The Servant Brings Light (Isaiah 49:1-7)

Here’s my sermon from December 7th, 2025 in our Advent series. You can also catch the audio here.

So, I need to offer a bit of a retraction - from the last time I got up here and preached from God’s word. I kicked things off by making a pretty matter-of-fact declaration that we were almost certain to lose our football coach here at Mizzou. Well, I was wrong. And I apologize. I guess if I’m going to get something wrong up here, it’s better it’s something like that. Right?

Now when it comes to sports, I get accused of being a homer. Of being an overly optimistic fan. And I often chide Aaron for being the opposite. For being overly critical, even somewhat cynical. But in this situation, the roles were reversed. He was shaking his head. Drink’s not gonna leave. And I was buying into the national narrative - that Mizzou can’t have nice things. And unfortunately, that’s where my heart tends to go. Yes, the Chiefs will probably still make the playoffs. But not if, before that, America bursts into flames.

In everyday life, I’m more of a pessimist. It’s a struggle of mine. I can believe the worst. I can look at all the sin and suffering - all around us here - and quickly lose heart. But there are some prophecies here in Isaiah that I need to hear. And I think you probably do, too. Even if you tend to be more positive like Aaron.

Here in Advent, we’re walking through what have been called the Servant Songs. They’re four passages in the book of Isaiah that speak of a Servant of the Lord who would come and redeem God’s people. There is a Servant who is foretold. Last week, Matt Ridge talked about how the Servant would bring justice. This week, we see how He’ll also bring salvation. He’ll bring light.

Isaiah the prophet is writing here hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus. He’s calling God’s people to repent of their sin. He’s warning them what’ll happen if they’re stubborn and won’t. But the prophet also foretells of their renewal and return. And He reaches far beyond that nation to a broader restoration through this Servant. Who is our Lord Jesus. Comfort is coming. And these words give hope - for you, for me, who might be easily discouraged.

Listen Up!

Verse 1 starts with this call to listen up. “Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar.” Put down your phones already! Snap out of that daydream - the Servant proclaims - through Isaiah. Do it now! This is something we really need to hear. And not just us. It’s something everybody needs to hear. In fact, everyone on the face of the earth. Listen! That’s how Isaiah starts. And there previews what’s to come. And as He recounts this conversation between this Servant and the LORD. But will we really listen to what God says through him here?

The Servant on a Mission

There’s a first thing we see, as we look at these words. The Lord has sent His Servant on a mission. Look at verses 1 through 4. Back to those days leading up to that manger. He is called “from the womb.” And He is given a “name” - told to both His mom and earthly dad. He’ll be called Jesus, for He’ll bring salvation. But all of this goes back much further than that. As 1 Peter 1:20 puts it, “He was foreknown before the foundation of the world.” This perfect Lamb. The Servant is called.

But we also see He’s armed. Like the prophets of old, He is called before birth. But He’d speak with an even greater power than them. He’d have a mouth like a “sword.” He’d be shot out of heaven, an “arrow” of the Lord. Those near and far, His words would break though. Yes, bringing judgment on a fallen world. But also penetrating sinful hearts. Setting sinful men and women free. This is who this Servant would be. He is given this mission.

But most on earth would have had no idea. As those alternating lines of verse 2 tell us. The sword hidden in the “shadow of His hand.” The polished arrow, tucked away in His “quiver.” Especially there, in that manger. But even in His ministry on earth. His glory. His power. To most, it would be concealed. He takes the “form of a servant, being born in the likeness of man,” as Philippians 2 puts it. He humbles Himself. To this One, the Father says, verse 3, “You are my servant.” In You, He says, “I will be glorified.”

But this isn’t what those of that nation wanted. They wanted a King. Who’d kick out the Romans. And empower them again. The Servant is rejected. And this is why He says, in verse 4, “I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity.” Jesus gets overwhelmed with discouragement. Doubts He’s accomplished anything at all. Have you thought - that those feelings that are so common to us - that we’re getting nowhere - that our efforts are a waste - Jesus knows them well?

But the Lord He clings on. He chooses to hope. Verse 4. “Yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God.” Jesus remains confident. God will use Him. The LORD will vindicate Him. God has called Him. To bring the word of God. To be the word of God. This is His mission - laid out before His birth.

Karis, let us marvel at the mission of the Servant. We’ve all gone astray. We’ve all turned away. But the Father didn’t turn His back. He didn’t leave us in our sin. He sent His Son, this Servant. That scene in that manger. It’s a rescue mission getting started. One planned long, long ago. For the Son to become a Servant. And begin heading toward the cross. To bring us back into relationship with Him again. Do we see that, Karis, and marvel?

His Light to the Nations

There’s a second thing we need to see as we look at this passage. Notice verses 5 through 7. His mission is to take His light to the nations. Now there’s a first aspect of His task - that deals with God’s people. This one called from the womb would first work to bring back “Jacob.” He’d make sure “Israel” would be “gathered to Him.” This Servant, Jesus, would bring back a faithful remnant of that nation to their Lord. God would strengthen Him to do this. He would honor Jesus for doing this. Says verse 5.

But the Father has bigger plans for Him than that. Now if you ever get to hang out with my wife Amy and our good friend Bobby, and hear them argue back and forth, you’re in for some fun. One thing I’ve heard them debate about over the years is what she’d be able to do if one of our kids was in danger. Specifically, if one of them was trapped under the weight of our car. Amy insists that she’d summon up the strength to flip over that car. Even now, with her body half torn apart by cancer. She’s not going to do the easy thing - and go call 911. She’ll do the really hard stuff and rescue her kids.

Listen again to verse 6:

Isaiah 49:6 he says:

“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant

to raise up the tribes of Jacob

and to bring back the preserved of Israel;

I will make you as a light for the nations,

that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

Bringing some Jews back to God - that’s far too easy! God says to his Servant, I’ve got some heavy lifting for you. That you can easily handle. You’ll be a “light for the nations.” You’ll take salvation across the seas. To the Gentiles. To non-Jews. To every tribe, tongue, and nation. Every people group on earth. This will come about by God’s strength. The Servant will receive honor from His Lord for this. This is what His mission will accomplish. Because it’s something God really values.

You may not be familiar with what’s called Pantone. It’s an attempt to have a universal language for talking about colors. It’s used by designers all over the world. Up until now I didn’t know they had a color of the year. Did you hear about this year’s? It’s called “cloud dancer.” Are you kidding me? White. Our God sure likes much more color than that. And it’s what He sent His Son to come gather. A diverse people.   

Yes, this, of course, we think of the geographical challenges. But even more, it results in relational challenges. It’s easy to get people together that are the same. That look and talk and tend to think the same. But to gather together diverse peoples from across the globe - who all see their sin, who all worship this Savior - that is something altogether more difficult. But it shows the power of the gospel. It shows the strength of this Servant. As He brings the nations into His light.

Now here’s a reason why things are so tough. The world is cloaked in darkness. Under the power of Satan. Walking in rebellion against God. And it’s so easy for us to stay there. Or go back and hide there. Where we can’t see the true nature of things. Where we’re blinded by sin. And here’s the thing about spiritual blindness. People physically blind - they know they can’t see. But if you’re spiritually blind, you convince yourself you’re fine. You think you can see. But you can’t. We need Jesus the Servant to come expose all that. To shine a spotlight on our brokenness. And to illuminate our path. To wield that sword. To hurl that arrow. Penetrating our stubborn hearts. So we can walk in the light of life.

Karis, let us rejoice in His light going to the nations. And pray for it - and work for it - here and now. Because the new heavens and new earth will be filled with people from all nations worshipping in unity, singing in harmony, praising our God. Is that thought something that excites you? Something you rejoice in?   

You might have heard Somalis in the news this week referred to as trash. But as someone once said, one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure. And the Lord deeply loves and values people from Somalia and Haiti and Albania and Japan and New Zealand and Uruguay and Ukraine - and even the United States. That’s because each people group of the world uniquely reflects and refracts the glory of God. And that leads to my next point.

His Glory Treasured Among All

Here’s a third thought I want us all to grasp this morning. Those nations will testify to the glory of the Lord. Let’s go back to verse 3 again. The Lord says, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” God will be glorified by His Son. But it’s as those nations recognize His glory.

I started reading this New York crime novel this weekend. And one of the main characters gets stumped by a question from his daughter. It’s this one. You’ve maybe asked it yourself. His four-year-old asks, “Daddy, what are people for?” And while he’s thinking how to respond, she gives a follow-up. “What am I for?” The fact that he can’t answer really frustrates the man. But he and his daughter - and all of us here - we were made for the glory of God.

Just a few pages back here - in the book of Isaiah - in chapter 43, verses 6-7 - the Lord says,

Isaiah 43:6 I will say to the north, Give up,

and to the south, Do not withhold;

bring my sons from afar

and my daughters from the end of the earth,

Isaiah 43:7 everyone who is called by my name,

whom I created for my glory,

whom I formed and made.”

That’s why we were made. To bring glory to the Lord. To give honor to Him. But we’ve all turned away from that. As Romans 3:23 puts it, we’ve fallen “short of the glory of God.” Or, as Romans 1:23 puts it, we’ve “exchanged the glory” of God for images. Or, as it says in verse 25, we’ve “exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” We’ve turned to idols. False gods. God substitutes.

And more than anything, we’ve focused on the man or woman in the mirror. We’ve sought our glory, not His. And that’s why we are all so miserable. That’s why there’s so much strife in the world. Why there’s so much darkness.

But the LORD sent this Servant that we’d glorify God again. We weren’t just made for glory. We’re redeemed for it, too. It’s God’s purpose, as Romans 15:9 puts it, that we would “glorify God for his mercy.” To what end does God call sinners and then adopt them, according to Ephesians 1:6? “To the praise of His glorious grace.” Why’d He give us an inheritance? And seal us by His Spirit? From Ephesians 1:12 and 14. “To the praise of His glory.” The work of Jesus the Servant will result in praise for God as more and more people glorify God for His work of salvation.

Now why would God do that, you ask? Is He really, really vain? In desperate need of compliments? No. But the Lord’s no idolater, either. He has a passion for His glory. And He wants to share His glory with us. Because He knows it’s what we truly need.

Besides the Bible, nothing has impacted my Christian life more than this book, by John Piper, called Desiring God. And the thesis statement of this book, that’s truly a classic, is this: “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” We were all made for worship. And it’s not a matter of if we worship but whom or what we worship. And worship isn’t just sitting in these pews, singing a few songs, reading some passages of Scripture. Worship is finding delight. It’s experiencing joy. And we all have this God-shaped hole inside us. And we’re going around desperately trying to shove things in that hole. All the while there’s only one thing - one person - who can ever satisfy that hunger. It’s Him. The Lord. And as we are satisfied in Him, it gives Him glory. “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” That’s how Piper puts it. That’s why we’re here. And that’s what honors our God. It’s what His Son - this Servant - is about. And He should be our passion, as well.

Piper in the book, tweaks a line in the great Westminster Catechism. And he answers that little girl’s question. He puts it this way: “the chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.” Friends, that’s why we’re often so very miserable. We’re running around trying to find joy in all the wrong things. In sex. Our jobs. Money and possessions. Our achievements. So often we take good things - even - and try to make them God things. And they always will disappoint. And we end up destroying them, too. But in our Lord, we can be truly satisfied. And then God is glorified, as He only deserves.

Think about this: if God is the most glorious being in the universe, and we were made to delight in Him, maybe God commanding that, and restoring us to that, is actually the greatest thing He could do. Listen to Piper:

“God is the one Being in all the universe for whom seeking his own praise is the ultimate loving act. For him, self-exaltation is the highest virtue. When he does all things “for the praise of his glory,” he preserves for us and offers to us the only thing in all the world that can satisfy our longings. God is for us! And the foundation of this love is that God has been, is now, and always will be for himself.” (John Piper) 

It’s for our good that we worship God. And it brings Him the glory that He alone deserves. And especially as people from all nations give Him praise. Think about this: how can you tell if a work of art is truly something of value? Not if a bunch of bougie kids from a few blocks of Brooklyn say that it is. No. You know something is priceless - you know it’s a work of beauty - if people across many generations - and from all over the world - they all agree. They all testify to its greatness. I visited the MET in New York last summer and saw many of those works. Jesus the Servant, through His work of salvation, is restoring people from all people groups to that relationship of worship for which they were made. And they’re all testifying as a group to just how glorious God is. As we sing, “Joy to the world! The Lord is come!”

Karis, let us delight in the glory of our God. Turn from those things that will never satisfy. Isaiah’s audience here keeps running into idolatry. They go to false Gods. Who can’t deliver them. Who can’t fill them up. They also run headlong into adultery. They go to lesser loves. Giving their hearts away. Not only did that dishonor their God. It left them brokenhearted. In what ways maybe have we been doing the same? Karis, let’s run to our joy. And there, bring Him glory.

The Mission of the Church

Here’s a fourth thing we really need to hear today. The Lord sends us as His servants on a mission. Now here’s one thing you might have noticed, as we read verse 3. Doesn’t it say this Servant’s name is Israel? How can it possibly be referring to Christ? Well, often in Isaiah and the Old Testament, the “servant” does refer to the people of God, to Israel. But scholars and teachers have long seen and celebrated the fact that, in these four “Servant Songs,” they’re pointing to Jesus.

Now here is why I think that’s definitely the case here. Look back and read with me at least the first part of verse 5 again:

Isaiah 49:5 And now the LORD says,

he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,

to bring Jacob back to him;

and that Israel might be gathered to him—

What’s the mission again - given to this Servant? For starters, as it says here, to bring back Israel. So if this Servant here is called Israel, how can He also save Israel? That just doesn’t make sense. No. I think there’s something else going on.

Think about the mission the Lord gave to that nation. To their father, Abraham, the Lord promised, in Genesis 12 - they’d be blessed by God, and through them, “all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” In Exodus 19, when God gave Israel the law, the Lord called them to be a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation” They would be set apart, different from the world, devoted to the Lord, in a way that would draw the nations to the Lord. Israel was to be a “light to the nations.” But how well did they do at that important task? Terribly, right? They walked in darkness - running to those idols. And they didn’t carry that torch to the world.

Jesus comes along, the Servant, though, and He’s the ideal Israel. He’s the new, better, greater Israel. He does everything Israel was called to do. He’s a perfect representative of that nation.

And he comes on the scene proclaiming, as we see in John 8: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Jesus is all that Israel was meant to be. This Servant does all they were called to do. This is what Paul clearly says, as he stands before Agrippa, in Acts chapter 26.

Acts 26:22 To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass:

23 that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

Jesus is the true Israel, who will gather Israel - but even more, the world!

What then does that have to do with our mission? Well, the New Testament calls the church the “Israel of God” (Gal. 6:16). It proclaims that those of faith in Christ are the true “sons of Abraham” (Gal. 3:7). And now Jesus calls us, His church, “the light of the world” (Mt. 5:14). In this dark generation, we’re now called to “shine as lights” here on earth (Phil. 2:15). We’re called to go and “make disciples of all nations” (Mt. 28:19). We’re to be His witnesses “to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

And Paul clearly applies Isaiah 49:6 to us. He preaches in Acts 13, verse 47: “For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

Karis, let us sing of His glory among the nations. Will we go out, singing as our Servant does? Will we go out in our city, proclaiming His greatness? And who will go to the nations? It’s only a delight in His glory - it’s only joy in what He’s done - that will push us out, and that will keep us going, when things get hard.

The Servant Rejected

Now there’s one verse, that I’ve clearly neglected. It’s verse 7. Where the Servant talks of being rejected. Look at it again.

Isaiah 49:7 Thus says the LORD,

the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,

to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,

the servant of rulers:

“Kings shall see and arise;

princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;

because of the LORD, who is faithful,

the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

Not many honored Jesus in His time of ministry on earth. He was “despised” and rejected. He was ignored and “abhorred.” And ultimately, He became, as Philippians 2 puts it, “obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” They put to death the Lord of glory. The everlasting King promised in the book of Isaiah was also the Suffering Servant. And through His death on the cross, we have life.

However, one day, as our passage says, all “kings” and “princes” shall “see.” They’ll “arise” and honor Him. And then fall down before Him. The LORD will be faithful to His Servant. He’ll vindicate Him fully.

Listen to the rest of that passage in Philippians:

Philippians 2:9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,

Philippians 2:10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

Philippians 2:11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Ponder this, friends: when we take risks, when we obey Him, and we get hurt, the Lord knows how we feel. And we can trust that we’ll also be vindicated with Him. It may not be for a long, long time. But one day, they’ll see.

Listen Up! (Reprise)

So let me return to how I started. Listen up, church! Turn off Netflix. Take out your headphones.

The Lord has sent His Servant on a mission. Will we marvel? Lord, renew our hearts.

His mission is to take His light to the nations. Will we rejoice? Father, give us hearts of love.

Those nations will testify to the glory of the Lord. Will we delight? Turn us from idols and false loves, oh God.

The Lord sends us as His servants on a mission. Lord God, work in our hearts. Move our feet to go.

The long-foretold Servant will bring God glory by drawing the nations to His light. And He’ll use us to do that. Think about that.

But one more connection I really need to make. In 2 Corinthians 4:4, Paul says that Satan seeks to blind our hearts so that we won’t see God’s glory. But then He tells us how God overcomes that. Listen to verse 6: "For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Maybe you’re here and you’re just beginning to see. Maybe the Lord is doing a work in your life. The scales are falling from your eyes. You’re seeing the beauty of Jesus.

Or maybe you’ve found yourself slipping back toward the dark. You’ve been in a daze. You’ve been trying to hide. And you just can’t see His glory right now. Either way, come back to the Lord. Walk in the light. Come find me afterward. Talk to someone nearby. Let’s pray together. Run to Him for the first time. Or come back to Him now.   

Singing Carols in Kyiv

Hopefully many of you picked up that free Advent devotional out on the resource table. Daniel Darling, in the second entry, tells the story of driving last December through Kyiv, Ukraine, looking at all the wreckage. And grieving over all the devastation. A children’s hospital turned into rubble. Some rescued Ukrainian kids who’ll never be the same - and who’ll never be treated there. But what really broke the author was wheeling his suitcase into a train station there and hearing a Ukrainian band belting out Christmas carols. He writes: “It seemed an act of defiance by these sturdy people, as if to say, We will celebrate Christmas. Not even war will erase hope.”

Karis, as we look around today, will we keep singing? Christmas songs, yes. But praises to our King. Will we give Him glory - even amidst struggle? And will we sing along here - with this second Servant Song?

One day, as Habakkuk puts it, the “earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:14). And Revelation 2 describes our future so well. What will happen at Christ’s second Advent.

Revelation 21:22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.

The long-foretold Servant will bring salvation. He will bring God glory by drawing the nations to His light. That’s what we see promised here in Isaiah chapter 49. He said it. Let’s believe it. And let’s go carry that light ourselves. Let’s pray.