THE RESTLESSNESS OF THE UNSAVED
Isa. 57:20-21
Morning Meditation 12/20/16
Verses 20-21 says, “But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.”
One of the things I love about the Word of God is that it diagnosis every problem, identifies its source and prescribes God’s remedy.
The subject of this meditation is the restlessness of the unsaved. But restlessness is not just confined to the unsaved. It is also a characteristic of professing Christians. One of the disturbing things in our day is that there does not seem to be much of a line between the Christian community and the unsaved world. While I believe the Church of our day is filled with unsaved church members (the wheat and tares), I do not believe that is a totally satisfying answer to the problem. It is easy to say that professing Christians are just not saved when they act unsaved. But there are too many cases in the Bible like Noah, David, Lot, the man in First Corinthians five and others that let us know that saved people can go wrong and are still identified as God’s children. That’s grace. Amen. The saved who are operating on human viewpoint are described by the same verses as describe the unsaved. Flesh is flesh if is a part of body of believer or unbeliever. The difference is that the unsaved person is said to be IN the flesh (Rom. 8:9) and the carnal believer is walking AFTER the flesh (Rom. 8:4-5). The carnal Christian MINDS the things of the flesh and is operating in the realm of death (Rom. 8:6). That realm is described by our text.
Let me interject this thought. Life in the Bible has to do with quality, not just existence. Jesus is Life and therefore we see in Him a quality of life that is filled with such quality that it is indescribable in terms of human language. Ultimate happiness is seen in His life. Death on the other hand is an existence apart from quality, operating in a realm of depravity that spirals downward into deeper depths of putrefaction. We see this death manifest in Judas Iscariot. He manifested the ultimate blindness and dissatisfaction of existence apart from God when he betrayed Jesus and then terminated his life in suicide. His existence longed for something that could never be satisfied in the realm in which he existed, nor in the realm in which he exists today. All attempts for quality in life ended in dismal failure for Judas. True happiness is not to be found in satisfying the desires of the flesh.
First of all, our text speaks of the “Wicked.” This word translates “rasha” and speaks of “one guilty of a crime, guilty of sin and hostile toward God.” It denotes the kind of life that is opposite to God’s character. This is harmony with the purpose for which man was created. God made man in His image. Genesis 1:27 says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” God declares His purpose for creating man and woman in this verse. When man sinned against God, he lost the capacity to fulfill this purpose. In the New Birth God restores that capacity (Rom. 8:29). The unsaved are left in the world to pursue their course apart from God. What happens proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that man cannot have a quality of life living in the realm of spiritual death. God has to raise him from spiritual death and give him life (John 5:24; Eph. 2:1). Until man is saved he is classified by God as “wicked.”
The unsaved (wicked) are described as being like “the troubled sea.” The word “troubled” translates “garash” and means “to be driven away or tossed.” The Theological Workbook of The Old Testament says the root word “denotes an effective separation between persons or groups, i.e., expulsion.” It is in the niphal stem in the Hebrew. The niphal stem is passive voice. This means that the “troubled sea” is acted upon by the “wicked.” So the troubled sea is a result of the depravity of the wicked stirring the waters and is the stage on which the RESULTS OF EXISTENCE APART FROM GOD IS SEEN.
The sea in the Scripture is a type of the masses of humanity. Jude 13 speaks of the “raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame . . .” “This is spoken of unquiet, untamed vagabonds, or impetuous violent men, who, possessed with a spirit of giddiness by false doctrine, and wicked lives, disturb the church and raise scandals.” —Benjamin Keach. Human depravity stirs the masses and the result is RESTLESSNESS. Our text says, “It cannot rest.” The word “cannot” translates “yakol” and means in this case “Cannot prevail, cannot overcome, cannot endure, does not have power, and is not able.” It is imperfect tense which speaks of an on going action never completed. So this means that the wicked are described in this verse as being in a continuous state of restlessness and never able to break free and find rest though the attempt is constantly being made.
The words “whose waters cast up mire and dirt” describe the filth that is constantly being cast upon the shores of humanity. The words “cast up” are the translation of the same word that is translated “trouble” in this verse. This word can be translated “expel”and I give it as a further explanation of “cast out.” Human nature in its present depraved state is constantly expelling what is described as “mire and dirt.” The word “mire” translates “rephesh” speaks of the mud in the streets from the wasting of mud walls. It is also found in the cistern or subterraneous prison, or on the banks of the Nile. The word “dirt” translates “tiyt”speaks of “dung or dirt..” According to Wilson it “implies rather the place at which anything comes out, and so it is rendered in the margin.” So the dirt is where the mire “comes out”as well as describing what comes out. Man, no matter how good he attempts to be, will always “cast up mire and dirt,” which is an undeniable proof that God is right when He says “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Our text says, “There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” The word “peace” translates “shalom” and means “peace, completeness, safety, tranquillity, contentment.” The word “shalom” is the Hebrew word used in greetings. It is where one individual wishes peace on another, or, on each other. Isaiah said, “there is no completeness to the wicked.” He is always short of completeness and is ever striving for that which he can never attain. Isaiah says, “the wicked are never safe.” He is always unsafe. Cain killed Abel. It is an unsafe world in which we live. You cannot leave the doors of your house unlocked. It is dangerous to walk down the streets at night by yourself. Why? Because there are vicious people out there that are selfish and greedy and get their kicks out of brutalizing and robbing the innocent. You do not have to provoke an attack. There are those who enjoy brutalizing, raping, robbing and hurting other people just for the fun of it. The sea is “casting up mire and dirt” in their dissatisfied state of existence. They are restless. Isaiah says, “the wicked are unable to attain a tranquil state of mind that produces peace.” He says, “the wicked are not content.” If there is one thing obvious, it is that no matter how much one gets, it is never enough to satisfy. The flesh can never be satisfied. It is so perverted by the fall that God will not even save it. First Corinthians 15:50 says, “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.” The nature that we received from Adam that gives us our earthly desires will not be glorified and made fit for heaven. It will be annihilated and the Lord will make us a new body for the new man to inhabit.
The words “saith my God” is the final Word on this subject. When God says something it is in concrete. Now there are two things with which I will conclude. First, the unsaved world is wasting their time trying to break themselves loose from this state. Only God can deliver from this. And He is more than willing to do it. This is why Jesus came. The cross is the only way out.. Second, it is absurd for the Christian to try to find peace by satisfying the desires of the flesh. It is as impossible for us to attain peace that way as it is for the unsaved. It is like accepting Christ as a personal Saviour and then saying, “Lord, I can make it the rest of the way on my own.” If you are walking after the flesh, I want to assure you that you are operating in the realm of death and there is no peace there. That is what God says.
What should a Christian do if he finds himself walking after the flesh and wandering aimlessly in life. First John 1:9 is the ONLY ANSWER. Confess it as a sin. He will immediately forgive what you are willing to confess to Him as sin. Take His forgiveness and begin a walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16) and you will discover that you are no longer apart of the “troubled sea” but are operating above those troubled waters and have discovered the secret to peace in this life.
May the Lord bless these words to our hearts.
In Christ
Bro. White
