Down to Earth #4: Down to Earth: Love Has Come

Down to Earth #4

Love Has Come

Isaiah 9:1–7 ESV

1 But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. 2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. 3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil. 4 For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. 5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 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. 7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Introduction:

Good morning again. I’m excited to continue our Advent series this morning. It’s called Down to Earth, and we are again taking a look at the book of Isaiah and how it connects and previews the birth, life, and work of Jesus Christ. The connections are many, and the implications are HUGE.

Many people know the Hallelujah chorus from Handel’s famous composition called Messiah. You may have been at a choir concert and been asked to stand for the only part of the song that everyone can sing. I remember my high school choir singing it and other songs from Handel’s masterpiece. It’s majestic. If you don’t know, it’s the piece of music that plays when Clark Griswold finally connects his house lights. There is another track called For Unto Us A Child Is Born and the lyrics are taken from the text of Isaiah.

I love how God’s Word gets proclaimed everywhere, sometimes even from a choir full of people who may not realize what is going on..

Let’s recap where we saw Israel at last week.

Recap last week:

Things were pretty bad for Israel. If you’ll remember from last week, we talked about how the nation had been split into two kingdoms: the northern and southern kingdoms. Two kings in the north joined in an alliance against King Ahaz of Judah. Ahaz decides to enlist Assyria's help to defend against this invasion. But God had told his kings not to form alliances like this, so God sent Isaiah to Ahaz and told him not to do that. He tells him to pick a sign, any sign. Ahaz had already made up his mind and wouldn’t ask for a sign. So God gives one anyway because God’s not dependent on us. So Isaiah gives the sign of a virgin conceiving and giving birth to a son, and they would call His name Immanuel, which means God with us. David’s line was threatened, and here was God sending Isaiah to tell him to listen to the Lord, that the Lord would keep his promise and preserve the Davidic line. This would happen through this child. Now, as we turn toward today’s passage, we find out about this child and what kind of king He would be.

Now, if you’ll notice, this passage is written in the past tense at the beginning. This is a prophetic idiom used by the Hebrew prophets.

These prophets would describe future events using past tense language as if the event had already happened. They did this to illustrate the certainty of God’s promise that was being communicated by the prophet. If you look at verses one and two you see the people are in a dark place. They’re hard up. They’re gloomy and in darkness. And Isaiah speaks in past tense of joy that is going to come. Check out verse three.

Isaiah 9:3 ESV

3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.

He doesn’t say “will multiply,” but instead, “have.” He speaks of this as if it has already transpired. This way of communicating truth is designed to give the children of Israel assurance that even though they are in a dark place and the circumstances around them seem grim, God’s faithfulness to fulfill His promise is certain and they can count on it.

They have a promise that is assured because the Lord Himself promised it.

I. Light will come... (v. 1-2)

In this very first paragraph our author introduces a future righteous king who will bring a period of light and peace to God’s people. Things are bad but they won’t stay that way forever. This light, joy, and peaceful era fore-told would contrast sharply with the war, distress, and darkness of the wicked Ahaz’s reign.

John Calvin wrote,

“he begins to comfort the wretched by the hope of alleviation, that they may not be swallowed up by a huge mass of distresses.” - Calvin

It’s important to note this. God lets them know that yes, times are dark and judgment is coming, but there will be a remnant that will remain... remember Isaiah’s son’s name meant “A remnant will remain”. Calvin used that term, “the hope of alleviation.”

We have this reference to Zebulun and Naphtali. This is a reference to the northern part of Galilee, which would have been the first to be humbled by attacking nations. (Show map?) They also would have been the region most influenced by foreign cultures and other religions.

Who was this promised light coming to?

A. ...to those living in darkness.

Have you ever been in a dark room at night and turned on your smartphone? It’s almost blinding. I absolutely love the imagery used in verse 2. The darkness is so covering and all encompassing, and then you turn on a light, and it’s overwhelming. 400 silent years… And so we have this prophetic birth announcement.

II. God will defeat the oppressor of the people. (v. 3-5)

Along with the metaphor of light, we see a theme of rejoicing and celebration.

Gary V. Smith breaks down two examples of this wild, celebratory joy that are given.

“The people will rejoice and jump for joy like people do when they see an unusually massive harvest (possibly referring to the joy at the Feast of Weeks; Deut 16:9–12) or when they observe the hoards of goods brought home by the troops after an enemy nation is plundered.”

Isaiah uses God’s victory over Midian from Judges 6-7 for comparison. He predicts that God will shatter/break, the oppressive yoke of their enemy.

Yoke, bar, and rod were used to dominate people and force them to work physically. They could also be used metaphorically of domineering rule and excessive taxation burdens put on the people. The other imagery we see, of burning of boots and bloody clothes signifies the victory of God in this holy war. There’s no prediction as to when in the future this will happen. The focus is merely on the utter defeat of the enemy of God’s people.

III. A son will rule the Davidic Kingdom justly. (v. 6-7)

There is this connection between the Davidic son, Immanuel, who we read about last week in Isaiah 7 and this Davidic son called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. He would rule the nation with justice. So we have this new revelation through prophecy giving Isaiah new insight into his earlier prophecy. Both refer to the same son.

Notice, as Duncan again points out:

...their rescue comes in the form of a child born for them. There's a child who is going to do vicarious work for them, work on their behalf. Look at the language that's used of him in verse 6. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.” It's very similar, isn't it, to Isaiah 7:14? “The Lord will give you a sign — a virgin will be with child and bear a son.” And then of course Luke picks up on the same language in Luke 2:11. “Today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior.” This child's birth is for His people, for the well-being of His people, for the saving of His people. We need this child to be born! (Ligon Duncan)

The language used in verse 6 is “the government will rest on His shoulders.” The government will rest on His shoulders. So, a child — what's the answer to the crisis that the people of God face? A wicked king surrounded by nations like jackals waiting to pounce on them for prey - what's the answer? It is certain that a child will be born who will bear the kingship of God's people and will deliver them. And He's described, isn't He, right at the end of verse 6.(Ligon Duncan)

- Now, let’s turn our attention to four things said about this coming son. Four titles that He is given here that tell us what He will be like:

A. Wonderful Counselor

What does this mean? When I was younger, I had always heard this passage read aloud or recited, and I just assumed there was a comma there because of how people recited it. As it turns out, there’s no comma there. He is a Wonderful Counselor. What is that about? One pastor I read said that this was about as close as you can get in Hebrew to calling something or someone supernatural. The child will be born and will possess a heavenly, supernatural wisdom.

If you’ll call back from last week and the recap earlier, Ahaz was trusting in his own wisdom and military know-how rather than in God's wisdom. But here was coming a son, born of a virgin, who would possess the very wisdom of God and be a wonderful counselor. It’s an extraordinary, miraculous skill of giving wise advice and making plans. Suggests miraculous acts of God exhibited in the life of this son.

Similar to prophecy in Jeremiah 23:5

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

B. Mighty God

Testifies to the divinity of the one born.

Deuteronomy 10:17 ESV

17 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.

Nehemiah 9:32 ESV

32 “Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day.

Isaiah 10:21 ESV

21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.

C. Everlasting Father

Don’t get confused here. Son or Father? This passage does not confuse the two. It attributes the rule of God to Him, the Son. In the OT, kings were referred to as fathers. Spiritual and political fathers to their people. Everlasting Father means He will rule over His people. Everlasting, meaning His rule will never end. So you’ve got this child called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Everlasting Father... and that’s not it. A fourth title is given.

D. Prince of Peace

He is going to be the one to bring peace to His people. Answer to the crisis the people are facing.

Micah 5:4–5 ESV

4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. 5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men;

The New Testament gets it. Listen to how it speaks of this child.

Luke 2:13–14 ESV

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Acts 10:36 ESV

36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all),

Romans 5:1 ESV

1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 1:20 ESV

20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

Conclusion, Application, and Response Time

Now, there may be some who question who this prophecy is actually referring to. I can tell you that it is talking about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God, and our Savior. Some may still not understand that, so I just want to show you something. Look at Matthew 4:12-17:

Matthew 4:12–17 ESV

12 Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.” 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Theological implications:

1. Jesus is all of these things described as this son from the Davidic line who brings light and is called by these names.

1. Jesus is the light that rescues people living in darkness.

2. God does the work of salvation. Doesn’t ask anyone to contribute. It’s grace.

Hang your life, your faith, everything on the truth that the crucified and risen Jesus Christ is:

1. Jesus is Wonderful Counselor. Are you seeking his wisdom and counsel as you plan your life and days?

2. Jesus is Mighty God.

3. Jesus is Everlasting Father.

4. Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

Salvation was offered in Christ first to the Jews and then the rest of us, the Gentiles were offered salvation and grafted in. The church of Jesus Christ are the people of God. Not only did bring the Jews back from exile but He brought Christ through the line of David to fulfill the promise of hope for them and for the whole world of those who trust in the gospel.

We might be tempted to not believe that God loves us or that He will bring peace to the earth one day, or peace to our hearts. In all of the hustle and bustle of this holiday season we may miss the glorious promise that was fulfilled at Christmas and the promises that will still be fulfilled at His return.

Maybe you come to this Christmas season with a war raging in your heart. Maybe you’re dealing with tragedy or unrealized hopes. Maybe you’re suffering and maybe you are rejoicing. Let me encourage you with the words of one of my favorite modern day original Christmas tunes. This is by Dustin Kensrue. It’s called This is War. Sounds like a funny name for a Christmas song but Christmas was and is a spiritual battlefield.

This Is War by Dustin Kensrue:

 This is war, like you ain't seen This winter's long, it's cold and mean With hangdog hearts we stood condemned But the tide turns now at Bethlehem This is war, and born tonight The Word as flesh, the Lord of Light The Son of God, the lowborn King Who demons fear, of Whom angels sing This is war on sin and death The dark will take it's final breath It shakes the earth, confounds all plans The mystery of God as man

God as man. God and Man. God in the flesh, come down to earth to redeem a people for Himself. God come to rescue us from our sin. The world saw it as meaningless. A fragile human baby. But the subversive plan of God was that the baby would become a man and live without sin so as to be the perfect, once and for all sacrifice for we, humanity, who can not make peace with God on our own merit.

Who do you say Jesus is? What matters is the truth of who He is. Do you agree with all of scripture, with thousands of years of believers that He is God and that salvation comes through no one else or will you continue to rely on your own work, deeds, wisdom, and methods for peace. You will only find it in Jesus.

This is what we celebrate that God came to Earth to redeem us. So let that love of God be your joy this season.

Let’s pray.