O Israel, You Shall Not Be Forgotten of Me
God's promise of forgiveness and restoration offers comfort and hope to those who have wandered from Him.
Octavius Winslow emphasizes the profound truth that God has not forgotten His people, assuring them of His forgiveness and reconciliation through Christ. He highlights the relentless love and pursuit of God, who invites His wayward children to return to Him despite their transgressions. Winslow encourages believers to respond to God's call with confidence, reminding them that their sins are blotted out and they are welcomed back into His embrace. The sermon serves as a comforting reminder of God's patience and the joy found in His forgiveness, urging the faithful to acknowledge and celebrate His mercies. Ultimately, it calls for a heartfelt return to the Lord, who stands ready to receive and restore His children.
Text
O Israel, you shall not be forgotten of me. I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, your transgressions, and, as a cloud, your sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed you. Isaiah 44:21-22
I KNOW not a truth more calculated to light up the gloom of a lone chamber, to lift up the drooping spirit of a heart-sick child of God, than the announcement that God, for Christ's sake, has pardoned all his transgressions and his sins, and stands to him in the relation of a reconciled Father. What has all the restoring conduct of our Lord been towards us, but just this turning to us, when we had turned from Him?
We have wandered, He has gone after us; we have departed, He has pursued us; we have stumbled, He has upheld us; we have fallen, He has raised us up again; we have turned from Him, He has turned to us. Oh! the wonderful love and patience of Christ! And what is still His language? "Return unto me; for I have redeemed you." And what should be the response of our hearts? "Behold, we come unto you; for you are the Lord our God." Then "let us search and try our ways, and turn again unto the Lord." What! after all my backslidings and recoveries, my departures and returns, may I turn again to the Lord?
Yes! with confidence we say it, "turn AGAIN unto the Lord." That look of love beaming from the eye of Jesus invites you, woos you, to return AGAIN yet this once more to the shelter to His pierced side, to the home of His wounded heart. Press to your heart the consolation and joy of this truth--the glance of Jesus falling upon His accepted child ever speaks of pardoned sin. Chastened, sorrowful, and secluded you may be, yet your sins are forgiven you for His name's sake. Oh! that the Spirit, the Comforter, may give you this song to sing--"Bless the Lord, O my soul! and do not forget all his benefits; who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies."
Sermon Outline
- God's Promise of Forgiveness
- God's Restoring Conduct
- Response of the Heart
- Confidence in Turning Again
- Look of love beaming from the eye of Jesus invites us to return
- Consolation and joy of this truth
Key Quotes
“I KNOW not a truth more calculated to light up the gloom of a lone chamber, to lift up the drooping spirit of a heart-sick child of God, than the announcement that God, for Christ's sake, has pardoned all his transgressions and his sins, and stands to him in the relation of a reconciled Father.” — Octavius Winslow
“Behold, we come unto you; for you are the Lord our God.” — Octavius Winslow
“Bless the Lord, O my soul! and do not forget all his benefits; who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies.” — Octavius Winslow
Application Points
- We can turn again to the Lord with confidence, no matter how many times we have backslidden.
- The look of love beaming from the eye of Jesus invites us to return to Him and find comfort in His pierced side.
- We should search and try our ways, and turn again unto the Lord, seeking His forgiveness and restoration.