Intro:
Isaiah 7:14 is such a great
promise. The background is that Ahaz was
the king of Judah he has faced the combined armies of Syria under Rezin and
Israel under Pekah. They had marched
against Jerusalem but could not overpower the city. The state of the people of the government
were one of fear.
1. In Vs 1-4, God tells Isaiah and his son Shear-Jashub to go and meet
with the king. I love this wonderful
message. Through the prophet, he tells
him four things to do when faced with fear.
You can take this message for yourself when you feel fearful.
a. Be careful to remember fear is a spirit and can truly only be
overcome with spiritual means. Don’t let
your fear overcome your faith. Remember
perfect love cast out all fear. You have
been love, power, and a sound mind. So
be careful wise and discernment and remember God is bigger than any fear.
b. Keep calm. God is still on
the throne and he will never leave or forsake you. God is only a prayer away. He has already provided an answer. He has made a means of escape. Cast all your care on Him for He cares for
you. This situation is only a stepping
stone to greater things. Take a deep
breath, being calm defuses the situation, and let the peace of God fill your
heart and mind in Christ Jesus.
c. Do not be afraid. God is
bigger, more powerful, and knows how to overcome the situation. Our fear will always make the situation
bigger than it is. This statement brings
peace. This is an assurance moment. God is confirming his care, protection, help,
and safety. God is with you and you are
not alone.
d. Do not lose heart. Isaiah
told Ahaz that as far as these two armies were concerned they were like
smoldering sticks. They have no spark or
ability to overcome. Remember your enemy
has already been defeated. Jesus did
this on the cross. You submit to God and
the devil will flee from you. You have
angels working on your behalf. You are a
victor, conqueror, and overcomer.
2. In vs 5-9, Isaiah then tells Ahaz that the plans of Syria and Israel
are going to fail. Then he gives him a
very important truth which we can apply to ourselves today. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you
will not stand at all. Our faith in God
is our foundation for all we do. Faith
is trust in God, His word, promises, and ability. If we do not stand firm in our faith we will
seek man’s help or try to do it ourselves.
In the temptation, in the wilderness, the devil attacked three aspects
of Jesus' faith. Jesus stood firm by
knowing who he was, who his father was, what His purpose was, and what the Word
of God could do.
a. These four essentials are the pillars of faith. I will repeat them and insert us. We will stand firm in our faith when we know
who Christ in us is. We will stand firm
when we know who our father is, what our purpose is, and what the Word of God
can do.
b. The Word of God is our final authority in faith and practice. It contains precious promises and is our
guidebook to victory. When you quote it
demons tremble and satan is defeated.
When you stand firm you will not fall, fail, or be defeated. Paul tells us in Eph 6, we have armor,
weapons, anointing, and the ability to defeat the enemy. We have been given all we need to stand
firm. It is time to believe in Christ,
yourself, and the Word of God.
3. In Vs 10-16, the Lord speaks through Isaiah and says, “Ask anything
you want, the deepest question or the highest thought.” What a great moment and
Ahaz wastes the moment by saying he will not ask or put the Lord to the test. Don’t be Ahaz and waste what God offers.
a. Isaiah becomes angry and says
you as the representative of the house of David. You already test the patience of men now you
want to test the patience of God. Just a
thought when we don’t act on, receive or obey the word of God or His promises
we miss out, hurt ourselves, don’t release into our world to help others, and
test the patience of God. We are light
and salt in our world. When we do not
act on and fail to become what God designed us to be the world is poor and so
are we. It hurts the Lord and tests His
patience. When we are not growing in
grace and knowledge of Him. We have
fruit and gifts that make us valuable in Him and in our world. Use them and be a blessing.
b. Then Isaiah delivers this powerful promise. The Lord Himself will give a sign. A virgin will give conceive. This was Mary, and when she asked Gabriel how
it was going to happen? He told with God
all things are possible. I love her
response, “I am the Lord’s servant.” So
different from Ahaz. That is what our response should be as well. Noah did even before a rain cloud was
around. Gideon did even before he had
fought a battle.
c. Mary gave birth to a son.
This is what Christmas is about.
Jesus is the reason for the season.
Christmas is not Christmas if you remove Christ. It is just a mess. His name is Immanuel which means God with
us. Jesus is God assuming flesh. He is God with a face. Jesus Christ is 100% God and 100% man. The perfect balance of the natural and the
supernatural. The divine and natural
dwell together in perfect unity. Talk
about the sin problem.
d. This Messiah, Savior will eat curds and honor. This was an insight into some of Jesus’
diets. The biggest promise is that He
will know right from wrong and even before He knows right from wrong these two
countries will no longer exist in their present form. The truth is when Jesus came Israel was gone
and Syria was a Roman province.
e. Jesus knew right from wrong.
In Jesus' life, we see that by the time He was twelve when He was in the
temple teaching and listening to the elders, scribes, and leaders he knew who
He was, His Father, and why He came.
That is my prayer for this generation.
They would know who Christ is in them, they would want to do the will of
their Father in heaven and God’s purpose for their life which is to bring
Christ into their world and love unconditionally.
4. I want to close with what
Christmas can do. It is a time of peace
on earth and God's will to men. It is a time for love, sharing, giving, and
helping. It is a time for refocusing,
resetting where we remember the eternal things.
It is a time for us to reflect on our relationship with God, with
ourselves, and others. It is a time to
see the bigger picture that our lives have a purpose, direction, and
destiny. It is a time of praise,
worship, and thanksgiving
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