Isaiah 7
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Open: Somewhere along the way, it seems like a lot of us get the message that we must have it all together, that we have to figure out life on our own, that we are entirely responsible for our success or our failure and that everything depends on us. We see being needy as a fundamental flaw. This way of thinking, this overwhelming striving for autonomy, though, is in direct opposition to the way God created us. From the beginning of creation, Adam and Eve depended on God for everything. He provided air for them to fill their lungs with, food for them to eat, water to drink, land to live on, light to see by, and gave them companionship with one another (Genesis 1-3). God created us to be needy and dependent so that in our need we would see and believe that He is the only true source of provision, and in our acknowledgement of His power and sufficiency, worship Him and not ourselves.
Christ told us that children are what the kingdom of God was built upon. That innocent expectation that God can handle us allows us to look to that provider in a big way.
I think that this might be a problem. The problem is not that we don’t want a hero. It’s that we don’t want to have to adore and owe adoration to anyone. If I need you then I own you a certain level of Gratitude and then I can’t claim the chest thumping I want to.
There is a phrase that is used to describe positioning of people in business or negotiations called “chest-beating”. As you can imagine it is taken from the Gorilla’s show of force to demonstrate power, strength, or success.
Text: Isaiah 9:1-8
As you may remember Is. 7-9 is a historical message to Ahaz to encourage him to have hope. He then introduces us to Immanuel -
A. the prophecy (ch7),
B. land/meaning (ch8),
C. birth and reign (ch 9:6-7)
In verse 14 He is the Stone Isaiah 8:14
And he shall be for a sanctuary;
But for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel,
For a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
He will cause many to fall, few chose to believe Isaiah 8:15
And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken,
And be snared, and be taken.
He is signs/ wonders (18) deals with Isaiah but also points to Christ. Isaiah 8:18
Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me
Are for signs and for wonders in Israel
From the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion.
His word brings light Isaiah 8:20
To the law and to the testimony:
If they speak not according to this word,
It is because there is no light in them.
Here we see Israels problem 8:22 – no light; cast into darkness
Mt 8:12
But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
They have no hope… Isaiah 8:10 , Isaiah 8:17
Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought;
Speak the word, and it shall not stand:
For God is with us.
And I will wait upon the Lord,
That hideth his face from the house of Jacob,
And I will look for him.
This is the point when entering into chapter 9
1) light will be shined;
2) punishment won't be light (easy)
Listen to how Isaiah describes what she will face. “her vexation”
What vexation could we be discussing here?
1) Pekah - 2Ki 15:29,
In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel-beth-maachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.
2) Asa and Oded - 2 Ch 14:9, 15:1-8, 16:1-8
3) “not increased the joy” – They did not joy in the Lord, but in harvest and spoil.
4) because he removed their trouble, they took pride in a victory not theirs.
“as in the day of Midian” – with Gideon's lights, noise, and fighting.
5)“burning and fuel of fire” – destruction, not simply conquering.
This was all pointing to a fulfillment to blindness.
1) Fulfilled in Jesus when he went to the dark land - Mt 4:15-16
The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
2) The people in the valley are not the enemies, but Israel itself – Lk 1:79
To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.
3-4) They rejoiced in Jesus when he helped, but not in his sufferings – Jn 6:2
And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased.
John 6:14
Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.
5) Burning and fuel of fire – the wrath of God – Mt 3:12, Mk 9:44, Rev 18:16-18
Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
And saying,
Alas, alas, that great city,
That was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet,
And decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
For in one hour so great riches is come to nought.
And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships,
And sailors, and as many as trade by sea,
Stood afar off, And cried
When they saw the smoke of her burning, saying,
What city is like unto this great city!
A Child Reigns / Rejected
“unto us” – the covenant people, the city of David – Lk 2:11
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
The fulfillment is split
1) child born
2) government = Revelation 20
Remember the questions of the disciples, “will you at this time?” valid questions. They were confused on the timing of Jesus rule a month before his death on Calvary. – Lk 23:19-25, Acts 1:6-7
c. “everlasting” “no end” “upon the throne of David” … Israel forever – Rom 11:12 d. 8-10) This is Israel's rejection of the light and child due to pride of the Israelites.
Ten Lepers
In Luke 17:11-19, there’s a touching story about Jesus healing 10 lepers. Unlike other miracles, it isn’t the healing that’s the point of the story, but what happened during and after that explains God’s power and mercy.
The men with leprosy were not only ill but were also social outcasts. Leprosy is a terrible skin disease that causes people’s flesh to scar and decay and is highly contagious. These outcasts often formed their own communities for personal safety and to combat their isolation. People would sometimes throw stones at lepers who they thought were getting too close to them, out of fear of contamination.
Jesus was in their village, but these 10 men were too afraid to approach Jesus to ask for his help and “stood at a distance” and called for him to have pity on them.
Jesus approached the lepers and instructed them to go show themselves to the priest. That meant that they needed faith that as they left Jesus to go see the priest, that they would be healed. Jesus did not heal them first. He told them to go see the priest while they still had leprosy. That’s almost a definition of faith; trusting in what we cannot prove.
In the story, only one of the 10 comes back to thank Jesus. Interestingly, the one who comes back is a Samaritan. Samaritans were sworn enemies of Jews at that time. So why was he the one to come back, rather than the Jews? Maybe he had had a more profound sense of what had been done for him. If Jesus healed only Jewish people, that would be a normal expectation.
Woman who washed Jesus feet much was forgiven.
There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
Remember this was all taking place in Simon’s the Pharisee when a woman approaches Jesus and weeping washes Jesus feet with tears and he hair.
With a room judging her Jesus points out that she had been forgiven much. And Simon had been forgiven little. The problem is that Simon needed to be forgiven much.
We’re supposed to be learning that God provides for those who trust him and receives the glory to his name.
But you can see what the people focus their joy and more and that was what they could make with their own hands and harvest rather than seeing what God had done for them with his hand
We forget the reality that apart from him we can do nothing. THere is a low grade thought in the mind of GOd’s people that we could end up here on our own. That is an indicator that we are not trying anything worth having or we have not understood how weak our frame is.
Instead of that primate chest-beating Christ calls disciples to meekness, turning the other cheek, and kindness toward those that hate us. This is truly unnatural. But until we are attempting to live like this then we will never be ready for him to get the glory he deserves.