Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria in the fourth century, is most known for his fight against a heresy that denied Jesus was truly God and his statement, “Then Athanasius is against the whole world” when told that the whole world was against him. His stand greatly impacted C. S. Lewis, who wrote of him, “It is his glory that he did not move with the times; it is his reward that he now remains when those times, as all times do, have moved away.”¹ It is my prayer in our day that our epitaphs could read the same.

A legitimate concern I have, however, is that the church in our day will be easily moved. For there are two trends that are occurring with devastating effects. The first is that the culture is pressing greatly against the notion of absolute truth, so that the exclusivity of Christ and the notion that the Bible is an authoritative book with God as its author are under great attack. The other trend that has been occurring over a number of decades is that the church, though she might be growing greatly in numbers in some seasons, is becoming less educated in relation to what God has said in his Word. Thus, it’s as if the attack is coming and we do not know how to remove the sword from the sheath.

Year after year I see the effect of these trends as individuals who appeared strong in the faith doubt, are hardened, and eventually walk away from claiming the name of Christ. At the same time, life is not getting easier for many. Even in this congregation the numbers of those going through very difficult times is amazing. On any given Sunday there are people in this congregation struggling with their health, emotional struggles, job situations, family concerns, in addition to the normal burdens that come to all of us. As a pastor, I am at times overwhelmed with the greatness of the struggles found in a congregation even our size.

So, with the culture, the struggles of life, and the failure of the church in many ways, how do we strengthen ourselves to stand and not be moved with the times? How do we stand and not be crushed by anxiety and doubting at the struggles of life? How do we stand as a tree deeply rooted in the earth when the winds of life can blow so fiercely? I think the answer comes to us, yet again, in our text this morning in Isaiah.

As you know from the previous weeks, Isaiah is writing to a people whom he has told are about to be conquered and go into exile as captives in Babylon. Thus, it’s not as if they need to be creative with their minds so as to dream up something about which they might be anxious; they know there is a hard road ahead.

However, Isaiah also had told them that God would bring about their deliverance, even as he had done with the Exodus, so God would bring about a deliverer for them to bring them out of Babylon. And he tells them in the opening chapters of our text this morning that God will bring about their deliverance through Cyrus (a Persian King who would conquer Babylon and order the captives to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple). They were told that their deliverance was coming. But in the meantime, what would be their strength to stand and not be moved with the moving times and changing circumstances? What does Isaiah give them as an anchor for their souls so that they might be equipped for what is to come?

Isaiah simply points them to God, his nature, his characters, his purposes, and his ways. This has been what we have seen in the past few chapters, and it’s what we see again this morning. And just as Isaiah felt it necessary to remind Israel continually of her God, so I think it is good and necessary to be reminded again and again of the same. Therefore, this morning, in a very similar fashion as we saw last week, let’s turn again to the text so that we might be reminded of our God, his character, and his ways so that we might stand strong and unmovable against culture and the winds of life that will blow against us.

What does Isaiah remind Israel of about their God? First, he reminds them that …

There is none like him; he alone is God

One thing that Israel needed to know as they were about to go into Babylonian exile and even face another conqueror to come in Cyrus is that their God was indeed the only God who is. They needed to know that there is none above him or even like him. And this is something that God assures them of again and again in our text.

He begins our text in 44:24-28 declaring that he alone is the one who formed them in the womb, the only one who made all things, the only one who shames men in their wisdom, the only one who brings about the things his messengers declare, the only one who declares that the cities of Judah will be built, and the only one who can make Cyrus fulfill his purpose. He alone is God. And this is a refrain throughout the text In 45:5-6 we read, “I am the Lord, and there I no other, besides me there is no God … I am the Lord, and there is no other.” In 45:18 and 21-22 he declares, “I am the Lord, and there is no other … There is no other god besides me, a righteous god and a Savior; there is none besides me. … For I am God and there is no other.” Then finally in 46:5 and 9 he declares, “To whom will you liken me and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be alike? … For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me.” God does not want his people to wonder if others that people claim are gods really are gods. He makes clear that he alone is God and there is none like him.

In our own day this is an area where the culture is pushing hard against the church. Simply being in conversation with one who says to me, “I hope you’re not one who thinks your way to God is the only way or that your God is the only God” makes me cringe inside as the temptation to cowardice is always present within me. It seems that as Christians, we may be the one group not bowing to this idea that everyone’s view is okay, for we proclaim that there is only one God.

But are we right? Have we read the Bible correctly? Indeed we have; a reading of these chapters alone should confirm it. There is one God.

However, can we say that the text identifies who this God is? Indeed we can, for this text, along with the whole of Scripture, tells us who this one God is; he is the God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. This is why John can say in John 1:18, “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” But we even see it in our text. In Isaiah 45:22-23, God declares, “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.’”

This is a text that Paul picks up on in the New Testament. In case it is unclear, perhaps it will be more clear when we realize that the Septuagint (i.e. the Greek translation of the Old Testament) reads as the last line, “Every tongue shall confess to God.” Thus, in the Septuagint we read in Isaiah 45:23, “To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess to God.”

In Philippians 2:5-11, Paul writes, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” It is clear from Philippians 2 that the one who is declaring he alone is God in Isaiah 45:22 is the one who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ.

Therefore, we must not back off of our declaration that there is only one God, the God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, for that is the very declaration our God has made in the Word. To say otherwise is to call God a liar and deny the authority of the Word of God in our lives.

But why is this to be comforting to Israel or us? The answer is that because there is only one God, the God whom we serve, we may be comforted in the fact that none can thwart his purposes and plans.

Being the only God, he can do all he desires, carrying out his purpose and mission

This is something Israel needed to know. They were about to be conquered by the Babylonians. There was a power that was about to crush them and force them into captivity. And one day they would get news that there was another conqueror out there who was going to come against Babylon. Would this not drive them to great fear, for what would this new conqueror mean for them?

Isaiah reminds them that they need not fear, for God if God’s mission was to rebuild the cities of Judah, then he would do it even through the hands of such a conqueror. In fact, the news that Isaiah brings to Israel is that when Cyrus came onto the scene, he would be controlled by the Lord, as if he was a pond in the hand of the great God who was carrying out his purposes through him. Isaiah was declaring that even the king’s heart was like putty in the hands of the Lord.

In 44:24-28, God declares that he alone can do what he wants, and he says of Cyrus in verse 28, “He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose, saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your salvation shall be laid.” God can and will carry out his purposes. Again, in 45:1-7 God declares that he will use Cyrus even though Cyrus will not know he is being used of God. In that section, God ends declaring, “I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things.” God is in control, carrying out his purposes. And again, we read in 46:8-11, “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.” Because God alone is God, he will carry out his purposes and plans. None can stop him.

Growing up, I was raised in a great situation. I have two sisters who are quite a bit older than me, but that didn’t mean I didn’t get to grow up with friends to play with because my mom babysat many of the children in the neighborhood every day. For my mom, that meant she would earn extra income while all of us kids played together outside, and for me, it meant I would never have to beg my mom to have my friends over – they came over every day.

And one thing a number of us boys wound up doing every day was playing war against one another. Whether we were playing with army men who began fighting or trucks that would begin taking part in a crash-up derby or simply carrying it out ourselves, we were always, at some point in the day, at war. And one of the things that was fun at first, but then became a great source of frustration, was our discovery of something called a force-field, this invisible protective barrier that surrounded you so that no one could hurt you. Thus, when you found that the other guy was getting the upper hand on you and maybe had moved in for a clear shot against you, you simply yelled, “Force-field!” and all was well. He couldn’t touch you until you proclaimed that you had let it down, which you wouldn’t do until you were ready to react to whatever he might throw against you.

Eventually, however, the force-field became a great source of frustration. War pretty much became something we hated because everyone was yelling “force-field” all the time, and we had to stop and wait for them to declare that it was down. It led to arguments as we discussed whether a shot was fired the split-second before or after someone had yelled, “Force-field.” It was simply a mess. Thus, at least once a day for some length of time, we would involve my mom in our dispute with somebody declaring, “It’s not fair, because you can’t do anything to him because he’s always yelling force-field.” As long as a guy could yell force-field all those against him would be frustrated as they were constantly thwarted. The force-field simply became the comfort of all comforts.

In somewhat of a similar fashion, that is how God is presenting himself here to Israel. He is the one who has all power, none can thwart his plans, and whatever he wants to do he does. That is to be their comfort.

But actually that is not enough for our comfort is it? For how do we know that what we have here is not some all-powerful God toying with men and carrying about some evil purposes? We know because God tells us more of himself, namely, that he is working for the good of his people.

God is working all things for the redemption of his children

We see this specifically in our text as God stirs up Cyrus not simply to conquer but to rebuild the city. Thus, God declares in 44:26 that he declares of Jerusalem, “She shall be inhabited,’ and of the cities of Judah, “They shall be built, and I will raise up their ruins.’” Then again in 44:28, he says of Cyrus, “He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill my purpose’ [what purpose we might ask? The answer …] “saying of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be built,’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation shall be laid.”

In 45:4 God declares, “I have stirred him [i.e. Cyrus] up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways level he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for prince or reward, says the Lord of hosts.” Then, finally, we read in 46:3-4, “Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.” God is using his almighty power to bring about redemption for his people; he will redeem them from Babylon. That is why his might and power should be a comfort to them, for nothing can stop his plan to redeem them.

“Fine,” we might say, “but how does that affect us?” The answer is that this is not an exception in the character of God, instead, God’s plan has always been to work for the redemption of his people, and that includes all who will call upon him from all over the face of the earth. Thus, we read in 45:22, “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.”

God is working history to carry out the redemption of his people. We see a microcosm of that in this text as God is bringing about Israel’s deliverance through the hands of Cyrus. Even in 46:1-13 God pictures Babylon evacuating their gods on horseback. Those gods which were supposed to carry the burdens of the people are becoming burdens even to the animals that carry them. He saw it ahead of time, for he was going to make it happen for the sake of his people. And indeed it did happen, as we read in Ezra 1:1-4, “In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel— he is the God who is in Jerusalem. And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem."

So, it is true for us as well. Right now you might not understand what God is doing, but you can know that God is working all things for the redemption of his people, of which you are if you believe in him. In fact, you might not even like what’s going on in your life right now, but you can know God is working with your redemption in mind.

Israel did not particularly like the plan to deliver them through the hand of Cyrus it seems, for in 45:8-13, Isaiah chastises them for challenging the Lord on his plans, so that God finally says, “Will you command me concerning my children and the work of my hands? I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their hosts. I have stirred [Cyrus] up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways level; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward,’ says the Lord of hosts” (45:11-13).

In short, God’s puts them in their place when they question his method of bringing about their redemption. He puts them in their place, which is a position in which they cannot challenge the Creator and is a position in which they can rest in his sovereignty, knowing he is working all things for their redemption. I pray that we might find rest not in understanding all of the circumstances around us but in knowing the God who is directing them for our redemption.

God’s priority in redemption, and in all things, is the display of his glory through the exaltation of his Son

This is the final lesson we see in the text. God is working to display his glory through the exaltation of his son. First, we see that God raises up Cyrus declaring in 45:3 that he is doing this, “That you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by name.” Then, in 45:24, God declares that when men come to him they will declare, “Only I the Lord … are righteousness and strength; to him shall come and be ashamed all who were incensed against him.”

But how can we say God is seeking his glory “through the exaltation of his Son”? The answer is that this text reminds us from both ends of the canon that this has always been God’s plan. We see it in 45:23. Again that text reads, “By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.”

I think his language is very precise here for a reason. God is talking about saving all those from all over the earth who will turn to him in the verse prior, then he declares, “By myself I have sworn …” This is the very wording God uses when he says to Abraham that all the nations of the earth will be blessed through his seed. And we know from the New Testament that Abraham’s seed is Christ. Therefore, even from Genesis 22, God’s goal was to redeem a people but lifting up his Son. Also, as we have already said, Paul takes Isaiah 45:23 and says that it will be fulfilled as every knee bows and confesses that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Therefore, we see that God’s goal throughout all of history is to redeem a people by exalting his Son.

Therefore, through life there will be many challenges from the culture, many struggles in life that come so hard they seem impossible to stand against, however, you can know (even as Israel could know facing captivity in Babylon) that the God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ is the one and only God, that he will accomplish every purpose he has, that his over-arching purpose is to work all of history toward the redemption of his people, and that this will be carried out as he exalts his Son, Jesus Christ.

Therefore, do we not see how absurd it is to think one can know God while rejecting Jesus Christ? And do we not see how concerned God is to get us a firm foundation to rest on when the winds of culture and life blow hard against us? May we be found not as a people who understand all circumstances but who know a God who is guiding history for our good, a God who has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. To him be glory forever. Amen.

¹ C.S. Lewis, "Introduction," in The Incarnation of the Word of God: Being the Treatise of St. Athanasius (New York: MacMillian Company, 1946), 11.

CYRUS, REDEMPTION, AND THE INCOMPARABLE GOD

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