SPEAKER_00 0:00

Well, uh, for those of you that are guests today, I want to say thank you for being here. My name is Nick, and I'm one of the pastors, and really grateful that you took some time during this Christmas season to come uh join us this morning. And uh this is an exciting time of year, as I said. Um it's also I it would be a total miss if I didn't have some uh alluding to Star Wars. How many of you guys went and saw Star Wars? Yeah, a few of you? Well, if you didn't, let me go ahead and tell you what happened. So, like basically I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Uh I won't do that to you. But my son was trying to do that to people, okay? Um it is a little weird to see Yoda again. Anyway, but that's but by the way. Um so if you haven't seen it though, it's it's great. They did a good job. And you know, one of the most famous uh lines in all of Star Wars, throughout all the different ones they've made, is where uh do uh Darth Vader says what? He says, Luke, I am your father, right? That's like one of the most famously quoted lines from all Star Wars. So I was thinking about that and thinking about um, you know, today we're gonna actually talk about uh we're gonna talk about God as our father. We're gonna talk about Jesus as our father. So that's my way to get there just so I can say something about Star Wars, right? Basically, right? But if you have your Bible, I want you to ask you to go ahead and open it up to Isaiah chapter 9. And we're gonna continue our series called Indescribable Gift as we look at Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6, is sort of our theme springboard verse, and we unpack this identity of this Messiah that was proclaimed 700 years before he shows up on the scene. Now that's pretty phenomenal when you think about the fact that 700 years before Jesus is born in a lowly stable in Bethlehem, that prophets were already talking about his coming. They were already declaring to the nation of Israel, this guy's gonna come and he's going to establish a reign, and it's gonna be awesome, and he's gonna lead you out of slavery, out of bondage. And of course, at that time that meant under the Syrian, uh they were under the Assyrians, and so uh in their mind, they're they're they're kind of like, what do you mean he's gonna come and rescue us? But there was hope that was there, but then there was 700 years before that actually came to fruition, and when he does show up, he doesn't do what they expected him to do, which was to kiss, to kick, kick out, not kiss, uh kick out the uh the leaders of that time. Uh but he actually comes and he sets up a different type of kingdom altogether. Something that was much more profound and solved a much deeper issue than simply being oppressed by a temporary government. So if you have your Bible, we're gonna look at Isaiah chapter 9, and we're gonna begin in verse 2, and I'll read this out so we keep the context in which verse 6 is located. Here's what it says The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. A light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness. You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. The people have rejoiced before you as they rejoice at harvest time, as they rejoice when dividing spoils. For you have shattered their oppressive yoke, and the rod on their shoulders, the staff of their oppressor, just as you did on the day of Midian. For the trampling boot of the battle and the bloody garments of war will be burned as fuel for the fire. For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named wonderful counselor, mighty God, eternal father, Prince of Peace. The dominion will be vast, and his prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this. So when we look at verse 6 and we look at those four titles, the titles of wonderful counselor, mighty God, eternal father, Prince of Peace, you'll notice very quickly that there's some human elements and there's some divine elements. That when we're given these names, we're reminded that Jesus, this coming Messiah, this proclaimed, he's not only gonna be God in flesh, uh, he's gonna just be God, he's gonna be uh human. So he's gonna have God and humanity intertwined in this person. It's a miracle, it's a miraculous thing, then how God does this when he comes in this way. And we see that in some of these uh terms like counselor. That sounds like a human thing, right? But but he's called mighty God. And we see how he is, it says at the very beginning, it says, For a child will be born for us, a son will be given. Those are terms that we would use as human beings. We'd use that idea of child or son. And yet, like it comes back to say he will be the eternal father. So he's not just human, he's also divine. And that's something in my brain I can't fully reconcile, just to be honest. I've studied it all my life, I've looked at these different passages, and there's some mystery, there's some miracle of who God is, and particularly who Jesus is. And that's a good thing, right? Because we need a God who's beyond our comprehension. We need a God who's bigger. In fact, we said from the passage in 2 Corinthians 9 that Jesus is the indescribable gift. Meaning that there are not enough words in the human vocabulary, there's no capacity in our humanness to fully describe how wonderful and awesome God is. We can sing about him, we can teach about him, we can talk about him, we can try to describe him, but at the end of the day, our humanness limits us from truly articulating how awesome and amazing and wonderful Jesus is. And that's a good thing because he's God. He's not like us. And we're gonna talk about that today because we're gonna look at the idea that Jesus is eternal Father. So let's unpack those two words and then talk about some implications of those two things, that he is eternal and that he is father. Notice verse 7 says that the dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. You hear this constant language throughout that verse, that he is going to establish a kingdom, and it's not going to be a temporary kingdom, it's gonna be an eternal kingdom, right? What's interesting is when we read about Jesus, we understand about Jesus and his eternal nature, remembering he is God, therefore he is eternal. He is everlasting. Maybe that's one of the words that uh is typically used. Uh maybe you grew up hearing he is the wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father. Uh, for some unknown reason. I'm kind of weird, it makes me think of an everlasting gobstopper. Uh, I don't know, that's just me. I'm kind of corny like that, but uh but that everlasting word, what does that mean? It lasts forever, right? It lasts forever. It is it he is he is he has no beginning, he has no end, his kingdom has no end. Psalm 90, verse 2 says this before the mountains were born, you gave birth to the earth and the world. From eternity to eternity, you are God. I I can't fully explain that to you. I can't plumb the depths of that reality that he is eternal. Um, I just know that when I hear the scripture talk about his eternalness, I reminded again that he is so much greater than I can begin to even comprehend. I can begin to imagine. He is before time, he is over time, he exists outside of time, he is not limited. Now, if you're like me, I need some visuals sometimes to help me. So, JT, I need your help here. Um, he's sitting in a great spot this morning. I need some sort of visual, I need some sort of help, like um just trying to get an idea of when I say God is eternal. What in the world am I talking about? So, can you just take that and go back to the back of the room there? Yeah, just keep going. And and I guess at some level we just need uh maybe to grasp uh just the craziness of eternity. I've seen all kinds of illustrations and I've heard different people try to describe it. And honestly, there is no illustration. You back there all the way to the door now? He's still going, okay? I want you to imagine with me, can you kind of hold it tight for me? I want you to imagine with me just for a minute that this rope represents the timeline of eternity. Are you with me? It's like this is the timeline of eternity. And the challenge is that this rope isn't long enough because just imagine that this rope just goes right out that wall, right through that set of woods out there, right into that neighborhood, just keeps right on going, and just goes on and on and on forever. All right? And then it goes back there to JT and it goes through that wall and it goes through the restrooms and it goes out to the parking lot and it continues to go on and on forever, okay? That this is this is a timeline of eternity. Now, I don't know, but how many of you guys have got pretty good eyes? Can you see that little black thing right there? I want you to imagine with me that that's your life in the scope of eternity. Now, that's probably really generous, actually. It's probably more like a grain of sand on there, maybe actually microscopic. You couldn't even see it. Yeah, this is how you can let go of that, unless you want to play tug of war. Um, listen, this is kind of how we as human beings, we kind of gauge and we think about eternity, we think about this idea of this timeline, and we tend to be consumed as if the rest of this rope is actually our life, but but this is really all of our life. And God, when it says that he's eternal, it says that he is reigning over all eternity, over all, again, this can't even do it justice, but that he exists as far back as we can go as time goes and beyond, and he goes as far forward as time goes and beyond. Now, that just I gotta I gotta make this point really fast because if you're like me, there's a chance that you came in today with some worries, some doubts, some fears, some struggles, some difficulties. And can I just remind you that in the scope of God's eternality, like this is what we're dealing with. Are you with me? Like your struggle, your challenge, your difficulty, I'm not saying it's not important. I'm not saying that God doesn't care. I'm saying that in the scope of eternity, it is like that. In fact, scripture says that it's like a vapor, that it's here and it's gone. We spend so much time stressing out, anxious, worried, freaking out about what's going on here when God is saying, look, there's a lot more. The point that I want you to understand this morning is that God is reigning on his throne, and his throne is an eternal throne. And that he will outlast every temporary hardship, difficulty, struggle. He will outlast every problem. He's always going to be on his throne. He will always reign forever and ever and ever and ever and ever. He is beyond us. There are some there are some uh characteristics that we share with God, but this is not one of them. Every one of us, we have a beginning. There was a day when you were conceived, and it was a miraculous conception, right? Because God, in his in his uh author of creation way, decided that this is how it was going to work. But we all have a beginning. God does not have a beginning. Nor does he have an end. And so this morning, we worship him. We are reminded that he is indescribable and that he is eternal. That means his characteristics like his love, like his grace, like his truth, like his holiness, those are forever qualities. Are you with me? He's always loving, always and forever gracious, always and forever truth, always and forever just. Every one of his characteristics are magnified into eternity. He is eternal, everlasting, forever God. And by the way, this is a really good thing, because think about it. What if when Jesus did come and he lived and then he was sacrificed on that cross? What if he really did die? At that moment, our faith is dead. If Jesus is dead, our faith is dead, right? A dead God does us no good, but he lives forever and he reigns forever. A dying people need an undying Savior. A dying people, people that are withering away in our broken sin, we need a rescuer, and Jesus was that rescuer. Because he is outside of the limitations that we have of time, and outside of the limitations we have in our physical life. But not only is Jesus eternal, he's father. He is the eternal father. Now, I'll be honest, when I read this and started really thinking, I was like, how does that work? How is Jesus eternal father? I thought that we had we believe in a trinity. Uh, that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What is he talking about? He's Father. Well, let me go ahead and just tell you, he's not saying that he is the same as the Father that's in the Godhead. He's not saying that he is the same person of the Trinity. Anybody's head blown yet? Okay? We believe that the Bible says, even though the word Trinity is not used, that God is Father, He is Son, and He is Holy Spirit. Three distinct persons, yet all fully God. And there are no illustrations that will fully help us comprehend that mystery. But that's what the Bible teaches. It says that God is three in one. All equally God, but different in how they actually function. We don't believe that there's one God that shows up in three different modes. There are some churches that teach that. We believe there are actually three distinct persons. We go to Jesus' baptism, and we see at Jesus' baptism that he is being baptized by John, and while he's being baptized, the Father is speaking down out of heaven, and the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove. All three persons of the Trinity there in one scene. It's a beautiful picture. All right? So I'm just trying to help you understand that when he says he is the eternal father, we're not saying that he is the father. We're saying, in essence, four things. And there's a lot more we could say here. I can't, I will go ahead and apologize now. We cannot delve into the depth of this rich, rich, rich theology and idea. But here's what it does mean. It does mean that Jesus is the Father in these four ways. Number one, that he reveals the Father. That Jesus reveals the Father because he is from the Father. And he is a part of the Father. And so he reveals the Father. In John 14, verse 18. I'm sorry, John 14, verse 9, it says, The one who has seen me has seen the Father. The one who has seen me has seen the Father. His disciples are there, and Jesus is telling them, hey, look, one day I'm going, I'm going to prepare a place for you, and then I'm going to come back and get you, and it's going to be awesome. I'm going to take you with me. And I will take you to the Father. And they're like, Where's the Father? How do we get to the Father? We haven't seen the Father. And he says, Are you dense? If you've seen me, you've seen the Father. So Jesus reveals the Father to humanity. In fact, if you want to know what God is like, look at the life of Jesus. Hebrews chapter 1, verse 3 says this: The Son, that being Jesus, is the radiance of God's glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word. So when we look at Jesus' life and we read the gospels, those four first four books of the New Testament, when we read them and we see how Jesus interacts with people, we know what the Father would do with people. We know how the Father interacts with people, right? When we read that and we see how Jesus was sinless and we see how Jesus was full of grace and truth, that that is how the Father is. The second thing he does is that Jesus relates to us as a father. He relates to us as a father. Even though he was the Son of God and even calls himself the Son of Man, he actually relates to us as human beings as a father. John 14, 18, where Jesus is going on in the same passage I just mentioned a while ago, he says, I will not leave you as orphans. I will not leave you in your state of isolation. I will I will not leave you as orphans. I won't desert you, but I will actually come back for you. You see, Jesus loves us as a father should love his children. And I've got to make a note here. The minute that we said Jesus is father, some of you guys just kind of checked out, or some of you kind of said, I can't go there. I just think this is a really important piece of this puzzle for us. I think for some of us in this room, the moment I use the language father is the moment you said, I can't go there. I can't see God that way. I don't want to see Jesus that way. And that's because for many of us in this room, just knowing statistics alone tells me that we've had some wounds from our earthly fathers. That probably some of us in this room have experienced pain, suffering, difficulty, loss, hardship, and it was at the hands of this man called Father in our lives. And I want you to know this morning that God, as your heavenly father, that he aches for your pain in that. That God is a father who is not unaware, he's not indifferent, he's not off in the clouds doing his own thing. Okay? He is very aware that some of you have been wounded, some of you have been hurt, some of you are wrestling even in this moment to say, man, I don't want to ever see God as a father because what I saw is not what I ever want to see again or experience again. And as a pastor, as a church leader, as a brother in Christ to you, if you're a Christ follower, I would just say, I'm so sorry that that's the picture of father that you have. I'm so sorry. I had, as I was growing up, a good earthly father. And yet my father still failed me at times. He still broke promises, he still said things that were hurtful, he still did things that he wishes he could take back. He still had to say, I'm sorry, because he was not a perfect father. But our father is perfect. He is a father of light. There is no shadows, there are no shifting things in him. He is a good father. Some of you guys probably listen to Christian radio. You may have heard a recent song that Chris Talman released. He always writes really singable songs. It's very simple, very direct. And it just says, You are what? A good, good father. Yes, you are. Yes, you are. Some of us, I know you're like, I don't really, I'm not in the Christian music thing. I don't really like Christian. That's fine. I think the song is here's the deal. Some of us need to just let that sink in. We need to just marinate in that reality that God is a good father. And that Jesus reveals that father to us and he relates to us as a father. Think about it. Um, God could have just left it at uh, I am your king. I'm your master, right? I mean, the Bible could be God is master, God is king, God is creator, God is Lord. You could just stop there, but he doesn't do that, does he? The language that's used most consistently is what? Father. Because he relates to us in a paternal way. Yes, he created us, but he didn't just stop, stop caring about us or loving us when he created us. He continues to do that because he's a good, good father. He came. And Jesus demonstrates this practically, even when he comes, he he shows how he loves people. He doesn't come to condemn them and to cut them out. He comes to bring them in, to draw them near, to show them compassion. It even says in John and in Mark and in Matthew that when Jesus sees crowds, he has what? He has compassion on them. That's a good thing, right? We want Jesus' compassion. He shows us a fatherly compassion when he sees the hurt, when he sees the pain, when he sees the ugliness of our situations, when he sees the fears and the doubts and the struggles that we have, he has compassion on us. So that's our Jesus. How he would relate to us. But not only that, Jesus represents a new way to the Father. He represents a new way. In fact, he represents the only way to the Father, is what the scripture would teach us. John 14, 6, probably some of you have it memorized, but if you do, if you don't have it memorized, it says there that Jesus told them, I am the way, the truth, and the life. And no one comes to the Father except through me. So Jesus, as being the eternal Father, actually provides a way to the Father. Now, I want you to understand, because this is Christmas season, and I'm going to come back to this in a minute, but I want you to understand the reason why Christians should be awesomely excited at Christmas is because we have a way to God. And his name is Jesus. That's the way. Now, there's a father of ideas and philosophies and strategies, and I mean, think about it. We'll see how how bright you guys are. Does anybody know what Galileo was the father of? Astronomy and science, right? Anyone know what Socrates was the father of? Philosophy, right? Anyone know uh who the father of um uh let's see, father of Texas Longhorne football. Okay, never mind. We'll go there. How about this one? Who does anybody know who We are tunes or the father of? Let's see how culturally connected you are. We are tunes? Whip whip nene, come on. You guys gotta know that, right? Some of y'all are like, come on, teens, y'all left me hanging. They're the father of the whip nene. Some of y'all got that the second time around. What's up with that? No, I I say that. People find they they they they establish ideas, they establish philosophies, they establish ways of thinking, and people follow in their pattern. And when it comes to the biblical pattern, what we find from scripture is that Adam was the first father. He was the first father of humanity. God created Adam, and when he established uh creation there in the garden, and he gave Adam a task to do, and he gave him a rule to follow. He said, Don't eat from a tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And what does Adam do? He eats from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, right? He eats from that. I know we talk about Eve, but Adam's the one who was given the instruction, okay? And he he sets a pattern for us. And guess what it says in Scripture? It says that from that point, all humanity followed in the way of our first father, Adam. We followed into the pattern of sin and rebellion. In fact, in Romans chapter 5, it says it this way. Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, Adam, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all men because all sinned. So Adam sins. He sets a pattern that all of us are going to live self-centered, God seeking in our trying to be God ourselves, God substituting lives, and that that's going to lead to death. That's the pattern that was set by our first father Adam. But then notice what goes on, Paul goes on to say in Romans chapter 5 and verse 15, he says this but the gift, what's the name of our series? Indescribable gift, right? But the gift, this child that would come, this Jesus, this gospel that he would proclaim and live out, is not like the trespass that Adam did. It's not the pattern that Adam had. For if by the one man's trespasses the many died, how much more have by the grace of God and the gift overflowed to the many by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ? We have a new pattern. We have a new way. And that new way is to live in light of the truth of what Christ has done for us that we could not do for ourselves, right? That's the new way to God. It's a new pattern. It's been established. In fact, Hebrews 12 says it this way: that Jesus is the author and the perfecter of our faith. That's a good thing. He started it, he established it, and he is the perfecter of it. And so when we look at Jesus' life and we see him, we remember that he didn't just show us how to live, he lived that way in front of us as an example, and then he gave us the capacity to live new lives, change lives, transform lives, because he is the way, the truth, and the life. And Jesus established this way to the Father through faith. The final thing we want to talk about today is that Jesus not only revealed and not only did he do these other things we've discussed, but he also rescues us as a father. He rescues us as a father. Now, as a dad of children, uh six children, uh, and or if I even if I had one, uh, one of the things you notice is if you're an in-tune parent, you learn the cries of your children. Anyone know I'm talking about? Uh they have different cries. Sometimes the cry is I'm really angry, uh, or it's I'm hungry, or it's the cry of my brother's not being nice to me. Uh, but there's all these different cries, and and uh and so uh as I'm sitting at the house not too long ago, I'm watching the news, and our kids love to play out in the backyard, and one of our sons, if if I named him, you would know why he was doing this. He is jumping on the trampoline and he falls through the springs, and all of a sudden he's hanging upside down from a spring, right? And he's like, got his leg through there, and he's just hanging upside down. And I hear this cry, and I know immediately it's the cry of, I gotta get up and go get him, right? And he's saying, Dada! You know, as soon as he sees me out the door, he sees me coming and he's like, daddy! And he's like, Is that hanging upside down? And so I go and I pick him up and I put him back on there, and I give him a hug, and he's like, Okay, then he just bounces off. Okay? This is what he does. Now, I say that because in our lives, we find ourselves in a world of hurt a lot worse than just hanging upside down on a trampoline spring, right? Our actions, our rebellion, our dumb decisions we make, our foolishness, it leads to a lot of pain and suffering in our life. But here's the good thing is if you are a Christ follower, you have a father who rescues, who comes and meets us in those moments. You have a father who's shown a track record of not leaving us alone and letting us just go into isolation or oblivion, not just letting us go through and be destroyed, but he actually comes and brings life and he saves, he rescues. And so I say that to you this morning. That Jesus is our Father. And he is a rescuing father. Jesus did not just say he loves us, and God's word in Romans 5 tells us that he demonstrated his love for us. Romans 5 chapter 8 says this, but God proves his own love for us, and that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than, since we have now been declared righteous by his blood, we will be saved through him from wrath. Listen, guys, we were headed towards eternal separation from God and of our sin, and of our own way. And God has brought us life. He rescued us. In fact, it says this in Romans 6.23 for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. My guess is that if you've been around church, you've heard that verse before. Let me remind us again. We were headed towards death. And I'm not just talking about temporary death, although sin can do that. I'm talking about eternal death, eternal suffering, eternal disconnect from God. We were headed towards that. In fact, we'd actually earned it, uses the word wage. We'd earned death. And he says to us, I offer you a gift of eternal life, a rescue plan, a way out, a way to not go to death, but a way to have eternal life. In Romans 10, 13, this is a great verse, especially for those of you who may have lost family members, friends, people who have not put their trust in Christ, they're trying to earn their way to heaven still, or maybe they're just completely indifferent. Maybe they've got other ways that they're trying to make themselves into better people. In Romans 10, verse 13, it says, For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. The question for most of us in this room is, how bad is it gonna have to get before we call on God? You know what I'm talking about? How bad? And I know for some of us, maybe we've never received the gift of salvation. We've never received his free gift. And my prayer is that this Christmas you might receive the gift of salvation through faith. By simply saying, Jesus, would you come and save me? I can't save myself. But then there's some of us in this room that are Christians, we're Christ followers, and we are just doing our thing and we are working so hard. And I want you to remind you that if you're God's child, he is waiting to help you. He's waiting to help you. He wants to help you, he wants to give you power. He didn't say go do it on your own. He said, do it with my strength. Live differently, live changed life with my power, with my strength. And that requires us to calling on him. Calling on his name, Jesus. To sum all this up, literally in the Hebrew language, the phrase eternal father could be read as the father of eternity. That's actually probably more accurate in terms of how it would be said. That Jesus is the father of eternity, that he established a way for us to experience eternal life. He is father forever. I realize, as I said a while ago, some of you came in today troubled by life. I mean, really troubled. You've put on a pretty good front. Things look pretty normal on the surface right now. But below the surface, behind closed doors at your home, at your workplace, things are not going well. Relationships are not going well. Stress and anxiety is overwhelming you. Fear is overcoming you. I mean, if we're really honest, some of us are in that boat today. And I want you to know that in spite of your doubts, in spite of your fears, there is a true Father who is never ending in his pursuit of you. And as long as you have a breath in your line, as long as you have a beat of your heart, God is pursuing you. And he wants you to know him. And he wants to invite you to receive the rest that comes from ending your work to save yourself or from ending your work to try to fix your problems and to receive the gift of his life and his spirit, his powering presence in your life. And God offers you that. So this morning, the biggest question we have to ask is: Is God your father? Is Jesus your eternal father? Is he the source of life? And if he is the source of life, how are we living daily dependent on him? How are we daily living, relying on him? Are we looking to him to be the answer to the struggles, to the difficulties we face, or are we still trying to do it on our own? Can I just say, as your friend, as a pastor, as someone who loves you deeply, stop trying to live the life that God's called you to live on your own? You can't. But with Christ, you can. You can live a new life, a changed life, a redeemed life. Some of us are hanging upside down by a thread this morning, right? Some of us are struggling. This Christmas, turn to the eternal Father to pray.