Digging Deeper - Leaders Guide

Session 8: I Will Pour Out My Spirit

Isaiah 44 v 1-5 (from Sermon of 2 March 2014)
Purpose: To reflect on how God longs to pour His Spirit into our lives and the difference it makes to us

It can be disappointing when someone breaks their promises. When you promise
something to someone important and then do not deliver, the next time you make a
promise they wont believe it. By always keeping the promises we make we build
bridges of trust between us and others. Being someone who keeps their promises can
have a transforming and vital effect on others and our relationships. In this passage we
will look at some of the promises God makes to his people and the difference these
promises make to the lives of believers.
Getting to Know You
1. What is the hottest or driest place you have visited?

Leaders Note: We are going to think about some of the differences the Holy Spirit should make in dry lives
in need of Gods living waters.

Read Isaiah 44: 1-5

Into the Bible
2. What realities and promises does God speak over his people (44:1-3)?

3. What are the consequences of these promises (44:4-5)?

Leaders Note: We see a picture of fruitfulness, life, abundance and confidence in the LORD. There is no
longer fear, failure and rejection hanging over his people.

4. Spend some time looking at the following passages:

Romans 8:16-17; 2 Cor 1:22; 2 Cor 5:5; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:13-14
How do these passages help us understand the difference the Holy Spirit makes and
how we should view ourselves?

5. How would you describe the blessings of the Spirit from verses 4-5 to someone who
is not yet a believer?

Questions Relating To Our Lives

6. Why is it so important in our spiritual life to know that we are the Lords and that
we belong to Him?

7. When in your life have you felt furthest from God? What has helped or is helping you
re-find your assurance of salvation?

8. What things in the past have stopped you believing that you belong to Him?

9. How might you encourage a believer who says I dont feel that I belong to the Lord?

10. What things/spiritual disciplines might you pursue to help you truly know that you
belong to Him?

11. Why are we sometimes hesitant to let others know that we belong to God?

Praying It In
12. Spend some time writing a prayer using any of the passages you have studied
above thanking the Lord for his work in your life and asking him to deepen your
assurance of your salvation.
Spend some time praying through what you sense the Spirit wants to do in
your life

Sermon Notes on Isaiah 44: 1-5

Peter Nodding 2 March 2014
I Will Pour Out My Spirit
There are some similar thoughts in today's passage which we have already covered, like
being a servant, chosen, and the Lord helping us, but several new themes.
1. Names of Jacob. There are three names for Jacob. Jacob, of course, Israel and
Jeshuran. They describe Jacob's journey into maturity.
Jacob means schemer, which was his nature for most of his life. You may remember he
was the younger of twin boys, who first of all stole his brother's birthright and then his
Father's blessing. His character would have remained unchanged but he met his match
in his scheming father-in-law, Laban. He was cheated out of his chosen wife Rachel after
seven years' work by being given the older sister Leah. He then worked a further seven
years for Rachel. His wages were changed ten times. Amazingly God was with him
through all these years working on his character.
Encounters with God at Peniel. He had a previous major encounter with God at Bethel
where he discovered that 'Surely God was in this place' but the Peniel encounter was
deeper. It is described as a wrestling match with the Lord and as a result his name was
changed to Israel. Israel means someone who strives with God. At last Jacob learns
brokenness before God and he becomes someone who co-operates with God.
Some of us need more deeper encounters with God - they can be life changing. So often
we are like Jacob and we refuse to be broken. God is certainly on our case but rather
than wrestling with him we keep him at arms length. There have been several times in
worship recently when the Lord has been inviting you to take that risk of deeper
encounter, one thing is for sure - he won't force you. Take every opportunity that God
gives to you.
Finally he is called Jeshuran - what does this mean? It means upright. The
transformation has had full effect - he has changed from being the schemer to the
upright one. How God delights in these transformations. God certainly accepts you as
you are, but he doesn't want to leave you as you are.
2. The Outpoured Spirit. I will pour my Spirit upon you. This is an important 'WAY' of
the Lord. It is the way his Kingdom functions. What was promised to all of God's people
through the prophet Joel came to fruition at Pentecost. 'In the last days I will pour out
my Spirit on everyone' - no exceptions; men, women, children, rich, poor - the list goes
on. Poured out literally is like very heavy rain not a light shower. Is our present weather

prophetic? God has committed himself to pouring out his Spirit because it affects the
essentials of the Kingdom. What are the essentials of the Kingdom?

You becoming like Jesus. Essential number one. God's plan is that when people
interact with you, especially those who don't know him, they see love, patience,
kindness, humility and so much more. Being changed to be like Jesus may not be on the
top of our agendas - but it is on God's. Perhaps a couple of stories which will hopefully
challenge and inspire. Often we are aware that our patience levels are poor. A man
asked his Pastor how he could become more patient. The Pastor said that this was not
too difficult to solve and began to pray, 'Lord I want you to give this man some big
troubles and suffering. Give him weeks of tribulation.' The man said, 'I am sorry but I
think you must have misunderstood, it is patience that I want - not suffering.' He pointed
out the verse in Romans 5:3, 'Suffering produces perseverance or patience.'
You remember Christian Barnard, the man who successfully performed the first heart
transplant? He was talking to Philip Blaiberg his first patient and asked if he would like to
see his heart. Barnard showed him the glass container and he saw the heart that had
caused him so much trouble. Blaiberg gave it back and left it forever. This is what the
poured out Spirit does - he give us a new heart which has the nature of Jesus. 'A new
heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you.' Ezekiel 36:26
You Serving like Jesus. Essential number two. The Spirit poured out on you and his
gifts flowing from you resulting in people starting to follow Jesus in salvation, hearing his
voice through prophecy and having their bodies touched through healing. An up to date
story.
Wider Purposes of the Spirit.
Several pictures:
Pour out water on thirsty land causing it to spring into life again.
God's purpose was always to bless people with his Spirit. The plan from the
beginning in Genesis 12 when God called Abraham promising that he would bless
him
and his descendants. I will come back to this point
in a moment.
The text says that they will spring up like grass in a meadow and poplar trees
by flowing streams. (Various pictures shown.)

But as I said, it is mainly about people being blessed with the Spirit of God. It is talking
about Israel's descendants and also the gentiles who will be embraced by the Kingdom.
It is talking about us as believers and our descendants as well. I imagine that all of us
long that our children, (our offspring), are blessed in the Spirit of God and there is a
sadness when they are not. When you pray for God to pour out his Spirit on your
children it is a prayer in the will of God.

The world attracted to God's people and wishing to belong to the Lord.
One will say, 'I belong to the Lord, another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
still another will write on his hand, 'The Lord's', and will take the name of Israel.'
44:5
Why are unbelievers attracted to the Lord?
Emptiness of life. Apparently Wayne Rooney who has all that he could want
materially tuned into the God channel at 2am one morning - not sure where it went
after that. The truth is that no one or nothing can fill a space that only Jesus Christ
can fill. So expect this to be the case for some people and be ready to offer Jesus
Christ.
Crisis in life. It might be illness, or financial problems, or broken marriages, and
the person's resources are not enough to cope. They suddenly discover that there
is someone who can help and save.
Their questions. What am I doing here? Is there a meaning to life? From such
honest questioning they are led to believe.
Impressed by another Christian or the ministry of a local church. They
have watched you and are surprised how your faith affects your life so deeply.
They want the relationship with God that you have. Or they see what a local
church is doing and are impressed that the church is God centred.
God simply gets hold of them and they find that they are drawn to him. I love
reading these stories. Story of the Muslim who moved from Iran to the USA and
found a Bible
in the street.

BASIC COMMENTARY NOTES - ISAIAH 44:1-5

GAMBLING ON GRACE
At the close of Isaiah 43, God had rested His case against Israel. In the court of divine law,
every shred of evidence pointed to the verdict guilty and justified the sentence of exile in the
land of BabylonBut now, listen, God says. In one short phrase, the contrast of the ages is
drawn. From the heights of divine justice we see the depths of divine love.
Like the father of a prodigal son who receives the son home with open arms, God sums up His
forgiving love in the names, O Jacob, My servant, and Israel whom I have chosen. Jacob is the
esteemed family name that God still honors. But with even greater honor, He still claims the
house of Jacob as My servant. Despite their sin, God is willing to risk His witness of
servanthood in the world upon the lineage of a redeemed scallywag. And God is not yet done. He
also reclaims their national name Israel and dares to add whom I have chosen.
Carl F.H. Henry, the prominent theologian, once said that God is historys greatest gambler.
He staked the salvation of the world upon a carpenter and twelve fishermen. Centuries before
the Incarnation, however, God shows us His willingness to gamble upon a rebellious people who
are still capable of being redeemed. To call the rebel house of Jacob My servant, and claim the
exiled nation of Israel as the one whom I have chosen is a gamble against all oddsuntil you
consider the intervention of divine grace.

POURING OUT HIS BLESSING

Gods generosity can never be matched. For the fear-filled people of Israel, He repeats again
and again the assurances that He created them, shaped them, and will help them (v. 2a). To seal
this vow, God calls Israel by the name that He gave to Moses along with His original promise to
His people but has held in reserve until this time. The Lord says, Fear not O Jacob My servant;
and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen (v. 2b). In Moses valedictory address to the whole
assembly of Israel just before he died, he recited the words of the song that traced Gods

relationship with Israel from promise to punishment and back to promise again Jeshurun is a
name of endearment that God gives to His people whom He nourished and enriched with His
love. But alas, Jeshurun grew fat and kicked, you grew fat, you grew thick, you are covered with
fat; then he forsook God who made him, and scornfully esteemed the Rock of his Salvation
(Deut. 32:15).
Only one hope remains. After Moses blesses the tribes of Israel in his final words, he leaves
them with a promise:
There is no one like the God of Jeshurun,
Who rides the heavens to help you,
The eternal God is your refuge,
And underneath are the everlasting arms;
Then Israel shall dwell in safety,
The fountain of Jacob alone,
In the land of grain and new wine;
Happy are you, O Israel!
Who is like you,
people saved by the LORD,
The shield of your help
And the sword of your majesty!
Deuteronomy 33:2629
How many times had the children of Israel in exile wistfully sung this Song of Moses? The
name Jeshurun would be an instant cue that God had a special message for them. Like a hymn,
song, or chorus that is given to us by the Spirit of God in moments of deep distress, the children
of Israel would begin humming the tune and singing the verse with new hope for their
deliverance.
Is it any wonder that Isaiah 44:34 has inspired memorable songs of hope throughout the
centuries. Even now, if Isaiah is quoted, For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods
upon the dry ground, we start to hum the familiar tune of the chorus and add the verse, Open
your heart for the gift I am bringing, while you are seeking Me I will be found. With the promise
of the outpouring of the Spirit, the water of salvation can still turn the dry ground of sin into a
field of green grass with willows beside the coursing streams (v. 4).

NAMING HIS CHILDREN

In response to Gods blessing, the children of Israel will reclaim the names that identify their
special relationship to God. What is in a name? A name not only gives us our identity, it tells to
whom we belong. After the outpouring of the Spirit of God upon them, the Israelites would
proudly take four names that linked them to God.
First and foremost, they would take the spiritual name, I am the LORDs. No doubt remains.
To say, I am the LORDs is to tell the whole world whom you trust, whom you obey, and whom
you serve. Second, the Israelites will reclaim the parental name of their father Jacob. No longer
will they be ashamed of their parentage. As members of the family in the house of Jacob, they
will confess at a time when, like their father, they were deceitful and unredeemed. But also like
their father, during the exile they had wrestled with God and met Him face to face. Now, with
pride, they announce to the world that they too are part of redemptive history and lineage
through which the Messiah will come. Third, the Israelites will take the relational name of love
and write it on their hands. In the cultural context of Isaiahs time, young lovers printed the name

of the one they loved on the palm of their hand with indelible ink. Today, young lovers wear
halves of gold hearts around their neck with the name of their lover inscribed on the back so that
all will know to whom they have given their heart. Likewise, the Israelites would be equally quick
to identify with the lover of God who opens the hand to reveal the name The LORDs. Although
tattoos are distasteful to most of us, we might imagine an Israelite having the name of the Lord
etched in the skin to show the permanence of his love. Fourth, the exiles in Babylon would
reclaim their national name as Israel. During their captivity, they had become a people without
a name. Their history was almost forgotten, their homeland was gone, and their future appeared
to be hopeless. To retake the name Israel is to reclaim their identity as the servant nation
chosen by God to be the light of the world.
All of Gods promises come into focus in these four names. By returning to God and trusting in
Him, a hapless and hopeless people will be restored in spiritual faith, parental pride, relational
love, and national purpose. The same promises are open to any nation, church, or person
wallowing in the dust of decline. With the outpouring of Gods spirit, there will be water for the
thirsty and floods upon the dry ground.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTARY NOTES - ISAIAH 44:1-5

44:1. But now: see 43:1. What is the logical consequence of the accusation of age-old and
contemporary sin and rebellion in 43:2628? How does the decision at law reflect on 43:25 with
its promise of a full (blots out) and final (remembers no more) dealing with sin? Was the
wonder of 43:25 put first in order that we might know what we have lost by sin? No, for now in
44:25 a parallel promise is given: not the negative blot out but the matching positive, the gift
of new lifeand to the same people, for note how the Jacob Israel of 43:28 is repeated in
44:1. The Lord never deserts his mercy towards us.
2. Made womb: just as 43:2628 traced the fact of sinfulness back to the first father, so
now Isaiah traces the entail of divine creative oversight back to the womb. Divine paternity
antedated sin and is not knocked off course (will help) by our sin. Hence the status of the Lords
people, servant chosen (12), remains unchanged. The gifts and calling of God are irreversible
(Rom. 11:29). Afraid: the fear in question is not that of lifes adversities but of the consequences
of sin; not fear before people but fear before God. The promise to blot out and forget stands;
cancelled sin leaves no room for fear (Luke 5:810; 1 John 4:1718). Jeshurun: see Deuteronomy
32:15; 33:5, 26. The ending -un is a diminutive of affection. The name may be related to yasar,
upright. This is what the Lord wished his people to be. Used here, it emphasizes that, though
they have failed to match his ideal, this is still his will for them.
35. The ground of fearlessness is now positive: the gift of my Spirit, the Agent of ongoing
blessing (offspring descendants), the vitality of new life (4), personal assurance of fellowship
with the Lord among his people (5). In verse 3 new life is imparted; in 45 new life is displayed.
On the Lords Spirit, see 11:2; 30:1; 31:3; 40:7; 42:1. On the outpoured Spirit, see 32:15. The
parallel between Spirit and blessing indicates that it is by imparting himself that the Lord brings
new life to his people. In verse 5, the renewing activity of the Lords Spirit becomes evident in
individual response and the creation of a people bound together by a common confession. Twice
over Isaiah makes turning to the Lord (5ac) inseparable from turning to the Lords people (5bd).
The reference here is not to Gentiles coming into membership of the Israel of God (Gal. 6:16)
that would be totally against the context (contrast 45:2225)but to formal Israelites becoming
true, assured Israelites. Three things combine to bring this about: sin finished (43:25), new life
imparted (44:34) and personal response (45:5). Hand: the organ of personal action. To write on
his hand symbolizes the commitment of personal, active life to the Lord (cf. Deut. 6:8). If we
translate with his hand the meaning is the same: personal commitment.