Advent Day 9

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 ESV)

I love reading the prophet Isaiah. His writings are tremendous to me. I love reading all the messianic prophecies spoken by Isaiah. Isaiah is not a gospel, but it is an exclamation of the good news of Christ.

Sinclair informs us that the New Testament contains more Isaiah quotations than any other book. Having been an investigator for most of my life, I can only imagine the rush Matthew experienced as he walked a path through Isaiah to Jesus. Making those connections must have anchored his faith deeper in concrete.

God sent Isaiah to King Ahaz and told Ahaz to ask for a sign. Ahaz stated he would not test God but just wanted to do things his way, not necessarily God’s. Isaiah said if Ahaz did not ask, God would send him a sign saying, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14).

Isaiah had no idea of how long it would take for his prophecies to come to fruition. I am sure he knew they would not be explained until they did. I can only imagine Matthew’s perplexity when these events happened around Him. I could list prophecy after prophecy, but Matthew did that for us.

Some of the biggest stumbling blocks in evangelizing are creation (which science is starting to agree with) and why do bad things happen to good people (we are all bad, (Romans 3:23), so really, we should ask why good things happen to bad people), and the virgin birth. We must remember that we cannot explain how God does anything. He is God, all-powerful, whose mercies and grace cannot be contained and whose plan will not be disrupted.

Sinclair made a great point again.

Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones, as he was dying, said, “The Christian is not afraid of death because he has the assurance that he will not be left alone. . . Death is not parting only but more; it is meeting, and though it is an experience we have never passed through, we have the assurance that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ and that at death we will meet with him.” It is Christ who is our genesis; it is in Him we can start over. He is the assurance that our good doctor spoke of.

As we approach the birth of the Messiah, I ask that you examine where you are with God. Do you know Him? Do you have a personal relationship with Him? Do you serve Him? If you do not know Him, call out to Him, ask Him to forgive your sins, and become the Lord of your life. Make this your genesis. Start over in Christ this Christmas; it is never too late.

Peace and Grace!

Sinclair Ferguson, The Dawn of Redeeming Grace”, The Goodbook Company, 2021