Those whom God esteems

Charles Spurgeon, et al.

(Be sure to LISTEN to the Audio, as you READ the text below.)

Isaiah 66:2, "Has not My hand made all these things? And so they came into being," declares the LORD. This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, who trembles at My Word."

Isaiah ends his prophecy not with sentimental comfort, but with a thunderous revelation of whom the Lord Himself esteems--a shocking description that overturns every human assumption. The God who "made all these things" (Isaiah 66:2a), the God whose sovereign decree governs all creation (Psalm 103:19; Ephesians 1:11), does not esteem the self-assured, the morally upright, or the outwardly religious. Instead, He fixes His favor upon the one marked by three Spirit-wrought graces:
  humility,
  contrition,
  and trembling before His Word.

Humility
Humility is the spiritual recognition that God is infinitely holy, and we are radically dependent upon Him. Scripture leaves no room for the illusion of self-sufficiency. Pride is treason against our Creator; humility is the sinner's only sane posture. The humble man sees his nothingness apart from Jesus, and casts himself entirely upon God's mercy.

Contrition
To be "contrite" is to be broken over sin, as David was when he confessed, "A broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise" (Psalm 51:17). Contrition is not mere emotion; it is the Spirit's piercing conviction that one's sin is personal rebellion against the holy God (Isaiah 6:5). True contrition does not drive a sinner into despair, but into the arms of the crucified and risen Jesus, the One who "bore our sins in His body on the tree" (1 Peter 2:24). Where there is no brokenness, there is no repentance. Where there is no repentance, there is no salvation (Luke 13:3).

Trembling at God's Word
In an age that mocks His authority, God esteems the one who trembles--who receives Scripture as inerrant, infallible, and absolutely binding (Psalm 19:7-11; 2 Timothy 3:16). This trembling is not terror, but reverence: a profound submission to God's Word. The one who trembles, refuses to twist Scripture, and refuses to place human opinion above divine revelation. Instead, he bows before the Word, allowing it . . .
  to judge him,
    to confront him,
      to correct him,
        and to command him.

Only God's sovereign and saving grace, can make . . .
  a proud sinner, humble;
  a hard sinner, contrite;
  and a rebellious sinner, reverent.

Hence, every sincere believer grows . . .
  downward in humility,
  deeper in repentance,
  and stronger in reverent love and obedience to God's holy Word.


Charles Spurgeon quotes on Isaiah 66:2

"The Scriptures are the voice of God in print."

"The more the Word is studied, the more it grows upon the heart. He who trembles at God's Word is never proud, for Scripture is a great humbler."

"Low thoughts of self, and high thoughts of Jesus, mark the man who walks with God."

"To trifle with Scripture, is to despise the God who gave it."

"A sense of littleness before the Infinite, is the very vestibule of wisdom."

"The higher a man is in grace, the lower he will be in his own esteem."

"A broken and contrite heart, is the best offering you can bring to God."