Break Forth into Singing and Cry Aloud – Really? Yes Really!

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Ed Walsh

Puritan Board Senior
Greetings beloved of the Lord,

I suggest you read all of Isaiah 54 and 55 (they're short) to get the full impact of this first verse below.

Isaiah 54:1 ESV​
"Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married," says the Lord.

Pay particular attention to the Author's thoughts on 'pride,' which is the headwaters of all other sins. I particularly have we Reformed in mind.

Here's Ortlund's introduction to his comments on Isaiah 54-55
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Isaiah looks at the sin-bearing servant of the Lord and has one thing to say to us: "Break forth into singing and cry aloud" (54:1). In other words, "Let joyful song explode out of you!" We resist that. Isaiah 54:1 may be one of the most disobeyed commands in the Bible. Our exaggerated sense of decorum is the last bastion of pride holding out against the Gospel. Some churches make it a virtue. But God doesn't. In his exuberance, he's creating a new world of boisterous happiness through Christ. We must rejoice with him, or we risk making our hearts impervious to salvation, because that holy but raucous joy is salvation.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem to the loud praises of his followers, the Pharisees didn't like it one bit. But Jesus said, "If these were silent, the very stones would cry out" (Luke 19:40). Enthusiasm offends religious people, because breaking forth into singing and crying aloud entails loss of control. It brings us down to the level of children, even the vulgar who never learned their manners. So be it. "If there when Grace dances, I should dance." [1]

As we savor the good news of the sin-bearing servant of the Lord (52:13–53:12), the mountains of frost and ice within begin to thaw, and we learn to enthuse. The Gospel of a surprising salvation can only make us laugh, sing, and cheer. John Calvin understood this. His theology teaches us:

The Church is the place where the Gospel is preached; Gospel is good news; good news makes people happy; happy people sing. But then, too, unhappy people may sing to cheer themselves up.[2]

Every church should put a notice on its front door: "All face-saving moralists, take warning! Within these doors, your chilly pride is in danger of melting into exuberant joy. Enter at your own risk. But all sinners depressed with guilt are welcome." Christianity throbs with holy joy for bad people. God made it that way.
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[1] Edward Mendelson, ed., W. H. Auden: Collected Poems (New York: Vintage International, 1991), p. 745.
[2] T. H. L. Parker, John Calvin: A Biography (London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1975), p. 87.

Ortlund, R. C., Jr., & Hughes, R. K. (2005). Isaiah: God saves sinners (pp. 362–364). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

 
A true breath of fresh air!

Perhaps by our hesitancy to be joyful we suspect God is not so sincere, or the gift is not all that good, or we don't really know what it is we have. Or perhaps, we prefer the dignified image, thus pride governs our restraint.

I love this statement:

"Christianity throbs with holy joy for bad people."

God being infinite in blessing shares it so abundantly with His people, and it's natural that the Husband of the Church would want His bride to share in all His joy.

"therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows." - Psalm 45:7

Q. 83. What is the communion in glory with Christ which the members of the invisible Church enjoy in this life?
A. The members of the invisible Church have communicated to them in this life the first-fruits of glory with Christ, as they are members of him their head, and so in him are interested in that glory which he is fully possessed of; and, as an earnest thereof, enjoy the sense of God’s love, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Ghost, and hope of glory...

We have union with Christ, we live in the family of God, we have infinite treasures, they are titled over to us by marriage... why not just dive in and enjoy them for all we can get out of them? That's what God would have us to do!
 
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