12-22-2019 The Only One Worthy Of Worship Isaiah 9:6
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Introduction:
This is the Sunday before Christmas and sweet time for us to be together for a few minutes as a church family. As the day goes on for many people here and in other places sometimes all the stuff of Christmas interferes with worship, and especially worship on Christmas day in which we worship by celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus, the Christ. But it's not just the stuff, all of us have plenty of stuff, but what happens when we seemingly celebrate his birthday, it turns and it becomes something that is about us, and we don't give Him full recognition in worship that He deserves. He is the only one worthy of worship.
It is a fact that Jesus came. To appreciate it better, try to imagine for a moment what the world would be like if Jesus had not come. Immediately certain words come into my mind, some of you might be thinking the same things as me. So what would the world be like if Jesus had not come? Despair, Darkness, Death, Depression, Destruction, Depravity. You might think, yeah but we have that now and Jesus did come. He came, but if He had not come, we would still have all those negative things but imagine the intensity of them in the vacuum of hopelessness. That's what the world would be like. I fully realize that there are those who deny Jesus in every way they deny Him. from whether He was virgin born, they deny His miracles, they deny His death, burial, and resurrection. In some cases, they deny the very possibility of His existence.
But Jesus literally changes everything! Instead of despair, there is hope, instead of darkness, there is light, instead of death, there is life. Instead of depression, there is encouragement; instead of destruction, there is salvation; instead of depravity, there is purity. Jesus came into this world.
Transition:
Many references of scripture would lead us into appropriate worship on this Sunday of celebration--and I hope in the next couple of days that there will be occasions where you read the Christmas story. But this morning we're going to look at one popular passage. It is a passage printed on some Christmas cards. But it tells of the future of Jesus Christ as a result of His birth 2000 years ago this prophecy was made. Every detail of the birth of Jesus, the Christ was intentional. Nothing was left to chance-- the place of his birth, the manner of his birth, his mother, the date, the moment, the circumstances, the ruler of the kingdoms--those on the throne--nothing was outside the eternal plan and the Providence of YHWH.
And that encourages me and should all of us--it gives us great assurance that everything that took place was prophetically stated and fulfilled in the birth of Christ--nothing was accidental. That then reassures us when we look at our lives and we look around us-- you can have complete and total confidence in all that God is doing. So please look with me at Isaiah 9:6 at this very familiar verse. On Christmas day we celebrate the only baby born of a virgin. He is the one. Born of a woman who is The Only God/Man. He is the one who saves us from our sins. He is the only one who can save us from our sins. As we think about this celebration of the birthday, perhaps this would be a good time to ponder today what He left. He left heavens glories and took on humanity so that He could save all who believe. We do not have the capacity to understand all of the divine plans of YHWH, yet Isaiah 9:6 gives us some insights that we need so that we can give Him full worship today, and on Christmas day, which He deserves every day.
Scripture Reading:
Isa 9 6
For a child has been born for us; a son has been given to us. And the dominion will be on his shoulder, and his name is called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
As I read this passage, it is hard to miss the four compound names. Those names identify the future of Jesus Christ and they give us insights about his nature and character and they impact us. But we must pause to meditate upon them. You notice first that Isaiah said, “a child is born for us; a son has been given... and His name is called...” In Hebrew, to be called literally means “to be.” In other words, this Isaiah is telling us about the character, the attributes, and the works of Jesus, the Christ. He is telling us who Jesus is!
When you read the book of Isaiah here in chapter 9, Isaiah is prophesying of One that is to come, and this is the end of a passage, and Isaiah has darkness and doom for Israel except for one thing: a Redeemer—our Redeemer! That's what the world is looking for, a redeemer, they want a way out of darkness and doom. And there is only one Redeemer for the world! The only One worthy of worship. These 4 compound names are literally from the standpoint of throne names. They are the names of His royalty. It's amazing when you think about that night when Jesus was born. Mary wrapped him tightly in those clothes— I like the way one commentator described it: “it was literally royalty wrapped in rags.” Baby Jesus. And it was prophesied earlier that his name would be Jesus. It says the name of Jesus is the name that is above every name.
Since one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the father, these throne names are significant and appropriate. A king rules. Jesus is worthy of our worship and our adoration as we consider this prophecy that will ultimately be true in the millennial kingdom and then in the eternal kingdom, but it has many to our lives today and hope you'll see this and think about this throughout this week.
Transition:
What are His throne names? Well first, He is the:
I. Wonderful Counselor
I. Wonderful Counselor
A counselor has the idea of Wisdom. The idea is one whose plans, purposes, designs, and even His decrees for His people are marvelous. In fact, some translations actually say: “marvelous Counselor.” His wise counsel-- the scripture says so; especially Isaiah, Isaiah 11:2
And the spirit of Yahweh shall rest on him— a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and might, a spirit of knowledge and the fear of Yahweh.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans that I am planning concerning you,’ declares Yahweh, ‘plans for prosperity and not for harm, to give to you a future and a hope.
Isaiah 28:29
This also comes forth from Yahweh of hosts. He is wonderful in advice; he makes great wisdom.
and then of course in the N.T. Rom 11:34
“For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?
Of course, that's rhetorical because there is no one that is His counselor. He is the Wonderful Counselor. What that means is that Jesus is the only One who is qualified to lead the human race. Now, a lot of people or government systems say they are capable and qualified but they ALWAYS FALL SHORT. Only Jesus is qualified, in effect, it could be translated, “He is a wonder in council” or “a wonder of a counselor.” Either way, we must follow His counsel to us. And yes, He does counsel us even today. Colossians 2:2-3
so that their hearts may be encouraged, united in love and into all the wealth of the full assurance of insight into the knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ, in whom all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden.
It's all in Him! Christ is a wonderful Counselor! He has given us commands, principles, and laws written for us in His Word. From those, we are to love Him, obey Him, serve Him, and sacrifice for Him. All of us today need this Wonderful Counselor. We constantly need His wisdom. We constantly need what He has to offer for our doubts, for our difficulties, and for our decisions. I’m struggling right now—I’m anxious, I’m worried, I’m depressed. I can’t do this anymore!” This is what Jesus is to be to us! “I need a counselor to fix me! He is that wonder of a Counselor! And while we MIGHT appreciate the council and the advice of godly people, it is His counsel that never fails!
What is His counsel? His Word! If you want counseling of the Highest quality, read and apply what is in your Bible. Try different daily reading plans for reading through the scripture—there are plenty available! You can read through the Bible chronologically, or some New Testament & Old Testament, or read through it with 5 different sections or you can read just the New Testament. I'm trying to give you the opportunity now to read through scripture in a manner that you haven't read through before so choose a plan —many online options just by googling it— choose one that enables you to go through the scripture and read it. When you do that you will know the council of the wonderful counselor. In fact, there are even some out there for children— some of the key chapters of the Bible so parents could work through that with your children.
Transition:
Jesus is the wise wonderful counselor. That's what Isaiah tells us. And then he goes on. He is the Mighty God.
II. Mighty God
II. Mighty God
That's the picture of the strength of a warrior who goes out to battle. It is the image of a champion--one who is victorious, and conquerors, and defeat all enemies. Psalm 24:8 says
Who is the king of glory? Yahweh, strong and mighty; Yahweh, mighty in war!
As we have explicitly seen in our journey through the book of Revelation, all enemies will be subdued by him. Isaiah says that he is the “Mighty” God. “Mighty” is a familiar Hebrew word that you see in many of the compound names of God: El Shaddi, and Elohim, and others. It is used only in a biblical sense of absolute deity: Jesus is God. I think there is a translation that says here “hero God.” I don't think that's demeaning. Everyone has heroes—the person that you look up to, you admire for whatever they're great abilities or their qualities. Deut 10:17
For Yahweh your God, he is God of the gods and Lord of the lords, the great and mighty God, the awesome one who is not partial, and he does not take bribes.
And then Jer 32:18
showing loyal love to the thousands, and repaying the guilt of parents into the laps of their children after them. Powerful, great, mighty, his name is Yahweh of hosts,
The world is always looking for a hero; they're always looking for a leader. A savior, someone who will defeat their enemies and supply their needs--that's what the Jews were looking for when they were thinking of a Messiah. And there have been many leaders, conquerors who have come and gone. They lead their nation until they were conquered or they died. Some were evil, a few were good. We all understand on certain levels what it means to be defeated. We know the power of our enemies: the world, the flesh, the devil. We're all well aware of our own weakness in our own susceptibility to sin.
Christianity is NOT just going to church on Sunday. Christianity is walking out the door Sunday and live it out in your home on Sunday afternoon, and do it on the job on Monday morning, and in the house on Monday night in front of your families, and every day of the week—to focus on and live for Jesus Christ. But we know what it is to fail—especially if you've had to break a bad habit. Why? because we all fail! We understand there is stubborn habits. if you've ever tried to break a bad habit and you look at your life, and you reached a mentality that your middle name is “failure.” You are captive to sin. Jesus is the conquering champion! A true Christian can never say, “I can't, I just can't get victory over this, I can't stop whatever... I can't stop yelling, gambling, cheating, lying” … you can fill the blank. “I can't stop doing this wrong thing” no! no! no! A true Christian could never say, “I can't” the best we could ever say is “I won't”. “Greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.” So if you're honest you can say, “I won't stop.” Because if the Bible is true--which it is--and Jesus is the conquering champion that overcomes all. Then you can have spiritual victory.
Transition:
and Isaiah has said He is the Mighty God, and third, Isaiah goes on and says that He is the Everlasting Father:
III. Everlasting Father
III. Everlasting Father
Everlasting, of course, has the idea of eternity. And the idea of the Father there it's not equating or is saying Jesus is the Father. We know the Trinity that the Son is not the Father, The Father is not the same Person as the Son. The Son is not the H.S., and that the Holy Spirit is not the Person of the Son. We know that they are 3 in 1. That distinction is preserved—This then is the idea of the Father as the originator. Father is faithfulness. There is a paternal aspect to it that expresses love and care like Psalm 103:13-14
As a father pities his children,
so Yahweh pities those who fear him.
For he knows our frame.
He remembers that we are dust.
Isaiah said He's the everlasting father, He is the originator of eternity because He is always been. He is eternal and this also describes that He is the loving protector. You are never without one who watches over and cares about you deeply. For some people, the first thing to go through their mind is “how could that possibly be?” “How can he be watching over everyone with so many tragic, horrible, terrible, wicked, evil things happening right now in this world and we know about them. Instantaneously in the world, thanks to the internet, we know about it. As soon as it happens to a friend, we know about it. is God there? yes, He is! How do we know? because He said He is. He's a loving protector he cares about us. He is eternal. But he understands time. See we don't understand eternity we understand time, he understands eternity and time. He knows our time constraints. He knows the demands on our time. Because he is the author of time.
We live in time. Be on time! Actually I'm a tell you guys a life hack to always be on time. If you are not 30 minutes early, you are already 15 minutes late. I’m living the opposite. If I get to the destination the same day I’m expected, then I'm on time. So the day planner and the list and the things that have to be done. And it has to be all done right now. But in this crazy busy schedule, Jesus understands not just eternity, He understands time. He is the one who created time and our times are in His hands.
Jesus doesn't offer temporary solutions. He is our eternal solution, and He gives all who believe in Him a home in His eternal kingdom. So you don't have to worry about what's going to happen to me after I die. If you know Him, you too, have a home in His eternal kingdom.
Psalm 10:16
Yahweh is king forever and ever;
the nations have perished from his land.
Col. 1:17
and he himself is before all things, and in him all things are held together,
and as we’ve read a few times in Revelation
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead person, and he placed his right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid! I am the first and the last, and the one who lives, and I was dead, and behold, I am living forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and of Hades.
Jesus is the eternal care giver.
Transition:
He's worthy of worship. That's what Isaiah said: He's the Wonderful Counselor, He's the Mighty God, He's the everlasting Father and He's the Prince of Peace.
IV. Prince of Peace
IV. Prince of Peace
Who doesn't need that? Peace. Every good ruler is expected to lead their nation into peace, and to be a nation that has no fear because it is a nation that has peace so we don't have to have fear or worry.
[[30:57]] Peace, here, it is shalom. It's more than the absence of hostilities, Shalom speaks of wholeness, harmony, and restored relationships. It literally has the idea of completeness. The peace that Jesus gives is the peace that the world is actually seeking after. It is a peace that comes by being reconciled to YHWH. It is a peace that is possible when there is broken relationships between families and friends. It is peace in a troubled heart where Jesus creates and restores harmony. Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
crushed because of our iniquities;
the chastisement for our peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we were healed.
John 14:27
Jesus, Himself says,
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you—not as the world gives, I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.
John 16:33
I have said these things to you so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have affliction, but have courage! I have conquered the world.”
If you lack peace, if your heart is troubled, you need Christ. Jesus is the prince of peace.
So how do you celebrate the birthday of the king? Especially the King Jesus. The king has dominion over all. How do you get a gift to the Person that has everything? So how do you celebrate Him? He is the true king of all—the Ruler— He has dominion over everything, and so the most appropriate response is to give Him your focused attention. Can you do that this Christmas? Can you do that later today? Take time away to give Him your focused attention. It's a busy time for family & friends. I would challenge you to worship Jesus. He is the pre-eminent One and is entirely worthy of our time and attention.
So What?
So What?
Paul Tripp, he has written many biblical counseling books. He comments about focusing on God with awe
For America, he said, one devastating tragic result of the materialism and secularism of western culture is that it is taken from us the awe of God. He observed something he said all was meant to keep you safe. To make you humble. To motivate you to be moral. To draw you to seek the grace you so desperately need, and to convince you to live for something bigger than yourself. Awe was meant to get you up in the morning and to give you rest at night. Awe was meant to remind you that your hope is not to be found in what you achieve or pose that house. But is only ever to be found in the glory of the character and plan of another. That other is Jesus.
Conclusion:
He is the only one worthy of worship. That's what Isaiah tells us. He's the wonderful counselor. He's the mighty god. He's the everlasting father he's the prince of peace. Do you need Jesus? I do. I need Him desperately every day, I need Him all day every day. vSo we celebrate Him with worship today. Today is the day of salvation. Come to Him. If you come to Him, You will not be disappointed. You will have eternal life.