Mighty God

Recap

We talked about the importance of the prophetic work of Isaiah especially as we read the prophesies about the sufferings of the Messiah in chapter 53 predicted 700 years before the events surrounding Jesus’s life were manifested.

With that introduction to Isaiah we zeroed in to Isaiah 9:6 where descriptive titles are given to the messiah that was to be born in the future from Isaiah’s perspective: Wonderful, counselor, Mighty God, eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

Of that list of names, which Isaiah describes as one name we focused on Jesus our Messiah as Wonderful Counselor, and how his divine wisdom makes him the ideal ruler, the ideal king, the ideal being to carry the governorship of the world upon his shoulder. And so we should listen, follow, obey, his counsel for our lives

Today we will focus on the second title of Mighty God. Let us pray

Isaiah 9:6 (NASB95)

6 For 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.

When we consider the connection between the promised person of Isaiah 9:6 and Jesus of Nazareth, we must look at both the obvious direct references and the inferences of the text. Isaiah 9:6 declares both the humanity (‘A Child is born’) and the deity (‘A Son is given’) of the Lord Jesus Christ. The prophet then leaps ahead to the Kingdom Age when Messiah will reign in righteousness and justice from David’s throne. God had promised David that his dynasty and throne would be established forever:

2 Samuel 7:16 (NASB95)

16 “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”

and this is fulfilled literally in Jesus Christ

Fast forward 700 years from Isaiah to the angel’s visit to Mary in which he tells her that she is highly favored and informs her that she will become pregnant by extraordinary means. Then he tells her about the child:

Luke 1:32–33 (NASB95)

32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”

Pretty much repeating what was says about 500 hundred years before through the prophet Zechariah:

Zechariah 9:9 (NASB95)

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

This happened about a few days before Jesus was arrested when Jesus entered the city like a conquering king in what we have now called Palm Sunday.

Something to bear in mind concerning Isaiah’s prophecies about Messiah, he does not give any time or sequence of time. He goes back and forward between His birth, life on earth, and future reign.

However, He is very clear concerning the details, qualifications, attitudes, and workings of the the Messiah. He is to be a descendant of David yet at the same time He predates David.

Isaiah 11:1–5 (NASB95)

1 Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3 And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; 4 But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. 5 Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.

A natural can only judge by what his eyes sees and make decisions by what he hears. These are the natural senses by which we all make decisions.

This king is different as he will have supernatural perception beyond these usual sources.

Jeremiah 23:5–6 (NASB95)

5 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land. 6 “In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord our righteousness.’

When Isaiah describes Jesus the Messiah as Mighty God (gibor el) he is looking beyond the manger, beyond the cross time.

In the expression of Mighty God, Isaiah intimates that this child to be born unto us has the power to accomplish His purposes.

We must be convinced today that this Jesus of Nazareth whom you honor today with all of the festivities yet to come, with lights and symbols of his glorious first advent is not a defenseless child but the mighty God who loves you.

Some of you are struggling in your sin not understanding that the struggle is the power of mighty God in you yanking you out from the grip of death, hell, and the grave. And you wonder, will I win? will I ever be free from this? I am so sinful, how could God rescue one as stubborn as I.

John 6:39–40 (NASB95)

39 “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 40 “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

But there are more promises from Mighty God

John 10:27–28 (NASB95)

27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

This is why the Word of God is clear and the apostle to the gentiles writes,

Philippians 1:6 (NASB95)

6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

In your sin you may be suffering the beginning of His work in you, or maybe you are in the middle of his work in you. But the promise is that He will not abandon a work which He has began.

He is Mighty God, He can guarantee success because he has all the power in the cosmos.. He says in Mat 28 that all power in heaven and earth is given to Him and He will hold on to you

Romans 8:32–39 (NASB95)

32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? 33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Isaiah wrote to Israel words that apply to all of us whom the Father has adopted together with the natural branch that now there is only one people. His people.

Isaiah wrote to comfort his people that were surrounded by enemies and assured them that a ruler was coming that would liberate them from all of their enemies. Yet, they did not know that the real enemy was sin. He came as a mighty warrior to set the captives free.

Mary went to Joseph and told him she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit...

Joseph said… this is sinful stuff and I do not want part of any of it.. I will break off the engagement...

Matthew 1:20–23 (NASB95)

20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”

In other words, Isaiah is saying, Rejoice, rejoice Emmanuel shall come to thee Oh Israel.

(After The Last Song)

Ephesians 3:20–21 (NASB95)

20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.