I feel like talking about salvation this morning because when I was in Senegal this week for my secular business, the Lord has blessed me by giving me a wonderful brother, somebody exceptional who gave his life to the Lord. This is a colleague of mine whom Jesus has been seeking for years, and here we found ourselves in the same workshop in Dakar. Not only were we at the same workshop, but God arranged things so that our rooms would be just next to the other. So on the second day of the conference after dinner as we were moving to our rooms, he felt he would like us to pray together.
The next day, sharp at 6:30 AM we met in my room and it was his encounter with Jesus. He was clothed with a golden shirt. I felt it was prophetic for his calling, and an enormous privilege laying my hands on this colleague who had just given his life to the Lord, to recommend him to God’s grace as Phillip did in the acts of apostles. The good part is that we will stay in contact, and I would like one day that he visits this church. The Bible says there is joy in heaven for one soul who turns to God. That day there has been great joy in heaven. Therefore, I feel this morning like talking about the Song of Salvation. It is written in the book of Isaiah chapter 12. The whole chapter is only 6 verses.
The Song of salvation is a beautiful celebration of WHO GOD IS. It encourages us to consider matters of eternal importance. It’s a stunning proclamation of God’s blessings which comforts us and gives us strength for the days ahead. Let someone read it first in German and then I will read it in English.
Isaiah 12:
- In that day you will say: “I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me.
- Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”
- With joy, you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
- In that day you will say: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted.
- Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.
- Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.”
Now allow me to remind you the context of this song. It was on the 8th century before Christ, a young king named Ahaz was ruling the kingdom of Judah. Ahaz had no experience when a serious threat came to the kingdom. Enemies surrounded him, 2 kingdoms attacked him with the purpose of replacing him with someone else. The Bible says in Isaiah chapter 7 that the king and the people were scared.
There is a very simple lesson to draw from the context of this story, it’s that not everyone agrees with God when God chooses to raise someone. Don’t expect everyone to be happy and praising you with the position which God has given you. The funny thing is that the kingdom of Israel was part of the plot against the kingdom of Judah. There might be times when your own brothers come against you because what God is doing in your life is too big for them to afford watching.
But God sent prophet Isaiah to comfort King Ahaz and to tell him to trust in the Lord. God wanted to rescue him. God sent the prophet a second time to tell him he could even receive a sign from God if he wanted, to show that God wants and can rescue his people.
(i) The follower: But the king refused God’s offer to defeat his enemies. Ahaz rather made allegiance to his enemies and established alliances which led the people to the path of idolatry. It is sometimes very sad when you see people who are in power, bowing down to follow the path of those that are not in power. It is sad to see people to whom God has given power over their schedules and time management, but other people just pull them left or right at will. I’m talking to myself here. There is a time when to stop being a follower and rise into a leader to show the path of God.
(ii) Friendships: So King Ahaz, despite having God on his side, chose to serve the other kings at the cost of getting the people to lose their values. Let me tell you something, be careful who you walk with, because some friendships can drive you away from your life’s purpose.
(iii) Security: Ahaz wanted security against the enemy that was coming over, trusting that God could deliver Him. How many times do we often fail to trust in God’s ability to provide, and we choose the path of our own understanding? In our modern Christianity, the desire for security is sometimes overwhelming that we turn God into a servant who is there to realize all our desires. No, God is not at our service. We are his creatures.
So the people were lost, and God had every reason to be angry with them. The very people whom God had rescued started devoting themselves to what God has forbidden. Today we are not that different. People in our world have forgotten that God is our creator and that He is the provider of everything we’ve got and would ever have. Somewhere God would say “The ox knows his owner, but my people do not know me.” The ox knows who the boss is, but my people think they can rule over me. To say that even an animal would recognize who feeds him, who takes care, but the people of God lost even that simple intelligence.
Please let’s start restoring in our prayer style the right pattern of who the boss is. When we ask, it shouldn’t be as if we are giving orders. God is not our servant, God is God. Have you ever seen someone praying as if they are giving orders to God?
So here comes the Song of Salvation to declare WHO GOD IS. Though he could have destroyed the people who sinned against him, though He had every right to do so, because He is the almighty God and the people made him angry, God chose to turn away his anger and to comfort his people.
Verse 2: God is my salvation. The beauty of this verse is that God does not give to the people something else than Himself. While turning away from their sins, God gives Himself to the people as the ultimate response. God is my salvation. How beautiful! We don’t need anything else to face life’s trials. It’s very clear, what we need, first and foremost and ultimately is God Himself.
It is not the money, It is not the friends, It is not the husband, It’s not the wife, It is not the job, That will save us or bring us through the harsh times of life. It is God Himself. God is my salvation. I will trust and not be afraid. Because The Lord, The Lord Himself, is my strength and my defense. He has become my salvation.
Who is your strength when you are weak? Who is your defense when the enemy accuses you? The Lord, The Lord Himself.
Verse 3 he says, with joy, you will draw water from the wells of salvation. God do not only provide Himself to be with you, but he promises a joyful process for you to take water from his wells. Water is what alleviates thirst; it’s essential for life. By saying “you will draw water from the wells of salvation,” The song of salvation is about God simply giving Himself to relieve us from pain, to provide what is essential to life through a joyful process.
For those whom the Lord has saved, always remember that you can get anytime access to living waters from the wells of salvation.
I’m not sure if you know what I’m talking about, God said “you will draw waters from the wells of salvation.”
- When you are in the deserts of life and you get thirsty, you will get waters from the wells of salvation.
- When you are dirty and you need water to be clean, you will draw waters from the wells of salvation.
- When you are starting new things and you need the initial primary substance that was there in the beginning and which is required for moving God, water – you will get the waters from the wells of salvation.
In the Bible, the word water is mentioned in the very first verses of Genesis, and waters are associated with the motions of God at the creation. Genesis 1:2 The earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters” (Genesis 1:2) Yes, that is the prophecy of this song of salvation, when you need the substance upon which the Spirit of God hovers, you will draw it from the wells of salvation.
Conclusion: Now the question is: Do you want to come to the wells of salvation? Do you recognize that God has been faithful and is a mighty savior? Do you recognize that you are not self-sufficient, but that you are in need of God?
I want to invite you to stand up and pray with me just the first 3 verses of the song of salvation: “I praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. Although I have sinned against you, you have provided yourself to save me. Surely God, you are my salvation; I will trust in you and not be afraid. You, O Lord, you yourself, Lord Jesus, you are my strength and my defense; I accept you as my salvation. Grant me from now on to draw with joy water from the wells of salvation.”