What Child Is This?

Isaiah chapter 9, this is one of my favorite Christmas passages about the glorious truth that God has given us an incomparable gift. James chapter 1 verse 17, it says that every good giving and perfect gift, that is not only does God give perfect gifts, but he knows how to give them. He gives them in a way that the giving, the act of giving itself is an act of grace. And that's what we see here in Isaiah chapter 9. We see a picture of a people, the people of God at this time, the kingdom is divided in the north, Israel and the south, as Judah, they are under judgment because of their idolatry. And God sins his prophet, not only to warn them, but to promise them. Because of God's stubborn love, his loving kindness, his said, his covenant love towards his people, even though there are times that we are so unfaithful to him, his people will never be cast off, even though they may be chasinged.

And we have a picture of this here, and a promise of deliverance. And like many other places throughout the Bible, God's promise of deliverance is always a promise of a deliverer. Deliverance comes through a deliverer, one who comes to deliver the people of God. God gives perfect gifts because they perfectly meet our needs and satisfy our deepest longings. The longings and the needs that they had at this point in their history, the occasion which God promises this Messiah that we have come to receive, the situation in which they were in darkness, they were traumatized, they were under attack, they were confused and scattered and hopeless. And they actually feared for their existence because the greatest army on the face of the earth was going to come against them, a tool in the hand of God to chasing them, the army of Assyria.

And so God promises them in this situation. He promises them light, the one who is the light because of their darkness, the wonder, the counselor, the mighty God, the eternal Father, the Prince of Peace. We have here in Isaiah 9, this announcement of his unspeakable gift to meet the greatest need of his people. This was written in about 750 BC, imagine this 750 years before the birth of Jesus Christ, we have this promise. Now this promise comes in a context that follows Isaiah 7, where the promise of a deliverer is that a virgin will be with child. And this is God's sign that he's going to deliver his people. And now we're told that that deliverance is going to come through this child of the virgin.

These things are important, the events of Israel are important to us because we are told in the New Testament that they are a type, they picture God's deliverance of us. All that they went through is a picture for us to understand the kind of deliverance that God brings to his people. And so we have this announcement of the gift in the context in which they need deliverance desperately. Listen to these words, Isaiah 9, beginning in verse 1, but there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish, that is, for Israel and Judah. In earlier times he treated the land of Zebulin and the land of Nathalie with contempt, but later on he shall make it glorious. By the way of the sea on the other side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who walk in darkness will see a great light.

Those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. You shall multiply the nation. You shall increase their gladness. They will be glad in your presence as with the gladness of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For you shall break the yoke of their burden, and the staff on their shoulders, the rot of their oppressor as at the battle of Midian. For every boot of the booted warrior in battle tumult and cloak rolled in blood will be for burning fuel for the fire. Great victory over their enemies. Then listen to this, in verse 6, because a child will be born to us. A son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his shoulders, and his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

There will be no end to the increase of his government or a peace. On the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish it and to uphold it and justice with justice and righteousness, and then on and forevermore, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this. In verse 1, you have this picture of darkness and judgment. Back in the previous chapter, if we were to go back and read chapter 8, we would get this, the picture of Israel who had rejected God, who had turned to idols, and had turned to countries who worshiped idols for their protection instead of turning to the living God. Nevertheless, God has planned to give them light in their darkness, just like he did with you in your darkness.

He promises to bring light into their life. Notice the humbling of the lands here. What he's referring to is the invasion and the annexation of the Northern Kingdom by the Assyrians, by Tigleth Pilezer in 733 BC, when they were cast off the land and scattered throughout the nations. He says, the deliverer is coming. Deliverance is coming to my people. That is his promise. In verse 2, we have the coming of the light of this deliverance. And notice how he describes it, this deliverance to the people who are in darkness, who are in the darkness of judgment. And that's what it's like to be under the wrath of God. As John 336 says, he who believes in the Son has eternal life. He who does not believe, who does not obey the Son, the wrath of God is hovering over him.

And you remember what that was like before you turned to Christ. You began to be aware of the fact that you were outside of Christ and you were under, you were under the danger of God's judgment. It's a darkness. And God promises them light. That light is going to come to this people who walk in the darkness and they'll see a great light. Now, if you're a Bible reader, you know that in the New Testament, this passage is quoted in reference to the coming of Jesus Christ. As the sinner of his ministry was in this very area in Galilee, and he's going to come from Galilee down to Jerusalem, and he says, this is a fulfillment of this. This was a type. This is a picture of the coming of this great deliver of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And then notice in verses 3 through 5, you have the results of the light. And there's this increasing joy, in fact, exaltation in the deliverance that God is going to bring. Now, the great blessing of God in verse 3, you shall multiply the nation, and they thought they were about to be destroyed. They would no longer exist, but he says, you shall multiply the nation, you shall increase their gladness. They will be glad in your presence, as with the gladness of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide this oil. You know, it's hard for us to imagine what it was like to be in Israel or in Judah at this time in history, to know that your enemy is coming against you. A few years ago, Judy and I were in Orlando, Florida, at a Bible conference back there, and we were in a motel, and we were watching TV late at one night, and after the meeting, and they came up with a hurricane warning.

And it said, there's a hurricane warning from this hour until ivory. It was like two or three o'clock in the morning. I'm thinking, man, what do you do when there's a hurricane warning? What are you supposed to do? What do you do? Okay, there's a warning that it's coming. So now what do we do? We have to wait until two o'clock in the morning. What do you do? Just stay awake? Well, can you imagine what it would be like to live in a little land like Israel to the north or Judah to the south, and knowing that the greatest army on the face of the earth, the most treacherous warriors that in existence at that time were coming against them. And they would have scouts coming and saying, they're on their way.

They're going to be here in months. They're going to be here within weeks. They're going to be here within days. When they set up their armies outside the city walls, can you imagine the anticipation, the anxiety that filled their heart, the fear that they had, and what really made them fear was the fact that this was the fulfillment of God's prophetic judgment against them because of their idolatry, whoa to them. And as they anticipate and wait, what he promises them, there's a coming a day in which you are going to exalt and rejoice in the deliverance of God. Now, that's a good promise in a context like that. Some of you today are facing some difficult things. We have a family in the church, two families in the church who've lost young people this past a couple of weeks, 18 and 20 years old.

You imagine a parent who loses an 18-year-old or a 20-year-old in the despair, in the darkness, what kind of good news can you bring to them? Well, imagine the good news that comes to these people as they wait an anticipation of the judgment of God. And he says to them, this is what's going to become of your enemies. In verse 5, for every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult and cloak rolled in blood, that is these bloody warriors who go out and slay people and cut them to shreds, covered with blood because of their violence, he says, they will be for burning fuel for the fire. God is going to protect you, this is promise. He's going to deliver you from what you are facing. Great blessing is going to come upon you.

And it's going to come through a climactic deliverance. God is going to deliver. In fact, he likens it in verse 4 to the Battle of Midian. You remember the Battle of Midian? Anybody here, any Sunday school teacher here? Remember the Battle of Midian and Gideon, the Great Warrior, the guy who was hiding from God because he didn't want to be the one who led his people in delivering his own. And yet there was a great deliverance that came through this man at the Battle of Midian and he says, that's the way it's going to be here. And it's going to come through a hero. It's going to come through one like Gideon who is going to deliver the people of God. He's going to deliver the people of God from the judgment that's coming upon this world.

He says it's going to be a man like Gideon, a deliverer like Gideon. And he's going to deliver completely and absolutely to the point that the enemy's weapons are going to be burned. You know, if you were to get an old Roman coin, there is a Roman coin that on it has a sign of peace. And what it is, it's a big pile of weapons with a torch that is ready to set it on fire. They're going to be burned up. And it's a sign that peace has come. And here we have Isaiah saying there is a peace that's going to come to the people of God and to this earth through a mighty deliverer. That's the message of this passage. That deliverance and peace will come supernaturally through a great hero. You know, sometimes, in most of the time, especially in our context today, in our culture, we take great pride in the fact that we know how to deliver ourselves.

And our own personal lives, our life as a nation, that we believe we have the power and the ability to deliver ourselves. But as they sat waiting for this great nation to come against them, perhaps there are people in I riff you like this, that the greatest nation all the world is about to come against us and what are we going to do? And he says, I'm going to deliver you. And I'm going to deliver you through a mighty warrior. There's going to be a supernatural deliverance that comes through the mighty deliverer. Well, who is this deliverer? Who is this one who's going to come and deliver the people of God in which they are going to exalt and rejoice in his deliverance? On verses 6 and 7, he describes and for us, and notice the great deliverer, and this is the amazing thing as you turn and look, it's a baby.

It's a baby that's going to deliver them. This is the same baby that's spoken of in chapter 7 that's born to a virgin. Imagine that, a baby born to a teenage girl that is going to become the mighty deliverer of God. Why does God do it this way? Why did God choose to bring Christ into the world in this way? Why did He choose to bring deliverance to His people in this way? One reason is that God loves to deliver through weakness. He loves to use weak people to do mighty things. That is just the nature of God. You see it throughout Scripture. We mentioned this last week that as you look at the totality of Scripture, you find this basic witness that God delivers through a parent weakness. The book of Revelation, you have this mighty war that goes on between the people of God and Satan and all of His minions.

And who is the mighty deliverer that stands against the beast in Revelation? Well, it's a little lamb. In fact, a little lamb freshly slain. In the previous chapter here, in Isaiah chapter 8, he likened the nation of Assyria, this great and mighty nation. He likened the strength of that nation and the deliverance of God, the simple deliverance of God, he compares it to the mighty river Euphrates and the gently flowing waters of Shalua, this little stream that flowed into Jerusalem. You know, it's amazing. I think especially in our day, we always look to great power for deliverance. We want something impressive. We want to see some, we want to see impressive power manifested so we can have confidence that there are answers to life problems.

We love experts. It's been in my lifetime that we have become this way. It was after World War II that all of a sudden we had all these professionals. Pastors, in fact, were one of them pastors. Ministers became professionals after World War II. Doctors and loggers became professionals before that. They were men who had skills who were servants, but now we're professionals. You know, we love that. We love expertise. We love to hire somebody to do something for us that has the expertise to do it because we are impressed with it, but God's not like that. He didn't bring a clergyman. He didn't bring, on the scene, a man who was among the elite in the nation of Israel, among the leadership. He delivers a little baby born to a virgin in an animal shelter who had no significant standing at all in that nation because that's the kind of God that he is.

A little child will ultimately bring deliverance from the mighty forces that have come against the people of God. Notice the description of this hero. It's given to us here in verses 6 and 7. That's kind of what we want to camp on this morning. Notice how he describes him. Jesus for a child will be born to us. A son will be given to us. Here you have the deity and the humanity of Jesus Christ, and both those things are important. It's important for us to understand that Jesus Christ is both man and God. That when he was born 2,000 years ago, it meant that God became man. That God became a man. Because Paul puts it, because the law could not deliver us, in other words, God telling us what was right and requiring of us what is right and righteous could not deliver us.

It couldn't change us on the inside. He said what the law could not do, God did, by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh. It took a deliverer, and it took a deliverer who has the power of God, and yet it was a man like us. So he comes. He is a child born, but he's also a son given. What a son he is. He is totally unique. In the New Testament, he uses a word to describe him, the only begotten, the monogonace. Monogonace means a one-of-a-kind. He is unique. All of you here who are here this morning who have rested your faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible says you are sons of God. It even calls the women the sons of God. Now because we are very sensitive to that whole issue, we say now, sons and daughters of God, but the Bible says you are all sons of God, male and female.

You have a standing before God because of your faith in Jesus Christ, but there is a monogonace. There is a one-of-a-kind son who is different than any of us. He is a son who has been a son from all eternity, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. And so a son is given. He has come into the world. I don't know if you've ever noticed it, but as you read the New Testament, the Gospels, you will discover that Jesus never says that he was born except one time. He always describes himself as coming into the world. Now I know we use that phrase for babies coming into the world, but we realize that they were conceived and born in this world. They didn't come from the outside of the world into the world.

Jesus did. He was conceived in his mother's womb, but this person who joined himself to that human nature has come into the world from eternity. This Almighty God, this God who has all power in heaven and upon earth, has come into the world and became a baby in Bethlehem. A son is given. You know, if we really are going to understand the Lord Jesus Christ and his role as ruler and sovereign king over everything, we have to understand both those things. That he is a child, he is a real human being, and yet he is the Son of God. He is God incarnate, and he is able to deliver you. You know, if we were to go around the room this morning and everybody would say, this is the greatest need in my life, and you told us what it was.

I could tell you, without a shout of a doubt, the only one who can meet your greatest need, whether you are aware of it or not, is this mighty deliverer who came into the world as a baby. Notice what his name is. He gives him four names here, or five, depending on how you interpret these titles, but there are four. We are going to look at him as four different titles that reveal to us who Jesus is. Now, the name Jesus is a summary of all the titles that this person has, because Jesus means the Lord's salvation, Jehovah's salvation. That wraps up in that expression, that name Jesus, in the name Jesus, the name at which every knee is going to bow and every tongue confess to the glory of the Father that he is Lord of all.

That name Jesus has within it a summary of every title and name that Jesus Christ has. But notice these four titles that reveal who he is. This is who Jesus is, and this is who he will be to you through faith. This is an unveiling of the character of God in the person of Jesus Christ. If you wonder what God is like, here is one of those snapshots in the Bible that reveals the character of God. What kind of God is he? Well, this is who he is as he has revealed himself in his own son. And notice how it describes him. It says, this child will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government, the rule as king will rest on his shoulders. And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

Look at those titles, and think about this for a moment. First of all, he is called the Wonderful Counselor. Now the expression itself quite literally is he is a wonder of a counselor. Now let me ask you something. When you have problems, who is it that you go to for counsel? When you have a real dilemma in your life, and you need someone to give you counsel, who do you go to? Now you go to the oldest, most experienced, and wisest person that you know, a person who has true wisdom. We are told here that this Jesus, who is from all eternity, is a wonder of a counselor, a wonder of a counselor. Now this has great significance to us. In fact, the word wonderful or wonder is a title of God. It's a word that refers to the supernatural, and many times in scriptures, it is given as a name of God.

If you remember the angel of the Lord, in Judges 13, appears to the parents of Samson. Remember Samson? And the angel of the Lord appears to them before he is born, in fact before his mother even knows that she's going to have a child. The angel of the Lord begins to tell them about this son that they are going to have, and he's going to be a deliverer. He is going to also picture the deliverance that Jesus Christ brings, but he's going to be a particular kind of deliverer, and like every other deliverer that pictures Christ, he is going to have some great failings and shortcomings. But he's going to point to the ultimate deliverer. Well, he gives this message to the parents, and Manoa, the father, says to him, tell us your name, because he doesn't realize this is the angel of the Lord.

He says, tell us your name so that when these things come true, we'll know who to honor. And the angel of the Lord says, why do you ask, seeing that it is paylay, that it is wonderful? See that's his name. That's the name of God, wonderful. You know, those of you who know the Lord Jesus Christ, you don't have any problem at all understanding why he is called the wonder of a counselor. Why he is called wonderful? He has a, he is wonderful in his incarnation. He's wonderful in his teaching. He's wonderful in his death for us. He's wonderful in his resurrection, but he is also wonderful in his relationship with us this very day. He is wonderful in those times that we go through when it seems like the things that we face will overwhelm us and sink us.

I got an email from Miriam last week, have you got any emails? Yes. I got one. She just had one moment to send an email and tell me that she was there and she was at the pastor's home at dinner and she's in Uganda, those of you who don't know, a lady in our church has gone to Uganda for six months to serve there and she sent me this short email that she was there and she was adjusting to the time and she was at fellowshiping in some believers after worship. And then I got an email from the pastor a couple days later and he was telling me how wonderful it was to have her there with a spirit of a servant that she had. He was telling me about her teaching the youth on Sunday morning, gave her testimony to the Sunday school class, the young people in that church.

And he said that she had them all in tears as she began to describe to them how God was able to deliver people from the midst of their trials. See, she's found that Jesus Christ is a wonder of a counselor. You know, he is a wonder of a counselor. He's the only one who can counsel people who go through some of the things that you have gone through. There are times when people come to me, heavy burdens, and bear their hearts. Tell me what they're facing. And there are times when it literally breaks my heart. One of those times recently was when we found out that our grandson Austin had a condition that prevents his brain from functioning normally and developing normally. And my daughter was talking to me, Shana, and I'm listening.

And I'm her primary counselor, you know, because I'm her father and I'm her pastor. And I've given her a man. I've given her a lot of advice over the years. I've told her how to do everything. So she begins to bear heart to me about facing this great challenge. And she said to me that one of her greatest fears is that Austin would never come to the place where he could even understand who Jesus Christ is. What if he never developed a place where he could know the Lord Jesus? Oh, it overwhelmed me. And I said, you know, I don't have all the answers to this, but I know this. I know Jesus knows Austin. And I know that Jesus knows how to counsel your heart, because he is a wonder of a counselor. He's the only one I know to send people to.

That's the only referral I ever make is if you will go to Jesus, he is a wonder of a counselor. I have seen it happen over and over and over again. The people coming to me and telling me that they have this dilemma they're facing. They don't know what to do and they need help and they need advice and they need counsel. And before I have an opportunity to ever figure out what I might say to them, the Lord Jesus counsels their hearts. It's amazing how he brings peace to our hearts in the midst of our greatest dilemmas in life. He is a supernatural counselor. You know what the problem is though, you know why many of you don't go to Jesus very often is because you don't like his counsel. Because sometimes what he counsels you is not at all what you want to hear, is it?

Turn with me to a couple of places in the gospel. Look at Mark chapter 10. I want you to just look at two pieces of counsel that Jesus gives. One is found in Mark chapter 10 verse 17. You're familiar with this. As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to him and knelt before him and asked him, good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Now this man is in earnest. There is another account in Luke, there's two accounts in Luke, one of a lawyer who stands up and asks in the same question, but he's trying to trick him. But in this case, this man is sincere. He runs up and he kneels before him and he asks the Lord Jesus, good teacher, what shall I do in her eternal life? And his response to him is, why do you call me good?

You see his problem is his basic orientation, understanding of who Jesus is. Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, honor your father and your mother and he said to him, teacher, I have kept all these things from my youth out. You're not telling me anything new. I tried that and I still don't have this peace that I have eternal life or I'm going to have eternal life in the age to come. Looking at him, verse 21, here is the counselor. The wonderful counselor says to him, one thing you lack, go and sell all you possess and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven and come, follow me.

The thing that kept him from understanding who Jesus was. The thing that kept him from having the eternal life that Jesus offered was what Jesus told him to get rid of, his riches. They were standing in his way. Now the Bible is clear, you don't have to get rid of your riches to be a Christian or follow Jesus but some people do. Some people do because it's the very barrier that keeps them from coming and Jesus knew what it was that kept him from eternal life and so he gives him a word of counsel. But it says in verse 22, but at these words he was fat and then he went away grieving because he was one who owned much property. He's sometimes the reason that we don't experience the wonder of his counsel is that we don't want to hear what he has to say.

Now contrast that with Luke chapter 19, turn over to Luke chapter 19 and notice this. In Luke 19, we have the account of Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was a tax collector, a tax collector in this culture was not life tax collectors today. Tax collectors today are by and large honorable people no matter what you feel like when you pay your taxes. But in the first century in Jerusalem those who collected tax for the Roman government, the great majority of them, they basically were entrepreneurs, they had a franchise. They got a percentage of all the taxes that they collected. And so it says when he entered Jericho, Luke chapter 19 verse 1 and he was passing through and there was a man called by the name of Zacchaeus, he was a chief tax collector and he was rich.

Here's another rich man. Zacchaeus was trying to see who Jesus was and was unable because of the crowd for he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sickamortry in order to see him for he was about to pass through this way. When Jesus came to the place he looked up and he said to him, Zacchaeus, hurry, come down for today I must stay at your house. When you're hurried and he came down and he received him gladly. When they saw it they all began to grumble saying he has gone to be the guest of a man who was a sinner. Zacchaeus stopped as they're walking along and he said to the Lord, be whole Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything I will give back four times as much.

And Jesus said to him today salvation has come to this house because he too is the son of Abraham. He said that he knew he was the son of Abraham because his heart was changed. He is heart was changed. He was going to receive life because he received the counsel of this wonder of a counselor. A lot of times I don't like to hear the counsel of Jesus and I come to the scriptures this time when it's not the counsel that I want. Do you ever feel like that? You come to the Word of God and you discover that he speaks to the very dilemma that you are in and it's not the counsel that I want to hear. Do you know what the fact is? This wonder of a counselor tells you the truth and he gives you the right counsel.

And when you receive his counsel it will result in life. Notice the second title, not only is he a wonder of a counselor but he is a mighty God. El Gibor. This expression El Gibor means a hero of a God. It's one of the titles of God. It's a name of God and it's a name of Jesus Christ as he is a hero of a God. This deliverer the Messiah is the mighty God. He is the deliverer who is powerful and is a hero. Think of this. That this deliverer who's coming is the corporeal presence of Almighty God. He is God with us in the flesh. You imagine what would have been like to walk with Jesus in those days and to actually come as they begin to dawn on them that this man that we are with and following is not just a great leader.

That he is the son of the living God. That he is God coming the flesh. And deny that he is God, truly God and truly man is utter folly because either he is truly God or we are all idolaters for worshiping him. And Muhammad is greater than Jesus because Muhammad said there is one God, one Allah and I am his teacher but Jesus said I am the way and the truth and the life. Jesus is God. Come in the flesh. He is the mighty God. He is absolutely amazing. He is alone. There is none like him. The Bible doesn't say that the church is the way and the truth and the life. The Bible doesn't say that America is the way, the truth and the life. The Bible says Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life.

I want to tell you that the United States cannot deliver you. This government can't bring you happiness. You can pursue happiness all you want. You have the right to pursue happiness and the government thinks it's this job to make sure that you are happy but look at all the unhappy people because a welfare state can't make people happy. Only God can make people happy. It is interesting in the kingdom of God, there is no talk about equal rights. It is about equal responsibility, mutual responsibility to love each other, to minister to one another, to allow the love of Christ and the resources of Christ to flow through us into the lives of one another. We have a mighty God, a hero of a God who is the only deliverer.

He is amazing. He points out their sins. You read the gospels, you read one of these guys thinking when he points at them and points out their sins and yet he is without sin. He calls on them to repent but he never repents. He tells us we are sick and he says that he is the great physician. He tells us that we are sinners and he is the Savior. He is totally alone. He is unique. He tells us we are sheep and he is the good shepherd and we should follow him. If Jesus isn't deity, then he is a madman. And Christianity is an idiotic religion. If Jesus is not God, come in the flesh. We believe. We believe the testimony of Scripture. We believe in the testimony of Scripture that Jesus is God, come in the flesh and we have found that testimony to be true in our own lives.

And then notice the third title, Everlasting Father, what a strange thing to call the Son of God, the Everlasting Father. Why is he called the Everlasting Father? If father is no children, remember, and yet the book of Isaiah says he will see a seed and he will be satisfied. As he hangs on the cross for his people, it says he will see a seed. Well, that word means he will see his progeny. He will see his children, his grandchildren, his great-great grandchildren. And yet he never fathers a child. But he is the father of eternity. He is the father of the ages. The infinite is an infant here and this infinite is infinite. He is going to have a seed that cannot be numbered. He's going to have a people through his work that are his people, that we cannot even number.

This expression that he is the eternal father, portrays him not only as the possessor of eternity, which he is. He's the one who created the ages. He fitted them together. He is the one who brought the high point of the ages together when he came to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And yet this expression is a picture of a tender, faithful and wise trainer and guardian and provider of his people, even from all and unto all eternity. Have you ever thought about heaven and it kind of made you nervous what it was going to be like to go to heaven, to be in the presence of God with all the people of God and no place to hide, no back row, no place where you can stay away from people and hide from them?

You're going to be exposed for who you really are and what you really are? Well, I want you to know that this eternal father, the one who died for you and Rose again on your behalf, is going to be there. He knows you perfectly. He knows the events of your life. There is nothing that's going on in your life that has gone on or will go on this week that he does not know about. In fact, he promises that nothing will ever touch your life unless it passes through his hands. And his promises, that everything that touches you will be a part of his good purpose in conforming you into his own image. He is the father of eternity. He has generated something in you. That thing that he generated in you, in fact, it's called, in the book of 1 John, it's called in the Greeks, a sparmus, which we get the word sperm, seed, his seed is in you.

What is that seed? That seed is eternal life. He has put something in you. He has generated something in you that is eternal. It's life. Eternally, you are going to know God in Jesus Christ, who you sin. Think of that. Have you forgotten a lot of people? I am in my late 50s. It's the last year when they will say that. I'm in my late 50s. And I got to tell you, I think I have a pretty good memory, but boy, I forget so easily. And I talked to somebody running to somebody that I know that I know them and they're familiar to me, but I can't put them in the context of my life. I can't figure out where do they fit. What was going on? We knew each other. Isn't it wonderful that you've been given eternal life and you will always be comfortable in the presence of the living God for all eternity?

That you will know Jesus Christ intimately and the Father intimately and His people intimately? There will be no more ego trips in heaven. Nobody is going to be worried about having status or trying to establish themselves in the group or anything like that. We're going to be comfortable in the presence of God, content. The Bible says that godliness with contentment is great and gain. And I've said this before, but I think it's really true. If you just stop and think about it, what would happen tomorrow if God made you content with what you had? Your life would be revolutionized, wouldn't it? If you all of a sudden you were just content with what you had. You were content with God. It would ruin some of our economy, obviously, but it would be wonderful, wouldn't it?

That's how it's going to be in the kingdom of God because He is an everlasting Father who has Fathered in us this eternal life. And then notice this last title that's given to Him here. He is the Prince of Peace, the Shower Shalom. Since He is a mighty God and He uses His divine might and eternity for the good of His people, He tells us here that He is also with this last name, a Prince who removes all peace, disturbing powers, and secures peace among the nations. It's amazing expression in the book of Zechariah, chapter 9 verse 10, it says, I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the war horses from Jerusalem. What He means is, I'm going to remove all of your defenses. I'm going to take away your entire defense system.

Why would He do that? I'm going to take away the battlebow which will be broken. All your weapons removed. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from river to the end of the earth. Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where there was no need for weapons? I know some of you, you're really worried about the government taking away your right to bear arms. I know that, and I understand that. But wouldn't it be wonderful? You didn't need to bear arms? Wouldn't it be wonderful if you weren't worried about that? If you weren't worried about protecting yourself, locking your door at night? Wouldn't it be something if we lived in a world that was dominated by peace?

He is the embodiment of peace that has come down into the world among the nations. In Micah, chapter 5, it says, he will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord and the majesty of the name of the Lord is God, and they will live securely. They will live securely, where then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. When Christ manifests his mighty rule on this earth, and every person living upon this earth is going to be living under the rule of Jesus Christ, this will be a safe place. This will be a place of peace. There won't be any more wars going on among the nations. There won't be any more wars going on between husbands and wives. There won't be wars going on among individuals.

It will be a peace, because the Prince of Peace is going to be ruling. That's the amazing thing about him, wherever he rules, there is peace. It says here in this text, because this is what they look to. They are a type for us, and they are looking to the government of David, the throne of David, to bring them peace and protection against their enemies. It says, he is going to come to exalt the government of David into an eternal rule of peace over all the nations. Christ is going to reign supreme, and there is going to be peace in the world and peace in our lives, and his rule is going to result in peace. We've had all kinds of attempts to bring peace on earth. All kinds. We've had Pax Romanus, the British Commonwealth, the United Nations, now we have the EC.

All kinds of attempts, world nations coming together to try to maintain peace in the world, but there is still no peace. There is no peace, and there will be no peace until Jesus comes back. But when he comes, he is going to bring peace. The great manifestation of the rule of Christ is peace. Now, that is significant. Turn with me to Colossians chapter 3. I want you to look at this. This is a message to the Church of Jesus Christ. In Colossians chapter 3, Paul writes from prison to these believers at Colossae, and he tells them, he gives them a command in the third chapter, verse 15. The reason I want you to turn there is underline this in your Bible and come back and look at it and think about it and convey yourself to it, because listen to what he says.

He says in verse 15, after telling them, beyond all these put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity, let the peace of Christ umpire, function as the umpire in your hearts. What is he talking about? Now, he is not talking in verse 15 primarily about personal peace. He is not talking about the fact that you feel really peaceful today. He is talking about peace among believers. He is talking about us being at peace with each other, and he commands them. He commands the Church that the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you were called in one body and become thankful. I think it is significant that when you are at peace, you can become thankful. Now, I want to read to you something from a little article.

This is written by Stuart McAllister, who is an associate of Robbie Zechariah's. He is writing an article about what goodness is in the eyes of the world today in a postmodern world, and he gives them advice to the Church, and this is one little small piece of advice because of the world's confusion about what is good. Listen to what he says. This is a message to the Church of Jesus Christ and to our local Church, specifically this morning. He says, we need to work hard to be Church, and to offer a credible and serious alternative to the spirit of our age. That is simply first Peter, chapter 2. Leslie Newbygun has highlighted the need for the Church to be, and listen to this phrase, I love this, Newbygun's phrase, you probably heard it before.

He has highlighted the need for the Church to be a plausibility structure for the Gospel, a plausibility structure for the Gospel. He is citing, Newbygun is citing the work of the sociologist Peter Berger, who explains that any belief claim or system, any belief claim or belief system, requires a supporting, community or group to sustain it. It is the community that often validates or authenticates the claim of truth, or the truth demand made by an individual. You preach the Gospel, and you want to bring people into a context where they can see that there is plausibility to this proclamation of the Gospel. Don't waste your time trying to bring to bear all the evidences that there are, that the facts of the Gospel are true.

They are true, and they can be proven beyond reasonable doubt, but that is not the key. The key is, do the hears, find the testimony of the Gospel to be plausible. Now only the spirit can accomplish that, but what we must do as the people of God is we have to see ourselves as a plausibility structure. He goes on. He suggests that if the model presented constantly falls short of the reality, if I stand up here and say, the Gospel of Jesus Christ will bring peace to your life. If you turn to Christ in faith, he will bring peace into your life and peace into your home. And then our church is riddled with fights and battles and wars. There is no plausibility. People come into a fighting church, and we are not a fighting church, praise the living God.

They come into a fighting church, and people are, and they hear these claims that the Gospel will bring peace, and they see no peace. And he says, what we need to do, he goes on, if our individual and corporate lives do not model the message we proclaim, we rob the world of a powerful and rooted apologetic. If we practice apologetics, the defense of the Gospel, then live the Gospel. Love each other, forgive each other, be warmly affectionate towards each other. You know, we're not a very diverse group. We're a little bit diverse, more diverse probably than the churches I grew up with. But we're not all that diverse, but we are a bit, we have a bit of diversity, there's a range of ages, there's a range of economic levels, there's a range of careers, and those kinds of things we are different in many different ways.

But we are brothers and sisters in Christ. Becoming a Christian isn't just your individual salvation, becoming a Christian is becoming a part of a community of faith. We're a part of a community that believes that Jesus Christ is Lord, that He rules over our lives. He rules, He has the right to rule over all of life, not just the private little world that we have, but all of life, the governments of this world, the affairs of man and the public and in private. We have to manifest the truth of that in our lives. And if Jesus is the Prince of Peace and the evidence of His rule is going to be peace, we're going to be a peace. If all people were to see, when they hung us, there's a bunch of people fighting, and they would see no evidence of the Prince of Peace.

Now there are times we have to fight, there are things to fight for, we've got to fight for the truth of the gospel, we've got to fight when the gospel's attacked. Paul says, and Ephesians 6, don't get this wrong, because we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. We wrestle against spirit beings, against Satan and his minions who come against the gospel. Our enemy is not people, it's a spirit. In Isaiah 9, verse 7, we have this picture of the ever-extending dominion and endless peace that's going to be brought into the world through this rule of this lofty king who's going to sit on a throne, the throne of David, and rule over David's kingdom, which is going to be extended to all the world. He is a simple Augustus, a perpetual increasing, increasing of the kingdom of God in the world.

And notice what it says there in verse 7, it says, this kingdom is characterized by judgment and righteousness. These are the foundation pillars that make it durable. The reason the king of God has been a endure for all eternity is because it's characterized by judgment and righteousness. He exercises himself and he gives it to us people. He makes us righteous before him, here's resurrection. What a day that's going to be. What a day that's going to be. When there's going to be peace on this earth and Christ is going to rule supreme. But notice how it's going to come about. It sounds like pie in the sky, buy and buy, but notice what he says. Its realization is through, look at the verse, verse 7, through the zeal of Jehovah.

The zeal of Jehovah. The word zeal is one of those two prong words. It means sometimes translated jealousy, sometimes zeal, cana. It means quite literally a glowing fire. That is red hot. He is burning over this issue of establishing his kingdom upon the earth through his son. Why do you think he's saving people today? Why do you think he saved Jim and Robin and these people as testimonies we heard last Sunday. Why did he save him? Why did he save Christ? You know why he did? Because the kingdom of God is ever and ever extending. More and more people are being brought into the kingdom of God, into the rule of Christ. He's going to come back and rule upon this earth in righteousness and truth and peace.

Now this is too sighted because he has this zeal, this fire, hot love for his people, then he also has wrath against everything that would stand against this kingdom. In fact, that's the picture you have on the book of Revelation. It's starting that he's going to come back with a sword in his mouth. Now that's not a literal sword. When you see Jesus coming back from heaven, you won't see a literal sword sticking out of his mouth. That is a vivid picture of the fact that what he speaks is going to come to be. I think it's an amazing thing, especially when it comes to witnessing the people that we can try so hard to see people come to Christ. I have people in my life that I've told in the Gospel, it seems like a million times.

I want him so bad to come to faith in Jesus Christ. He's a cousin who I went to so over and over and over and over and over again. A couple of years ago, totally without me and any influence in my life, totally separate from me, the living God spoke to him and said, that's how God is. When he makes his right arm bear, when in his power, he calls people to himself. Can God do all this? Can he put a babe on a throne? Can he bring peace among men? Can he produce peace in the hearts of people? Can he be a counselor in your life in the most difficult decisions that you have to make in the midst of confusion and fear and anxiety? Can he really bring forgiveness? Can he empower you to forgive others?

Can he give you eternal life? Yes. Because the zeal of the Lord will accomplish it. You know what I'm looking at right here this morning? I'm looking at the evidence of the zeal of God for his kingdom. He saved you. You're sitting here this morning. All of you believers are sitting here this morning as the primary evidence of the zeal of God for the glory and kingdom of his own son. He's brought you into the kingdom for such a time as this. Don't ever think that you don't have a mission. We have a mission and he saved you to accomplish that mission. We stand together in closing prayer. Our Father, as we quiet our hearts, still our minds and think about the glorious truth that you have given us a child and a son to be our deliverer who was actually born into this world and became one of us, has gone to the cross and has accomplished great victory over the enemies of your people, has put away our sin by the sacrifice of himself, has been raised in the dead and sits at your right hand and promises that he's coming back.

In fact, you say in your word that he's standing at the very threshold of the door. We pray today, Father, as we celebrate Christmas with our families, with our friends, we pray that Christ would be the center of our attention that we would recognize it all that we do, all the affairs of our life, both individually and corporately, are under the rule and reign of the Prince of Peace. Please bring and manifest your peace in our hearts and our lives and our relationships in our church we pray and in this world. Help us to be agents of peace by taking the gospel to those who are in darkness and need a deliverer to bring light, we pray. We ask you to motivate us and empower us to be your agents in this world.

In Jesus' name and for his glory, amen, amen, greet one another.