God's Invitation: Reasoning with Grace and Redemption

 

Summary

In the book of Isaiah, God extends an extraordinary invitation to humanity: "Come now, let us reason together." This call is not just a plea but a profound expression of God's grace and mercy. Despite humanity's rebellion and sin, God, in His infinite love, reaches out to us, offering forgiveness and redemption. The essence of this message is that God, who is self-sufficient and eternal, chooses to engage with us, His creation, even when we have turned away from Him. This is the heart of the Christian gospel: God's relentless pursuit of a relationship with us, despite our shortcomings.

Sin is depicted as rebellion, folly, and madness, leading us away from God and into self-destruction. Yet, God does not abandon us. Instead, He invites us to reason with Him, to understand the depth of our sin and the magnitude of His grace. This reasoning is not a debate where we can justify ourselves, but a realization of our inability to cleanse ourselves from sin. It is an acknowledgment that we are utterly dependent on God's mercy.

God's demands are righteous and just. He calls us to purity, justice, and compassion, reflecting His own nature. However, we fall short of these demands, and thus, stand condemned. Yet, in His grace, God offers a solution: the cleansing power of Jesus Christ's sacrifice. Through Christ, our sins, though as scarlet, can be made white as snow. This transformation is not just a removal of sin but an imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us.

The invitation is clear: come to God, acknowledge your sin, and receive His forgiveness. This is not just a call to repentance but an offer of a new life, clothed in the righteousness of Christ. It is a call to experience the wonder-working power of God's grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner.

Key Takeaways:

- God's invitation to "reason together" is a profound act of grace, showing His desire for a relationship with us despite our rebellion. This invitation is not about justifying ourselves but recognizing our need for His mercy. [06:16]

- Sin is depicted as rebellion, folly, and madness, leading us away from God. Yet, God does not abandon us but offers us a chance to return to Him, highlighting His relentless love and mercy. [03:23]

- God's demands for purity and justice are righteous and just. While we fall short, His grace offers us a way to be cleansed and made righteous through Jesus Christ. [18:38]

- The transformation offered by God is not just the removal of sin but the imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us, making us as white as snow. This is the essence of justification. [42:29]

- The call to come to God is an invitation to experience the power of His grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner and offer a new life in Christ. This is the heart of the gospel message. [40:08]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:11] - Introduction to Isaiah's Message
- [01:15] - The Role of Prophets
- [02:21] - The Nature of Sin
- [03:23] - Consequences of Sin
- [04:10] - The Hypocrisy of Sin
- [05:31] - God's Final Word to Sinners
- [06:16] - God's Astonishing Appeal
- [07:19] - The Wonder of God's Grace
- [09:07] - The Consistent Message of the Bible
- [10:19] - The Invitation to Reason
- [12:07] - God's Fairness and Reasonableness
- [13:38] - The Ultimate Condescension
- [14:54] - The Element of Challenge
- [16:24] - The Unreasonableness of Sin
- [18:38] - The Rightness of God's Demands
- [26:19] - The Justice of God's Punishment
- [37:08] - The Grace of God's Offer
- [45:14] - The Cost of Redemption
- [50:09] - The Power of Christ's Blood

Study Guide

### Bible Study Discussion Guide

#### Bible Reading
- Isaiah 1:16-18

#### Observation Questions
1. What does God invite us to do in Isaiah 1:18, and how is this invitation described in the sermon? [06:16]
2. How does the sermon describe the nature of sin and its impact on humanity? [02:21]
3. According to the sermon, what are God's demands on us, and how do they reflect His nature? [18:38]
4. What transformation does God offer through Jesus Christ, as mentioned in the sermon? [42:29]

#### Interpretation Questions
1. Why does the sermon emphasize the unreasonableness of sin, and how does this relate to God's invitation to "reason together"? [16:24]
2. How does the sermon explain the concept of justification, and what role does Jesus Christ play in this process? [42:29]
3. In what ways does the sermon illustrate God's grace and mercy, despite humanity's rebellion? [06:16]
4. How does the sermon portray the relationship between God's righteous demands and His offer of grace? [18:38]

#### Application Questions
1. Reflect on a time when you felt distant from God due to sin. How can you respond to His invitation to "reason together" and seek forgiveness? [06:16]
2. The sermon describes sin as folly and madness. Can you identify a specific area in your life where sin has led to unwise decisions? How can you address this? [02:21]
3. God's demands for purity and justice are described as righteous. What steps can you take this week to align your actions with these demands? [18:38]
4. The sermon speaks of the transformation offered through Christ. How can you embrace this transformation in your daily life? [42:29]
5. Consider the sermon’s depiction of God’s grace as relentless. How can you extend grace to someone in your life who may not deserve it, just as God extends grace to us? [06:16]
6. The sermon challenges us to acknowledge our sin and receive God's forgiveness. What practical steps can you take to regularly confess and seek forgiveness? [39:41]
7. How can you share the message of God's grace and forgiveness with someone who feels unworthy of it? What specific actions can you take to demonstrate this message? [40:08]

Devotional

Day 1: God's Graceful Invitation to Reason
God's invitation to "reason together" is a profound act of grace, demonstrating His desire for a relationship with humanity despite our rebellion. This invitation is not about justifying ourselves but recognizing our need for His mercy. God, in His infinite love, reaches out to us, offering forgiveness and redemption. The essence of this message is that God, who is self-sufficient and eternal, chooses to engage with us, His creation, even when we have turned away from Him. This is the heart of the Christian gospel: God's relentless pursuit of a relationship with us, despite our shortcomings. [06:16]

Isaiah 1:18 (ESV): "Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool."

Reflection: Think of a time when you felt distant from God. How can you respond to His invitation to "reason together" and draw closer to Him today?


Day 2: The Madness of Sin and God's Relentless Love
Sin is depicted as rebellion, folly, and madness, leading us away from God and into self-destruction. Yet, God does not abandon us. Instead, He invites us to reason with Him, to understand the depth of our sin and the magnitude of His grace. This reasoning is not a debate where we can justify ourselves, but a realization of our inability to cleanse ourselves from sin. It is an acknowledgment that we are utterly dependent on God's mercy. God's relentless love and mercy offer us a chance to return to Him, highlighting His unwavering commitment to our redemption. [03:23]

Jeremiah 3:22 (ESV): "Return, O faithless sons; I will heal your faithlessness. Behold, we come to you, for you are the Lord our God."

Reflection: Identify an area in your life where sin has led you astray. How can you turn back to God and accept His healing and forgiveness today?


Day 3: The Rightness of God's Demands
God's demands are righteous and just. He calls us to purity, justice, and compassion, reflecting His own nature. However, we fall short of these demands, and thus, stand condemned. Yet, in His grace, God offers a solution: the cleansing power of Jesus Christ's sacrifice. Through Christ, our sins, though as scarlet, can be made white as snow. This transformation is not just a removal of sin but an imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us. God's grace offers us a way to be cleansed and made righteous through Jesus Christ. [18:38]

Micah 6:8 (ESV): "He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?"

Reflection: Reflect on how you can embody God's call to purity, justice, and compassion in your daily interactions. What is one specific action you can take today to align with His righteous demands?


Day 4: The Transformative Power of Justification
The transformation offered by God is not just the removal of sin but the imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us, making us as white as snow. This is the essence of justification. Through Christ, we are not only forgiven but also clothed in His righteousness, allowing us to stand blameless before God. This profound transformation is a testament to the wonder-working power of God's grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner. It is a call to experience the new life offered in Christ, free from the bondage of sin. [42:29]

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV): "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

Reflection: Consider how the imputation of Christ's righteousness changes your identity and purpose. How can you live out this new identity in your daily life?


Day 5: Embracing the Heart of the Gospel
The call to come to God is an invitation to experience the power of His grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner and offer a new life in Christ. This is the heart of the gospel message. It is not just a call to repentance but an offer of a new life, clothed in the righteousness of Christ. God's grace is transformative, offering us a fresh start and a renewed relationship with Him. Embracing this invitation means stepping into a life of purpose, guided by His love and grace. [40:08]

Ephesians 2:4-5 (ESV): "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved."

Reflection: How can you actively embrace and share the heart of the gospel in your community? What steps can you take today to live out the transformative power of God's grace?

Quotes

"God says to men at all let me show you what I mean, you notice that here this is an appeal to him come now there is nothing that is more astonishing than that that the great and Almighty and eternal God, existing from eternity to Eternity self-sufficient in himself in the Trinity of blessed persons the God who made man and everything but he should appeal to men that he should pull upon men still longer and ask him to listen." [00:06:37]

"God's demands on us I say and they're right and righteous on what grounds well I mustn't keep you but the Bible is full of answers to that question God uses our maker it is he who made us not we ourselves he's given us life and being and all things he created us for himself he created us for his own pleasure we were not involved we were not consulted we haven't produced ourselves." [00:19:59]

"God made men and he made men in a particular manner and for a particular purpose she made men that men might have companionship with him he made man in his own image in order that through him he might govern his universe that men was to be the lord of creation and he was made obviously for the enjoyment of God and God is perfectly at liberty to do so he made men and he endowed him with certain faculties and with certain powers." [00:20:01]

"God has made it very plain and clear from the very beginning that he will punish sin and disobedience and rebellion and transgression, now take our first fathers take our take Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden God made it very plain and clear to them he said now you live according to my Commandments and I will bless you and you will have that wonderful gift of glorification and immortality but if you eat of this tree of the knowledge of good and evil dying you shall die you'll be driven out of the God he told he warned." [00:27:58]

"God's verdict is this washing make you clean what about directions put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well let's examine ourselves God made men on living soul man's not an animal he's got a soul he's got an eternal spirit is meant for God the life of companionship with God he is meant to reflect something of God's glory as he lives in this world he is meant to live their life indicated in the Ten Commandments and elsewhere." [00:29:41]

"God's demands are righteous and just. He calls us to purity, justice, and compassion, reflecting His own nature. However, we fall short of these demands, and thus, stand condemned. Yet, in His grace, God offers a solution: the cleansing power of Jesus Christ's sacrifice. Through Christ, our sins, though as scarlet, can be made white as snow. This transformation is not just a removal of sin but an imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us." [00:41:18]

"God comes to us and says listen give him to me, admit confess repent cast yourself on my mercy hear up gave in stop bleeding stop excusing stop trying to deceive me with your hypocrisy acknowledge your sin and your guilt, follow me in not a self condemnation say unto me as that poor publican said to went up into the temple to play to pray with the Pharisee god be merciful to me a sinner and you know what leaven though you were sin vs palate they should be as white as snow though they be as crimson red like crimson they shall become as world." [00:38:17]

"God is able to make this free offer here it is as I close I must have clean hence I must have a pure heart I can't do it haven't you try to do it we've all tried and we've none of us succeeded and never can and yet I can't stand before God unless I have them oh how can I cleanse myself my hands my heart my whole being my spirit it's impossible there's only one way listen have mercy upon me O God according to thy loving-kindness according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions wash me wash me throughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin I can't do it purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean wash me and I shall be whiter than snow creating me a clean heart Oh God and renew a right spirit within me." [00:48:47]

"God's invitation to 'reason together' is a profound act of grace, showing His desire for a relationship with us despite our rebellion. This invitation is not about justifying ourselves but recognizing our need for His mercy. Sin is depicted as rebellion, folly, and madness, leading us away from God. Yet, God does not abandon us but offers us a chance to return to Him, highlighting His relentless love and mercy." [00:40:08]

"God's demands for purity and justice are righteous and just. While we fall short, His grace offers us a way to be cleansed and made righteous through Jesus Christ. The transformation offered by God is not just the removal of sin but the imputation of Christ's righteousness upon us, making us as white as snow. This is the essence of justification." [00:42:29]

"God's grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner and offer a new life in Christ. This is the heart of the gospel message. The call to come to God is an invitation to experience the power of His grace, which can cleanse even the vilest sinner and offer a new life in Christ. This is the heart of the gospel message." [00:40:08]

"God's final word to man where needs convinced us and convicted us of the righteousness of his demands and the Justice of his punishment and we see ourselves lost and damned God comes to us and says listen give him to me, admit confess repent cast yourself on my mercy hear up gave in stop bleeding stop excusing stop trying to deceive me with your hypocrisy acknowledge your sin and your guilt, follow me in not a self condemnation say unto me as that poor publican said to went up into the temple to play to pray with the Pharisee god be merciful to me a sinner and you know what leaven though you were sin vs palate they should be as white as snow though they be as crimson red like crimson they shall become as world." [00:38:17]

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Transcript
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