Sermon on Isaiah 61:10-62:3

Text: I delight greatly in the LORD;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness
and praise spring up before all nations.
1 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,
till her vindication shines out like the dawn,
her salvation like a blazing torch.
2 The nations will see your vindication,
and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.
3 You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD’s hand,
a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

Did you receive clothes for Christmas? I suppose whether or not it was a good gift might depend on your age and what clothing you received. If you are younger, and you are expecting toys, it might not have been your favorite gift. If you’re older, if the clothes were the wrong size or if they were something you’d never wear, they might not be appreciated as much. When I open my Christmas gifts, I know that I will receive some clothing. Both my parents and my wife get me white dress shirts, which I greatly appreciate. I can get rid of the older ones and start off the new year with fresh white shirts. This morning, we are going to talk about some clothing that we have been given, because of Christmas. As we see them, we cannot help but REJOICE IN THE GARMENTS OF SALVATION 1. For What They Say About God, 2. For What They Say About Us, and 3. For What They Say To Others.

When you get clothing at Christmas, they tell you something about the giver. If you usually don’t get dressed up, a tie isn’t the best gift. The clothing that you receive tells you if the giver knows you and what you like or need. This is definitely the case with the clothing the God gives to us. He knows us and exactly what we needed. It speaks of the clothing in Isaiah 61:10, “I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” He has given us “garments of salvation” and a “robe of righteousness.” These garments are exactly what we needed.

This is especially true when we are reminded of our clothing prior to this. A few chapters later, Isaiah was inspired to write, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” (Isaiah 64:6) We were wearing, not just filthy clothes, but filthy rags. Imagine that you were going to be meeting your favorite athlete or celebrity. When they arrive, you look down and you see a huge spot on your best clothing. How mortified you would be! You might try to cover it up, but the stain is still there. Now, imagine that you were going into the presence of God with the things that you have done. Suddenly, all you could notice are the stains and holes. You would find the stains of all the things that you have done that God has told you not to do. You would find the holes of all the times when you didn’t do what God expressly told you to do. You might try to cover them up, but they’re still there. Even the good things that you have done to try and cover up those holes and stains are, as Isaiah said, “filthy rags.” If you were going to stand before God on your own, with your filthy rags, you would be more than embarrassed. You would hear the condemning words from his lips and spend your eternity apart from him in hell. How desperately we needed new clothing!

So, God in his grace, has given us new clothing. He has given us the “garments of salvation” and the “robe of righteousness.” These garments were purchased for us by Jesus Christ, who knew exactly what we needed. These garments were purchased for us by the life of Jesus, whose spiritual clothing had neither stain nor hole. His life was a perfect life. He has given us those perfect garments, so that we need not be embarrassed to stand in the presence of God. Jesus has gotten rid of our filthy rags, by his suffering and death on the cross. He has completely gotten rid of them. Through his resurrection, his holiness becomes our holiness. The day that you were brought to faith, God has given you this new clothing. It is better than any white shirt that you have ever been given. The best white shirt will turn dingy after a while. The “garments of salvation” and the “robe of righteousness” stands gleaming white for all eternity.

If someone were to give you a piece of clothing that you desperately wanted, it would show that they not only knew you, but also, they went to the trouble and expense to give it to you. It would show that you were important to them. Isaiah tells us what these garments of salvation say about us. First, we read in Isaiah 62:2, “You will be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.” Later, in this chapter, this thought is expanded. It says in Isaiah 62:4, “No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate.” What a perfect description for what we were before we received these garments. We were deserted. We were deserted by God, because of our sins. God, who is absolutely holy, would have turned his back on us for all eternity. We were desolate. There was nothing that we could have brought to God to change our situation. We were in the desert of our sins, with only death all around us. However, because we have been given these garments, we are not deserted. God has called us to himself and made us his own. We are not desolate. We are in the green pastures of his love and kindness. Because of these garments, we are called by a new name: “God’s children.”

Not only are we called by a new name, but God also says to us, “You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God.” (Isaiah 62:3) A king’s crown or his diadem was the most glorious of all his apparel. Ancient crowns, fashioned as they were out of precious metals and studded with gems, could be priceless. So precious are God’s people to him. Just think how precious you are to him. He loved you so much that he sacrificed his own Son, so that you would spend your eternity with him. You are so precious to him that he made sure that faith was created in your heart, so that you would receive these priceless garments. This is how much you mean to him. This truth gives us great comfort. There may be times in your life that you feel that you don’t really matter to anyone. Nothing could be further from the truth! You are precious to God. This gives us great encouragement when we are going through a difficult time in our lives. God has not deserted you. You are precious to him, and he will always be right there beside you, helping you every step of the way. What does the garment of salvation that you have been given say about you? It says that you have been called by God to be his own and that you are precious to him.

I remember one Christmas, some 34 years ago, when I opened a gift from my sister and it was a Denver Broncos winter coat. I couldn’t afford a coat like that for myself, and there it was under the Christmas tree. It was a very special gift and one that I wore with great pride. When people would comment on the coat, I would tell them that it was a gift that my sister had given to me. We have been given an even greater gift than that. We have been given the garment of salvation. How can we not tell others about this most precious gift? This is the thought that is expressed in Isaiah 62:1, “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch.” There are many ways that we can praise our God for this precious garment to others. One of the ways is spoken of in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” As we go about our daily tasks, we have the opportunity to thank God for all that he has done for us. As we do so, people will notice. They will notice that we speak differently than others do. They will see that we don’t react to situations in that way that they might expect or the way that they’ve seen others react. This may cause some questions. They might ask you why you behave the way that you do. At that moment, God is giving you the opportunity to tell that person about the wondrous gift of salvation that you have been given and what it means to you, how it affects your life. It also gives an opportunity to point them to the one who has given this gift. We can tell them that God has the same garment of salvation for them, too. What a blessing it would be if the Holy Spirit were to use you to share the gospel message with that person and they were brought to faith. Then, they, too, would glorify our Father in heaven. God gives us this garment of salvation and gives us the opportunity to tell others what he has done for them.

As wonderful as any clothing that we might get at Christmas is, there are some truths about it. Sometimes, despite the giver’s best intentions, the clothing is not the right size. Eventually, we will outgrow them, in one form or another. They may go out of style. Even our favorite clothing gift will eventually wear out, and either be discarded or turn into rags. What a contrast to the garment of salvation! We will never outgrow it. It is exactly the size that we need on any particular day. It will never go out of style. The same garment that was given to the people of old is the same garment that has been given to us. It will always be in style for people as they are brought to faith. It never wears out. God’s grace is new every morning. As wonderful as any gifts that we might have been given at Christmas, we have every reason to praise God for the garments of salvation that have been given to us, for they show the love of our God and that we are so very precious to him. So wonderful is this garment that we can’t wait to show it to someone else. Rejoice in the garment of salvation that has been given to you. Amen.