Have you ever felt the profound stillness on Christmas Eve, a night that speaks to the heart of anticipation and hope? Join me as we embark on a journey through the prophecies of Isaiah, unwrapping the layers of meaning behind the Christmas narrative. Together, we delve into the dual nature of the virgin birth prophecy, the complexities underpinning King Ahaz's reign, and the sweeping promise of a Messiah who reaches beyond the borders of Israel to embrace all of humanity.
Drawing from the somber reflections of Isaiah 53, this episode juxtaposes the joyous nativity with the solemn crucifixion. With an openness that comes from personal reflection, we confront the weight of sin, the indispensability of Jesus' sacrifice, and the profound chasm sin creates between us and God. This discussion isn't just theological musings; it's a stark look at the meticulous planning of our salvation story that was set into motion centuries before the manger scene in Bethlehem.
As the Christmas season glimmers with hope, we discuss the theological implications of a new heaven and earth, and the peace that the Savior's birth heralds. The episode doesn't shy away from tough questions: how do we reconcile the decline in church attendance with the spiritual hunger palpable during the holidays? How can we carry the hope of Jesus into our daily lives, not just at Christmas? As we close, I invite you to embrace the peace and salvation Christ offers, carrying with you the true spirit of Christmas into a world in need of hope.
Have you ever felt the profound stillness on Christmas Eve, a night that speaks to the heart of anticipation and hope? Join me as we embark on a journey through the prophecies of Isaiah, unwrapping the layers of meaning behind the Christmas narrative. Together, we delve into the dual nature of the virgin birth prophecy, the complexities underpinning King Ahaz's reign, and the sweeping promise of a Messiah who reaches beyond the borders of Israel to embrace all of humanity.
Drawing from the somber reflections of Isaiah 53, this episode juxtaposes the joyous nativity with the solemn crucifixion. With an openness that comes from personal reflection, we confront the weight of sin, the indispensability of Jesus' sacrifice, and the profound chasm sin creates between us and God. This discussion isn't just theological musings; it's a stark look at the meticulous planning of our salvation story that was set into motion centuries before the manger scene in Bethlehem.
As the Christmas season glimmers with hope, we discuss the theological implications of a new heaven and earth, and the peace that the Savior's birth heralds. The episode doesn't shy away from tough questions: how do we reconcile the decline in church attendance with the spiritual hunger palpable during the holidays? How can we carry the hope of Jesus into our daily lives, not just at Christmas? As we close, I invite you to embrace the peace and salvation Christ offers, carrying with you the true spirit of Christmas into a world in need of hope.
Speaker 1:
a minute and pray. I just ask the spirit moves and just kind of quiet our minds and our hearts to receive the word this morning. Yeah, we thank you so much for who you are and thank you for the fact that you love us the way that you do. And, as always, god, I ask that you just, it's always more of you, less of me. It's always your words, those who are here, those who will listen to this online later, those who might listen to it later in the week, and I pray that it's just, it's your truth, it's your scripture, your words that are teaching us and helping us to understand who you are and how much you love us and really how much you, just you, not only did you want to save us, but you desired to be among us to understand us, to help us understand you even better. God, we love you. We thank you for this morning, we thank you for this holiday, we thank you for Christmas, we thank you for everything you do and your sons and their bread. Amen. So Merry Christmas Eve.
Speaker 1:
It's not quite Christmas yet, however, that is coming tomorrow. For those of you who can make it out tonight, we're having our Christmas Eve service night at six o'clock and we're just going to sing a couple classic Christmas carols hymns and then we are going to be reading from the book of Luke, actually looking at the story of the birth of Jesus. So if you want to come out tonight that's at six o'clock we'd love to have you, and then our second service today is at 1045 and our kids will be performing their program for this morning. So if you want to stay for that service, you're more than welcome to. So, like I said, we've been looking at the book of Isaiah and so we've been looking at how Isaiah understands who Jesus is.
Speaker 1:
So Isaiah starts out in the beginning and when he talks about the virgin birth so he's speaking at the moment that he wrote his prophecy he's writing specifically to the people of Israel and he talks about a virgin birth, a baby born of a maiden. So there's kind of a two-fold prophecy there. So King Ahaz was the king at the time and he's not a very good king he's actually probably one of the worst ones that Israel has seen and so he foretells of a birth of a child in the time of Ahaz and says listen, before this child reaches a certain age, israel is going to experience some deliverance, you know some. And he talks about what was coming. Like I said, ahaz is not a good king, and so things are going to kind of be restored, but not fully, because Israel continued to be unfaithful. And so Isaiah and like I said, it's a two-fold prophecy speaks to the future of the child being born to a virgin, and he talks about the importance of this child in this birth. That would not just save Israel, but it would save all of humanity. And then so he starts out with his prophecy speaking of this coming child and Matthew.
Speaker 1:
In the beginning of the book of Matthew, matthew reflects back on this exact idea that a child would be born of a virgin, that they would call him Emmanuel, god with us. And so then Isaiah moves on and to chapter nine. He talks about how this child is going to be different, that there's going to be something about him that brings peace to the world, that the world, the governments of the world, will rest on his shoulders, that all mankind will eventually bow to who he is, whether they want to or not. And then he jumps ahead, isaiah 11, chapter 11. He starts talking about the kind of peace that this child will bring. He talks about how that there'll be a, the lion and the lamb will lie down together, that men will give up their swords, that wars will stop being fought, that there's a peace that is coming, that you and I can't quite comprehend yet. And so he lays it out, all of these prophecies, and then he jumps ahead to Isaiah, chapter 53. And he starts talking about. He's talking about the future of Jesus's life, the plan that there had to be someone who would suffer on our behalf. And I know that it sounds like a lot, right.
Speaker 1:
When we talk about the birth of Jesus, we talk about and we love the story, the baby and the manger and being surrounded together and the family. And there's something I see every year around this time that I always think is funny, but it's essentially the idea that, you know, as soon as Mary got baby Jesus to fall asleep, a little boy showed up with a drum and thought to himself that kid really could use a drum solo right now, right Now. Of course, we don't know that that's the story we tell, but I can tell you, as someone who has three kids and my kids are asleep you play the drum in my house. You and I are going to have a conversation, right, but we talk about how beautiful the birth is and how amazing that night was, and then it changed the world. And then, as people, start to understand what was going on, and so we celebrate Christmas, that the light of the world has come, and so that's a great thing.
Speaker 1:
But Isaiah in chapter 53 jumps ahead to the end of Jesus' life here on earth and he makes it clear that sin is a problem and that sin has to be dealt with. And listen, I don't want to overshadow that, because I think a lot of times and I think we have to be careful, because we talk about Jesus. He died for my sins and that's a wonderful thing, but sometimes I think we take it a little too lightly that sin, since Adam and Eve messed up, has separated us from God. God and sin cannot exist in the same place. You and I have sinned, we're fallen, we're broken people. When Jesus stepped into our world, when God sent him as Emmanuel, it wasn't just about the birth, but it was the fact that God knew that he had to deal with sin in our life that you and I cannot do on our own. So Jesus' birth and death was incredibly intentional. Because it had to be, because if there was no birth, if there is no death, there is no salvation, there is no redemption, there is no heaven for any of us, and Isaiah does not take that lightly. Neither should we.
Speaker 1:
Isaiah 53, starting in verse one, said who has believed our message and to whom has the armor of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him. Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him is speaking of Jesus. He was despised and rejected by mankind. A man of suffering and familiar with pain, like one from whom people hide their faces. He was despised and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering. Yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Speaker 1:
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. He was like a lamb, led to the slaughter, and a sheep before it shears his silence. So he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment, he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested For he was cut off from the land of the living, for the transgression of my people. He was punished. He was assigned to grave with the wicked and with the rich. In his death, though, he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth, yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. And then the Lord makes his life an offering for sin. He will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hands. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life, be satisfied by his knowledge. My righteous servant will justify many and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will give him a portion among the great and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death and was numbered with the transgressors, for he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.
Speaker 1:
And, like I said, isaiah is talking about the future suffering of Jesus. This is the part that Israel. I think they missed it. And I think they missed it because when Jesus showed up and he came into this world and he was born as a baby, and as he grew up and as he got closer to the end of his life the last three years really is what we have an account of he was very intentional in every step that he did, every conversation that he had, and as he got closer to the end, he started to say to his closest of friends my time is coming, the end is near, my life is coming to an end. And in so many of them they they kind of glossed over it and and even the nation of Israel, as they called for his crucifixion, they did not understand that this was actually for their benefit, because in their mind they, they wanted a Messiah, they wanted someone to save them, they wanted someone to overthrow the Romans, they wanted someone who was gonna reign as King. But what they didn't understand is, in order for Jesus to be king, he had to lay down his life for his people. That was part of the plan.
Speaker 1:
Always, 700, some years prior to this happening, isaiah speaks this prophecy of One who would come, of One who would suffer. Romans 3 23 is one of Paul's letters say for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. There's this idea and there's has to be this understanding that that sin is the thing that separates us from God. Always, and every single one of us sin, we. We cannot save ourselves, we cannot be our own Messiah. It will never work. But we try and. And there's other religions. If you study other religions, they tell you if you just do this and this and this, that you can somehow earn Salvation. The problem is is none of them can ever answer. The question is how do you deal with sin? Because no matter how good I am, no matter how many things I do right, the problem is is I have sin in my life and it will keep me from God always, unless I Accept the one who became my intercessor.
Speaker 1:
Isaiah 53, verses 4 through 6, says surely he took up our pain and he bore our suffering. Yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was trust for our iniquities. The punishment, the broadest peace was on him and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was pierced for our sins, he was crushed for our failures. The the moment that Jesus stepped into our world Was the moment hope arrived, and and it wasn't just this temporary Hope, but it was hope for eternity.
Speaker 1:
So many times around this time of year and I know we all get caught up in it we lose sight really easily of why Christmas even exists. And I was at. We ran out to Walmart yesterday. I have no idea why we ran to Walmart yesterday and it was about as chaotic as you could imagine and keep in mind we're in a busy area. But I remember we went to Walmart once we lived in Columbus and I still have no idea. I don't even remember what we bought, because it was nuts. So we went to Walmart, and so there's this hustle and bustle. I've got Everton Griffin with me and I'm trying to make sure they don't get hit by someone with a rogue shopping cart, because my kids are oblivious. They just walk around like there is no one else in the room and so we're walking around. But what I thought was interesting is, for the most part, everyone was polite. I don't think anyone was cussing at me at any point. But so we're walking around and so busy and there's all this stuff going on and I know everyone has last minute things we're doing and we're doing last minute things and I'm standing there in the middle of this chaos and all I could think about is this is why Jesus had to go Because in the middle of the chaos of the world, he's the only piece that we really have. He's the only one who could walk into a room like this and calm everyone down and bring peace. That's such a pivotal part of the message of Christmas is that Jesus stepped into a dark world and he brought hope. And he brought hope and he brought peace, and there's coming a day when he will establish that peace forever.
Speaker 1:
Some of you know Jonathan Abcher. He was here a couple, about a decade ago. Him and I were here actually at the same time and we were talking about the end of the world. One day, as most ministers, I feel like we probably just sit around and talk about stuff like that, and so we were talking about the end of the world. I was like what do you think? What do you think is going to happen? Like what do you think it's going to look like? And so we're having this conversation. We know that there's going to be a new heaven and a new earth, and so we're talking about how, what are the possibilities? Does God restore earth back to what it was supposed to be when the garden of Eden existed? Is this all going to be wiped out? Is there all going to be new? And so we were talking about this and we were kind of once again, this is the conversation between two people thinking so take that for what it's worth. And he said to me he's like I like to think of the end of the world when Jesus comes back, that the earth is going to be restored, as are we, and the way that it's supposed to.
Speaker 1:
So prior to Adam and Eve. I was like okay, that's kind of neat. He's like no, like, okay. He's like understand. He's like so imagine nowadays you're out in traffic, someone cuts you off. You merely get upset. Some people say things, some people do things, but road rage is like a real thing, he's like. But imagine for a moment the world's at peace and for some reason, someone cuts you off and there's just this thing and you're just like. You know what that's okay, like you're going to be completely at peace with everything around you Because, for whatever reason and you don't know why but you're going to see that person and think, oh, they probably had a good reason for that. And so that's the kind of peace that Jesus is talking about bringing, that the animals will be together, that they will live in harmony.
Speaker 1:
And so when it comes to Christmas, when it comes to the hope of the world, it's not just that we're offering people the birth of a savior, we're offering them hope for now and hope for eternity. And so this is what Isaiah is speaking of, of that eternal hope, that understanding that if the savior of the world has come to bring peace, that his death would bring peace and hope for eternity. But the only way for that to happen, the only way for you and I to get there, is to deal with sin. And the only way for sin to be dealt with was God had to do it himself. And so Jesus came, and he was intentional and he would suffer on our behalf. We actually see this in his lifetime several times.
Speaker 1:
But Matthew 8, 16 through 17 said when evening came, many who were demon possessed were brought to him and he drove out the spirits and the word and he healed all the sick. He healed all the sick. This was to fill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah. He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases. So Jesus, in his time on earth, gave humanity a taste of this that he was casting out demons. He was setting people free from oppression. He was setting people free from sickness. This was his intention, one of his intentions, but his ultimate goal was to set us free from the one disease that you and I and no doctor will ever be able to cure, and that's the sin that separates us from God.
Speaker 1:
John mentioned this during his communion meditation, says Hebrews 4, 15, for we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weakness, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are. Yet he did not sin. God came into earth, came down to earth, lived among us, understood us. Jesus did not sin. He modeled for us what it meant to follow after God. Truly, he modeled for us the healing and the truth that he was teaching. He modeled us, for us, that he was going to overthrow all authority. And then he modeled for us the greatest sacrifice by laying down his life for the very people that were screaming for his crucifixion, because he understood that without his birth and without his death there is no hope.
Speaker 1:
Christmas is about hope. Christmas is about peace. Christmas is the moment that God and all of his glory and all of his splendor stepped into our world so that he could understand us but ultimately so he could save us. You know, church attendance in the last three years has gone down pretty dramatically. But for some reason around this time of year people show up. They like Christmas, they like Easter, and that's a good thing. But imagine if we could get them an understanding that, a relationship with God, that if they truly give their life to Jesus, that that hope is something they can experience every day of the year, not just twice a year. That's why, when we talk about coming to church and we invite people in, if we really believe that the message of Christmas is found in the birth of a Savior who was light and stepped into darkness, then how can we stay quiet about that? Because the world is chaotic, the world is dark, the world has no hope. But in Jesus there's always hope. There will always be peace in this life and in the next. And all of that is able to happen simply because it's just the right moment in history.
Speaker 1:
A child was born. There's been a lot of babies born in this world, but none like him. There's been a lot of people in this world who have done great things, but no one like what he's done. There's been a lot of people that we can look up to and we can admire and we might even feel like we owe our life to, but none of them compare to the one who was willing to die for all of us. God didn't just show up to save us. He showed up to show us that in him life could be different, that we could have freedom from the things that keep us from him, that even when Jesus was healing people, that that's part of what he wants to accomplish. That's why, when we pray for healing, we believe it. That's why, when you send these text messages out to different people in all these groups, we pray, because we believe that the Creator of the universe wants to bring healing and listen. I know that's hard sometimes because we might not experience it in this world, but if you're in Christ, there's healing in the next.
Speaker 1:
I look forward to, whatever my new body in heaven is gonna look like. I look forward to my knees not hurting anymore. I know some of you know that I look forward and you know this time of year when I have to worry about being sick all the time, because every kid in my house and every kid in school was sick. I look forward to a place of eternity, of hope and peace, where everything is perfect. But the only way that can happen is if you're willing to give your life for the one who is willing to give.
Speaker 1:
Yours is for you. That is it. He paid the ultimate price and Isaiah refers to him as the suffering servant. Jesus laid down everything in order to bring peace and hope to the rest of the world. That's what we as a church need to help the world understand. When we say Merry Christmas, it's not because we're being rude, but we believe that the Christ child died for me and for you. We want to make sure that the world understands that without Jesus there is no Christmas, there is no hope, there is no future. Without him you're on your own. That's not as fun as it sounds, but with him and in him he will bear your burdens, he will bear your iniquities. He will give you everything and every opportunity to be restored back into a relationship with the one who made you, because you can't do it on your own. So Merry Christmas, that's right.