Gone with Diane. I think they're on a wedding preparedness trip. I think they're doing something. Pastor Bob's children, two of them, decided to get married within a month. This late summer, fall, and so they're busy with that. I don't know if we should congratulate them or pray for them. But yeah, I think they're down at a wedding thing in Duluth with Jake's family stuff right now. So keep them in their prayers. And they've got both their daughter and son getting married within a few weeks of each other. So that'll be fun. All right. Well, the passage for today that I'm going to preach on is actually not the one in the bulletin. It's not that far away in the book of Isaiah, but what I'm going to be preaching on is Isaiah 41, verse 10. Isaiah 41, verse 10. And we're also going to look into a lot of the rest of chapter 41 for context. But let's start with the passage for today. the word of the Lord. Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Please be seated. Let's pray. Father, We thank you that you have spoken to us through your word. It is through the preaching of your word that sinners are saved. It is a means by which your children grow in knowledge of you, love for you, and in obedience to you. We pray that your Holy Spirit would empower the message preached this morning to bring salvation to the lost and to strengthen the faith of those who believe. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. We as humans are prone to experience fears of every kind. Worry, anxiety, fear of failure, fear of man, fear of the unknown, fear of pain, the list goes on. Believers in Christ are not immune from experiencing fear. And fear can and should grip all who approach the living God. Fear of his power and his wrath. In fact, all of mankind lives under the shadow of death. The believers need not fear God's punishment or His wrath or death because Jesus took the punishment we deserved on the cross. By faith in Jesus, our sins have been forgiven and we have been promised eternal life. But as believers, we are not perfect in avoiding fear. If our faith was perfect, we would not fear. 1 John 4.18 says, there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. The more we know the love of God, the less we will fear. Fear can be helpful for us in avoiding danger, but here we're not talking about the fear that keeps us from touching a hot stove or from standing too close to the edge of a cliff. Fear at its core is unbelief, a lack of trust in God. Fear becomes sin when we surrender to it. Constant fear and anxiety affects our relationships, our perceptions, and even our health. When we allow fear to control us, our relationship with God and with others suffers. Well, God has given us the power by his Holy Spirit to overcome fear. 2 Timothy 1 verse 7 reads, For God gave us a spirit, not of fear, but of power and love and self-control. And we are to fear God, or to have a reverence and awe of him, but as believers, we shouldn't be afraid of God as if he's out to harm us. Well, the phrase, do not fear, or fear not, or do not be afraid, is the command spoken more often in scripture than any other command. It is spoken many times by Jesus and also by God, angels, and others. The first words of Jesus to his people were often, fear not. In addressing the people's worries about what they were to eat and drink, Jesus said in Luke 12, 32, fear not, little flock, for it is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. And then in Matthew 14, verse 27, When the disciples were terrified at seeing Jesus walking on the stormy water towards their boat, Jesus spoke to them saying, take heart, it is I. Do not be afraid. And in the Old Testament, God spoke to Joshua on the doorstep of the promised land. He said, have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened and do not be dismayed. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. That's Joshua 1.9. So our aim this morning is to know, or to come to know, that we must not let fear control us, rather we must trust in God's presence, his power, and his promises to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us in times of trouble and adversity. Those who are in Christ need not be afraid. When we think of who our sovereign God is, and all that he has done for us, and all that he has promised us, there really is no reason to fear. Well, the original audience for Isaiah's message were the Israelites near the end of their exile in Babylon. If you recall, in the Old Testament, their land, their temple, and their city, Jerusalem, had been demolished by the Babylonians, And they had been carried off to Babylon to spend 70 years in captivity as exiles. Fear of what would become of them must have been uppermost in their hearts and minds. Through Isaiah, God promised the exiles that he would bring their long captivity to an end and would restore them to their land. God offered them comfort and hope in their fear and suffering. And when Isaiah gave this message, the exile had not yet happened. He was speaking ahead to people not born yet, born in his time. He was speaking to the exiles in captivity more than 100 years later. And God also spoke through Jeremiah about his plans to deliver the exiles. Jeremiah 29.10 reads, for thus says the Lord, when 70 years are completed in Babylon, I will visit you and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. And that is exactly what happened. After 70 years in captivity, the Israelites were released to return back to Jerusalem and to their land. This was an example of fulfilled prophecy. When God spoke through his prophets about what would happen in the future, what he said would happen, would happen. Well, to help us understand the meaning of verse 10, our sermon passage for today, we need to look at chapter 41 as a whole for further context. During the time of the events of Isaiah's prophecy, Cyrus of Persia was rising in power in the area. He had expanded his empire to the north and east and was now looking to dethrone Babylon as the major power in the area. So in Isaiah 41 verses 1 through 4, Isaiah sees God calling the nations to assemble before him to answer a question. Who stirred up one from the east whom victory meets at every step? The one from the east referred to as Cyrus, the one who makes the nations like dust with his sword, like driven stubble with his bow, the one who tramples kings underfoot. Who has stirred up Cyrus? It is God, Yahweh, the Lord, the first and with the last, verse four. It is he who has raised Cyrus up as his instrument of judgment on Israel's enemies. We see here God at work, the sovereign all-powerful Lord who created all things, who directs human history, and who controls all things, including the nations and their kings. He alone as judge will carry out judgment on the nations. Cyrus is a mere instrument in God's hands to deliver Israel from captivity in Babylon. So in Isaiah 41 verses five through seven, the armies of Cyrus, God's instrument, are approaching the nations. The coastlands have seen and are afraid. The ends of the earth tremble. The nations are in a panic. They turn to their gods, their idols, for protection. The goldsmiths and the craftsmen encourage each other to keep at their work in fashioning their worthless idols. The wicked nations had every reason to fear the one true God's judgment on them. They did not put their trust in the true God, they put their trust in their idols that were nothing. Their idols could not avert God's judgment on them. Well, the wicked today are those who don't put their trust in Jesus. Those who die in their sins will be terrified to find themselves under God's judgments, sentenced on that day to suffer God's wrath in hell for eternity. The idols in their lives will be of no help for them. But those who die in Christ today will not suffer God's wrath and have been promised eternal life. Well, in Isaiah 41 verses 8 and 9, we see a stark contrast in the Almighty God's countenance towards Israel compared to His countenance towards Israel's enemies. The people of Israel were the people of the living God. They were chosen by God to be His servant, to show forth the glory of God who had called them to the light of salvation. As God's servant, they had been called to do the bidding of their covenant God. But they rebelled and acted as if they were masters of their own fate. To learn their lesson, they had to experience the humiliation of the exile. But God had not forgotten them or forsaken them. He had chosen them and would not cast them off. He assured them of his protection by reminding them that they were the spiritual offspring of Abraham, God's friend. They were heirs to the promises God had made to Abraham. God had said to Abraham in Genesis 15-1, fear not, Abram, I am your shield. Your reward shall be very great. And this is the first fear not in the Bible. So throughout their history, God had taken hold of Israel by his righteous right hand. He had been with them in their time of slavery in Egypt. in their desert wandering, in their conquest of Canaan, to their Babylonian captivity, and he was still with them now. Though Israel was weak, God was with them in power to deliver them. Again, we see the stark contrast between God's demeanor towards Israel's enemies and his demeanor toward Israel, his chosen people. God's hand works righteously in working out his providential plans. To Israel, God's righteousness will be a blessing of deliverance and salvation. But to the nations that do not know him, his righteous anger will work out in the curses of judgment and destruction. So Israel need not fear nor be dismayed because their all-powerful God was with them and would deliver them by bringing judgment on their enemies. As we've seen, God would raise up Cyrus as his instrument to accomplish this. Cyrus indeed conquered Babylon in 539 BC and decreed that Israel was free to go back to their land from captivity. Believers today are God's chosen people as the people of Israel were his chosen people in that day. His countenance toward us is the same as it was toward Israel in Old Testament times. Like them, we were chosen by God to serve him and to show forth the glory of God who has called us to the light of salvation. God delivered Israel from captivity. By faith in Jesus, we have been delivered from slavery to sin and death. So as he was with Israel, God will always be present with us as his chosen people today. Deuteronomy 31 verse 6 applies to believers today. It reads, be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. As his chosen people today, believers need not fear because we have God's promise of his constant presence and protection as a source of comfort and strength in times of adversity. So now we come to verse 10, our passage for today. It's actually sort of the central point of the chapter, the crux of chapter 41. And so fear not. Fear not is the command of verse 10 directed to the Israelites in exile in Babylon and to believers today facing fear and adversity. We need not fear. We see the promise of God's presence with us. in Isaiah chapter 7 verse 14, so early on in Isaiah, where it reads, behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. Emmanuel means God with us. The verse looks ahead to the virgin birth of Jesus, the coming Messiah, the second person of the Trinity, who would be with his people to save them. God had been with his people Israel throughout their history, and he was with us today through his son Jesus. When God says, I am with you, he quiets our fearful and anxious thoughts with the assurance of his presence and strength on our behalf. Psalm 139, seven through 10, speaks of God's constant presence with us. The psalmist says, where shall I go from your spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the outermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me and your right hand shall hold me. And God is present with us in power no matter where we are or what our situation in life is. And God is for us in his presence with us. Roman 8.31 says, if God is for us, who can be against us? God never takes a break in watching over us. Psalm 121 verses three and four reads, he will not let your feet be moved. He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is with us as our helper. Hebrews 13.6 reads, the Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me? And Jesus in Matthew 28.20 said, behold, I am with you always to the end of the age. Deuteronomy 31.8 assures us of God's presence with us where it says, it is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. The all-powerful God who made heaven and earth, the God who is always with us, the God who chose us to be his people, he is the one we can count on in troubling times. As we've seen, verse 10 exhorts us to fear not because our God is with us. It also exhorts us to be not dismayed, for he is our God. The word for dismayed carries the meaning of someone looking around anxiously for something to harm them. Being in a state of always fearing the worst. Is this not often true of us? We work ourselves up into a state of anxiety, counting all the what ifs that could happen. Is this not an affront to our God, who is always with us, who has promised to never leave us or forsake us, our God who chose us to be his, our good and righteous God who promises that all things work together for our good? Be not dismayed is an exhortation to remain calm, to maintain our composure in the face of fear, knowing that our God will protect us, provide for us, and will never abandon us. And verse 10 tells us to be not dismayed for I am your God. The one true God is our God. We as his chosen people belong to him. He as our covenant God abounds in steadfast love and faithfulness and is our provider and protector who is always with us. And moving on in verse 10, we see that God promises to strengthen us and help us when we're battling fear. Isaiah 41, 13 repeats God's promise to help us in times of fear. It reads, for I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand. It is I who say to you, fear not. I am the one who helps you. In verse 10, God also promises to strengthen us when we're afraid. The Hebrew word for strengthen meant making someone stronger, to grow and develop, to prevail, to show courage, to keep hold of something, in this case, God. We must keep hold of our sovereign, all-powerful God, who promises to grow and develop our strength to stand in times of fear and adversity. Isaiah 40, verse 31 reads, that they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not grow weary. They shall walk and not faint. And then Psalm 105 verse four says, seek the Lord and his strength. Seek his presence continually. And then the following verse, verse five, shows us how we can receive strength from the Lord. It says, remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered. In times of trouble and adversity, remembering God's faithful to us in the past to strengthen us, help us and deliver us from trouble, can bolster our faith today when facing fear. Verse 10 finishes with, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. The word for right hand signifies the power and salvation of God, a mighty hand that always works in perfect righteousness and justice. According to his character, he always does what is right and what is best for us. God's right hand is also the place of honor. Jesus, after dying on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins and rising three days later for our eternal life, ascended to heaven to the right hand of the Father. A seat far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. That's Ephesians 121. Jesus, God the Son, sits at the Father's right hand, the place of supreme honor, ruling over all things, including our circumstances, for our good and for his glory. When we're battling fear, God promises to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us with his righteous right hand. He always works in righteousness and power in his providential dealings with us. He understands our circumstances when we don't. He knows and always does what is best for us, and has promised never to leave us or forsake us. Continuing in Isaiah 41, in verses 11 through 13, we see God's promise to deliver Israel from their enemies reiterated. He speaks in verse 12 through Isaiah to Israel, his people, those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. And then verse 13 restates the promise of verse 10. It reads, for I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand. It is I who say to you, fear not, I am the one who helps you. And in verse 14, the one who helps Israel is their Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. The Lord, the Holy God, stoops to deliver his people, though they have no holiness of their own. God, the Redeemer, rescued Israel from captivity in Babylon. Jesus, God the Son, our Redeemer, has rescued us from captivity to sin and death. How much more will he deliver us from all our fears in times of trouble? And then in Isaiah 41, verses 14 through 16, we see that by God's power, Israel will be victorious over their enemies. She is characterized as a worm, referring to her feeble and despised condition in exile in Babylon. God by his presence and power will make lowly Israel into a threshing sledge who will thresh the mountains or her enemies and crush them. She will be like the wind that carries the chaff, their enemies, away. So Israel need not fear their enemies. The almighty God will fight on their behalf and no enemy can prevail against him. Well, our enemies are most often not human enemies, but rather invisible enemies like worry, anxiety, and fear. When we're beset by these enemies, we need not fear nor be dismayed. We must trust in God's sovereign presence and power to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us with his righteous right hand. By his strength, he will enable us to overcome these enemies. In John 16.33, Jesus said to his disciples, I have said these things to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart, I have overcome the world. God has promised us that we can have peace even in the midst of tribulation. In Isaiah 41, 17, we see a picture of Israel returning from exile through a dry land, parched with thirst and crying out to God in their desperate need. It's a picture of not only physical thirst, but also a state of spiritual thirst and desolation. The Lord will answer them. The God of Israel will not forsake them. In verses 18 and 19, God answers their cries. And we see a picture of the Lord transforming the desert into a place of beauty and life. Rivers of water will flow on the heights. Fountains will erupt in the valleys. There will be pools and springs of water. Beautiful trees will adorn the stark wilderness. The Lord promises abundant blessings of complete renewal and transformation for his poor and needy people. When we're in a state of physical or spiritual desolation and facing fear, God promises to meet our needs in ways that we can't even imagine. God is not distanced from us, but is present with us to actively strengthen us and to care and provide for us in every situation. And he does this so that his people will know that it is he, the Holy One of Israel, who has created all things. It is he who has brought about such a great transformation. He alone is worthy of glory. So, Believers are not immune from fear. Fear not is the most common command in the Bible. The command is emphasized because God knows we will struggle with fear. He does not harshly criticize us for our fears, but rather he redirects our attention to faith in him. He calls us to turn from our fears and embrace our faith. We've seen that originally Isaiah's message was to Israel near the end of her exile in Babylon. They were in a state of fear and dismay over what would become of them. God offered them comfort and hope in their fear and suffering. He promised the exiles that he would free them from captivity and restore them to their land. He would sovereignly use Cyrus as his instrument to bring this about. They were his chosen people and they were not to fear or be dismayed because he, the one true God, was their God who was with them. He would strengthen them and help them. He would uphold them with his righteous right hand. A mighty hand that always works in perfect righteousness and justice. A hand that always does what is right and what is best for his people. By God's power and presence, Israel would be victorious over their enemies. Their enemies would be swept away like chaff in the wind. We saw that God would not only deliver his people from their enemies, but promised abundant blessings of renewal and transformation, as if a desert was transformed into a place of beauty and life. When we are experiencing physical or spiritual desolation and fear, God promises to meet our needs in transformative ways. God's promises to his chosen people Israel in that day are for us as God's chosen people today. We must trust in God's promises. We must believe God's word and trust in his perpetual presence with us. We must know that we are God's chosen people and he is our covenant God who has promised to strengthen, help, and uphold us in times of adversity. We must keep a hold of our God for support and guidance when facing fear. We can find comfort in God's promises and seek his help to replace fear with faith. As believers, we have the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. We have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power and love and self-control. We must not be dismayed, fearing the worst. but rather keep our composure, knowing that God will protect us, meet all our needs, and will never abandon us. Practically, in our battle with fear, we must seek God's presence and strength through prayer, through his word, through the encouragement that comes through fellowship with each other, and by remembering God's faithfulness in the path to strengthen us, help us and deliver us from trouble. Jesus said in Matthew 6.27, in which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his life? And in Matthew 6.34 he said, therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Isaiah 26.3 reads, you keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. And then in Psalm 112, verse six through eight, we see a good description of those who do not fear, but put their faith and trust in God. It reads, for the righteous will never be moved. He will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news. His heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady. He will not be afraid until he looks in triumph on his adversaries. The Old Testament always looks ahead to the coming Messiah, Jesus, who came to save sinners. We saw this in Isaiah 41, 14, where the one who helps Israel is their Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. It was the Holy God who rescued Israel from captivity. Jesus, God the Son, the first and the last, has redeemed us. He is the holy one who by his sacrificial death on the cross has rescued us from slavery to sin and death and secured our eternal life by his resurrection. He is the one whose first words to his people were often, fear not. The promises of Isaiah 41.10 were directed to Israel, God's chosen people in their day, and to his chosen people today, those who have put their faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins and for eternal life. For anyone here who has not put their faith in Jesus, now is the time to repent, to confess to God that you have sinned against him, the holy God, and believe that Jesus died for the forgiveness of your sins. was buried and rose again for your eternal life. Then you will be able to know, along with all believers, that you need not fear or be dismayed because our God is with us to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us with his righteous right hand in times of trouble and adversity. Let's pray. Father, we thank you that those who are in Christ need not fear, because of who you are, all you have done for us, and all you have promised us. We need not fear for you, the one true God, are always with us. You will never leave us or forsake us. You have promised to strengthen us, help us, and uphold us with your righteous right hand when we're facing fear and adversity. Father, help us by your spirit to turn from our fears and embrace faith, because you who promised are faithful. We pray these things in Jesus' name, amen. Please rise while Aaron leads us in singing the Romans doxology. O the depth of the riches, the wisdom of God, how unsearchable are His ways! His judgments so high above our thoughts, and His pathway no man can trace. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. the depth of the riches, the wisdom of God, how magnificent are His ways. Who has been His advisor, and who has counseled Him, all He gives us when we pray. For from Him, and through Him, To Him are all things. To Him be glory forevermore. To Him be glory forevermore. Amen. Amen. Amen. The depth of the riches, the wisdom of God, how immeasurable is His grace. How unfailing His kindness, so far removed His wrath, and His mercies are new each day. To Him be glory forevermore. To Him be glory forevermore.