SERIES: ADVENT (WEEK 2)

TEXT: Isaiah 9:1-7

MESSAGE: Jesus, Our Mighty God

“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…” — Isaiah 9:6

How is Jesus our mighty God and why does it matter?

“The Almighty appeared on earth as a helpless human baby, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child. The more you think about it, the more staggering it gets. Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as this truth of the Incarnation.” – J.I. Packer

How is Jesus our Mighty God? We see three ways from today’s text. His arrival transforms…(1. Darkness to Light 2. Gloom to Joy 3. Bondage to Freedom)

1. Darkness to Light (v. 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.”

“The ultimate question of human nature: Why do we repeatedly violate our most deeply held values and beliefs? For all our therapies, resolutions, self-help programs, and the vast religious and ethical literature available to men and women today, we return again and again to the same limiting and predictable behaviors, vowing to do better “next time.” —  Jacob Needleman

“You see what’s happening is, at the end of chapter 8, we see the Israelites, and they’re crushed under famine, and they’re crushed under all sorts of crushing social and psychological problems, and they’re running everywhere. They’re looking to the great intellectuals. They’re looking to mediums and spiritualists and channelers, and they’re trying to find an answer to their problems. What is the answer to their problems? The more they look at the earth, they see more and more darkness.” — Timothy Keller

“In the Christian story God…comes down; down from the heights of absolute being into time and space, down into humanity…down to the very roots and seabed of the Nature He has created. But he goes down to come back up again and bring the whole ruined world up with Him.” — CS Lewis

2. Gloom to Joy (v. 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.”

The increasingly materialistic society we live in has led many of us to believe that happiness is something to be chased, to obtain. The ultimate end goal that leads to everlasting bliss and contentment. Paradoxically, research shows that the more people chase materialistic pleasures as a means to seek happiness, the more depressed, anxious and less satisfied with life they are.” — Noma Nazish

3. Bondage to Freedom (v. 4-5)

“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.” 

“Verse 5…speaks of a great battle, but it says, ‘Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.’ This imagery means that the great victory over evil will not require strength. We won’t need a warrior’s boot. We won’t need armor or a sword. Melt them down. Burn them up. Someone else will do your fighting for you. Who?…When Jesus Christ went to the cross, he paid the penalty for our sin. When we trust Christ’s work on our behalf, rather than in our own moral efforts, God forgives and accepts us and implants his Holy Spirit in us to renew us from the inside out. This great salvation, this light that flashes upon you with all its new life, truth, and beauty, comes as a gift. The only way you can receive it is to admit it’s an undeserved grace.”— Timothy Keller (Hidden Christmas)

TAKEAWAYS: How can we apply this in our lives?

• To embrace the light, admit the darkness
• To enter the joy, see the solution
• To experience the freedom, remember who’s fighting

GOSPEL:

“From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. 46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). — Matthew 27:45-46