0145 -
Communion, A New Covenant
"A
Bruised Reed He Will not Break, and A Dimly Burning Wick He Will Not
Quench"
Isaiah
42:1-3; Psalm 145: 8-9
Quacco Baptist Church
215 Quacco Road, Savannah GA
Mar. 26, 2023
Introduction -
Today we celebrate the Lord’s Supper as
He commanded us to do. I want to first mention what led to this meal by going
back to the creation and fall which we find in Gen. 1:26-31; 2:4-22a; and
3:1-15.
In a nut shell these verse cover the
creation of the universe, the earth, man, human race, and the fall of man, the
human race. Gen. 1:26-31.
When one reads the first two chapters of
Genesis one can come away with the impression that these are two different
accounts; what is called a gap theory.
That does not the discussion issue.
Genesis 1 describes the “six days of
creation” (and a seventh day of rest); Genesis 2 covers only one day of that
creation week—the sixth day—and there is no contradiction as some claim.
In Genesis 2, the author steps back in the sequence to focus on the sixth
day, when God made mankind. In the first chapter, the author of Genesis
presents the creation of man on the sixth day as the culmination or high point
of creation. Then, in the second chapter, the author gives greater detail
regarding the creation of man and woman.
Considering
the two creation accounts individually and then reconciling them, we see that
God describes the sequence of creation in Genesis 1, then clarifies its most important details, especially of
the sixth day, in Genesis
2. There is no contradiction here, merely a common literary
device describing an event from the general to the specific.
In Genesis 3:2 did Eve receive
the command not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good & evil directly
from God or through Adam? 15 Then the LORD God took the man and
put him in the Garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the LORD God
commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but
of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day
that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Well, In Genesis 2 it would seem the man
was alone” when he was given the command because in the next verses after the
command God expresses the loneliness of the man, but in Genesis 3 when Eve was
having a discourse with the serpent she uses the word We which is inclusive of
her & the man as having received the command directly from God, how can we
understand the above texts. That’s argumentative, maybe, but it’s not that
important to the issue.
Adam and Eve were made in the image and likeness of
God (Genesis
1:26-27; 9:6). However, we are
also in the image and likeness of Adam, Gen. 5:3: When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own
likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.. Therefore when Adam fell
into sin, the result was every one of his descendants also being “infected”
with sin. David lamented this fact in one of his Psalms: “Surely I was sinful
at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” Psalm 51:5. This does not mean
that his mother bore him illegitimately; rather, his mother had inherited a sin
nature from her parents, and they from their parents, and so on. David
inherited sin from his parents, just as we all do. Even if we live the best
life possible, we are still sinners as a result of inherited sin.
But we know; we’ve been told
in the word of God that from before the beginning before God created all things—including us, for Himself. He is glorified in
His creation. “From him and through him and for him are all things. To him be
the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:36).
How could Adam and
Eve’s falling into sin bring glory to God. In fact, some might even wonder why,
if God knew ahead of time all the trouble they would cause, He made them in the
first place.
Scripture can be
divided into three sections or narratives: a) paradise; b) paradise lost; c)
paradise regained. We can come to the conclusions when reading Scripture that:
a) The fall of man was foreknown to God; b) The crucifixion, atonement for
God’s elect was foreordained by God; c) All people will one day glorify God (Psalm 86:9), and God purposes “to bring unity to all things in heaven
and on earth under Christ” (Ephesians 1:10).
Paul writes as we read in
Romans 5:12-21, that as
by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed
upon all men, for that all have sinned: … as by
one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall
many be made righteous.
God’s purpose was to create
a world in which His glory could be manifest in all its fullness. The glory of
God is the overarching goal of creation. In fact, it is the overarching goal of
everything He does. The universe was created to display God’s glory (Psalm 19:1), and the wrath of
God is revealed against those who fail to glorify God (Romans 1:18–25). The world that
best displays the glory of God is the world we have—a world that was allowed to
fall, a world that was redeemed, a world that will be restored to its original
perfection.
God’s wrath and God’s mercy
display the riches of His glory, but we cannot see either without the fall of
mankind. We would never know grace if we had never needed grace. Therefore, all
of God’s plan—including the fall, election, redemption, and atonement of
mankind—serves the purpose of glorifying God. When man fell into sin, God’s
mercy was immediately displayed in God’s not killing him on the spot. God’s
grace was immediately evident in the covering He provided for their shame (Genesis 3:21). God’s patience
and forbearance were displayed as mankind fell deeper and deeper into sin.
God’s justice and wrath were on display when He sent the flood, and God’s mercy
and grace were again demonstrated when He saved Noah and his family. God’s holy
wrath and perfect justice will be seen in the future when He deals with Satan
once and for all (Revelation 20:7–10).
God’s glory is revealed
in His love (1
John 4:16). Had God decided not to create Adam and Eve, based on His knowledge of
their fall—or had He made them automatons with no volition—we would never have
truly known what love is. Our knowledge of God’s love comes from the Person and
saving work of Jesus Christ in this fallen world. “This is how God showed his
love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live
through him” (1
John 4:9).
His One and Only Son – That
brings us to Isaiah 42:1-4:
"Behold,
My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one [in whom] My soul delights. I have put
My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. 2 "He will
not cry out or raise [His voice,] Nor make His voice heard in the street. 3
"A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not
extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. 4 "He will not be
disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the
coastlands will wait expectantly for His law." Isaiah 42:1-4
Jewish commentators claim that the
Servant makes reference to the nation of Israel. They point back to Is. 41:9
You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its
remotest parts And said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and not
rejected you. They reject the claims of Christians that these verses in
Chapter 42 refer to Jesus, claiming that it is only the nation that is the
servant of Jehovah.
Matthew quotes this prophecy from Isaiah
as being fulfilled in Jesus by His compassion, mercy, and healing of all who
were ill.
Jesus, God incarnate who so loved His
creation, took on Himself the sin of the world to not break a bruised reed or
quench a smoldering flame; calling all those bruised and smoldering, to come to
Him. All those who are weary and heavy-laden,
and He will give you rest. Take His yoke upon you and learn from Him, for He’s gentle and
humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.”
We are going to gather together this morning to prepare and
partake of Holy Communion and sing our communion hymn – Here is love, vast as
the ocean -
