Coming to the One Who Is the House of the Lord

The Mountain of the House of the Lord

(Isaiah 2:1-5, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, December 1, 2013)

[2:1] The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

As we prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord this year we will receive much help from some passages from the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah. Isaiah ministered to God's people eight centuries before the death and resurrection of Jesus. Yet, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, He wrote powerfully about both of those events and about the Lord whose birth we desire to celebrate.

[2] It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the LORD
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be lifted up above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
[3] and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”Isaiah looked past his era to a future time that he called “the latter days,” when something extraordinary would come to pass. The mountain of the house of the Lord Yahweh God of Israel, Mount Zion in Jerusalem, would be established as the highest mountain on the face of the earth. It would be the focus of all the nations, not only for our observation, but for the height of our desire. All the nations of the Gentiles would be drawn to a Jewish mountain.

Many different people groups would want to come to this mountain in order to learn from the God of Israel. This desire for learning would not be to satisfy intellectual curiosity. People would flow to Zion to learn from the God of the Jews so that they might follow Him.

For out of Zion shall go the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
[4] He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide disputes for many peoples;In the most sacred place in Israel, people would gather from all over the world in order to learn the Law or the Word of the Lord. That Law would not be just a list of statutes of dos and don'ts. The Word of God would be a person. “He” shall judge between the nations. “He” shall decide disputes for many peoples.

The Word of God would become a person who could be followed and a King who could resolve international disputes for all the people groups of the world. The King of Israel would not only be the King of the Jews. He would be the King of the world. People would be streaming into Mount Zion so that they could learn from and follow Him concerning the important matters between their nations that needed to be resolved.

and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore.This King, who can be none other than the Messiah, Jesus, the Word made flesh, would fulfill His weighty office with perfection. He would do what no one before Him had been able to accomplish. He would bring peace to all the people groups of the world. The people who would hear His voice would be eager to embrace his reign of peace. Better to have food than weapons in that new world. Better to learn how to live in peace than how to make war.

[5] O house of Jacob,
come, let us walk
in the light of the LORD.

Even eight centuries before the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, this great prophet of the Lord was urging the Jews to walk in the light of the Lord. He was preparing them for the King of Peace through these words.

To make good use of this passage we need to answer some basic questions.

What is the mountain of the house of the Lord?

The mountain of the house of the Lord is understood in the light of the final plan of God for the “temple.” He will dwell in peace with His people, ruling over them in the fullness of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and the height of every kind of holy blessing imaginable. Our focus now is not the temple in Jerusalem as it was in the days of Isaiah. That temple has been torn down and a new temple has come. Jesus is the cornerstone of this New Temple. He—united together forever with His church—is the mountain of the house of the Lord.

What does it mean for the nations to stream toward that mountain?

All people groups all over the world are called to see the glory of the Resurrection King and His people. They are to stream into Jesus and His church as the only place of safety from the coming judgment and the only hope for a blessed eternity of peace and fruitfulness. Streaming toward Him happens when we delight in Him, His Word, His ways, and His people, eagerly learning and following the way of the Lord.

How can we learn from the One who is the Word?

The Lord has given us just what we need in order to learn from Him. We have a Bible including these wonderful verses from Isaiah and many other Old Testament authors. We also have the New Testament fulfillment of God's promises teaching us how to understand His prophetic Word rightly. Not only do we have the Word, we even have the Spirit of God Himself to be our teacher as we eagerly seek understanding of His Word in a posture of prayer and obedience.

What does it mean for us to pursue peace in a world of intense warfare?

We still live in a world of much danger. Civil authorities still need to bear the sword, and even individuals may need to defend themselves and others from evil. But we are people who have been called by God to know the power of the cross. We have our eyes open to the day when we will not need to study war any more. We are to delight in opportunities to turn the other cheek to the slap of an enemy, living in peace as a testimony to what we know will surely come to pass.

Finally we are to find the great object of our adoration in the gift of the Son of God. He is our Rock that becomes a great mountain that fills the earth (Daniel). He is the new Temple in whom we will dwell forever (Ezekiel). He is the answer for all the people groups of the earth. (Psalm 100). He is the Lord over all, who was born to save us from this world of death and despair.

And it shall come to pass.

The mountain of the Lord

Shall be established over all.

O Come, Let us adore!