (Isaiah 50:1-11)

Today I filled in and spoke at the local aged care centre. They are making their way through Isaiah. Below is more or less what I said.

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In these 11 verses from Isaiah, we are told the gospel story in three parts. It starts with sin, and then a saviour from God comes who is innocent but receives a punishment anyway, and at the end of this chapter there is a choice for who you are going to follow; God or your own illumination?

So three parts: Sin, Saviour and Choice.

Sin, v1-3

In the first three verses we see that because of Israel's sin, they have been punished by God, but not forsaken. They had rebelled against God, which led to disaster, but in their mind, the troubles they are seeing, they think are because God has forsaken them.

God asks why they think they have been cut off. He asks for proof. Where are the divorce papers that show God has stopped caring for them? It was their rebellion that brought on their punishment, but they aren’t to confuse that with God not caring for them.

God came to them, and no one came to Him. Like in Genesis when God called Adam and Eve, and they didn’t because they were hiding from Him, in their sin they felt exposed. Israel did the same thing. In their sin, they ignored God’s call.

"The issue [in these three verses] is not whether God is at fault for their situation; it is how can the iniquities and rebellions that they have committed be atoned for so that they can return to him?" (The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 40–66 (2) The Will and the Power to Deliver (50:1–3))

God is mighty and powerful. He could dry up the ocean, or cover the sky in a dark cloth. And the real question in verse two is: does God have the strength, or is able, to rescue a rebellious people who ignored Him?

Saviour, v4-9

In answer to that, from verse 4, the passage changes to the first person. Someone is speaking. They are saying that God has given them instructions. This person listens to God, and they pass it on with their well-instructed tongue. This person hasn’t been rebellious; they haven’t turned away. They are faithful, but even then, from verse 6, for whatever reason, they have still received a punishment.

They are beaten, their beard is pulled out, they were mocked and spat upon. However, through all this, they are steadfast in God. They know they are innocent. They know that in the end, God will declare them right. And there is no one who will be able to bring an accusation against them. God will help them.

Choice, v10-11

Then after the servant is shown to be in the right, the passage, from verse 10, turns to a choice. There are two groups of people. Those who will be in the dark, who rely on God, or those who walk in the light and rely on their own self-made fires.

Those who trust in God may feel like they are in the dark, but they are not lost, they obey the words of this innocent servant. They have God’s instruction as a guide.

But those who walk in their own illumination, we are told, will only go down in pain. For all the light that they shed, it will not end well.

So what?

So what for us now? This chapter shows us a nation that has run away from God and ends with a question asking if there is anyone who fears the Lord. In the middle of this passage, there is a faithful one who is punished but in the end is not condemned by God.

This chapter is a microcosm of the Gospel. We have all rebelled from God, but despite our rebellion, we can come back to the Lord. We can trust in His ways and not our own illumination, and the way we can do this is through God’s perfect servant, Jesus

Because we had at one time rejected God, we were in slavery to sin. We were dead to God, living for ourselves, ignoring God. But God did not leave us there. He still loved us and did not give up on us. He is strong enough to rescue us from the power of sin and death.

God was able to do this through Jesus. The righteous person, who was beaten, who had their beard pulled out. Jesus was mocked and spat upon, and even nailed to a cross. However, through all this, He was steadfast in God for He knew He was innocent. And after suffering and dying, He was vindicated. Jesus was found to be innocent by God, and was raised to life again. Jesus took on our sins and transgressions to the grave and now offers us life. He was the faithful one for an unfaithful people. He took on our disobedience even though He was not disobedient.

So God now invites us to listen to the word of His servant. To trust in Jesus and to rely on God.

In this life, we may have had our ups and downs. Things may feel hard, and sometimes you may think that God has even forsaken you. But there is no paperwork to prove that. God has not divorced Himself from you. Instead, He has come down to you. Jesus has experienced the human condition and the pain and the suffering, and through all of that He was steadfast in His obedience to the Father, even to death, so that we can be given His righteousness.

We are to trust in the name of the Lord, and rely on God, even if it feels dark. One poet put it this way:

..though I may not see the way
He’s planned for me to go,
The way seems dark to me just
But oh, I’m sure He knows!

Today He guides my feeble step
Tomorrow’s in His right …
He has asked me to never fear …
But walk by FAITH … not SIGHT.

Some day the mists will roll away,
The sun will shine again.
I’ll see the beauty in the flowers,
I’ll hear the bird’s refrain,

And then I’ll know my Father’s hand
Has led the way to light
Because I placed my hand in His
And walked by FAITH … not SIGHT. (Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 1497 By Faith Not Sight)


If you are in Christ, no one can bring any charge against you. You may have your doubts about what you might have done in the past; you might have regrets and pains and hurts and think that God wouldn’t want you. But if you are in Christ, even that charge you bring against yourself will not hold. For further back in the past, Jesus died for your sins and rose again, and we get His victory.

Now, no one and nothing can bring a charge against you. Nothing can separate you from the love of God. Not because we are perfect, but because Jesus took all your sins, so you can get God.

A story goes:

During the terrible days of the Blitz, a father, holding his small son by the hand, ran from a building that had been struck by a bomb. In the front yard was a shell hole. Seeking shelter as soon as possible, the father jumped into the hole and held up his arms for his son to follow. 

Terrified, yet hearing his father’s voice telling him to jump, the boy replied, “I can’t see you!” 

The father, looking up against the sky tinted red by the burning buildings, called to the silhouette of his son, “But I can see you. Jump!” 

The boy jumped, because he trusted his father. 

The Christian faith enables us to face life or meet death, not because we can see, but with the certainty that we are seen; not that we know all the answers, but that we are known. (750 Engaging Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers and Writers 196: Faith)

So let's continue to listen to the voice of God’s perfect servant. Trust not in ourselves and our own illumination, but in Jesus. Trust in His character and reputation, and not your own. Let Him be your guide, even in the dark, as He will bring you home to God.