I Will Carry You

In this week’s chapter Isaiah is once again dealing with idols. They have been showing up quite a bit since chapter 40 when we moved into the second part of the book. There are two things to note as I read. First, Isaiah does not engage in a careful, theological argument against the idols. Instead, he does what we have been told never to do. He mocks them. He laughs at these idols and those who worship them. Just as there is a place for careful reasoning to reveal what is true and what is false, there is also a place for ridicule. Sometimes, the right thing to do is to point and laugh. The other thing to notice is that there is a contrast being made here. Jesus talks about how He is so very different from these idols and different in a way that makes life easier. It’s this contrast that I will be focusing on.

Please listen as I read Isaiah 46.

Did you notice how Isaiah describes the relationship that these idolaters have with their idol. ‘They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it, they set it in its place, and it stands there; it cannot move from its place. If one cries to it, it does not answer or save him from his trouble.’ Did you hear the list of impressive qualities of the idol? It cannot move. It cannot answer. It cannot save. Idols, including idols of the heart, are all claim and no follow through. Jesus, on the other hand, does move, does answer and does save. That’s why they are false gods, and He is not. But let’s look more closely at this. The contrast that I want to focus on comes from one comment about the relationship of the worshipers to their idol. Isaiah says, ‘They carry it.’ Here is their god, the one to whom they look to meet their needs. But this idol is so impotent that they have to carry it. But consider what Jesus says. ‘Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.’ Did you catch that? Jesus is saying, ‘The idolaters need to carry their gods. Not so with Me. I will carry you.’ These are words of tremendous comfort. Jesus is here making a promise. ‘Throughout your days, in all the ups and downs of life, I will be there to carry you through it all to the end. I will carry you.’ These are precious words, words that offer hope as we face this sometimes overwhelming life. Jesus promises to carry us.

Let’s take a closer look at this. First, note the length of time that Jesus’ promise covers. Jesus’ care begins before birth. He cares about the little baby in the womb. Now, clearly this child is completely ignorant of Jesus’ care for him. But that doesn’t change the fact of Jesus’ caring for him. On top of this, the care of the child in the womb is also a great comfort for parents. A mother can only do so much to make sure that her unborn child is cared for. Jesus does more. Does this mean that there will never be problems in a pregnancy? Clearly not. But even then, Jesus is caring for that child. And sometimes great evil occurs, an evil that results in a greater good. There are times when things are reversed and a child waits in heaven for his parents. By carrying the children, Jesus is also carrying the parents. And this is why we baptize the children once they are born. The promise of Jesus’ care applies to our covenant children. Our text says as much. They are ‘carried from the womb’. Their baptism doesn’t cause that. It just recognizes what is true. The promise belongs to these children also. And that’s why David wrote, ‘Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother's breasts. On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother's womb you have been my God.’ Jesus’ care for His covenant people begins in the womb. There is great comfort in this as we see that Jesus has faithfully carried us.

That’s one end of the spectrum. Now let’s look at what Jesus says about the other. ‘… even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you.’ One of the anxieties that so many carry these days has to do with old age. This is because of what has been a basic principle of life for many. That principle has been this: ‘I need to take care of myself.’ Or, to put it into the language of our text, life is a matter of a person ‘carrying’ himself. The principle is applied in youth and then continued into old age. ‘I need to take care of myself.’ The problem, of course, is that old age brings with it certain limitations. At some point a person will no longer be able to work and support himself. And then there are health concerns. What sicknesses will strike? People know that they will not be able to care for themselves, to ‘carry’ themselves, once old age arrives. So, they work to prepare for that before it arrives. And that usually boils down to having enough money. Now, how much is enough? The commonly held answer is, ‘Probably more than what I now have.’ And out of that come fear and the worry that it spawns. But Jesus understands this, and He tells us, ‘… even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you.’ Jesus promises us that He will care for us, carry us, when we are old and unable to care for ourselves. What comfort! There is nothing to fear. Now I want to be very clear. The point here is not about how much someone saves for old age. The point here is about why he is saving. What is the motivation? Is it the extension of that principle, ‘I need to take care of myself’? Is it the fear that comes from that principle? Jesus has promised. And it is in that promise that we place our hope. Even to old age Jesus will care for us. What is there to fear?

We are all getting older. I stand a little amazed at the thought that I will be 60 at my next birthday. The world around us is telling us to be anxious about this. Jesus says not to. Jesus promises to carry us. As your friends and relatives stress about this and you begin to get those numerous membership appeals from AARP, remember Jesus’ promise. ‘I will carry you.’ There is great comfort in this.

We’ve seen that Jesus’ promise covers the whole length of life from before birth to old age. Now let’s ask another question. ‘What sorts of things are included by this promise? What will Jesus take care of?’ And the answer, of course, is, ‘Everything’. Let’s start with the obvious. This promise includes getting you through this life and into the eternal happiness of heaven. That’s the obvious end of the spectrum. What else is included? What else will Jesus carry? Consider this from Peter: ‘…cast all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.’ What is it that troubles you? Whatever it is, cast it on Jesus because He promises to carry it as He carries you. Whatever it is. This is where some folk can get tripped up. It’s one thing, the thinking goes, to look to Jesus for heaven, but much of the rest of life is up to us. How silly! Is there any part of life that we can handle well without Jesus? So, when you begin to feel your heart become stressed with some issue or other, that’s a sure sign that you need to cast it onto Jesus. To be sure, it is probably something that you should have handed over earlier, but better late than never. Jesus is interested in all of who you are and what you face. That’s what the promise is about. Cast upon Him whatever anxiety that comes your way. He cares for you because He cares about you.

Next question. Jesus makes this huge promise to carry us through life. What does He require of us? What do we have to do so that Jesus will carry us? What does Isaiah write about this? If you were to read the chapter again you would find nothing about some requirement that you need to fulfill. That’s not the whole story, obviously, but it is an important part. It’s the part that’s about grace. Jesus has decided to carry us. He does that not because we’ve met the prerequisites. And good thing, too. He continues His resolve to carry us even when we get life all twisted up by our sin. And isn’t that what grace is all about? If there is some entrance fee or requirement that we have to satisfy, then no one would be carried. But grace says, ‘I will do good to you without you having to do good.’

Now, I’m sure that someone here is thinking, ‘But aren’t we supposed to believe, to have faith?’ Yes – but be careful. As soon as you view faith as some requirement to satisfy before Jesus will act, you’ve turned it into a work, an entrance fee. And before too long you will see all the dents and scratches in your faith, all the times when you didn’t come through with flying colors, and you will wonder if your doing this thing called faith well enough to satisfy the requirement. And, of course, when you put it that way, it’s becomes clear that you aren’t.

Yes, Jesus calls for faith. But remember what He means by that. The first part of faith is to stop all your trying. Faith is coming to the place of seeing that whatever the requirement might be, you can’t meet it. Faith is stopping all of that and then simply saying, ‘Jesus, if you don’t do it all, there is no hope for me.’ Faith is stopping the trying and then trusting Jesus to do everything. So, even when it comes to this faith thing, we depend on Jesus to carry us. So, is there a requirement? Well, if you want to put it in those terms, yes there is a requirement. It is admitting to Jesus that you can’t meet any requirement. He must save and He alone. He must carry you. And He will.

Now, what are the results of doing this sort of thing? What are the results of being carried by Jesus? Let me read something from one of the Psalms. ‘O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come.’ It’s that ‘until’ that I want you to notice. Here is someone who has been carried by Jesus from his youth, from the womb. He has seen Jesus in action in carrying him all those days. And as he anticipates old age, he sees challenges that are there. And so, he prays, ‘Please continue to carry me until I am able to tell the next generations about You, about how you have kept your promise to me.’ Our Psalmist wants to talk about how he was carried by Jesus. He wants the following generations to hear his story so that they would also praise this Savior who carries His people through life. This is not an obligation placed on him. No, it is the free response of a heart that has been touched by the amazing grace of Jesus.

So, as I am in the same situation as the Psalmist, past the days of my youth, and entering into old age, let me tell you how Jesus has carried me. He has done this through thick and thin. And He has done a great job of it. And He has done all of this, He has carried me, not because I’ve satisfied some requirement. I have not. He has taken care of me despite my foolishness and stupidity and sin. One day I will finish the task He has given me, and I will be home. But until then I want to take every opportunity to tell you about the Savior who carries His people. May God give me the ability to do this well.