Title: You Are Mine /Isaiah 43:1-7
Severe calamities are accompanied by God's comfort and consolation. God did not forsake Israel (verse 1), He promised that He would walk with Him in the midst of trials (verse 2), and that it would be restored quickly (verses 3 - 7). The message of this lecture is not to be afraid. The word not to be afraid is an encouragement to God's people. “Do not be afraid, I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine” (verse 1). God will protect His people well and will accompany them. He tells us not to be afraid because disasters or difficult days are coming.
1. God's love is paternal love
“Now the LORD who created you speaks, O Jacob; he who made you, Israel, speaks” (verse 1).
The idea of creation or creation is to make them fear nothing but God. If Jehovah is their Creator, they have nothing to fear. The reason is that they did not exist, but now it is their God who made them exist. What fear do you have when the God who created heaven and earth helps you? If the father believes that he is strong, powerful, and loving, the child has nothing to fear. God is the Creator, and He is the One who shapes and makes history. God trains Israel through education and suffering so that they know that He is the Creator and Founder of the world. Just as a father loves his children, God cares for and provides for his people.
2. The love of Jehovah is the love of the Redeemer
“I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine” (verse 1). These words also show that there is no reason to fear anything other than God. 'Redemption' is 'gaal' in Hebrew, which means that God's people are saved even at the expense of others.
“You are precious and honorable in my eyes” (v. 4), and the people of Israel are God’s special treasure, which is why “I gave Egypt as your ransom, and Cush and Sheba in your place” (v. 3), Israel He gave up Egypt, Cush, and Sheba for his sake (verse 3). God wants to pay the price of any sacrifice to save the people of Israel, so those who become God's people have nothing to fear except God. Not only that, but God called them by name. to be called by name
① That God knows them well.
② It means that God loves them.
③ It means that God makes them worthy to testify of God. Since he said, 'You are mine,' the Lord values and loves them, so it is clear that he will not be taken away from them under any circumstances. Therefore, the people of Israel have nothing to fear except God. God saved the Israelites as if they had crossed the Red Sea like dry land, and saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace. Likewise, even if God encounters disasters such as floods and fires in the world, He will save them there.
“God is our refuge and strength, a great help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth changes, or the mountains shake and fall into the midst of the sea, whether the seas spring up and roar, and the mountains shake with their overflow” (Psalm 46: 1 - 3). It is said that the Reformer Martin Luther found strength by reading this poem to his friend Melangton when he was in trouble.
If there is one among us who continues to come into trouble, he will have to rely on God alone and earnestly ask Him.
3. The love of Jehovah is a special and honorable love.
“I have called you by name” (v. 1), which refers to selective love. When the tabernacle was built, Bezalel was named in this way (Ex 31:2), and Moses was called by name (Ex 33:12-17). This is evidence that they have received grace before God. We too are blessed beings who have been appointed and called by God.
“Because you are precious and honorable in my eyes, and because I have loved you, I will give people in your place, and peoples in exchange for your life” (verse 4). This is not because the people of Israel are righteous (Deut. 9:6), but because they are God's chosen people and God's love for them. God's love is a special love that will save the Jewish people even at the expense of other nations.
The truth we must learn here is,
① The rise and fall of a nation is in God's hands
② God's chosen people are protected by God,
③ God’s work must be accomplished
④ It is to make God's people absolutely trust God.
4. Don't be afraid
The word 'Do not be afraid' appears 365 times in the Bible. In this way, God forbade many fears that were greatly harmful to our faith. He goes on to say that the Jewish people will be in many dangers and even exile in Babylon, but there is nothing to fear. The reason is that the time will come when God will undoubtedly liberate the captives from anywhere in the east, west, north, south, and south of the country. Here again, God showed the reason for such salvation, because they are God's chosen people.
“Let everyone who is called by my name come, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed, and he I made” (verse 7). This is not only about the return of the Jewish people from the Babylonian captivity, but also foretelling the salvation movement of Christ in the more distant future. When Jesus comes, those who have been scattered will be gathered, and what was taken will be found and abounded.