A Child is Promised
INTRODUCTION:
Interest:
In case anyone is possibly unaware…we are expecting a baby in our family. Katie is not doing a very good job of hiding that fact any longer…she is starting to stick out pretty good. I know that she and David are excited about becoming parents, but I can assure you that Grace and I are very excited about being grandparents!
Of course, the Loves and the Palazzolos are also expecting children in their families and I have no doubt that their excitement is similar both in their immediate and in their extended families. I know Chloe for one is awfully excited that a baby is on the way in the Love house. The coming of a baby is an exciting event.
Involvement:
Once again, we are in the Christmas season…a season built around the similar eager anticipation of a birth…the birth of a very special baby. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, we are going to spend the month of December this year focusing on the birth of Jesus. Over the next four weeks, we will be tracing the birth of Jesus as recorded in four different passages of Scripture.
Context:
To begin this series we are going to turn to a passage that was given several centuries before Jesus was born…a passage, as you can see, found in Isaiah chapter nine.
I will just mention that this particular passage is in the center of a section in the book of Isaiah that runs from chapter 7 through chapter 12. This is a section that deals with the birth and ministry of the Messiah—the Christ…the Person that we know as Jesus. Isaiah was given prophetic revelation of the future day when the Messiah would come. It wasn’t completely clear to him that there would actually be two parts to the coming of the Messiah, but what was revealed to Him was that the Messiah was coming.
Preview:
The particular verses that we are going to consider contain some of the most well-known words that were given to the prophet Isaiah about the coming of the Messiah. Verse 6 contains the titles found on countless banners and referenced in numerous songs: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace. Yet there is much more in this passage than just these names for the Messiah. What is found in these verses is a very significant message…a message that is as significant today as it was hundreds of years ago when it was first given: Hope is wrapped up in the promise of a child.
The Christmas message is a message of hope. The Christmas season is a season of hope. But that Hope is wrapped up in the promise of a child.
This morning we are going to try to understand this truth more fully by working to understand our particular verses more fully. In order to move toward with this goal we will carefully work our way through the text so that we can unfold its teaching. We will let the text speak for itself as we go through it. Once we understand what these verses are teaching, then we will ask ourselves how the teaching of this text continues to apply to us today. What we are going to discover is that this is a message of hope. Hope that is wrapped up in the promise of a child.
Transition from introduction to body:
Let’s begin working our way through the text this morning. What we need to begin by understanding that in these verses…
BODY:
I. Text: God promised hope to Israel.
In the previous chapter God had revealed through Isaiah that the nation of Israel was about to face a very difficult time. God was about to bring the mighty Assyrian Empire down upon the nation. A time of oppression and famine was coming. In fact, according to verse 1 of chapter 9, two of the tribes, Zebulun and Naphtali, were already feeling the direct oppression of the Assyrians…these were the tribal territories that would have been first to fall to Assyria. The image that is used to convey the current events is that of darkness.
Illustration
Think about a time when you have experienced a complete absence of light. A couple of times I have experienced this in caves. The guide took our group deep into a cave as part of a tour and then at some point…after sufficient warning every time I have experienced it…the guide turned off all the lights. There is not even a miniscule of light…no crack under the door, no remote batch of stars, nothing. You literally cannot see your hand an inch in front of your eyes. The reason that the guide has always warned us in these situations before turning off the lights is that the guide wants to be sure that we are not walking around when it gets dark…to do so could be dangerous.
This is the image that God used to describe what was coming upon to the nation. He had also made it clear that such was coming because of their great sin. Sin had brought God’s wrath down upon them and God’s wrath was being poured out upon them through the Assyrians.
Transition:
Israel really needed a message of hope and that is what they suddenly receive beginning in verse 2 of chapter 9…
A. God promised hope to Israel of future joy
Let’s read verses 2 and 3…<read>
Did you notice that image of light? In the midst of deep darkness God promises that He will suddenly introduce light.
Illustration
Put yourself back into that cave again. It is completely dark…you can’t see a thing. And then someone takes out a cell phone and turns it on. Just the light from the screen seems brilliant shining in the absolute darkness. If you had been in that cave and the sudden loss of light had not been planned, you would welcome the sound of your guide saying, “Hold on a moment, I am getting a flashlight out.”
Yet such a minor light is not the kind of image God uses here…God promises that He will bring a “great light” into their dark world. And the result of the sudden introduction of this great light is joy.
Now, I want us to notice a few things. One, God does not at this point identify the light itself…although the Source of the light is clearly God. The exact identification of the light itself will have to wait; the immediate focus is upon the joy that the light will bring. In fact, the joy of both the farmer at harvest time and the soldier after victory listed at the end of verse 3 is intended to convey the great joy that the people will experience when the light comes.
Two, this light will shine upon the same nation that experienced the darkness…in other words, the nation of Israel will be the recipient of the light and its coming will bring a reversal of the situation from the previous chapter—despair will be transformed into joy.
Three, this light will result in an increase in the number of the nation. The language used in verse 3 harkens back to the promise to Abraham that the Gentile nations would be included in the blessing received by Israel. There is a suggestion here of Gentiles being added to God’s people in great number.
Transition:
The hope that God promised is one of future joy. That is what God promises in verses 2 and 3. What come in the remainder of our passage are explanations of why there will be future joy. Verse 4 begins a string of three explanations that build upon one another in order to provide this explanation…notice that verses 4, 5, and 6 all begin with the word “for”; they answer why there will be joy. Moving into verse 4 we learn that…
B. God promised hope to Israel of future joy, after oppression is ended
Look at this verse…<read>.
Why will there be future joy? The first reason is that the oppression that the nation is suffering will end.
Illustration
When I was in high school I had to wear braces on my teeth for several years…I was born with a severe overbite and too small of a mouth. During much of the time when I had braces I had to wear rubber bands on those braces…a band went from a post attached to one tooth to a post on a different tooth in order to exert pressure to pull the teeth into new positions. The pressure from those rubber bands was relentless…all day long it was pulling. Oh how I remember the brief relief that came at meal-time when I had to take the rubber bands off so that I would not swallow them while I ate…the pressure was suddenly relieved.
God promises that He will bring relief; He will end the nation’s oppression. The reference to the battle of Midian in this verse is nod to the historical account of the deliverance God worked through Gideon in Judges 6–8. God defeated an overwhelming hoard through a small band of 300 men. God is promising that He will end their oppression again in the future…it doesn’t matter how small and insignificant it may seem that the nation has become. He will end their oppression and joy will result.
Transition:
God promised hope to Israel of future joy after oppression is ended. But God’s explanation is not finished. Why will the oppression end?...
C. God promised hope to Israel of future joy, after oppression is ended, because peace will come
Let’s read verse 5…<read>
When the great future light enters the nation and the oppression is ended, then weapons and military equipment will no longer be needed. Granted, verse 5 doesn’t mention weapons, but it’s a pretty sure thing that if all of the clothing used by military personal is repurposed for fire-fuel, then the more valuable items like weapons will be repurposed as well.
Now, such repurposing of resources has occurred many times in human history; there is always a transition that occurs when peace replaces war…think of all of the army surplus stores that sought to repurpose military goods after the end of the Vietnam war. But in history, such peace has always been temporary. The question that should pop into our minds is likely the same that would have popped into the minds of Isaiah’s original readers, “How long will such a peace last? How large is this hope that is being promised?” How great should our joy be?
Transition:
God promised hope to Israel of future joy after oppression is ended because peace will come. Now…as I already indicated…there is one more extension to God’s explanation of joy coming…one more verse beginning with the word “for.” In our final two verses we can complete the great idea that we have been building…
D. God promised hope to Israel of future joy, after oppression is ended, because peace will come, through a child who is promised.
In chapter 7 verse 14, Isaiah had introduced the idea that the Messiah would come as a child. Now that child—the Messiah—is connected to the great light that will bring the future joy. Let’s read our last two verses…<read>
The light is finally identified; the glorious future will come through a child, a son. In fact, the way the verse is worded the emphasis is placed on this fact: “a child will be born” has the emphasis; the focus is not on the “to us” section…the focus in on the child, not Israel.
So how long will the peace last? Forever! This child will come and take upon Himself the government. He will sit upon the throne of David and rule. He will establish justice and righteousness, ruling a kingdom which will never end. There will be no end to the increase of His government. This child—the Messiah—is the great light that the people will see bringing their future joy. Darkness will be banished forever. What a message of hope!
Yet, how can this child accomplish all of this? Well, Isaiah’s language is very precise. Notice, that he says this child will “be given.” The Messiah is the eternal Son of God and as such does not originate at His birth or conception…He will be God Himself entering creation. In fact, that concept is the point being emphasized with the four names given in verse 6.
I know that the KJV and NKJV place a comma between Wonderful and Counselor making it look as if those are two separate names given, but I am convinced that is incorrect. In the original language there seems to be a careful symmetry of four pairs of words with one word stressing the divine nature of the Messiah and the other word bringing out a human function.
His name will be called Wonderful Counselor…literally, “a Wonder of a Counselor.” That word “wonder” has overtones of deity. The Messiah will not need to depend on external advisors. He will be His own Counselor as He rules.
“Mighty God.” He is the Son of God…deity in humanity. And He is mighty. No one will stand against His rule.
“Everlasting Father.” As the Son of God He is eternal. Yet “Father” suggests tenderness. It is a term of endearment. His rule will not be a frightening rule because He will be a tender Ruler, displaying the tenderness and compassion of a father.
Finally, “Prince of Peace.” With the coming of the Messiah there will be the end of all wars. Still, even more importantly, there will a restoration of the relationship between God and man that sin had destroyed resulting in eternal wholeness.
Of course, we live in a different era than the people Isaiah was writing to…we know the child that was promised to them by the name Jesus because from our perspective He has already been born; it is no longer future. But one thing that is interesting about this passage is that Isaiah wanted his readers to be just as confident that this child would be born as we are from our perspective. To my knowledge, none of our English bibles translate the verbs in this passage precisely because the way that Isaiah wrote does not work with our English language. You see, with the exception of the final verb in verse 7, all of the other verbs are given in the perfect tense in the original language. The perfect tense, in English as well as in Hebrew, is the verb tense used to indicate a completed action. For example, if we were going to translate the first phrase of verse 6, precisely, we would have to translate it “a child has been born.” Do you see how that does not work in English? From the perspective of Isaiah, Jesus would not be born for several hundred years. Yet, Hebrew allows the use of this perfect tense as a way to emphasize that what is being predicted will most certainly happen at a definite time and at a definite place. The final future verb used in verse 7 indicates that this event is still future, but these events are all so certain that it is fitting to describe them as already past—as a done deal.
Next week, Lord willing, Pastor Aaron is going to look at the part of the first chapter of Luke where Mary receives the surprising news that she will have a child even though she is a virgin Mary asks the natural question, “How can this be?” That really is the same question that Isaiah’s readers might have asked, “How can this be? How can all of these marvelous things be described as already accomplished?” The answer to both Isaiah’s readers and to Mary is the same…the answer is found in the final phrase of verse 7, “The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.” “How can this be?” “God will do it because God has promised it; His zeal for His name and His zeal for His people guarantees that what He says will become a historical fact.”
Transition:
God promised hope to Israel of future joy after oppression is ended because peace will come through a child who is promised. That is the great idea contained in this passage.
Hope is wrapped up in the promise of a child. That is the message of this text. That is also the message of Christmas: Hope is wrapped up in the promise of a child.
So let’s step back now and ask ourselves, “How does what we have learned in this passage apply to us?” Well, the application begins with the fact that…
II. Application: God offers hope to us.
There are likely people here today who feel as if they are in deep darkness. The world all around them is grim. There are certainly people all around us who feel this way. The country is in a mess. There are drugs and alcohol problems throughout families. There is absolute confusion over sexuality and gender. There appears endless despair.
Yet, what we need to recognize is that in the midst of all of this…not that we are minimizing in any way the darkness of these various realities…in the midst of all of this darkness, God offers hope to us. Hope found in the gospel message alone…the Gospel message enters the darkness of this world as a brilliant light.
Transition:
Through the gospel message that begins with the story of Christmas we need to understand that…
A. God offers hope to us, of future joy
All of the despair that is so real around us is because of the destructive work of sin within this world. Sin has severed mankind’s relationship with God and all of the darkness we experience is a result of humanity’s relentless rebellion against God. But the gospel message is a message that promises future joy. Restoration with God is possible; harmony can be restored. Such will bring incredible joy.
Transition:
God offers hope to us of future joy…
B. God offers hope to us of future joy, after oppression is ended
The joy comes because the Gospel message promises to break the power of sin which is the source of all of the darkness we experience. Sin is described as having mankind in enslaving chains, but the gospel offers the means to break those chains and to set us free. Such freedom will result in great joy.
Transition:
God offers hope to us of future joy after oppression is ended. And not only will oppression end, but…
C. God offers hope to us, of future joy, after oppression is ended, because peace will come
Peace will come. It comes because the gospel provides the means of restoring our relationship with God…the gospel provides the way to end our personal rebellion against God. The gospel message also, though, contains the promise that all rebellion against God will be ultimately defeated and everlasting peace will result. The promise of everlasting peace is as joyful for us to hear as it was for Isaiah’s readers.
Transition:
God offers hope to us of future joy after oppression is ended because peace will come. And all of this…
D. God offers hope to us, of future joy, after oppression is ended, because peace will come, through a child who was born!
It is no longer a child who is promised; now it is a child who was born. That is the Christmas story—the promised child was born! The Messiah was born…and went on to give His life for our sins as the perfect substitutionary sacrifice for our sins. We cannot anticipate the coming of Christmas—the promise of the birth of the Messiah—without considering the rest of the story: Jesus died for our sins!
The Christmas story is part of the heart of the Gospel message. In John 8:12 Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” The great light that was promised in our text this morning has already begun to shine. There is no longer a need to remain in darkness and despair; we can look to the Light—we can look to Jesus. We can believe in the gospel message—the message that Jesus came to earth to die for our sins, that He was buried, and that He rose again the 3rd day…all, as Paul says in 1 Cor 15, according to the Scripture—and by faith in Jesus we can have eternal life—the hope of future joy after oppression is ended because peace will come…through a child was born.
This is the truth that I want each one of us to dwell upon throughout this month. The Christmas season should be a time when our joy in our Savior is renewed in a special way.
This is the truth that I hope each person here will hold to personally…if you do not know Jesus as Your Savior, Your Light, today; talk to me before you leave so that I can show you the hope He offers.
This is also the truth that we need to be sharing with those wallowing in the darkness of sin around us. We can get so busy with the worldly interpretation of Christmas that we lose sight of what really matters—telling others about the Child who was born. Let me challenge you this year to creatively consider how you can use the anticipation of this season to share the wonder of Christ with others in a vibrant and meaningful way. I’m not talking about simply using simple quips like saying “He is the reason for the season” and insisting on “Merry Christmas” rather than “Happy Holidays.” I’m talking about making time and creating opportunities to have meaningful conversations about Jesus—who He is and what He has done.
Transition from body to conclusion:.
God offers hope to us (including those who do not know it at the moment), of future joy, after oppression is ended, because peace will come, through a child who was born.
CONCLUSION
As I said at the outset; the anticipation of a birth is an exciting time. In our house we are counting down the weeks until mid-February when we anticipate the arrival of our granddaughter. We are also joining with the Loves and the Palazzolos counting down the weeks to their births.
Still, the anticipation of these births, must pale in comparison to the child who was promised and who was born on Christmas morning because we are anticipating the return of that child.
This is because ultimately Hope is wrapped up in the promise of a child.