Make Room: Hope In The Darkness

Key Elements

In Isaiah 9:2-7, the prophet Isaiah foretold the eventual deliverance of the nation of Israel from the darkness of Assyrian captivity, pointing to the future birth of Jesus Christ the Messiah, the One who would bring the ultimate deliverance from sin and death. This promised birth of the Messiah brought the ultimate hope.

Main Idea: Because Jesus is the promised Light who steps into our darkness and reigns with unending peace, we must make room in our hearts and lives to receive the hope only He can give.

I want my audience to intentionally make room in their lives this Christmas season for the hope that comes through a relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ.

Intro

There’s something about this time of year that awakens us. The Advent season, these weeks leading up to Christmas, bring a time of expectation. The lights, the candles, the songs all remind us that Christmas is not just an event, it’s an announcement. It’s a reminder that God stepped into our darkness and in doing so He brought a hope that only He can give. But this time of year brings a struggle that I think we all feel. Life gets crowded, our hearts get cluttered, and if we aren’t careful, we can get so caught up in the busyness of Christmas and celebrating that, that we forget to make room for Christ.

And so, today, on this first Sunday of Advent, we are beginning a Christmas series entitled Make Room. And for the next four weeks, we are going to be looking at what it means to make room in our lives for Christ this Christmas. Now, when I say that phrase “make room” what comes to mind? We probably think about rearranging our furniture to make room for our Christmas trees. Or maybe the Christmas story where it talks about there was “no room” for Mary and Joseph in the inn in Bethlehem. Or maybe, and I would suspect this is true for most of us, we’re probably thinking about how impossibly full our calendar is in December with all the Christmas parties and events we have to attend and how on earth are we going to make room for one more thing.

So, here’s what I want us to hear from the very beginning this morning-this sermon series is not intended to make us feel guilty for all we have going on this Christmas. It’s not intended to make us feel bad for celebrating Christmas. And it definitely isn’t about adding more to our already overwhelming schedule. It’s really about making space for one thing this Christmas, one person really, the only One who gives meaning to everything else we celebrate this Christmas and His name is Jesus.

So, today our focus is hope. Earlier we lit the candle of hope in the Advent wreath symbolizing that Jesus Christ is our only hope. Hope is something that our world desperately needs. Think about this past week-the conversations you probably had, the news you watched on tv or read on social media, the things that have kept you up at night. We live in what seems to be dark times. And I’m not trying to be dramatic or pessimistic but there’s a lot of darkness in our world. And everywhere we turn and everyone we come in contact with, everybody is looking for and searching for hope.

And this morning, as we turn our attention to Isaiah 9, hope permeates these pages of scripture. Hope jumps off the pages of the prophet Isaiah. For it’s in the midst of darkness in the nation of Israel that Isaiah proclaims the light of hope. It’s in the midst of captivity, that Isaiah foretold that deliverance was coming. It’s light in the darkness, it’s hope for the future, it’s deliverance from captivity and oppression; and it’s Isaiah pointing the people of Israel and us to a greater hope. It’s the ultimate hope that has come through God sending His son Jesus, the Messiah, to be our Savior.

Message

You see, because of Christmas, because God sent Jesus for us, there is hope. Which leads us to our main idea for the message today: Because Jesus is the promised light who steps into our darkness and reigns with unending peace, we must make room in our hearts and lives to receive the hope only He can give.

So, why should we make room in our hearts and lives for the hope that God brings? Well today, in Isaiah 9:2, 6-7, we see three reasons to make room for the hope that only God can bring.

1. We make room for hope because Jesus has stepped into our darkness. (vs. 2)

Context: So, context is important here as we dive into these verses that we usually focus on at Christmas time. Look at vs. 2, it says… Now, we read that and that doesn’t sound like that big of a deal. But what was going on in Israel at the time was devastating. The darkness that Isaiah talks about is literally a “deep darkness.” It literally means “gloom, despair, or shadows.” To make it more comprehendible for us, it’s the kind of darkness where you can’t see your hand in front of your face. What is happening in Israel at this point in their history is that the Northern Kingdom had just been destroyed by Assyria. Ten of the twelve tribes of Israel are gone, deported to a foreign land; and now Assyria is threatening to do the same thing to Judah. King Ahaz, the king of Israel at the time, was terrified and instead of turning to God himself and leading his people to do so, he had turned to pagan idols. He had even gone so far as to sacrifice his own son to the pagan gods. He’s made alliances with foreign allies, he’s doing everything in his own power to deliver his people. So, this darkness that Isaiah mentions here is a word that brings weight with it. It’s not just a physical darkness or an emotional darkness, it’s a spiritual darkness that has covered the land and the people Israel.

And this is an interesting place for the prophet Isaiah to start. We might think he would begin with light, we might think he would begin with encouraging news for the nation of Israel, but he doesn’t. And why is that? Well, darkness is an important place for Isaiah to begin because we can’t understand the magnitude of the light that has come until we first acknowledge the reality of the darkness that is there. We can’t fully be grateful for what God has done for us by sending His Son Jesus, the Light of the world, until we fully grasp the sinful darkness that is present in all of our lives.

You see, the truth that we see at Christmas that Jesus has stepped into our darkness, takes on greater meaning for us when we realize that...

a. Darkness surrounds all of us.

Notice how Isaiah describes the nation of Israel here, he says they are people “walking in darkness.” Darkness has become a way of life for God’s people. Everywhere they look and in every part of their lives there is darkness. If we look at chapter 8, the previous chapter, we see that it end with hopelessness and darkness for the people of Israel. It ends in darkness and gloom for a corrupt and wicked people who had turned to occult practices and seeking wisdom from occult mediums while rejecting the wisdom of God. Because their enemies were at the gate, they had begun to look to false gods for deliverance and answers. Their future was uncertain, darkness was at the door, and no matter what they tried-political alliances, military strategies, religious rituals to pagan gods-nothing seemed to work.

And there’s an uncomfortable truth that we all have to face this morning: We are not that different from the nation of Israel. Darkness surrounds all of us. Now, we may not have resorted to sacrificing our kids, but we all face a form of darkness in our lives. It’s a darkness that is just as overwhelming and just as inescapable for us. And the darkness in our lives might look different. It might look like grief over the loss of a loved one. It might look like anxiety and fear over an overwhelming situation in your life. It might look like disappointment because life just hasn’t turned out the way you thought it would or there’s a person in your life that hasn’t met the expectations they should have. And for some of us, darkness might be the sin that we are dealing with in our lives. That thing that keeps breathing down our necks that we just can’t overcome.

And here’s what God wants us to hear today: the Bible never pretends that darkness doesn’t exist. It doesn’t give us some prosperity gospel nonsense that says “Just think positive thoughts and everything will be ok.” It does what Isaiah does here in chapter 9, it looks darkness square in the face and says “darkness is real, sometimes darkness is deep, and there is nothing we can do to escape it on our own” and then it gives us the best news ever and that is...

b. Jesus delivers us from the darkness.

Isaiah says in vs. 2 “The people walking in darkness,” but he doesn’t stop there. And aren’t you glad that’s not where he ends. If he ended there, it would be hopeless, if he ended there, we’re done, if he ended there, darkness wins; but he doesn’t end there, he says “The people walking in darkness have see a great light, a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness.” Enter Jesus Christ the Son of God, the Light of the Word, the One who has come to bring light to our darkness.

Have you ever been in darkness, I mean where you couldn’t see your hands in front of your face? So dark that your eyes wouldn’t ever adjust to it. And then all of a sudden in the distance you see a light. Light breaks through the darkness. And there’s a peace that comes with that light. Because the fear that the darkness brings always subsides at the presence of light.

And that’s what Isaiah is communicating to the nation of Israel. They are walking in deep darkness, everything seems hopeless and they are helpless to do anything about the darkness on their own and then light breaks through the darkness. God will eventually deliver them from their enemies and show them grace and mercy pulling His children from the darkness to the light. He will give them eventual victory and shatter the oppression that their enemies have brought on them.

And, ultimately, what Isaiah is pointing the people of Israel and us to is the coming of Jesus Christ. That God will send His Son to be born as a human being, fully God and fully man, He will live and ultimately, He will die for the sins of the world, He will be resurrected from the grave to restore a relationship between God and every human being who believes in Jesus as God sinless Son. And just like God brought victory to Israel over their enemies, Jesus has brought victory over sin and death to all who will surrender to Him as Lord and Savior. Jesus is the one who delivers us from the darkness that surrounds us.

And this deliverance that only comes through Jesus Christ the Son of God gives us hope. And it’s not a hope that we conjure up or manufacture, it’s not something we find in and of ourselves, it only comes to us because of what Jesus has done for us. And that’s good news because that means that hope in this life and beyond doesn’t depend on us but it is available to us because of Jesus.

The light stepped into the darkness, that’s the hope of Advent. That’s the hope of Christmas. God didn’t wait for us to figure it out, while we were surrounded by darkness and sin, Christ came for us. Emmanuel-God with us.

And that’s a reason to make room for hope because Jesus has stepped into our darkness.

Reason #2...

2. We make room for hope because Jesus has satisfied our longing hearts. (vs. 6) (the government, Jewish people looking for a ruler, no human ruler would satisfy their hearts, Jesus does by the names in this verse)

You know, when we think about Christmas and the birth of Jesus, power and authority are not things that immediately come to mind. We think of Jesus as the baby in the manger as we see depicted in all of the nativity scenes. He’s meek and mild and really defenseless because He’s a baby. And although all of that was true about Jesus because He came in the form of a human child, what’s also true is that in that child lay the power of God to save the world and the ability to satisfy our longing hearts. This king and this rescuer of humanity, this savior of the world would not come in power like everyone expected but would come in the form of a baby like no one expected. But Isaiah describes for us who this child will be. Look at vs. 6...

The humanity of our Savior Jesus is established in the first words of vs. 6, “For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us...” He has been born FOR US and GIVEN TO US. He is fully human but also fully divine. It happened just as the angels said to those shepherds outside of Bethlehem, “Today, in the city of David a Savior was born FOR YOU.” Jesus is as meek as a lamb but as powerful as a lion. And it says, “the government will be on His shoulders.” He is the King and ruler that the people have been longing for.

And then in an amazingly detailed description, that is packed with hope, Isaiah tells us who this child is and in these four titles we find everything needed in Jesus to satisfy our longing hearts. Through these titles, Jesus brings four specific things:

a. Jesus brings wisdom to our confusion. He is our Wonderful Counselor

This is more than someone that gives good advice. Wonderful in Hebrew carries with it a sense of the miraculous, beyond human understanding. This is the counselor with wisdom that is far beyond anything we can comprehend. In life when we’re confused and we don’t know what to do. We’ve sought the counsel of family and friends and some of the wisest people we know, but we’re still confused about what’s best. When we need wisdom that’s beyond human understanding, we go to the Wonderful Counselor. Actually, we should go to Him first. Because He knows what we don’t know, He sees the big picture, and He is where the ultimate wisdom comes from. Jesus brings wisdom to our confusion.

And...

b. Jesus brings strength to our weakness. He is our Mighty God

Not only is He mighty to accomplish anything that is in His will for our lives but more that that, He is mighty to save. He has the power to deliver us not just from physical circumstances but He has overcome sin and death itself. This is the ultimate description of power. Our God is a mighty warrior who fights for us and has won the war against sin and death. In and of ourselves, we are weak. We can do nothing to save ourselves. But Jesus brings strength to our weakness.

And...

c. Jesus brings presence to our loneliness. He is our Eternal Father

It’s a mingling of the natural with the supernatural. Father is a word we understand but put that with the word eternal and it changes everything. For those who have surrendered their hearts and lives to Jesus, He embodies the eternal, protective, nurturing care of a father. He will never leave us or forsake us. When we feel alone or forgotten, we aren’t because Jesus will never walk away from us, He is with us now, and will always be with us. Jesus brings presence to our loneliness.

And...

d. Jesus brings peace to our chaos. He is our Prince of Peace

He brings peace among human relationships and through Jesus we have peace with God. Because of His death and resurrection, Jesus is the prince of peace. In our endless war with sin, Jesus has won that war by bringing peace. He has settled our sin debt and reconciled us with God. And in the most stressful and chaotic moments of our lives, when peace seems unattainable, because of Jesus the Prince of Peace, there is a peace that comes to our hearts that cannot be explained.

Think about it-wisdom, strength, presence, and peace-these all represent the deepest longings of our hearts. When we are confused, Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor; when we are weak, Jesus is our Mighty God; when we are lonely, Jesus is our Eternal Father; and when our lives bring chaos, Jesus is our Prince of Peace. And knowing that Jesus is all of those things and has satisfied our longing hearts brings hope. He has met our greatest need, and in meeting our greatest need, He has satisfied our longing heart. And that’s a reason to make room for hope this Christmas.

Reason #3...

3. We make room for hope because Jesus has secured our future through His everlasting reign. (vs. 7)

This season of Advent, these four weeks leading up to Christmas, are not just about us looking back, they are mainly about us looking forward. They are not just about us looking back to the birth of Jesus on that first Christmas in Bethlehem but they are about us looking forward to the second coming of Jesus as the King who will reign forever. And this is what the prophet Isaiah does here in vs. 7. He has described the darkness the people of Israel have been walking in, and then he points them to the light. He says a child will be born who will be the King that the people of Israel have been waiting for, who will satisfy not just God’s requirement of a King but who will satisfy their longing hearts. This King will not be like the earthly kings that have led Israel away from God but He will be the Eternal King who will not just replace once and for all the unfaithful kings of Israel; no, He will reign eternally on the throne of David and He will establish a Kingdom that will never end. And although no other occupant of David’s throne in Israel would fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy, 700 years after Isaiah prophesied these words, God would send His Son Jesus who did fulfill and surpass everything that Isaiah had promised would come to pass. And not only did Jesus fulfill every word of this prophecy, He set His followers, on the course of expectation and hope looking to the day when He will return to establish His Kingdom once and for all.

Advent doesn’t just point us back to a manger but it points us forward to a Kingdom. It points us forward to a future that is secure in the eternal reign of King Jesus. You see Advent shows us that...

a. Jesus’s reign will never end.

Look at vs. 7...

He says, “The dominion will be vast and its prosperity will never end.” This Kingdom is not temporary, it’s eternal. It’s not threatened. It doesn’t depend on earthly circumstances because it doesn’t rise and fall like human kingdoms. It can’t be overthrown or over powered. In fact, Isaiah says this eternal Kingdom does the opposite-it’s ever growing and ever expanding. And it will be forever. And that’s hard for us to comprehend. In a world where power rises and falls. Where leaders are voted in and out of office, it’s hard for us to imagine a Kingdom that lasts forever. But that’s the kind of Kingdom that Jesus came to establish. On that first Christmas, in a manger in Bethlehem, God sent His Son Jesus, and at that moment an eternal Kingdom was set in motion and it was sealed by His death and resurrection. And through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection from the grave, victory over sin and the grave was won. Jesus reigns now and forever and His reign will never end.

And that gives us hope because if Jesus’ Kingdom is eternal, then our hope is secure. You see, the problem with every other source of hope in this life is that it’s temporary. Our health, our relationships, our careers, our finances-they’re all temporary. All of our little kingdoms are temporary. But the Kingdom of God established by Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection is eternal. It’s increasing, it’s advancing. And that gives us the ultimate hope. It’s a Kingdom worth giving our lives to, it’s a Kingdom worth investing all we are and all we have in, and it’s a Kingdom God has invited us into to be a part of for eternity. You see, our hope in Jesus is secure not because of us but because of Him. His Kingdom and His reign will never end.

And that’s the hope of Advent. That’s the hope of Christmas. The child born in Bethlehem is the eternal King and His reign will never end.

Advent also shows us that...

b. Jesus’s reign will guarantee justice and righteousness forever.

Look at vs. 7 again...

Not only is Jesus’s reign eternal but it is perfect. What does this mean? It means that Jesus’s Kingdom, established in His first coming, is eternally good and will ultimately be fulfilled in His second coming. You see, the lasting peace and deliverance that was the hope of the people of Israel was dependent on a king who would reign in justice and righteousness. A king who would make right all that had been wrong, who would rule justly and address every injustice, a king who would mend everything that had been broken. And Isaiah says this is what’s coming. This child, this King, is the Messiah. He is the one who will sit on the throne of David and rule in justice and righteousness which He not only exercises Himself but transfers to every member of His Kingdom. Isaiah assures the people of Israel and us that this King will bring a Kingdom marked by perfect justice-every wrong addressed, perfect righteousness-every standard upheld, and perfect peace-every broken thing mended. And this is what Jesus’s coming represents perfectly. It’s God in the flesh. Emmanuel, God with us. Centuries after Isaiah prophesied about this King, Jesus Christ is born as the fulfillment of perfect justice and righteousness reflecting the nature of God His Heavenly Father.

And one day, Jesus will return, completely fulfilling all that has been promised and He will reign forever and He will guarantee justice and righteousness forever. There will be no corruption, no compromise, He will not merely attempt justice-He will guarantee it; He will not merely promote righteousness-He will sustain it forever. This is the hope that sustains us as followers of Jesus and this is what we wait for with great hope and expectation.

And then Isaiah gives us this guarantee, “The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.” The word for “zeal” here is the Hebrew word meaning “jealousy.” We find it used in other places in Scripture to describe how God feels about His people worshipping other Gods. In Exodus 20:5 “Do not bow in worship to them, and do not serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,...” In Deuteronomy 4:24 “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” It literally describes God as burning with jealousy for the worship of His people.

One commentary takes us to the true meaning of what Isaiah is saying here, “God loves His people. That He should leave them in the hands of such bad Davidic kings, and give them up to the imperial power of the world, would be altogether irreconcilable with this love. But His love flares up, consumes all that is adverse, and gives to His people the true King, in whom that which was only foreshadowed in David and Solomon reaches its highest fulfilment.” (Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch)

And this is King Jesus. His Kingdom will never crumble. His rule will never fade. His justice will never fail, and His righteousness will never diminish. He is the God who is zealous for the worship of His people so much so that He gave his life to make this all possible and one day He will return to reign in perfect justice and righteousness forever.

Isaiah 9 is a promise for all who put their faith and trust in Jesus. A promise sealed by the character of God, fulfilled by the Son of God, and guaranteed by the zeal of God. And this gives us hope. Hope that is firm not fragile, hope that is eternal not temporary, and hope the is secured by our everlasting King.

Closing

Isaiah 9 invites us to make room for hope. To make room in our hearts, to make room in our minds, to make room in our lives for the hope that God freely give us through Jesus Christ, who came that first Christmas and is one day coming again.

Make room for hope because Jesus has stepped into our darkness, make room for hope because Jesus has satisfied our longing hearts, make room for hope because Jesus has secured our future through His everlasting reign. Will you make room for hope this Christmas?