If you have your Bibles, please
turn to the book of Isaiah. Chapter nine. We're going to look at a very
It's a familiar piece of scripture, but it is so precious. Chapter 9, verse 6. We'll go ahead and read it. It says in verse 6, For unto
us a child is born, Unto us a son is given, and the
government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting
Father, and the Prince of Peace. I've titled this message, The
Church's Joy in Christ. The word says that for unto us
a child is born. We have here the incarnation
of God. He is the perfect God and He
is the perfect man. And we ask, well, how can that
happen? Well, the Bible says that anything is possible with
God. If you hold your place here,
if you turn to the first chapter of the book of Matthew, First chapter of the book of
Matthew. Beginning in verse 18. It says, now the birth of Jesus
Christ was on this wise, when as his mother Mary was espoused
to Joseph before they came together, She was found with child of the
Holy Ghost. Then Joseph, her husband, being
a just man and not willing to make her a public example, was
minded to put her away privately. But while he thought on these
things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in
a dream, saying, Joseph, Thou son of David, fear not to take
unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her
is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son,
and they shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his
people from their sins. Now all this was done that it
might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet,
and that's in Isaiah, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with
child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his
name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is God with us. If we go back
to our text, Paul calls it a great mystery. And when you think about it,
God was manifested in the flesh. Considering who he is and who
we are, he was manifested in the flesh. And Paul gives some
light on that. He tells us how it was done.
Timothy, if you will, turn to Timothy 3.16. Timothy 3.16. God's Word says, and without
controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifested
in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached
unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world and received up
into glory. We'll go back to your text now. In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul says, thanks be unto God
for his unspeakable gift. And he's talking about Jesus
Christ, our Lord here. Before the foundation of the
world, the father placed the people in Christ. And Christ had to come to the
world to pay for their sins. But it was an unspeakable gift.
It says in our text, it says, for unto us, a son is given. It don't say that a son is born.
Christ Jesus, our Lord, there never was a time when he was
not. There never will be a time when he will not be, for he is
almighty God in the flesh. Jesus Christ was born to child
in human nature, in human form. He grew from a young child, just
like we do, into a young son, into a teenager, And finally
he grew into a man, and he lived like any other man for most of
his life. And like we all are in this world,
he was cried, he was tempted, he was tested, and all points
as a man, but yet without sin. He had no sin whatsoever, inward
or outward. He was perfect. And he come for,
as I said, he come for the purpose, and that purpose was to save
his people from their sins. And as the son of God, he was
given. Jesus Christ is not only man
and called the son of man, but he is God and the son of God. The Son of God can have no human
father, but is conceived by the Holy Spirit. For God's elect,
being in Christ Jesus, He is our Lord. Being in Christ, His
perfect obedience to the Father is our righteousness. He is our
Redeemer, He is our Mediator, and He is our hope of glory.
John chapter 1 verse 12 says, but as many as received him,
to them gave he the power to become the sons of God, even
to them that believe on his name. In other words, salvation is
not of works, but it is all of grace. In Christ Jesus, he died
for the elect. A lot of people in this world,
they believe in universal salvation, but the Bible plainly says that
he died for those that the Father had placed in him before the
foundation of the world, in Romans 8.29. It says, for whom he did
foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image
of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. In Hebrews 2, speaking of the
elect, being in Christ, in Hebrews 2, verses 11 through 13, God's
word says, for he that sanctify, and they who are sanctified,
all are of one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them
brethren. Think about that, the almighty
God, not ashamed to call us brethren. He says, I will declare thy name
unto my brethren in the midst of the church. Will I sing praise
unto thee? And again, I will put my trust
in him. And again, behold, I and the
children which God hath given me, being found in Christ, have
an internal union with him. We have all things and all spiritual
blessings. I thank the Lord for that. If
you will, turn to John 17. John chapter 17, verses 21 through 24, chapter
17. Sometimes I have a tendency to
forget what a blessed night it is. to be chosen of God, to be
one of His elect. It says in verse 21, speaking
of the elect, listen to this, that they all may be one, as
thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee. That they also may
be in us, that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
And the glory which thou givest me, I have given them, that they
may be one, even as we are one. I in them, and thou in me. that they may be made perfect
in one, and that the world may know that thou hath sent me and
hath loved them as thou hath loved me. Father, I will that
they also whom thou hath given me, he's speaking of the elect,
that they may behold my glory which thou hath given me, for
thou loveth me before the foundation of the world. Go back to your
text, Isaiah 6, chapter 9. It says, for unto us a child is
born, and to us a son is given, and the government
shall be upon his shoulder. and the government shall be upon
his shoulder. Christ said in Matthew, he said,
all power is given unto me in heaven and earth. Even though all power is given
unto him in heaven and earth, he was obedient to the Father,
and because of the love that he had for those that the Father
had placed in him, he was willing to come to this earth. and to
suffer and die and to bleed for us. Look at Isaiah 53, if you
would. We're talking about the son here,
Isaiah 53. Beginning in verse one. God's word says, who have believed
our report? And to whom is the arm revealed?
For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant and as a root
out of a dry ground. Speaking of our Lord. He hath
no form nor comeliness. And when we shall see him, there
is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected
of men. a man of sorrows, and acquainted
with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces
from him. He was despised, and we extended
him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs,
and carried our sorrows. Yet we did extend him stricken,
smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded. He was wounded
for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. And we, like sheep,
have gone astray. We have turned every one to his
own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. And Isaiah calls him a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief. the mighty God of heaven and
earth. Yet God's word says, the government shall be upon his
shoulder. That means that he has absolute control over all
things. Nothing happens without his permissive
will. It says in verse 7 of the next
chapter over, of the increase of his government and peace,
there shall be no end. I can't find a man. Of the increase
of his government and peace, there will be no end. His kingdom will know no end.
His dominion shall be from everlasting to everlasting. What does the father say about
his son? Turn to Philippians if you would please, Philippians
two. This is Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Philippians 2, verses six through 11. Who, being in the form of God,
thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself
of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and
was made in the likeness of men. and being found in fashion as
a man, he humbled himself and become obedient unto death, even
to death of the cross. Wherefore, God also hath highly
exalted him and given him a name which is above every name, that
at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow at things in heaven
and things in earth and things under the earth, and that every
time doesn't leave anybody out, every time, should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, the glory of God, the Father. Turn over a page and look at
Galatians 1, a couple pages. Chapter 1, verse 16. Speaking of the Son, it says
by Him were all things created that are in heaven and earth,
visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions,
principalities or powers. All things are created by Him
and for Him, and He is before all things, and it is by Him
that all things consist. And he is a head of the church,
of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn
from the dead. Listen to this, that in all things
he might have the preeminence, for it pleased the Father, for
in him shall all fullness dwell. God, man, Jesus Christ, our Lord,
is 100% man, 100% God. You know, there are things in
God's word that a child of God may not understand. I had a preacher
tell me that one time, gray-headed preacher, very smart man. He
said, you know, there's plenty of things in this Bible that
I do not understand. And I'm right there with him. But for the child of God, there's
not anything that we don't believe. For we know there is absolute
truth. Anything that we learn, we learn
it by revelation from God. He opens it up to us and shows
it to us. As God's people, we have a deep
desire to know Him. We all have a deep desire to
know Him. Two verses and God's word comes to my mind. The Bible
says in Matthew 7, Verse seven, he says, ask and it shall be
given, seek and you shall find, and knock and it shall be opened
unto you. And then in Jeremiah 29, 13,
think about it. And he said, and ye shall seek
me and find me when you search for me with all your heart. A good example of this is whenever
our Lord asks Simon Peter, when he's talking about to understand
the scriptures and for him to open up the scriptures to us,
it has to be by revelation. Spirit of God opens it up to
us. He asked Peter, Simon Peter one time, he said, who do you
say that I am? And Simon Peter answered and
said, thou art the Christ, the son of the living God. What did
our God say, our Lord say? He said, flesh and blood didn't
show this to you, it didn't reveal it unto you, but my Father which
is in heaven, he revealed it to you. And I thank him for that. He is never far away. We go back
to our text in Isaiah chapter nine, verse six. For unto us a child is born,
And to us a son is given, and the government shall be upon
his shoulder, and his name shall be called
Wonderful. Christ Jesus is wonderful, he's precious. He's wonderful
in his eternality. If you will, just for a second,
keep your place here and look at Proverbs 8. We have so much to be thankful
for. You know, the Bible tells us to keep our mind on things
above, not on things of this world. He's always there. He's always close. He's always
near. He's always there. I thank Him for that. This here
is talking about Christ. Verse 24, it is said of wisdom,
of what is wisdom? Christ is wisdom. Verse 24, Chapter
8, Book of Proverbs, it says, When there were no deaths, I
was brought forth. When there were no fountains
abounding with water, before the mountains were settled, before
the hills was, I brought forth. While as yet he had not made
the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust
of the world, When he prepared the heavens, I was there. When
he set a compass upon the face of the deaf. When he established
the clouds above. When he strengthened the fountains
of the deaf deep. When he gave to the sea his degree,
that the water should not pass his commandment, when he appointed
the fountains of the earth, when I was by him, as one brought
up with him, and I daily, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing
altogether before him. His name is wonderful. He's wonderful
in his person. He's wonderful in his love. He's
wonderful in his holy life. He's wonderful in his sepulchrary
death for his elect. He's wonderful in his resurrection.
He's wonderful in his ascension. He's wonderful in his exaltation
at the right hand of God. He's sitting there making the
intercession for us. Not only was he wonderful and
perfect and sinless and everything he did as the God man, he was
in absolute control of everything that happened to him while he
was here on this earth. And that is one thing that astonishes
me at the suffering that he went through. at the hands of the
Romans, and the Jewish leaders put him there, and they placed
him, nailed him, placed him on that cross, and he hung there
for nine hours. He could have hollered, he could
have asked for thousands of angels to come and get him at any time,
and yet he endeared the shame of the cross. He was completely
obedient unto the Father, because he loved the Father, and he loved
those whom the Father had placed in him. Go back to our text. It says
here, for unto us a child is born, and to us a son is given,
and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall
be called Wonderful. Counselor. Counselor. Christ is God's counselor. In
creation, God said, let us make man. Who do you think he was
talking to? He was talking to the son. When God established
an everlasting covenant of grace, who did he establish it with? His son. Who was the surety? His son. The foundation of that
surety, what was it? It was the blood of his son. I thank God for that. The will, the way, and the purpose
of God are all found in Christ. He is both the wisdom and the
power of God. First Corinthians 1.30 says,
but of him are ye in Christ Jesus. And if we are in Christ, who
of God has given unto us wisdom and righteousness, sanctification
and redemption. As his people, we are to follow
Christ. We are to seek him, to know him,
to look to him. He is our Lord, he is our savior,
our mediator, our king, our strength, he is our rock. And the most
precious one, the most precious thing about that to me, he is
always there. He don't never take a holiday.
And then it says back in our text here, it says that Jesus
Christ is our counselor. Christ Jesus said, peace I leave
with you. He's not only the counselor of
the Father, but he's our counselor. You know, sometimes we get aggravated,
and we get worried, and we get upset, and we say, Sharon, peace
I leave with you. John 14, 27. Peace I leave with
you. My peace I give unto you. Not
as the world give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid. We've been in Philippians 4,
6. God's word says, be anxious. He says, be careful,
but the word means anxious. He says, be anxious for nothing,
but prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your request
be made known unto God. We'll go back to our text. He
speaks here of counseling, then he says to mighty God, every
act of you, a deity is found in our Lord. Some of them, and
I won't go into them, but it's love, loving kindness, mercy,
grace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, power, holiness, immobility,
sovereignty, knowledge over all things, and the list could go
on and on. For in Him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead body. And back in Isaiah 9, 6, the
prophet says that his name is the Everlasting Father. No man
can explain the Trinity. We can only believe it because
God's Word is absolute truth. First John 5, 7 says, for there
are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word,
and the Holy Ghost. And there's many places in the
Bible that speaks to the Trinity. Now, Jesus' baptism says, when
Jesus, whenever he was baptized, he went up straightway out of
the water. And the heavens were opened unto
him. And he saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove and lighting up on him. And lo, a voice from
heaven saying, this is my beloved son. in whom I am well pleased. And then Christ said of his disciples
over in the book of Matthew, he says, go ye therefore and
teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and the Holy Ghost. A man would be foolish to deny,
to cry, to explain or deny the Trinity. Christ is said to be the Father. Christ is said to be equal, and
he is. Christ is equal with the Father. When they come to the garden
to arrest Jesus Christ, the Lord asked them and said, who seek
ye? And they answered and said, Jesus of Nazareth. And our Lord
said, I am he. And whenever he said that, they
went backward and they fell to the ground. On many occasions,
our Lord Jesus uses these words, I am. How is he then in our text
called the Everlasting Father? Paul sheds some light on this
if you turn to 1 Corinthians 15. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 45. And so it is written, the first
man, Adam, was made a living soul. The last Adam was made
a quickening spirit. Look at verse 47. The first man
is of the earth, earthly. The second man is the Lord from
heaven. And look at 49. And as we have
borne the image of the earthly, speaking of his elect, we shall
also bear the image of the heavenly. Jesus Christ is a federal head
of a redeemed race. He is our everlasting father
and he is our life giver. How is he life giver? He gave
us his blood. Being born again, being redeemed
by the blood of Christ, he is the father of a redeemed people.
He is now our federal head. And Adam, who was our federal
head, we all died, but in Christ, for God's elect, we live. Christ
Jesus is the gospel. We'll read our text one more
time. Isaiah 9-6. For unto us a child is born,
and to us a son is given, and the government shall be upon
his shoulders, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,
the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Why is he called the Prince of
Peace? Because peace, he brought peace with his blood between
God and the sinner. He brought peace between the
Jew and the Gentile. He is the giver of peace, and
that peace is forever. He is truly our prophet, our
priest, and our king. And being born again, being one
of his elect, You know, when we read the word, it's him talking
to us. When we talk to him, we pray. That's something that I'm guilty
of, is not praying the way that I should. But he says for us
to keep our mind on things above, and not on things of this world,
for we are dead, and our life is hid with Christ and God. Now that's something to meditate
on and to think about. Thank you. Yudhish Mir.