Joy for Those Dwelling in Dust
Audio Recording
Sermon Outline
Speaker: Rev. Scott Strickman
Sermon Series: Come, Let Us Walk in the Light of the Lord
Isaiah 26:9-21 (ESV)
9 My soul yearns for you in the night;
my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.
For when your judgments are in the earth,
the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
10 If favor is shown to the wicked,
he does not learn righteousness;
in the land of uprightness he deals corruptly
and does not see the majesty of the Lord.
11 O Lord, your hand is lifted up,
but they do not see it.
Let them see your zeal for your people, and be ashamed.
Let the fire for your adversaries consume them.
12 O Lord, you will ordain peace for us,
for you have indeed done for us all our works.
13 O Lord our God,
other lords besides you have ruled over us,
but your name alone we bring to remembrance.
14 They are dead, they will not live;
they are shades, they will not arise;
to that end you have visited them with destruction
and wiped out all remembrance of them.
15 But you have increased the nation, O Lord,
you have increased the nation; you are glorified;
you have enlarged all the borders of the land.
16 O Lord, in distress they sought you;
they poured out a whispered prayer
when your discipline was upon them.
17 Like a pregnant woman
who writhes and cries out in her pangs
when she is near to giving birth,
so were we because of you, O Lord;
18 we were pregnant, we writhed,
but we have given birth to wind.
We have accomplished no deliverance in the earth,
and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.
19 Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.
You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!
For your dew is a dew of light,
and the earth will give birth to the dead.
20 Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until the fury has passed by.
21 For behold, the Lord is coming out from his place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity,
and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it,
and will no more cover its slain.
Sermon Outline
The Easter message is life-giving news for people who are drying out and dying (v19).
1. You Who Dwell in the Dust
v9 “my soul yearns for you in the night… the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness”
v16 “in distress they sought you, they poured out a whispered prayer…”
v17-18 “like a pregnant woman who writhes and cries out in her pangs… we writhed but we have given birth to wind.”
2. Awake and Sing for Joy
v21 “behold the Lord is coming… the earth will disclose the blood shed in it…”
v19 “your dead shall live… the earth will give birth to the dead”
v19 “your dew is a dew of light”
Prayer of Confession
O living God, our souls yearn for you. We are children of dust – frail, broken, and burdened by the corruption that dwells within us and all around us. Like Cain, we wrestle with shame, envy and anger. Our efforts to mend ourselves and repair the world have been like labor pains that give birth to wind. We need Jesus – the One who descended in humility, who entered our dust to raise us from it. We need your Spirit - to breathe life into our dying bodies, to revive hearts grown cold, and to raise us from the ashes of our sin. Do not deal with us as our sins deserve, but look upon us with mercy. Forgive us for the sake of Christ, who gave his life that we might have life in him. Awaken us, O Lord, to your marvelous grace. Renew us by the power of your resurrection. And lead us into the joy of new life, through Jesus Christ, our risen savior. Amen.
Questions for Reflection
Do you ever feel like you “dwell in the dust”? What does it mean to be dust? Describe what it is like to feel like you dwell in dust.
Can you relate to Cain, who felt he wasn’t good enough, needed to improve, but whose growing resentment outpaced his energy to fix himself or rightly deal with his problem? What temptations rise when our efforts fail and frustrations grow
How do you respond to the injustices of the world – when the innocent suffer and the guilty seem to thrive? How does this shape your trust in God, His justice, His timing?
Does it feel like something is missing in life? What do you think it is?
Why is it significant that Abel is remembered in the New Testament? What can we infer from the fact that Jesus came remembering Abel and the righteous whose blood was shed since his time?
How are Jesus’ sufferings like labor pains?
How does receiving the Holy Spirit change us? Keeping in mind the imagery of dry dust, what happens when God’s Spirit starts to work within us?
What are some specific components of the Easter message that are reasons for rejoicing? What can you recognize, take hold of, and meditate on, that would breathe hope and encouragement into your soul?
Have you ever prayed to receive the Holy Spirit? If not, what is stopping you? If you have, how can you seek God for fillings of the Spirit? What priorities will help you live a Spirit-empowered life?
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