Home • Preaching the Word • Isaiah
You Will Not Be Disappointed
Wednesday in June 24, 2009 Preached at Brother Bryan Mission
Isaiah was written some 800 years before Jesus was born. Still, it speaks so clearly of Jesus, some of which we will look at tonight. But it also had immediate truths for the people of the nation of Israel in the time that it was written.
Israel was in serious trouble. Assyria, an evil nearby nation, was intent on taking over the land of Israel and the surrounding region and subjecting its people to death, torture and slavery. The Lord God had promised His people, Israel, that if they would trust in Him, and Him alone, He would protect them. Instead, they looked to other nations for protection like Egypt; and they looked to other gods to protect them. Because they did not obey the Lord and His desire that they trust in Him alone, He judged them by allowing Assyria to take over their nation two hundred years later.
Psalm 118:8-9 tells us: “It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in princes.”
Tonight, I want to ask you a question: Who or what do you put your trust and faith in? Who or what do you put your hope in?
Please read with me, starting in verse 14.
14 Therefore, hear the word of the LORD, O scoffers, Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem,
15 Because you have said, "We have made a covenant with death, And with Sheol we have made a pact. The overwhelming scourge will not reach us when it passes by, For we have made falsehood our refuge and we have concealed ourselves with deception."
16 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.
I imagine some of your translations say something a little bit different. What do some of your translations say? “He who believes in it will not be…”?
You are all aware, I am sure, that the Bible was not written in English, so it is sometimes difficult to translate. In the original language here, it says that the one who believes “will not be rushed or hurried away.” It is the picture of one who can stand his or her ground and not run away because of fear. Have you heard the expression, “a person left with one’s tail between their legs”? That is, they left having been defeated and completely demoralized. This will not happen for the one who puts his or her faith in this stone.
When the New Testament, which was written in a different language than the Old Testament, quotes this verse, it says that, “the one who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Or you could translate this, “the one who believes in Him will not be “disturbed,” “put to shame,” “humiliated.” All of these fit. If you put your trust and faith in this stone, this rock, you will not be hurried, disturbed, put to shame, humiliated or disappointed.
If you put your trust and faith in people, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. If you put your faith in presidents and kings, in Barack Obama, Bob Riley, in the United States or any other government or nation, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. If you put your faith in man-made institutions, if you put your trust in Brother Bryan Mission or any other institution YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. If you put your trust and faith in other religions and other gods, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. If you put your trust and faith in yourself and your own goodness, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. But if you put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ—this rock, this stone—YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!
This evening, I would like to take a few minutes to look at this rock, this stone—the Lord Jesus Christ—and see why you will not be disappointed.
Why put your trust and faith in a rock? A Stone? What is it about a rock that we should put our whole life and trust in it?
I. In the prophet Daniel chapter 2 we are told that a stone is coming which will bring an end to all the kingdoms of the earth, and this stone will become a great mountain and fill the whole earth. This stone, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the coming king who will establish a kingdom that will never end. All the other kingdoms of the earth have come and have gone or will be gone. All the rulers of the earth have come and gone or are going. But this King will reign forever over all, and His kingdom will never end.
He will establish a kingdom in which, as the prophet Amos says, justice “rolls down like mighty waters, And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” It will be a kingdom where all will be treated fairly and justly. It will be a kingdom with no corruption and one which will not exploit the hurt and the needy. It will be a kingdom with a King who we will not be able to help but kneel down and confess that He—Jesus Christ—is Lord of all. If you put your faith and trust in this King—this stone—this rock—YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.
In the prophet Zechariah chapter 3, the Lord says that with this stone, He “will remove the iniquity [the sin] of the earth.” Scripture tells us that “All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” You and I are all sinners. Further, Scripture tells us that “the penalty of sin is death.” When we chose to live lives of sin, we made a covenant with death. But we are also told throughout Scripture that God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son, [Jesus Christ,] that whosoever believes in Him should not perish [or die], but have eternal life.” This stone, Jesus, was placed upon the cross and “He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” If you put your faith and trust in any other thing or person, or your own good works, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. But if you put your faith and trust in this stone—who takes away the power and the penalty of sin—YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.
Have you trusted in Him? Can you sing:
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
II. Isaiah 28 also tells us that this stone is a “tested stone.” Isaiah 28 speaks of this stone as part of a building. If you have ever worked in construction as some of you surely have, you know that you have to be sure that all the two-by-fours must be true and straight for the frame, and all the bricks strong and whole. They need to be tested, and measured to be sure they serve their purpose well.
The stone which Isaiah 28 speaks of has been tested and measured, and it is true. You can place Jesus Christ under a microscope, and if you do, you will find that there is no fault in Him. He was “Him who knew no sin.” When the scribes and the Pharisees came to accuse Jesus before Pilate, Pilate told them, “I find no guilt in this man” (Lk 23:4). You will find no guilt in Jesus either.
But in the end, it is not Him who will be tested. He is the test. He is the “testing stone” by which all of us will be measured. If we do not fit His standards, and if we do not measure up, we will be cast aside and when the flood of judgment comes, we will not have the security of this stone, Jesus Christ. Jeremiah tells us in chapter 17 that “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds.” He is searching your mind and your heart as we speak.
This stone demands a decision from you. You can reject Him, or you can place your hope in Him. Psalm 118 tells us that “the stone which the builders rejected”—they did not think it was what they wanted or needed—this stone which has been rejected “has become the chief corner stone.” Many have chosen to reject Him, but they will be disappointed. Jesus tells us that those who reject this stone “will be broken to pieces.” Isaiah chapter 8 urges us to regard the Lord, this stone, “as holy. And He shall be your fear, And He shall be your dread.” And when He becomes our fear, the Lord tells us, “Then He shall become a sanctuary [a safe place];” But to those who reject Him, He will become a stone on which we trip and stumble, and which will in the end crush us. If you do not believe in Him, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. But if you put your trust and faith in Him, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.
When darkness seems to hide Christ’s face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
III. Not only is this stone a tested and testing stone, but it is a precious, valuable cornerstone.
On my hand, you will see that I have a ring on my finger which signifies that I am married. If you looked at the hand of my wife, you would see a much more beautiful and more expensive ring. I worked very hard for many hours to buy that ring for her. The jewelry shop told me that it has a diamond in it, and told me the value of it. But if someone took that ring from my wife, even if that person gave her the money I paid for that ring it would not be enough to cover how valuable it is to us. That ring, and the ring I have on my finger, is more valuable to us than any amount of money. It symbolizes our bond to one another.
Even more so, this precious stone in Isaiah 28 is exceedingly precious and valuable to those who believe because believers are, as 1 Peter tells us, “not redeemed with perishable things, like silver or gold…but with [the] precious blood…of Christ.” Paul tells us in Ephesians that it is in Jesus that “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.” These riches are “unfathomable” and impossible to completely understand. But these riches cause us to bow down and worship our precious Lord Jesus Christ.
There is no price enough to take Christ away from us who believe. All the riches of this world, and all the entertainments, and all the enjoyments of this world are not enough to pay for the value that we have in Christ Jesus. Mansions, cars, sex, money, drugs—indeed this whole world—are not enough to pay a believer to sell Jesus Christ.
In this world, you will have troubles and difficulties and failures and disappointments. Jesus promises this to us who believe in Him. But in Him, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED. The storms of the world will come, but as you trust in Him, the waters will not come up over you. He is the precious cornerstone who, as Jesus promises, will grant you His peace in the midst of trouble. He is indeed precious to those who believe.
His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
IV. Not only is this stone a testing stone, and a precious cornerstone, but He is also a well-laid and sure foundation.
When you build a building, it is essential that you have a firm and perfectly laid foundation, or else time and storms will reveal its weakness and the building will collapse.
Jesus tells a story of a man who builds his house on sand—an un firm foundation. When the storm comes, the foundation crumbles and the whole house is destroyed, no matter how beautiful and finely crafted the house itself is. The foundation was weak and inadequate. But the one who built his house on a rock can be sure that the house will be able to endure the storms.
Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 3 that “if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident; for the day”—the Day of judgment—“will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.” That is why he writes, “No man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
This foundation, Jesus Christ can be depended on and trusted. Indeed, “He is the same yesterday, today and forever.” He will never change! When you place your trust in people, they will change; and when the storms come, they will leave you. Institutions change and forget about you. YOU will change and fail. But how firm a foundation is Jesus Christ who will never change, and He will never leave you nor forsake you. If you put your trust and faith in this firm foundation, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.
How firm a foundation ye saints of the Lord
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
He will not, He will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
He’ll never, no never, no never forsake.
Read with me the rest of the passage in Isaiah 28 in verse 17.
17 "I will make justice the measuring line And righteousness the level; Then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies And the waters will overflow the secret place.
18 "Your covenant with death will be canceled, And your pact with Sheol will not stand; When the overwhelming scourge passes through, Then you become its trampling place.
19 "As often as it passes through, it will seize you; For morning after morning it will pass through, anytime during the day or night, And it will be sheer terror to understand what it means."
20 The bed is too short on which to stretch out, And the blanket is too small to wrap oneself in.
21 For the LORD will rise up as at Mount Perazim, He will be stirred up as in the valley of Gibeon, To do His task, His unusual task, And to work His work, His extraordinary work.
22 And now do not carry on as scoffers, Or your fetters will be made stronger; For I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts Of decisive destruction on all the earth.
There is a coming judgment where we will have to give an account for all that we have done and said. Scripture tells us that it is appointed for man to die once, and after this comes judgment. If you put your faith and trust in the people of this world, in yourself and in your own works, in the institutions of this world, or in the religions of this world, YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED for they all fall short of the Lord’s measure. It is only as you put your faith and trust in the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ—this testing stone, this precious stone, this well-laid stone—that you will be able to endure in that day of judgment.
When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh may I then in Him be found.
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.
So as though God were making an appeal through me; I beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. Put your trust and faith in Jesus Christ alone, and you will be saved. If you put your trust in Him YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.