TEXT: Isaiah 9:6
MESSAGE: God Understands
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“Loneliness is much more often commented on by songwriters than by social scientists. One psychiatrist has suggested that we neglect loneliness because we have no theory with which to begin to cope with its manifestations.” – MIT Press
“You try to sleep but a chill seems to have crept into the room—and into your heart. The old longing rises unbidden, the longing for someone who isn’t there. That thickness in the throat, dryness in the mouth, that restlessness—what is it? You have been given much—home, work, friends. What is this weakness, this sickness, this storm in your soul?” — Elisabeth Elliot
“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. Isaiah 9:6
And so how does God meet us? He does it in three ways…(1. In an understanding way 2. In an astounding way 3. In an accessible way)
1. In an understanding way – “For to us a child is born…”
“The incarnation means that for whatever reason God chose to let us fall … to suffer, to be subject to sorrows and death—he has nonetheless had the honesty and the courage to take his own medicine…He himself has gone through the whole of human experience—from the trivial irritations of family life and the cramping restrictions of hard work and lack of money to the worst horrors of pain and humiliation, defeat, despair, and death…He was born in poverty and…suffered infinite pain—all for us— and thought it well worth his while.” — Dorothy Sayers
“For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” – Hebrews 2:18
2. In an astounding way –“…to us a son is given and the government shall be upon his shoulder…”
“His peoples shoulders are delivered because he takes the burden of rule.” — Alec Moyter
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” — Hebrews 4:15-16
3. In an accessible way –“…his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Takeaways: How do we deal with loneliness?
- Remember the Incarnation
- Remember God’s family
- Remember it’s complicated
“He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.” ― C.S. Lewis