Scarecrows in a Melon Patch

Isaiah 40:21-31

Jim Davis

I remember a news story from last winter out of Minnesota of a father and his daughter falling through frozen ice and drowning. They went ice skating on a lake before the ice was thick enough to hold their weight. When I was a kid, we skated on frozen ponds and lakes. There was always a danger of falling through thin ice. We learned that simply believing thin ice was thick didn’t make thin ice strong enough to sustain your weight. 

The validity of what we believe is determined by that in which we believe. The strength of one’s faith isn’t determined by the amount of faith. The strength of our faith is determined by the object of our faith—the validity of that in which we believe. Many believed the stock market was the only safe place to put their money. Many believed banks were a safe investment. However the validity of one’s belief is not determined by how strongly we believe. 

Biblical faith is built upon the sovereignty of God. The first chapters of Genesis open with a declaration of the power of God in creation. The story of creation is the resounding message about God’s sovereignty throughout both Old and New Testaments. God’s prophets were always pointing to the creative power of God as the basis of faith in God. Isaiah reminds his people of those first chapters of Genesis.

Isaiah 40:21-26
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded? 
22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in. 
23 He brings princes to naught 
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. 
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff. 

25 "To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One. 
26 Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one,
and calls them each by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing. NIV

Isaiah preached in troublesome times. In those times it is easy to lose sight of God. Isaiah encouraged God’s people to back off and see the bigger picture. Look to the heavens and remind yourself who created the starry host. He encouraged them to remember God’s omnipotence. He was seeking to enable them to refocus and realize God’s omniscient presence in their personal lives. This is what Isaiah is encouraging God’s people to do as we continue reading Isaiah chapter 40.

Isaiah 40:27-31
27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and complain, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD;
my cause is disregarded by my God"? 
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom. 
29 He gives strength to the weary 
and increases the power of the weak. 
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall; 
31 but 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 be faint. NIV

It may be easy to look up at the stars and realize there is a creator who orders the universe. It may be a little more difficult in troublesome times to realize how personal God’s sovereignty is. His eye is on each of us. Israel’s God is more personal than just creating the world, moving nations—he brought their very lives into existence. 

Psalms 139:13-16
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb. 
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well. 
15 My frame was not hidden from you 
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me 
were written in your book 
before one of them came to be. NIV

The reasoning thus far is that God created the universe; he is able to sustain the weak and helpless. He had each of us in mind as he knit us together in our mother’s womb. It is amazing how many times those struggling to seek God were forced to stop and realize God had a purpose for them when they were born. 

Rebekah was told the destiny of her two children Esau and Isaac before their birth. 

Genesis 25:21-26
21 Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, "Why is this happening to me?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. 

23 The LORD said to her,

"Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger." 

24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau.   26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau's heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. NIV

Notice what the angel said to Hagar as she was pregnant with Ishmael.

Genesis 16:11-12
11 The angel of the LORD also said to her:

"You are now with child 
and you will have a son.
You shall name him Ishmael, 
for the LORD has heard of your misery. 
12 He will be a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone 
and everyone's hand against him,
and he will live in hostility 
toward all his brothers." NIV

Listen to what God told Samson’s parents.

Judges 13:2-5
2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. 3 The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. 4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, 5 because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines." NIV

Jacob’s name meant heel grabber—he was born tripping people up. Ishmael was to be a wild donkey of a man—talking about a kid hard to handle. Simple Samson was born simple—a kid that seemingly knew exactly how to disgrace his parents. You may not like who you are—you may not appreciate your child’s natural bent. You may wish you were made different. But God in his sovereignty created you to be who you are. He is not ashamed of how he made you. Of course, all of this does not diminish our personal responsibility as we make choices in life.

Do you know why we have such a self-esteem problem? We look at ourselves through our own eyes. We have this image of who, what and where we should be in life. We rarely measure up. We weigh too much—not good looking enough—not smart enough--not rich enough. On and on it goes to ad nauseam. These are the gods we are bowing to in our minds. 

What Is Our Response?

What is our response to how God made us? We spend our lives trying to recreate ourselves. Israel looked to the nations around them to learn how to create gods or goddesses in the images conceived in their minds. Jeremiah prophesied when people were accustomed to creating their personal gods and proclaiming them as masters of their own fate. 

Jeremiah 10:1-5
10:1 Hear what the LORD says to you, O house of Israel. 2 This is what the LORD says:

"Do not learn the ways of the nations 
or be terrified by signs in the sky,
though the nations are terrified by them. 
3 For the customs of the peoples are worthless;
they cut a tree out of the forest,
and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. 
4 They adorn it with silver and gold;
they fasten it with hammer and nails 
so it will not totter. 
5 Like a scarecrow in a melon patch,
their idols cannot speak;
they must be carried 
because they cannot walk.
Do not fear them;
they can do no harm 
nor can they do any good." NIV

It is one thing to fashion our own gods and proclaim them as the masters of our fate. It is quite another for God to create us and claim us for himself.
There is a vast difference in believing in a sovereign God who is in charge of all creation and in creating our own gods or goddesses as we seek to empower ourselves. There is a vast difference in worshipping a personal God who knit our minds and hearts together before we were born and worshipping scarecrows in melon patches.

The prophets were always pointing Israel back to what God had done as verification of what he would do. Moses reminded the Hebrews what awesome things God did for them when he led them out of Egypt.

Deuteronomy 4:32-34
32 Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created man on the earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? 33 Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived? 34 Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? NIV

God’s purpose for Israel runs through the heart of every generation. When he led the Hebrews out of Israel he had you in mind. It was a crucial part of providing a savior for the world. Through hindsight one can see how the sovereignty of God has held his plan in place for every generation.

Psalms 33:11
11 But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations. NIV

Believing in a God you can actually trust is crucial. It is the difference in skating on thin ice and skating on thick ice. The faithful in Israel were facing difficult times when they were taken into Babylonian captivity. They were taken to strange countries as captives. They would live among people who had little respect for them. In the midst of all this God reassures them of his purposes for them.

Jeremiah 29:4-14
4 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." 8 Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. 9 They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them," declares the LORD. 

10 This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile." NIV

God reminds them of his plans before they go into exile to give them something to hold onto. They would be living in exile. They would have false prophets telling them lies. God reminded them to remember him and prosper. They were not to go into exile and cower before their circumstances. They were to take part in building up the cities they would be exiled to. They were to raise their families—marry—multiply. Their lives were to be built around the hopes and dreams God gave them.

Psalms 40:5
5 Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us 
no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them,
they would be too many to declare. NIV

God’s Sovereignty is Very Personal

Today we may not worship scarecrows in melon patches. I know of some who look like they have been worshipping scarecrows in a melon patch. Have you ever noticed how some of the facelifts turn out? Some faces are so drawn that they look they are standing in a 250 MPH wind tunnel. No matter how much we wanted to love and appreciate Michael Jackson, he could never accept himself. We can’t accept ourselves because we can’t bring ourselves to truly believe in God.

The key to self-acceptance is God’s acceptance. The key to recognizing God’s acceptance is understanding God has his eyes on you. Salvation history reveals that God had a plan for you before the world was created.

Today our worship of idol god’s may be more subtle. We live in a charismatic age. We are attracted to leaders with charisma. We seek out those who tell us how to make our dreams come true. They convince us whatever our minds can conceive and believe can be achieved. So we erect an image of whatever we want to become or achieve in our minds. We dedicate ourselves to it. Of course everyone needs a vision. But this is not the problem when our visions become our God.

Solomon’s vain pursuits led him to an earthshaking conclusion about the sovereignty of God and the foolishness of idolizing his person dreams.

Proverbs 21:1-3
The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD;
he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases. 

2 All a man's ways seem right to him,
but the LORD weighs the heart. 

3 To do what is right and just 
is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice. NIV

Solomon indicates God’s direction guides us as he weighs our hearts. Solomon writes, “A man's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand his own way? (Proverbs 20:24 NIV)

Jeremiah 17:9-10
9 The heart is deceitful above all things 
and beyond cure.
Who can understand it? 

10 "I the LORD search the heart 
and examine the mind,
to reward a man according to his conduct,
according to what his deeds deserve." NIV

James warns us not to build a life on faith in the plans we make for ourselves. 

James 4:13-17
13 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." 16 As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins. NIV

James is not discouraging thoughtful planning. He is encouraging reliance upon God—God’s sovereignty. James is expounding upon Jeremiah’s take on life.

Jeremiah 10:23 
I know, O LORD, that a man's life is not his own;
it is not for man to direct his steps.

The comforting aspect of God’s sovereignty is that it declares God’s personal presence in lives. Throughout the Old Testament the essence of one’s being was determined by the power of one’s god or gods.

Conclusion:

The validity of one’s faith is determined by the object of one’s faith. We may believe in many things. The strength of one’s faith isn’t determined by the amount of faith. It is determined by the object of our faith—the validity of that in which we believe. 

The word “almighty” is found over 340 times in Old Testament. “Almighty” is a reference to God’s sovereignty. The Almighty One sustains the very universe. Paul also reminds of Christ’s creative power in creation.

Colossians 1:15-18
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. NIV

The resurrection of Christ affirms his sovereignty. It gives us a sustainable hope. We something more solid than the dreams of our own hearts to which we have built idols. We have Christ. 

Solomon chased his personal dreams to their ultimate end. He conceived it—believed it and achieved it. Afterwards, he declared all is vanity. 

Ecclessiates 2:10-11
10 I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; 
I refused my heart no pleasure. 
My heart took delight in all my work, 
and this was the reward for all my labor. 
11 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done 
and what I had toiled to achieve, 
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; 
nothing was gained under the sun. NIV

After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead he told Martha:

John 11:25-27
25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"  

27 "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." NIV

It is difficult to turn lose of our dreams and turn to Christ, but this is what is required. Turning to God through Christ requires confessing that we have been headed in the wrong direction. This requires dying to our selfish illusive plans and dreams. This is precisely what baptism into Christ is about.

Romans 6:1-7
6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 

5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. NIV