The Shaking of Heaven and Earth: Disbelief will not hold back the awesome Day of the Lord, nor stay the judgment of the wicked.

Idea: Even though it may appear that men govern themselves by their own power, the truth of the matter is that God is still in control and will not permit the wicked to go unpunished.

1. God will humble His enemies (vss. 1-6). Ligonier's devotional, Table Talk (03-1999), has said, 'There is nothing more difficult than to convince men that the providence of God governs this world...” When people accomplish much, they tend to find security in those accomplishments and come to ignore the God of the Bible and the Lord Jesus Christ. They become convinced that they are in control, when in reality, God always has been and always will be in control of men and history, and He will not let the guilty go unpunished. God will punish His enemies.

2. The Lord's Judgment is terrible (vss. 7-22). Isaiah uses language of personal tragedy (pain and sorrow), cosmic tragedy (sun, moon and stars darkened), and national tragedy (the devastation of war) to describe the awesome Day of the Lord.

Conclusion:

1. Comfort for God's people - the Lord will not allow the guilty to go unpunished.
2. Psalms of Imprecation - praying for God's victory over His enemies.
3. Flee the wrath to come! Flee to Jesus.
4. You might be in denial. You may be like the nation of Babylon, secure in your own accomplishments, your own intellect, your own perceived goodness. You may be quite comfortable and successful in your own way of thinking. And you may well dismiss me even today. But listen to God's warning. What you believe about yourself doesn't matter one bit if you are not a Christian. Jesus Christ will come again to sit in judgment. He warns you to flee the judgment to come.