Keep Your Attention on the Servant of the Lord!

1st Sunday after Epiphany, 1/12/20
Isaiah 42:1-7


Keep Your Attention on the Servant of the Lord!
I. His justice saves you.
II. His actions set you free.


I have an important question for you this morning. Are you ready for it? What is Christianity all about?

I’m going to guess that you don’t have a difficult time answering that question. In fact, I won’t be surprised if every one of you gives an answer that is basically the same. Your answer to that question is that Christianity is all about our Savior from sin, Jesus Christ. Am I right? I’m sure that we’re almost completely unified on that answer because that’s the focus of our worship every time we meet together. Jesus as our Savior is the focus of every one of our Bible classes, Sunday School classes, Catechism classes, and our Vacation Bible School. It’s all about Jesus, only and ever about Jesus.

But I’m guessing you wouldn’t get that answer across the board in Christianity here in the US and around the world. Instead, you might hear that Christianity is all about living the Christian life. It’s about ending social injustice or poverty. It’s about making our country and its government adhere to what the Bible says. It’s about ending prejudice and promoting love for everyone. I’m sure you’re aware that those are the kinds of messages many Christians hear week in and week out in the churches that they attend.

But not here. So, I suppose I could say “Amen” and end this sermon right now since we know what Christianity us all about. Let’s go home a little earlier than we expected and enjoy the day, since we agree on this answer.

But this morning our text calls our attention once more (as we do every week) on our Savior. The very first word of our text in Hebrew is a word that calls attention to something important and out of the ordinary. It’s our God’s way of focusing our attention once more today on his Servant, our Savior. Obviously, the Lord knows that we need that reminder week in and week out because we’re tempted, like the rest of the world, to take our eyes off our Savior, to be fascinated or interested in other things, or to be less than impressed with who Jesus is and what he has done for us.

So, let’s do what our God is encouraging us to do in this portion of his word this morning. Focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord! Our God promises to bless you as you do.

Part I.

Did you notice a word that was repeated three times in the opening half of our text? It’s the word “justice.” But just what is justice?

Well, a common dictionary definition is “the quality of being fair and reasonable.” There is a strong sense of fairness associated with justice, to treat people fairly.

With the word “justice” used three times so early in this text, you might say that justice is a major theme in this text, and you’d be correct.

But it’s not the quality of being fair that the Lord is describing here through his prophet Isaiah. It’s not human justice that our God is concerned about here. It’s God’s justice and his justice is unlike any human conception of it. Think about it: If our God is going to treat us fairly for our sins, what hope do we have? None at all!

No, the justice that our God speaks about here is the justice that he carries out through his Servant. That’s how Isaiah describes him. We know him as our Savior, Jesus Christ.

The first aspect of God’s justice is that this Servant of the Lord would be our Substitute. Jesus came to live a perfect life for us. We see him doing that so vividly on this Sunday when we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord. Jesus didn’t need to be baptized to wash his sins away; he was sinless. But Jesus told John the Baptist that he needed to be baptized because that’s what his Father wanted him to do. You see, Jesus always did everything his Father wanted him to do. He came to this earth to do that because daily we don’t do what our Father wants us to do. God’s justice now declares that he counts Jesus’ holy life as your holy life and mine.

The second aspect of God’s justice is that this Servant of the Lord would be our sacrifice for sin. The day after Jesus’ baptism John pointed at Jesus and told others, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29). John called for people to focus their attention on Jesus and he gave this one great reason for doing so: Jesus would be the Lamb of God who would sacrifice himself for the sins of the world. So now, God’s justice declares that Jesus is the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. God would punish Jesus for my sins and yours. That’s God’s justice.

In short, God’s justice is nothing other than the gospel. We have a Savior who lived for us and died for us. There it is: that’s what Christianity is all about.

So, our focus has to be on keeping the main thing the main thing. This is a presidential election year, but you won’t hear any politics here. We live in a broken, evil world, but the ultimate solution is not more programs or better laws. Sure, those things might help. But the only solution to a world that is dying in sin is a Savior from sin. The only truth you ultimately need for eternity is this one: that Jesus is your Savior from sin.

Today’s sermon text opens with these words, “Here is my servant.” Respond to those words as your God is calling you to do. Focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord. His justice saves you.

This reading from Isaiah 42 is a fairly common reading on this Sunday in many Christian denominations. And that points to the fact that the Holy Christian Church is found in every Christian denomination on earth. But I wonder how many Christians will hear a different message about the justice of God than what you just heard? That concerns me, but that’s not our focus. Our focus today isn’t on what other churches teach about the justice of God. Our focus is on the Servant of the Lord—Jesus Christ your Savior. First, thank God today that his justice is not human justice. Our God does not treat us as our sins deserve. The holy God has declared that the punishment for a single sin is eternal hell. But in his love for sinners his justice has declared that his Servant would be not only our holiness before his holy law but also our punishment for sin. Maybe that doesn’t impress you, especially if you don’t think your sins are so terrible, so damning. But when you confess them as we did when we began our service and admit your guilt and punishment, then your Savior is worthy of your attention, not just today, but every day of your life. Then your life becomes an opportunity for you to show and express your love and thanks for the grace and love your God has for you. Focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord! His justice saves you.

Part II.

The Bible declares, “All things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). I’m quite certain this isn’t the first time you’ve heard those words. And they’re true. You even confess that they’re true when you speak the words of the creeds which state your faith in God the Father Almighty. If you’re almighty, then all things are possible.

Did you notice that, in these words of Isaiah which speak about the Servant of the Lord, your God recalls for you the fact that all things are possible for him, that he is almighty? Perhaps you missed them. If so, listen to them once again, “This is what God the LORD says—he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it.” Creating all things—including all human life and the vastness of our universe—that’s an awesome thing! Even with our advanced science, we still have so much to explore and understand about all that God created. What a powerful God!

So, what do you need him to do for you? What are the pressing needs in your life? Which irritant would you like him to relieve? What frustration or heartache would you like him to remove? What’s your most pressing need for the almighty God to supply?

Don’t ponder those questions any longer. Just listen to the Lord answer them for you, because not only is he almighty, he’s also all-knowing and he knows what you need most of all. He states, “I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.” He’s talking about his Servant whom he will send. He states first that his Servant will open blind eyes. I could use a little vision correction, but I’m not blind. However, I was blind spiritually. I could never see my Savior on my own, but my God in his grace caused me to see Jesus as my Savior from sin, and he’s done the same for you. Only an almighty God can cure that blindness.

He also sent his Servant to free captives from prison. I’ve never spent a minute behind bars, so why would I need his Servant to do that for me? Because I was a prisoner before I came to faith in Jesus. I was enslaved to Satan and destined for eternal punishment in his hellish kingdom. But Jesus freed me from that prison by his death on the cross. Only the almighty God could do that for me. And by his grace he’s done the same for you.

What you could never even begin to do on your own, your God has done for you. He did it through the Servant of the Lord. So, focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord. His actions set you free.

The holidays are over and we’re packing Christmas up and putting it away. In the minds of many people, now we enter the onset of winter and we’ll try to endure it as best we can.

If that’s what you’re thinking, I have something else for you to consider. God calls for you today to focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord because his actions set you free. From today through April 12 which is Easter Sunday I want you to do that. Watch the actions of Jesus each week through Epiphany and then through Lent, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter. With your attention focused on Jesus, God promises to bless you eternally. You can’t get that anywhere else. Focus your attention on the Servant of the Lord! Amen.