Watchman Radio Hour

Announcer: Welcome to the Watchman Radio Hour. Coming to you from Portland, Oregon, here in the beautiful Northwest. This is David Shaltier, announcer. The Watchman Radio Hour is a production of Watchman Radio Ministries International, an evangelistic ministry reaching out to the peoples of the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And now here's our speaker, Alex Dodson, to bring you this week's message from God's word.

Alex Dodson: For our scripture reading today, let us turn to Isaiah 45 and verses 1 through 4. Let us hear the word of God.

This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of, to subdue nations before him, and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut. I will go before you and will level the mountains. I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.

I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel, my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for the Bible that you have given us. We thank you that it is your infallible word and that we can put our full confidence in everything that it says.

And now, oh Father, as we come to study your word today, we pray that you will send forth your Holy Spirit in great power, in great convicting power. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

We began today a series on Isaiah 45. God sends forth a deliverer to rescue his people from captivity in Babylon. By so doing, he prepares the way for the Messiah. This deliverer was the great Persian King, Cyrus.

Isaiah prophesied 200 years before this great king came on the scene, yet he calls him by name. In Isaiah 45:28, it says, "who says of Cyrus, he is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please. He will say of Jerusalem, let it be rebuilt and of the temple, let its foundation be laid."

God has a plan and he will carry it out. And his plan was to deliver his people from Babylon and return them to their homeland to make ready for the coming of the Messiah Jesus in the future.

Cyrus, not knowing anything about God's plan, carried out that plan just as God had intended. We will talk more about Cyrus as we get into this wonderful chapter, which talks about salvation going to all the nations of the world.

But today we concentrate on the fact that Cyrus was the anointed one, called by God for a great mission. God raised up his anointed one. Again we read in Isaiah 45, "This is what the Lord says to his anointed to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of, to subdue nations before him, and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut. I will go before you and will level the mountains. I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. And I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places so that you may know that I am the Lord, God of Israel, who summons you by name."

"For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel, my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me."

Now this Cyrus was a great Gentile king in world history. He is not only mentioned here in the Bible, but in secular history as well. God used this great king to carry out the deliverance of his people.

But today we have a king who's greater than Cyrus and he's also called the Anointed One, and he also delivers his people with salvation. I do hope you know this great King Jesus Christ. Cyrus was his forerunner. He went forth as a conqueror and as a deliverer. And as we study about Cyrus, may you come to know the great King and Savior of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ, the one of whom Cyrus is a type.

Now let us see in the first place that Cyrus is the Anointed One. Again, verse one says, "This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus." He is the Anointed One. He was a type of Christ. He was a shepherd also. He was called a shepherd also in Isaiah 45:28. It says, "who says of Cyrus, he is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please. He will say of Jerusalem, let it be rebuilt and of the temple, let its foundations be laid."

Edward J. Young, in commenting on this passage in Isaiah 45, says that Cyrus has been anointed, suggests that God has placed his spirit upon Cyrus so that he may accomplish a specific task. It does not necessarily imply that Cyrus becomes a true worshiper of the God of Israel. The term rather suggests that there is a specific task that he is to accomplish and that for this he has been anointed by the sovereign God of Israel who has imparted to him his spirit to equip him for the performance of his task.

In this sense, Cyrus is a type of the Messianic servant of the Lord, upon whom the spirit came in great measure, that he might be equipped for the task, infinitely greater than that of Cyrus, of setting his people free from the spiritual bondage of sin and guilt.

Cyrus prepared the way for the coming of Christ and the salvation of the nations. And so as we get into the whole of chapter 45 of Isaiah, we will see God's plan unfold for the saving of the nations. J. A. Alexander from Old Princeton wrote, "Then leaving Cyrus out of view, the prophet turns his eyes to the nations and declares that they must be subdued, but only in order to be blessed and saved, which is declared to have been the divine purpose and revealed as such from the beginning."

And then let us see that Cyrus was a great conqueror. Again, verse one says, "This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him, to strip kings of their honor, armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut. I will go before you and will level the mountains. I will break through great gates of bronze and through bars of iron, and I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places."

Cyrus was a great conqueror. He subdued many nations. God would hold his right hand and lead him on to conquest. Doors would open before him, mountains would be leveled, gates would fall down before him, great treasures would be his.

John Gill wrote, quoting Herodotus, the Greek historian, saying that he ruled over all Asia, all which the Lord subdued unto him. For it was he that did it, rather than Cyrus. It was he that clothed him with strength and courage, gave him skill in military affairs and success and victory.

God would open doors before him, even the doors of Babylon. Young writes, "In the mention of doors, we are probably to see a specific reference to Babylon itself." Herodotus wrote, "There are a hundred gates in the circuit of the wall, all of bronze with bronze uprights and lintels in Babylon."

Not only did Cyrus subdue many nations, he also received great treasures. Verse three says, "I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places." John Calvin, the great reformer, wrote, "For by the treasures of darkness, he means those which lay concealed and as it were buried in safe and deep places of defense. It is abundantly clear from history that all these things happened. For by taking Croesus, king of Lydia, he was at the time the richest of all men. He obtained large sums of money. Nor would anyone have expected that he would gain victory so easily, and the reason of so great success is now added because the Lord called and directed him that he might give to him an illustrious demonstration of his power."

And then he was a great deliverer of God's people. A great deliverer of God's people.

Verse three says, "So that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel, my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me."

In Ezra 1:1-3, it says, "In the first year of Cyrus, King of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus, King of Persia, to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing. And this is what Cyrus, King of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem."

Cyrus would bring the Jewish people back to Palestine. He would set them up to prepare for the coming of the Messiah in the future. God called Cyrus by name over 200 years before this event took place. Edward J. Young writes, "The climax of Cyrus's actions is the freeing of the Jews and permitting them to return to Jerusalem."

Cyrus delivered God's people and brought them back to their homeland and helped them to rebuild the temple, and it was to that temple that Jesus came.

Now let us see in the second place that Jesus Christ is also called the Anointed One. Jesus is the called the Anointed One. In Acts 4:25-27, it says, "You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David, 'Why do the nations rage and peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.'"

"Indeed, Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed." The apostles by so praying announced that Psalm 2, which they were quoting, was talking about Jesus Christ, the Anointed One.

And then we turn over to Psalm 2 and we read what it says. "Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. Let us break their chains, they say, and throw off their fetters. The one enthroned in heaven laughs, the Lord scoffs at them. And then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath saying, 'I have installed my king on Zion, my holy hill. I will proclaim the decree of the Lord. He said to me, 'You are my son. Today I have become your father. Ask of me and I will make you the nations your inheritance. The ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter. You will dash them to pieces like pottery. Therefore, you kings, be wise. Be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment, but blessed are all who take refuge in him.'"

Psalm 2 points to Christ. It's a Messianic Psalm. The apostles recognized that and knew that Jesus was the Anointed One referred to in that Psalm. In Peter's sermon at Cornelius's house, he declared again Jesus to be the Anointed One. In Acts 10, beginning in verse 34, it says, "Then Peter began to speak, 'I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism, but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after the baptism that John preached. How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil because God was with him.'"

And then let us see that Jesus is a world conqueror and would set up an everlasting kingdom. Like Cyrus, Jesus would be a world conqueror. In Psalm 2:8-9, it says, "Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance. The ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter. You will dash them to pieces like pottery."

This Anointed One, Jesus, would inherit the nations, and he would possess the ends of the earth. He would indeed be a world conqueror. This conquest, however, would be done through the preaching of the gospel and by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In Isaiah 9:6-7, it says, "For unto us a child is born. To us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this."

This will again be a spiritual reign of Christ as he establishes his kingdom throughout the earth through the preaching of the gospel to all the nations.

Then we see the angel's message to Mary in Luke chapter 1 and verse 31. It says, "You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you're to give him the name Jesus, and he will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, his kingdom will never end."

The Apostle James refers back to this prophecy of Amos in referring to the taking of the gospel to the Gentiles. In Acts 15, verse 13, it says, "When they finished, James spoke up, 'Brothers, listen to me. Simon has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. The words of the prophets are in agreement with this. For it is written, 'After this I will return and rebuild David's fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild and I will restore it, that the remnant of men may seek the Lord and all the Gentiles who bear my name,' says the Lord who does these things that have been known for ages.'"

As the gospel goes forth into the world, Jesus is establishing his rule in the lives of people and nations.

And then let us see that Jesus is the great deliverer. Cyrus delivered God's people and took them back to their homeland. Jesus delivers us from our sins and gives us salvation. In Galatians 1 and verse 3, it says, "Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen."

Jesus died for our sins to deliver us from this present evil age, dominated by sin and Satan. He delivers us into his kingdom. In Colossians 1:13, it says, "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of his son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

If we know Christ, we have been rescued. We have been delivered from the dominion of sin and darkness. First Thessalonians 1:10 says, "and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead. Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath."

Jesus rescues us from a wrath that is yet to come. Those who know not Christ face the great judgment at the end of the age. Those who know Christ will be delivered from that judgment. Romans 3, verse 21, says, "But now a righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known to which the law and the prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished. He did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus."

Now let me ask you today, do you have faith in Jesus? Do you know him as your personal savior? Only those who have faith in Jesus are justified before God. The righteousness that saves us is all in Jesus. It's not in us. Martin Luther wrote, "This is wonderful news to believe that salvation lies outside ourselves."

Without him, you are not righteous in the sight of God. You are still in your sins, but you can come now and put your faith in Jesus and be justified and forgiven of your sins.

And then let us see thirdly, that Jesus, or let us see thirdly, the Temple Builder. First of all, Cyrus was a temple builder. He built or had built God's temple in Jerusalem through his actions. In Isaiah 45:28, it says, "who says of Cyrus, he is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please. He will say of Jerusalem, let it be rebuilt and of the temple, let its foundations be laid."

In Ezra, verse one, chapter 1, verse 1, it says, "In the first year of Cyrus, King of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus, King of Persia, to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing. And this is what Cyrus, King of Persia says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem."

"Anyone of his people among you, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem." It was this temple, this second temple, that Jesus came to.

And then, as we said, let us see that Jesus is also a temple builder. The prophecy given to David about Christ was given to David about Christ who would build the temple. In Second Samuel 7 and verse 11, it says, "The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you. When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be with his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with the rod of men, with floggings inflicted by men, but my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me. Your throne will be established forever."

Now this same prophecy is mentioned in First Chronicles, verse 17 and verse 10, where it says, "I declare to you that the Lord will build a house for you. When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you. One of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him as I took it away from your predecessor. I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever."

Now we must look beyond Solomon to see the fulfillment of this prophecy to David. Solomon did not have an everlasting throne, but Jesus does. Jesus is the one who would build an everlasting temple, and his temple is a spiritual temple. In Ephesians 2 and verse 19, it says, "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him, you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit."

In First Peter 2:4-5, it says, "As you come to him, the living stone, rejected by men, but chosen by God and precious to him, you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."

Jesus is building his church, a spiritual house or temple. John Calvin, the great reformer, in commenting on this prophecy in Second Samuel 7, writes, "Since these are the facts, we have certainly made the point sufficiently clear that when God promised the kingdom to Solomon, it was not for himself, nor for all of his race, but was meant for our Lord Jesus Christ. Well, Solomon, as we have stated, certainly built the temple in which God was served and worshiped. However, our Lord Jesus Christ, being the true temple, also built a house for God his Father, especially since he reconciled us to him."

And then Calvin goes on to say, "Therefore, we see how our Lord Jesus Christ built a spiritual temple in a manner much more worthy and more noble than Solomon did. There were stone and wood in that temple. It was exquisitely sumptuous. Its workmanship was very great and excellent, but here is a kind of house which is far more perfect than the building which was on the mountain of Zion. It is a temple in which so many men and women have been converted to the faith of the gospel, alike numerous stones which have been assembled so that God might dwell throughout all the earth, and so that his name might be honored and worshiped by all, and so that everyone might offer him a free will, free will sacrifice."

And then he goes on to write, "Our Lord Jesus Christ has purified us and willed that we be built into a house set apart for him. Furthermore, we see that this promise was not restricted to the Jews, but that it had its extension in all nations of the earth when it pleased God to manifest his mercy everywhere."

Matthew 16:18, Jesus says, "And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." The King James version says, "And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ is building his church, and the devil and all his forces will not be able to stop it. And he invites you today to come into his church and be a part of that holy temple. The gates of the holy city, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ are opened, and he is inviting you to come in. Will you come? Will you come?

Revelation 21 has a wonderful description of the church as the holy city, a new Jerusalem. In Revelation 21:22, it says, "I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it."

In Hebrews 12:22, it says, "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."

Come now. Don't wait any longer. Jesus has died for your sins. Come to him and be forgiven and receive eternal life. Come to the church he is building, the one bought by his blood. Come and be a part of the family of God. Repent now of your sins and believe the gospel.

And pray this prayer with me. Dear Lord Jesus, forgive me for my sins. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins, and I accept you right now as my Lord and Savior. And help me to follow you always. Our Father in heaven, we pray, oh Lord, for the furtherance of your gospel all over the world. We pray for the building of your temple, oh Lord, all over the world.

I pray that people will come through those gates, knowing and receiving Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. In his name we pray. Amen.

Announcer: We hope this week's broadcast has been a blessing to you. If you have any questions about Mr. Dodson's message, please write us. You may email us at info@watchmanradio.org. Our mailing address is Watchman Radio Ministries International, Post Office Box 13251, Portland, Oregon 97213. That's Watchman Radio Ministries International, Post Office Box 13251, Portland, Oregon 97213. You may listen to this broadcast at any time on the internet at www.oneplace.com.