Isaiah

[0:00] Seeking the Lord's help, we direct your attention this evening to the prophecy of Isaiah, reading from the 42nd chapter and the 16th verse.

[0:12] Prophecy of Isaiah, chapter 42, verse 16. And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not.

[0:25] I will lead them in paths that they have not known. I will make darkness light before them and crooked things straight.

[0:39] These things will I do unto them and not forsake them. I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not. I will lead them in paths that they have not known.

[0:53] I will make darkness light before them, crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them and not forsake them. As with so much of the prophecy of Isaiah, it relates to the Lord Jesus Christ.

[1:12] Again and again. In this beautiful evangelical prophecy we have reference to Christ. My mind goes to one of the chapters at the end.

[1:26] Who is this that cometh from Eden? Who is dyed garments from Bosra? This that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength. Who is this?

[1:38] Who is this? And here we have an answer in the opening of this chapter. Behold, there my servant whom I uphold. Direct references to Christ.

[1:52] He shall not lift up, not cry nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. Bruised reed shall he not break. And so on. And then this, I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, will hold thine hand.

[2:07] Will keep thee. Give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles. And this beautiful word, to open the eyes of the blind. So it's the work of Christ. To bring out the prisoners from the prison house.

[2:22] Them that sit in darkness. Out of the prison house. I am the Lord, that is my name. And my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.

[2:36] There is so much in our chapter here about the work of Christ. And blindness.

[2:47] Thought of this word and thought on the subject of this text this evening.

[2:59] A mind centered it on this thought. That one who is blind and then receives their sight.

[3:11] Can look back to the time when they were blind. Similarly, when he has had normal sight and becomes blind.

[3:27] Can look back to a time when they could see. You know, the use of this word blind here in this chapter is spiritual.

[3:38] Christ, in his own day, combined in blindness, the natural and the spiritual.

[3:50] And my mind went in looking at this text to the ninth chapter of the Gospel of John. Where the Lord dealt with the blind man by putting clay on his eyes.

[4:03] Spitting on it. Sending him to the pool of Siloam to watch. And he was healed. He came forth. Though he was born blind.

[4:14] Blind from his birth. What a figure he is. That dear man. Of the whole Church of Christ. Born blind. And what a figure.

[4:28] Of that mighty miracle of grace. The opening. Of the eyes of the blind. That man. That man whom Jesus dealt with.

[4:40] Was brought. Not only to receive his sight. The Pharisees. Attempted to undermine his sight.

[4:51] In the eternal Son of God. They solemnly. They solemnly. Attacked him. Christ was a sinner. The healing of his sight.

[5:03] Could not be done by a sinner. They. Turned on the Lord Jesus Christ. And they hated. He. The blind man. Said regarding Christ.

[5:16] He said this. Whether he be a sinner. No. I know not. But one thing I know. It's a lovely word.

[5:26] Isn't it? One thing I know. Whereas I was blind. Now I see. And you know. As that ninth chapter.

[5:38] Of John. Goes on. The blind man. Returned. And Jesus. Found him. And. Said unto him.

[5:49] Dost they believe. On the Son of God. And he answered. And said. Who is he Lord. That I might believe on him. Jesus said unto him. Thou hast both seen.

[6:00] Him. And it is he. That talketh with thee. And he said. Lord. I believe. And he worshipped him. Presidly.

[6:12] We see here. Not only. As I said at the beginning. Not only. Natural sight restored. But. The blindness. Of unbelief.

[6:24] And the blindness. Of a godless life. Brought out. And the Lord said. Regarding him. They said of him. At the beginning. Of that chapter.

[6:34] His disciples. Master. Who did sin. This man or his parents. And he was born blind. Jesus answered. Neither had this man sin. Nor his parents. That the works of God. Should be made manifest.

[6:46] And those works. Are the very works. That are spoken of here. I will work. And we are told. What the Lord will do. I will. Bring the blind.

[7:02] It leads us. To this thought. You know. Do you understand that? Do you look back. To when you were blind?

[7:15] One thing I know. Whereas I was blind. Now I see. Spiritually. Or. I say again. It's those. Whose eyes have been opened.

[7:26] And only they. Who are aware. Of their blindness. They know. What it is. To be delivered. And brought out.

[7:38] And given this precious sight. Of faith. In the Lord Jesus Christ. They can. Look back. Look back. And see the time.

[7:51] They walked in blindness. They knew not God. Had no desire for him. No thought of him. The world is like that. A godless world.

[8:03] The professing religious world. Have never known. What it has been. For their eyes to be opened. We don't know.

[8:14] When Peter's eyes were opened. We cannot see. Exactly. And the Lord told John. Told Nicodemus. The wind blower. I can't tell the sound there.

[8:26] Or whether it goes. When is it coming. Where is it going. We don't know. But we know this. That his eyes were opened.

[8:39] Whom say man that I am. Said Christ. And he said. Thou art the Christ. The son of the living God. Christ said. In flesh his blood. Has not revealed the son.

[8:49] To thee. But my father. Which is in heaven. His eyes were opened. What a path he had to walk. It was from that. Blessed confession.

[9:00] And divine testimony. By God. In his soul. That he went. To the first Lord's Supper. And then. To a denial.

[9:13] Of Christ. With oaths and curses. And then. To come to Christ. As he looked upon him.

[9:24] In that judgment hall. And to. Enter into that. Sacred experience. Who his own self. Bore. Our sins.

[9:34] In his own body. On the tree. And to enter into that. In his letter. Which he wrote. And he said. As much as ye know. You are not redeemed. With corruptible things.

[9:46] But with. The precious. Blood of Christ. He. Was a great sinner. And the. Blood of Christ. Was peculiarly.

[9:58] Precious to him. I will bring. The blind. The Lord. Is in control. He.

[10:10] Has. All the glory. And we see here. Such a beauty. Is in. Why should he bring. The blind. They have no claim.

[10:21] Upon him. Why should he open. Sinners eyes. Why did he open. Jacob's eyes. Is none other.

[10:34] The gate of heaven. And the house of God. His eyes were open. His ears were open. Why did the Lord. Open Jacob's eyes. And not Esau's. They were both.

[10:47] A grief. To their parents. But I believe. Isaac knew this. While. Jacob was a grief. To him. He was a child.

[10:58] Of God. Esau was a greater grief. To him. Oh. When we look at this. All we can say is this. Not.

[11:11] That we loved him. But that he loved us. That is what the scriptures say. And gave himself. A ransom for us. And here. We see.

[11:24] Mercy. Divine. Sovereign grace. Here we see. Everlasting. Loving kindness. Why.

[11:35] His people can never tell. They ask that question. When the Lord. Deals with them. Why was I made. To hear his voice. And into father's room.

[11:48] While others. Make a wretched choice. And rather. Starve and come. Why. Have no answer to it. Only. Sovereign grace.

[11:59] And it lies here. I will bring. Of life. By a way. That they knew not. That is a.

[12:11] Beautiful. Parallel. With that text. We have. Quoted in the. Third chapter. Of the. Gospel of John. Which reads. So beautifully.

[12:22] So beautifully. The wind bloweth. Where it listeth. Though hearest the saying. The Lord. But canst not tell. Whence it cometh. And whither it goeth. So is every one. That is born of the spirit.

[12:34] I will bring the blind. And it's in this word. Where it listeth. The wind blows. Where it pleases. It's the good pleasure of God.

[12:47] To gather. Sinners out of nature's darkness. And bring them to glory. And you know. It is solely. Of sovereign grace.

[12:59] That any poor sinner. Reaches heaven. And why do you think that is? I believe there. That they may give all the glory to God.

[13:13] It's beautifully put in that little hymn. And Jesus. Sought me. When a stranger. Wandering. From the fold of God. He to save my.

[13:26] Sovereign danger. And deposed his precious blood. Oh to grace. How great a debtor. Daily I am constrained to be.

[13:38] Let. That grace. Lord. Like a fetter. Bind. My. Wandering heart to thee. I tell you this. There is no. Explanation.

[13:51] But it lies here. The work of God. I will bring. I will bring. The blind. By way that they knew not. When you. Look into your own pathway.

[14:05] Ask yourself. Tonight. Has the Lord brought you. By way that you never knew about. Called you. While a stranger. Wandering the fold of God.

[14:18] Brought you. Into solemn paths. Moved in your life. And in your soul. And in your heart.

[14:29] And in your circumstances. To effectually call you to himself. He does.

[14:40] We have read in this chapter here tonight. That word. I will work. What a blessing word that is. And you know.

[14:53] What lies in it. The work. You think. Of the work. What is the work. I will work. What is it? I have finished the work.

[15:06] That they gave us me to do. And now come I to the old father. Oh think of that work. There are two aspects of it. One. Is the work of Christ.

[15:18] On Calvary's cross. And the other. Is the work. Of the Holy Spirit. That flows.

[15:29] From the work. On Calvary's cross. One. Is primary. The work of Christ. On the cross. I will work. The work.

[15:41] That he. Wrought out. As he walked this earth. In his incarnation. His body and soul. As he perfected.

[15:53] For his dear people. A glorious. Holy. Spotless righteousness. And the work. Which he accomplished. In their redemption. And their atonement.

[16:04] On Calvary's cross. As he set his face. As a flint. To go to Jerusalem. And drank that cup. Of which he spoke. In Gethsemane. It would be possible.

[16:16] That this cup. Pass from me. Or what a. Blessed work. That is. I will work. And the outflowing. Of that. Precious work.

[16:27] Lies here. In our text. I will. Bring the blind. Is he bringing you. Is he bringing me. He. He.

[16:41] He. Leads his dear people. He carries his dear people. He prepares his dear people.

[16:52] He teaches his dear people. To bring them to glory. I will bring the blind.

[17:04] By a way. They knew not. I will lead them. But you know. That tells us something. That they have been made willing to follow.

[17:18] This is because. Their eyes have been opened. You see in that.

[17:30] We read of the. Blind man. What a. Opening his eyes of world. Eye that. Speak unto the image. And he worshipped him.

[17:41] The eternal son of God. Jesus didn't often. Opened the eyes of the blind. To himself. In his own day.

[17:54] Really. They were few. And far between. But I was looking. Only recently. At the case. Of the woman of Samaria. How many was it.

[18:06] To whom he actually said. Either. Speak unto the enemy. We know that Messiah is coming. Woman is five.

[18:16] Her husband. And Christ revealed himself to her. Eye that. Speak unto. Come see a man. She had seen the Christ of God. She knew him.

[18:28] The blind man had seen him. Eye that. Speak unto the enemy. And he worshipped him. The eternal son of God. In kind. Blindness of his eyes.

[18:38] At birth. Was not according to any sin. Of his parents. But it was according to the sovereign will of God. That he should be in that state.

[18:50] The Lord would open his eyes. Naturally. And that in it. He would open his eyes spiritually. That he might worship him. And I do.

[19:01] Say to you tonight. As the Lord opened your eyes. You. I'll bring the blind by a way that they knew not.

[19:14] All has the Lord does work. That is a way. That in their days of blindness.

[19:25] They could never see. Or understand. Or walk in. They wandered. In the wilderness. Says the psalmist. In the 107th psalm.

[19:35] In a solitary way. And then we read this. He led them forth. By the right way. What a mighty act of God.

[19:46] It is to open the eyes of the blind. And then. To lead them forth. By the right way. And it is. To lead them to Christ.

[19:59] To lead them in that straight and narrow way. That leads to life. To lead them. Into the straight gate. As the Lord opened your eyes.

[20:13] Are you encompassed in this sacred promise of God? I will bring the blind. By the way that they knew not. Can you look back. As I said at the beginning.

[20:24] To the days. You were under generancy. When. You knew not the way. And you were blind. Be certain of this. That you were born blind.

[20:36] Spiritually. Man is born in sin. And shaped in iniquity. It is the. Work of the Holy Spirit.

[20:47] In regeneration. To open the eyes of the blind. And the ears of the deaf. John the divine.

[20:57] In his epistle. Speaks again and again. In the opening chapter. Of his first epistle. Of the. Work of God.

[21:09] In opening his eyes. He says. There. That which we.

[21:21] From the beginning. That which was from the beginning. Which we have. Heard. Which we have seen. With our eyes. Which we have looked upon. The life was manifested. And we have seen it.

[21:32] And bear witness. And show unto you. That eternal life. That which we have seen. And heard. Declare we unto you. Then he goes on to say this. If we walk in the light.

[21:45] Ah. The eyes of the blind are open. Aren't they? If we walk. Do you walk in the light tonight? As he is in the light.

[21:57] Then. We have fellowship one with another. The eyes of the blind are open. There is union. With others.

[22:09] Whose eyes have been open. There is a. Fellowship. Fellowship with those. Even in simple things. In the world have passed.

[22:19] The same way. Those who have been bereaved. Those who have had to go through. Serious operations. They have a fellowship together.

[22:31] And when we see this. Something far higher. Spiritually. Those whose eyes have been opened. If we walk in the light. And you know John.

[22:45] Says something. Very solemn. That comes to mind. In that. Opening chapter. Of the. His general epistle. He says. There.

[22:57] If we say. We have fellowship with him. And walk in darkness. We lie. And do not the truth. Walk in darkness.

[23:08] That is blindness. That is blindness. John Milton. John Milton. John Milton. John Milton. John Milton. John Milton. John Milton. In his. Ode. His poem.

[23:19] Regarding his blindness. I was only thinking of it today. It opens. He was. became blind. In his life. But speaking of blindness. He said.

[23:30] Dark. Dark. Dark. Amidst. The blaze of noon. Insufferably dark. That is how he described his blindness.

[23:41] His sight utterly gone. But you know. We walk in darkness. Those who. Spiritually spend a life like it. And have no light.

[23:53] light. And there are those. Who say. They know the light. Or think they do.

[24:04] Are like the foolish virgin. What is it? To walk in darkness. To be blind.

[24:16] But you know. As I said at the beginning. When the eyes are opened. For a child of God. When the work of grace is begun. They and they alone.

[24:27] Can look back. To the days. Of darkness. When they knew not the Lord. They heard not his voice. Knew not the power of his spirit. When the sermon never touched their heart.

[24:40] With any life. Or warmth. Or sweetness. For the singing of his praises. For nothing but music. To them. No spiritual. Effect. And can look.

[24:52] To the day. When. They did have their eyes open. Blessed are your eyes. For they see. And your ears. For they hear.

[25:03] The flesh and blood. Is not revealed to somebody. My father. Which is in heaven. I'll bring the. Blind by way. That they. Knew not. I will lead them.

[25:15] I love that word. Dear Dr. David. The old minister. In the church of England. And later. Editor of the gospel standard. Wrote a lovely book.

[25:26] Which was based on his diaries. Led and fed. He could see. All through his life.

[25:39] He lived a great old age. He could see. All through his life. How the Lord had led him. He led them forth. By the right way. That they might go.

[25:51] To a. City of habitation. Is the Lord leading you? Has he begun. In your heart. And you know. I would.

[26:02] Remark this. Let's not pass over. The scriptures. He led them forth. In paths. That encompasses.

[26:16] Many different paths. You know. I've walked in. Many different paths. In my life. Solemn paths.

[26:28] Paths of disobedience. Disobedience. Paths of submission. And obedience. You think of Jonah's paths. One was disobedience. And one was obedient.

[26:43] Perhaps you're walking in a path of disobedience. Unbelief. Temptation.

[26:54] Fear. Oh. When the Lord leads. He'll lead you forth. By the right way. And he gives submission.

[27:07] And obedience. With holy mind and will. What a work that will be. And you will find. In obedience. Joy. You will find.

[27:19] The path of obedience. That faith must be exercised. I will lead them. Blessed.

[27:31] The work then. That lies here. In our text. I will lead them in paths. They have not known. I will make darkness.

[27:43] Light before them. Oh. How the Lord brings out. His dear people. From a godless world. And they can look.

[27:54] At the two aspects. I make darkness. Light before them. They know both the darkness. And the light. They can understand.

[28:06] The words of scripture. Which say. The days of darkness. Shall be many. That is true. Of a child of God. You know.

[28:17] In this. Prophecy of Isaiah. In the. 50th chapter. Who is among you. That feareth the Lord.

[28:28] That obeys the. Voice of his servant. That walketh in darkness. And hath no light. Let him trust. In the name of the Lord. And stay upon his God.

[28:39] Behold all ye. That kindle the fire. Accompass yourself. About with sparks. Walk in the light. Of your fire. And the sparks. That ye have kindled. This shall ye have at mine hand.

[28:50] Ye shall lie down. In your sorrow. Child of God. Is brought out of. Darkness. The same darkness.

[29:00] We spoke of. In John's epistle. Walk in darkness. Blind. But you know. In that. In that.

[29:11] Deliverance. Into the path. That the Lord. Will lead his people in. There will again. Be days of darkness. Not the same darkness. This darkness.

[29:23] Will not be unregeneracy. This darkness. Will be the absence. Of their God. But he is absent. All is dark. And he is present.

[29:36] All his light. And it speaks to us. Of the. Pathway. Of a child of God. That he knows the light. And he knows.

[29:46] The darkness. That he has walked. In the days of darkness. When he did not know. The Lord at all. He can. Point not. Necessarily. To. A moment.

[29:57] A minute. Or an hour. Or a day even. As to when. His eyes were open. When the blindness. Was taken away. But he can.

[30:10] Point. To the fact. That he can know. And look back. At that darkness. Total darkness. And that he was brought. Out of it. And that the Lord.

[30:20] Shone. By his mercy. In his soul. And he came. Where this. Dear man did. In his blindness. Delivered from it. And brought.

[30:31] To worship Christ. I will bring. The blind. By way that they knew not. I will lead them. In paths. That they have not known. I will make.

[30:43] Darkness. Light. Before them. Do you see. The beauty of that. We read of this. In the opening chapter.

[30:53] Of John's gospel. He. He speaks. Here. Of the. Light. And speaks of. Christ. As the.

[31:05] Light of the world. And. He says this. Regarding him. In him was life. And the life.

[31:16] Was the light of men. And the light. Shineth in darkness. And the darkness. Comprehended it not. Then he.

[31:26] He speaks here. Of that. Blessed light. Christ. And he says this. A word was made flesh. And to our tomorrow. And we beheld.

[31:38] God. Oh. The gift of faith. A mighty work of regeneration. We beheld. His glory. There was light. In him was light.

[31:50] And the light. Was the life of men. Oh. The. Power of Christ. In his mighty work. On the cross. From it. Flows.

[32:01] The work of the Holy Spirit. In giving light. It is through Christ. Vicarious sacrifice. His dear people. Are made accepted.

[32:12] In the beloved. And they are given light. Delivered from their darkness. Of their unregeneracy. And then we read this.

[32:22] And make crooked things straight. This. Refers. To blindness. Unregeneracy. This refers to.

[32:35] Unregeneracy. Man. From the Adam fall. Was crooked. And the sons of Adam. Were born crooked. But the Lord is able.

[32:50] In his mighty work of salvation. Which satisfied his father utterly. Make a poor crooked sinner. Ready for glory.

[33:03] He prepares their hearts. Opens their eyes. Brings them to Calvary's cross. Heals their wounds. Pours in that. Oil and wine.

[33:15] That sacred balm of Gilead. And he leads them. To himself. And they are no longer crooked. They are no longer rebellious.

[33:27] They are no longer defiant. They are no longer disobedient. They no longer love darkness. Rather than light. Although they have a fallen nature.

[33:38] And solemn temptations. All their journey through. Yet. They know what they want. Their longing. Of their soul. Is to know. A piece of God.

[33:49] Which passes. All understanding. Their longing. Is to walk in the light. Of his countenance. The ultimate. They could possibly desire. Is to come where.

[34:00] The bride of Christ. Came in the song of Solomon. And said. My beloved is mine. And I am his. To come where Job came. When he said. I know.

[34:11] That my Redeemer lives. To come. Into the comfortable light. Of his countenance. When there is no barrier. Between their souls.

[34:22] And their God. And they lie at his mercy seat. Broken hearted sinners. Their eyes upon Christ. Their darkness removed.

[34:34] And they long to commune with him. The children of Israel. In the wilderness. Came to Elam. They would have desired. To stay there. Always.

[34:46] It was an oasis. In the desert. Wells. And palm trees. But they had to move on. Because. The pillar of cloud. Went before them. Had to go forward.

[34:59] But oh. They went through the wilderness. To the promised land. And what a figure it is. Of the holy Israel of God. And they crossed. Into the promised land.

[35:10] That heavenly canyon. There is. So much. Blessed truth. Here. Lying in our tents.

[35:21] I will bring the blind. By way that they knew not. Hidden. That path. Before them is. And what a mercy it is. So. I will lead them in paths.

[35:33] They have not known. Never dreamt of. I will make darkness. Light before them. And crooked things straight. Then this final word. These things.

[35:45] Bring them. Lead them. Make crooked things straight. These things. And notice this. Will I do unto them. Do you see that.

[35:58] The very. Essence of that. Is that they have. No hand in it whatsoever. He does it. Unto them. It is his work.

[36:12] All the glory is his. Not of works. Not of human works. No. No offer here. To be accepted. Pages and pages.

[36:26] Are being written. In Christian magazines. Along this time. But they have no offer. A man accepting it. That Christ offers.

[36:38] Salvation to all men. Even though. He will only save. The election of grace. That men have only. To accept Christ.

[36:49] Without his works. How can an unregenerate man. Accept Christ. How can a sinner. Accept Christ. How does a sinner. Need Christ. Until. His eyes have been opened.

[37:02] To see and to know. His sinful nature. And it's then. As with a blind man. He knew he was blind. He fled. To Christ. For healing. The Lord didn't make him an offer.

[37:16] He healed him. The Lord asked him. What he would have him to do. That I might receive my sight. Oh when we come to look.

[37:28] At the mighty work of God here. These things will I do unto them. Sovereignly we come back to him. He heals. Sovereignly he works.

[37:40] Oh the blessed nature then. Of this truth. That lies in our text tonight. I'll bring the blind. That is the election of grace.

[37:52] In their unregeneracy. I'll bring the blind. By the way they knew not. Can you look back over that past tonight. Has he brought you. Has he led you.

[38:06] I will lead them. He says. In paths that they have not known. I'll make darkness light before them. Crookedly straight. The thing that I do unto them.

[38:18] And not forsake them. What is the effect. I believe this you know. That under a realisation of. All that he has done for them.

[38:29] All they stand in need of. None of which they deserve. They will worship him. As the blind man did.

[38:40] You worshipped him. In gratitude. In thankfulness. As the dear saints. Worship him above.

[38:51] In that lovely anthem. Under him that loved us. And washed us from our sins. In his own blood. They will have something.

[39:03] To thank him for. They will have a heart. Of love and gratitude. Because. They know. They deserved it not.

[39:17] And his was a hand of mercy. Extended to them. And they lie in his arms here. Of promise. Not forsake them.

[39:30] As the hymn writer says. Never. No never. No never forsake. And that truth which. Lies here as well. I am the Alpha.

[39:42] And the Omega. The beginning and the end. The Lord's work is a. Perfect work. Of what is begun. He will finish. Oh sir. Sure in most heart.

[39:54] With this question. Tonight. Where do I stand. In the light. Of this truth. And these truths. That lie here.

[40:05] I say again. These. Chapters are replete. With this word. Blind. We read it. In the. The next chapter. In the. Forty.

[40:16] Second. Chapter. Bring forth. The blind people. That have eyes. And the deaf. That have ears. What a. Remarkable word. That is. Yes.

[40:27] They were blind. Once. Whereas. Once. I was blind. Now. I see. The blind people.

[40:39] Have eyes. The deaf. That have ears. Oh. There has been a work. A mighty work of grace. Wrought in their heart. A mighty change. Has taken place.

[40:50] I ask you. Tonight. Has it taken place. In. Your heart. Has it taken place. In mine. What. Is the ground. Of your hope. Amen.

[41:00] Amen.