Word of Salvation – Vol.40 No.02 – January 1995

 

Strength For The Weary

 

Sermon by Rev. J. A. Haverland on Isaiah 40:29-31

Scripture Readings: Isaiah 40:1-5, 25-31 & 2Corinthians 12:1-10

 

Congregation,

Our lives today are generally very busy.  We are fully occupied in our families and our work.  Those of us with children at school are often involved there as well.  And then for Christians there are the many commitments at church, and beyond that our activity in the community and the wider reaches of Christ’s kingdom.  Never a dull moment!

Sometimes all of this can get too much.  We can be too busy.  We can burn ourselves out.  We can overdo it.  So we need to learn to pace ourselves.  And there must be periods of rest, holidays, opportunities for refreshment.  We all need occasions where we slow down and relax and take things calmly.  Those in jobs that are especially demanding have regular and extended periods of rest.  Soldiers have R and R, Rest and Recreation; teachers have holidays; missionaries have furlough.

Yet, while rest and holidays and relaxation are all important, real strength doesn’t come from them, but from the Lord.  “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”  So today we will explore this theme together: That God gives strength to the weary who wait on him.  We will consider two main points:

Our Weakness, and God’s Strength.

First of all then, OUR WEAKNESS.

These are words of the prophet Isaiah who was speaking to the people of Judah in the 8th Century BC.  He was speaking to a nation that had turned away from the Lord.  In the first half of this book (Chapters 1-39) he confronts them with their sin and warns of God’s punishment.  The judgment of God would climax in the destruction of Jerusalem and a period of exile in Babylon.

Then chapter 40 marks a turning point in the book.  It begins with a note of comfort.  We sang of that in the words of that hymn:
“Comfort, comfort ye my people,
Speak ye peace thus saith our God.”
You see, God also wanted Isaiah to communicate a message of hope to these people.

Isaiah had prophesied that they would be taken away from their land.  They would face a difficult time of testing and trial.  More than likely they would become disheartened and discouraged, weak and weary.  They would feel faint and defeated.  With that in mind God gave them these words of encouragement and hope.

Now our situation is quite different from theirs.  We are not in exile and we pray that we never will be.  Yet all of us grow tired and discouraged at times.  Perhaps you face the demands of raising a young family and the weariness that brings.  Maybe you are under a lot of pressure at work; lots of stress, deadlines, overtime, long hours, heavy demands.

Some of you may be suffering with long-term illness and sickness which can become disheartening.  Perhaps you have received some criticism recently that has knocked you back.  Perhaps people have said or done things that have hurt you.  Maybe you are going through some trial or suffering that has made you feel like giving up.  All of us face these things at different times.  If you don’t feel them now, then you may in the future.  Even the strongest of us can suffer from anxiety and weariness.

Isaiah spoke of this when he said: “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall.”  Young men are at the height of their strength, the prime of their powers of health and fitness.  But even they grow tired, even they stumble and fall.  This isn’t just a reference to physical tiredness.  It refers to spiritual, emotional and mental tiredness as well.  All of us have times when we feel as though a shadow has fallen over our lives.  We have dark moods.  We feel alone.  Life seems grey and barren.  We are upset and anxious and even, at times, on the edge of despair.

God’s Word comes to us at times like these and promises us strength.  In fact, we know God’s strength most in our weakness.  The Apostle Paul knew this: “I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me…  For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

So, having considered ‘Our Weakness’, let’s consider our second point, which is, GOD’S STRENGTH.  “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.”

The word translated as ‘hope’ literally means ‘wait’.  Those who wait on the Lord.  In times of trial and difficulty and weakness we must look to God for strength.  We need to do that waiting for Him to respond, to act, to help us.  We wait for Him with a sense of expectation, believing that He will help us.  That is why the NIV translators have used the word ‘hope’.  We wait in hope.

Remember that these words were originally spoken to people who were going into exile.  While in Babylon, they would have to wait for the Lord to deliver them, to rescue them and take them back to their land.  That was their hope that the Lord would hear them.  This was the attitude of the Old Testament believers as they waited for the coming of the Messiah.  This was the hope passed on from generation to generation until Jesus came.  So Luke tells us that there was a man living in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.  “He was waiting for the consolation of Israel.” He was waiting for the Messiah, who would be Jesus.

We know that Jesus has come but we, too, need this attitude of waiting.  But what does that really mean?  It means that we trust that God is still with us despite how we feel; it is to believe that He will act for our good; it is to continue to have faith in His goodness and strength, to have confidence in His power to help us.  But how do we gain an attitude like this, especially in trying circumstances?  We gain it through reading and studying the Bible, through prayer, through meeting with God’s people.  These are the means God gives to us to strengthen our faith, to renew our hope, to deepen our trust.  Do you feel your weakness?  Are you burdened in some way?  Do you feel faint and discouraged?  Then put your hope in the Lord.  Pray for strength.  Seek His help and guidance through His Word.  Look for comfort and encouragement from meeting together with God’s people.  To hope in the Lord is to wait patiently for Him.  It is to trust that He will fulfil His promises to give us strength.  Let’s look at these promises more closely.  There are three promises here.

1. The first is that those who hope in the Lord “will renew their strength.” The word ‘renew’ literally means ‘to change’ or ‘exchange.’  Those who hope in the Lord will exchange the strength they have for the strength He has.  God can strengthen us because He has all power.  Isaiah highlighted that in the preceding verses.  “The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.”  He can help us because “he will not grow tired or weary.”  And He knows how to help us because He has an understanding “no one can fathom.”

Again, the Apostle Paul knew this strength that came from the Lord.  He could say, “I can do everything through him who gives me the strength” (Phil.4:13).  That should be our confidence as well.  We can face any situation that comes knowing that our Lord Jesus will give us the strength we need.

2. The second promise of strength is this: “They will soar on wings like eagles.” That may remind you of Psalm 103:5, “He satisfies my desires with good things so that my youth is renewed like the eagles.”  The eagle is used as a symbol of strength and power.  It is one of the largest and strongest of all birds and is able to soar to great heights.  Their flight seems easy, effortless.  God promises us that when we wait for Him, we will find strength to soar like an eagle.

Now of course, children, that doesn’t mean we will sprout wings and fly like a bird!  What God is promising is a spiritual strength.  You might be very young, but in your faith you can have the strength of an eagle.  You may be bed-ridden but still able to soar in your life with God.  You might be physically frail but spiritually have vigour and stamina.  That’s what you should pray for.

3. And ask God to fulfil his third promise of strength:
   “They will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.”
   I’m sure all of us have seen people running in some major competition like the Commonwealth Games or the Olympics.  The people competing in these games are all fit and healthy.  And yet, when they run, even the fittest and strongest grow weary.  They tire.  Yet God promises that when we put our hope in Him, we will be able to continue on.  Sometimes in the Christian life we are running.  We are enthusiastic, busy, active, energetic.  But we can’t always keep that up all the time.  Most of the time we are walking.  We are persevering, doing our duty, keeping up our commitments, fulfilling our calling.  We need to pray that God will give us the strength to keep doing that.  Pray that when you are running, you will not grow weary; that when you are walking, you will not faint.

Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones once wrote: “The child of light is sometimes found walking in darkness, but he goes on walking.”  Keep on walking.  Think of the people who have walked before you Abraham, Joseph, David, the Apostle Paul.  Press on, as they did.  The Apostle Paul encourages us to do that in his letter to the Galatians: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Gal.6:9).

Yes, sometimes the world around us is dark and shadowy, our spirits are low, our hearts are faint.  There are times when we feel weary, anxious, discouraged.  But don’t give up.  Press on.  Persevere.  Recall the words of this beautiful promise: “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles.  They will run and not grow weary.  They will walk and not faint.”

Amen.