A Child Is Born, A Son Is Given - Part 1

Q: What does the Bible say about God's revelation?

The Bible teaches that God hides truths from the wise and reveals them to the humble, emphasizing grace in understanding. In Isaiah 29, verses 11 and 12, we see that God's truths are often concealed from those who consider themselves wise. Instead, God reveals the knowledge of Himself to the humble and lowly, as affirmed in Matthew 11:25. This divine revelation is not due to human intellect or effort; instead, it is solely by God's grace that individuals come to know Him. The Scriptures declare that no flesh will glory in His presence, ensuring that understanding comes from Him alone and not from human striving.

Q: Why is the incarnation of Christ important for Christians?

The incarnation of Christ, where God became man, is central to Christian faith as it reveals God's love and plan for salvation. The incarnation of Christ is an incomprehensible mystery that demonstrates God's willingness to enter into our human experience. As Paul Mahan emphasizes, 'A child is born, a son is given,' highlighting how the divine became fragile to bear the burdens of sin for His people. This act is not just a pivotal moment in history but a declaration of God's intent to save and govern His creation. It signifies that Christ, both fully God and fully man, took on the ultimate responsibility for our salvation, providing the means for forgiveness and eternal life through His sacrifice.

Q: How do we know that Jesus is the Son of God?

Jesus is recognized as the Son of God through His miraculous birth, His teachings, and His fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. The identity of Jesus as the Son of God is affirmed in multiple ways throughout Scripture. As highlighted in Luke 1:32-33, the angel Gabriel announced His divine sonship and the eternal kingdom He would reign over. Furthermore, the consistent fulfillment of prophecies such as those in Isaiah demonstrates that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah. The very act of God becoming flesh in the form of Jesus signifies His divine nature. This unique identity is the cornerstone of Christian belief, as He assumed our burdens and secured our salvation through His atonement.

Q: Why is it important to understand the government of Christ?

Understanding Christ's government emphasizes His authority and control over all things, instilling hope and confidence in believers. The government of Christ is vital for Christians as it underscores His sovereign rule over all creation. Isaiah 9:6 states that 'the government shall be upon His shoulder,' indicating that Jesus holds authority not only in heaven but also on earth. This assurance is crucial for believers navigating a chaotic world, as it reinforces that nothing is outside of God's control. By acknowledging Christ's rule, believers can find peace in recognizing that their lives are under His careful governance, providing comfort amid trials and uncertainties.

Q: What does it mean that Christ bears our burdens?

Christ bearing our burdens means that He has taken the weight of our sins and cares upon Himself, providing us freedom and rest. The concept of Christ bearing our burdens is central to the Reformed understanding of salvation. In Isaiah 46:4, God promises to carry His people through all stages of life. This metaphor illustrates the immense strength of Christ, who shouldered our sins and iniquities on the cross. His sacrificial death not only addresses our need for forgiveness but also offers believers a profound sense of care and concern. As we cast our burdens on Him, we are reminded that we are not alone in our struggles; He actively supports and carries us, bringing peace and assurance.

Thank you. I enjoyed that. Now turn with me in your Bibles
to Isaiah chapter 9, the book of Isaiah. Chapter 9 I gazed for several hours at this
portion of scripture before writing the first word because of the magnitude of it.
But beginning this morning and ending this evening, we'll attempt
to do a two part message here from our text. Now. Most. To most of the inhabitants. Of this world. The God of the
heavens, the God of the Bible, is an unknown God. And like Paul,
when he came to Mars Hill, the court of the Apogeites, and he
looked about him and saw all of the idols and all of their
superstitious traditions and ways, all of their religion, He said, I perceive that in all
things you're just too religious, too superstitious. And he said,
I want to declare unto you the God whom you ignorantly worship
or the God you do not know. And even most of the people like
those people who claim to know God, who claim to seek after
God, who claim to study the book that you have in your laps this
morning. God is still a mystery to Moses. He still remains hidden. And the theme of this book remains
hidden. Just like it was said in Isaiah
chapter 29, verses 11 and 12, it was said that the book, this
book, was delivered to him One that is learned, supposedly a
scholarly man, a man who knows something about the Bible, perhaps
a scribe or a Pharisee, a learned man. The book was delivered to
that man, and they said, read it or preach it or expound it
to us, and he said, I can't. It's a sealed book. It's a sealed
book. And I declare this morning, sadly,
but nevertheless, it's true. Our Lord rejoiced in saying this. He said, I thank you, Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hid these things from
the wise and the prudence and revealed them to babies, to children,
those who are not so wise, not so prudent in worldly wisdom
and intellect. Why is that? Why did God hide
these things from the wise and the prudent? Why did God hide,
why does he hide himself from the average natural man and woman? Scriptures say, because it just
seemed good to him, for one thing. And that no flesh shall glory
in his presence. That no man or woman will ever
be able to say, well, I was so smart. I was so intelligent. I applied myself so thoroughly
that I figured this thing out. No, you're not going to do it,
God said. You're not going to glory like that. No flesh is
going to glory. So all men by nature are equal
before God in this thing of knowing God and knowing the scriptures.
And it all, the understanding of this book is all by grace. It's all a gift. God gives it
to one man and withholds it from another. It's all by revelation. God reveals himself to somebody. I mean, they don't know God by
nature. He just said, and one day Henry
said, I'm going to reveal myself to this man, and he hides himself
from this man. Why? It just seemed good to God,
and that no flesh will glory in his presence, and that it
might be by grace, by grace and revelation. Now here in chapter,
look at chapter eight with me of Isaiah. The commandment, here's
the commandment of God. Do you remember a message one
time we looked at from Isaiah 8 verses 11 through 13? The Lord spake thus to me with
a strong hand. Well, here is the commandment
that comes from God, verse 16, concerning this thing of the
gospel and the revelation of the truth. Verse 16, God says,
bind up the testimony. And seal the law among my disciples. Seal the law among my disciples. The word of God is for God's
people. The Bible was not written to
every man. The Bible was written to God's
people. Because that's who's going to hear it. Nobody else
is going to hear it. The natural man is not subject
to the law of God, neither indeed can be. But he said, my sheep
will hear my voice, every last one of them. And he says, you
bind up the testimony, seal up the law, and then distribute
it among my disciples. The word of God is for God's
people, and only a comparative few, only a few people out of the
mass of humanity understand what this book is really all about.
Only a few people out of the mass of humanity really have
the Word of God revealed to them. Capital W, capital O, capital
R, capital D. Because, Paul said in Romans
1, they professed themselves to be wise, right? And then God
says, well, I'll just show you that you're a fool. And if we
become fools, God will make us wise. If you can explain that,
you'll understand what I'm trying to say here. But these things
were hidden. Christ himself said it. Thou
hast hid these things from the wise and the prudent. But verse
18, he says, Behold, I'm going to give them to my children,
babies, whom you've given me. And he had a little bunch of
them, didn't he? A little 12-man band, the king
and his motley crew, a bunch of fishermen, Poor, measly, nothings,
nobodies in the world. Henry, God let them in on the
mysteries of the universe. And they walked around hearing,
beholding, John said, the things we've seen and heard. Paul said,
it's not possible. We can't even tell you all about
it, but you'll just have to have it revealed to you as well. Babies. Now, like I said, all men, though,
by nature, don't understand the God of the Bible. They don't
understand this book. Oh, they claim they do. Seminary
professors and scholars and so forth claim that they understand
this book, but it's easy to see that they don't. Their words
deceive them. Men and women are born, by nature,
in darkness, what the Bible calls darkness. Born by darkness, and
thanks, most of the thanks is due to false prophets. Most of
the thanks to men and women's darkness is due to these fellas
who think they have a little light on the subject. And they
just make people that much more ignorant and dark. Look at verse
20 with me. The scripture says, to the law,
or that is the Old Testament, and to the testimony, or the
new covenant, if they, If they speak not according to this word,
it is because there is no light in them, no truth, no understanding
in them. And when they say, verse 19,
When they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar
spirits, and unto wizards that teach. Should not a people seek
unto their God? Trying to find out God, shouldn't
they go where God is to be found? God's Word? And not to these
wizards that peep and familiar spirit? What is this familiar
spirit here? Just for a minute. Do you remember
when John said in 1 John chapter 4 verse 1, he said, you try the
spirits. Remember? Whether they're of
God or not. The Spirit. That's an Old Testament
word and new, talking about preachers. You try the Spirit, see whether
or not they're of God. And right here he says, when
they say unto you, let's go hear this fellow, this Spirit, this
preacher. And he's a familiar one. What does that mean? Familiar
Spirit. Well, I ask you, when you hear
a preacher preach, so-called. When he speaks with a fleshly
familiarity, or a flippant manner, he speaks in irreverent terms
concerning the Most High God, talking about him as the man
upstairs, or going through the big house, like we heard that
fellow the other day. When he talks in flippant, familiar
terms like his co-pilot, or God wants to do this, God wants to
save you. You know, flippant, careless,
familiar, fleshly terms. God's done all He can do now,
and now it's up to you. That's a familiar spirit. It's
in a false spirit, a false preacher. And many of you have sat under
those fellows. Wizards that peep, Isaiah said, wizards that peep
are these fellows that think they're so smart, so scholarly,
going through all of these vast studies of this and that. They
might, wizards, you know, they might as well be peeping and
squawking for all that matters. Going right over your head, going
here and there. Do you know what he said? No,
I don't understand it. But he's impressive. He's just
a wizard that peeps. Should not a people, Isaiah said,
seek unto their God? Shouldn't a people seek after
God for the living to the dead? Should they go from the living
to the dead, from God to a man who doesn't even know God? Well,
he says the law and the testimony, the word, the law, the gospel,
the testimony If they, if these familiar spirits, if these seminary
spirits and these Westminster wizards, if they speak not according
to this word, old and new, in context, according to the doctrine
of Christ, if they speak not according to the theme of this
book from start to finish, the scope of it, the meaning of it,
which is nothing less Nothing more than Jesus Christ and Him
crucified. If they speak not according to
God's Word, the incarnate Word, there's no light in them. They're
in darkness. And if you listen to them and
sit there, you'll be in darkness like them. And that's what he
said in verse 21 and verse 22. And many of you sat under that
for a while, and you were like these people here. He said you
passed through this. You went through this period
hardly bestead and hungry. Like you said, I don't know what
I want to hear. I don't know what you're not
preaching, but I'm not hearing it. You might not know what it is
that you need, but you know you ain't got it. You're hungry.
Like eating a vegetable dinner. It's good. I enjoy them and all. But thirty minutes later, I'm
hungry. If I'd eaten me a big piece of steak, I'd have fulfilled
my appetite. But you go away hardly bested
and hungry, and it comes to pass they'll be hungry and fret themselves.
And when trials and tribulations come, and they don't know this
sovereign God who's in control of all things, they start to,
well, what's wrong here? Maybe it's my faith, or maybe
it's this, maybe it's that. No, maybe it's God, and you just
don't know Him. And they'll look to the earth.
Well, let's go over this fellow and that fellow, wizards and
peep and familiar spirit. They'll look to the earth, verse
21, and behold, trouble, darkness. I can't see any light. Can anybody
give me any light on this subject? Yeah. Verse 2 of chapter 9. But the people, God's people,
God's elect, God's chosen, God's children whom the Lord hath given
to Christ, the people that walked in darkness, that were down in
these dark places like everybody else is, have seen a great light. Now, they're not walking around
saying, I saw the light. They're not singing that foolishness.
Paul didn't sing that, did he, Henry? I saw the light. Yeah, praise the Lord, brother,
I saw the light. No, the light sees them. Do you see that? Look at it, verse 2 again. They
that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, they were dead
and trespassed in sin. Upon them hath the light shined. Paul wasn't looking for the light.
He didn't even see the light, it blinded him. The light was
looking for him, and the light shone on him. The light saw Paul
and chose Paul from his mother's womb, separated him by his grace,
and called him and justified him and glorified him, the light.
Well, what is this light? What is this light? Well, if
you ask that question, I'm not sure you've ever seen it. It's
an it, all right, but it's more than an it, it's a he. That's what the Holy Spirit said
about the one we're going to look at. It's not a what, it's not a doctrine,
it's not a religious concept, it's not a denomination, it's
not an intellectual understanding, but it's a person. Thank you. 2 Corinthians 4, 6 describes
it, or him, or God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness
one day. When God was creating the earth, darn it, when God
was creating the world, And he just spoke light, he said, let
there be light. The same way the scripture says
God has shined in your heart to give you the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God. And where is that light to be
seen? In doctrine? In a face. In a face. In the face. of Jesus Christ
only if you have seen that. Only if you have seen that we
read about it over there in Luke chapter two. It was an old man. Old man named Simeon and he was
seeking the Lord. Lord seeking him. The only reason
he was seeking the Lord was because the Lord had sought him He loved
the Lord, the only reason he did, though, was because the
Lord first loved him. And the Lord spoke to that old man and
said, old man, Simeon, you're not going to die until someday
you see my salvation. Well, is it a doctrine? I'll
look in the scripture. Well, it's found in the scripture,
yes, but it's not a doctrine. Well, do I need to go over here
to this church? Well, he may be found over in that church,
but it's not the church necessarily. Simeon, I'm going to let you
see my salvation. before you die. So he was waiting,
hanging around the place where God told a man to worship, around
the temple, as well he should have been. And one day, a little
Jewish maiden and her husband walked in one day carrying a
baby. And the Spirit of the Lord spoke
to that old man and said, Simeon, get up. The one you've been waiting
on is here. The Spirit directed him at that
child. There were a lot of children
there at that day. Cute, cuddly, sweet little children. Babies.
They're all so cute. Most of them. They're all so
cute. But that baby. And that might not have been
the cutest one there. I don't believe it was. But the Lord
said, Simeon. And Simeon walked over and picked
that baby up in his arms. And looked into a face, not a
doctor, a face. And those big brown eyes
looked up at him. I can't say it like he must have
said it, Lord, now I'm ready. Let my soul depart in peace. I've seen thy salvation. And he began to prophesy concerning
this thing, this child, thy salvation. And I've seen God's salvation. And verse 6 tells me where it
is. I've seen God's salvation, God's
hope, God's help, God's redeemer, God's substitute, God's lamb. For unto us, a child is born. person. A child is born. Oh, boy. Turn back to Luke chapter 1 with
me. Luke chapter 1. A child was born, but this was
no ordinary child. Now, I don't want to ever make
disparaging remarks about this baby. We all the time say, now,
he's not a baby in a manger. You know, Joe, we're all the
time trying to point men away from this Christmas idolatry,
you know. Don't worship a baby in a manger.
Don't worship his mother that holds him. She's just a sinner,
like anybody else. And the one that we're worshiping
is no longer a baby. He's seated on a throne. He's
a king. He's a living Lord. He dwells
in a light which no man can approach unto. He's a king. He's not a
baby anymore. But he was a baby. And this is a marvelous thing.
This is the Lord's doing it. And this is when I sat and pondered
this and just considered this thing, the incarnation of Christ
or that is God becoming a man. I felt like Luther. Throwing up my hands, this is
incomprehensible. A child is born and I don't want
to ever make disparaging remarks about this baby being born. 2,000
years ago, nearly 2,000 years ago, in a small Jewish village, inside a barn, just an old ordinary
barn, sheepfold, cattle stall, in a hay trough, a feed box,
something was laying in there. A living person was laying, a
child was born. Now this was no ordinary child. This was an extraordinary child. Look here with me at Luke chapter,
look at first of all this immaculate conception of this child, how
this child came into being. Look, Luke 1 verse 26, and in
the six months The angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city
of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin, a spouse to a man whose name
was Joseph, or that is, promised to be married to this man, of
the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came into this
virgin named Mary and said, Mary, mother of God, thou art
highly favored above all." No, that's not what the angel said
there, did it? Listen very carefully here. "...Hail,
or hello to you, thou that art highly or graciously
accepted, or hast found favor or grace. The Lord is with thee."
That's the only way she would have found any grace, isn't it?
She was a sinner who needed a savior, and she said so later, didn't
she? I'll praise the Lord my Savior. And the angel said, Blessed
art thou above women, among women. Barbara Ross, Mary is no more
special than you. There's nothing more special
about Mary, the mother of this child named Jesus, than Barbara
Ross of Franklin County. Nothing. Zero. You're both sinners,
right? You're both in need of God's
sovereign mercy and His grace, and you'll find salvation the
same way she did, if God highly favors you and reveals His Son
to you. In you. Right? You're favored among women, Mary.
Not above. Among them. You're just the vessel, though.
You're just the box, Mary. You're going to be a box. God's
going to put something in this box. And listen, verse 29, "...and
when she saw him," this angel, she's troubled at his saying,
"...and cast in her mind," what's going on here, what manner of
salutation this should be, "...and the angel said unto her, Fear
not, Mary, thou hast found favour with God. Behold, thou shalt
conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus." Mary,
you're going to have a son. You're going to have a son, but
not just an ordinary Jewish child, Mary. Oh, I'm here to tell you,
verse 32, he'll be great, the greatest. Shall be called the
son of the highest. The Lord God shall give unto
him the throne of King Mary, the throne of his father David.
And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and the kingdom
of his kingdom, there shall be no end. First thirty four under
herself, she might have thought evidently she wasn't listening.
To who this angel was talking about, what was she was saying,
how? How and she said, how is this
going? I've never been with a man. You
know what she's saying there, first thirty. Four, I've never
known a man, I've never had physical sexual relations with a man,
I'm a virgin. How? Mary. you weren't listening to me.
Verse 35, the angel said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come
upon you, Mary. The power of the highest shall
overshadow thee. And Mary, something's got, you're
going to have a bad, this holy thing, not a man child, a thing,
born to a virgin. The angel couldn't even describe
what was going to happen here. A thing is going to be born to
you. A child, yes, but as such has
never been seen or heard of before. He'll be called the Son of God. Mary heard him then. And nine months later, It was born. A baby. Child. Was born. But there's something strange
about this baby. Something different. About this
child. Mary. Mary looked at that child
quite often like a mother does her newborn baby. And she thought,
and the things leading up to the birth, and she knew she was
a virgin, and the angels' proclamation, and the shepherds, and the wise
men, and all of the things, the prophetess, and Simi, and all
these things. And she thought, this child's
special. I can't quite put my finger on
this, but there's something special about this child. Now, every
mother thinks that their baby is special. Mary Parks, I would
say, thinks that that baby of hers is quite extraordinary and
quite special, the same way with Margaret over here. Now, wait
a minute, ladies. There was something special about
this baby. Mary knew this baby was special. She knew it. And she may have
been talking. Let's just a little holy imagination
here. Think about this for a minute.
Mary may have been sitting around with other Jewish mothers talking
about their babies, you know, as mothers are prone to do. She
may have been sitting around and talking about her baby. And
this mother would say, well, he's a little bit this and that.
And Mary would say, he's such a good baby. good. He's the only one. He's such
a good little boy. And other mothers say, well,
mine wakes me up at two. Well, he doesn't ever seem to
murmur or complain or fuss. He's never fussy. I never hear him cry needlessly. He can't, Mary. He can't. Not one word of moaning or complaining
or fussing can come out of his lips. And when I look in those big
brown eyes, you're going to think I'm silly, she thought, but he
looks like he's looking through me. This one-month-old baby is
looking at me. Yeah, sure, he is. He's looking
at me. Yeah, he's looking at you. Like
he looked at you from all eternity. Those eyes you're looking at
are omniscient eyes. Mary, you're looking at your
father. Can you get a hold of that? A
child. Oh, but what a child. But our text says, more than
a child, a son is given. You see, we're to marvel. This
is the Lord's doing, Sherry. We're to marvel at this baby. And if he was born right now,
like the wise men, we'd do well, Henry, to bow and worship this
baby. He's not a baby anymore, though. That's not who we worship.
He's grown. He grew in wisdom and stature. indescribable king sitting on
a throne and no longer a baby. That baby, that body assumed
manhood and that manhood assumed. Son of God, the Ancient of Days,
without beginning of days, the Creator, the Ruler, Controller,
the Lord and Master of the universe, the Ancient became an infant. The Ancient became an infant.
Nancy, the child was the Father. of the mother. Can you explain
that? A child is born, but the everlasting
Son, who dwelt in the bosom of the Father with him from the
beginning, the Son was given. You see, a baby was born. Now,
what a baby! What a child! What a miraculous
thing this was! But a son, at the exact instant
At the exact instant that that human body was born, came forth
from that mother's womb, the King of Glory, sitting on his
throne, took off his celestial crown and entered the body of
that baby, stepped down off his throne and stepped into that
baby's body. This is, this is marvelous. A
child is born, and what a child, a son is given. Now, after we gaze at this incarnation
for about a thousand years, you could, couldn't you? Oh,
you could just sit there and wonder and amaze me. ponder these
things in your heart for decades, God becoming a baby? I don't understand that. I believe
it. But I don't understand it. But
you would have to ask this question. You'd have to. At such a sight,
at such a thing happening, you'd have to ask this question. Why? Why did this happen? Why did God become a baby? Why would the Lord of glory leave
his heavenly throne and step into this seemingly frail, little,
fragile body? The answer is in verse 6. Because
the government's on his shoulders. Yeah, this is the Son, Son of
the Most High, the Son of the Most High God. This is the Lord,
crowned Prince of Heaven. This is the Lord. He's Lord over
Heaven. Yeah, He's Lord over Heaven.
But earth, too, John, right? He reigns and rules among the
armies of heaven and in the inhabitants of the earth, too, John. This
planet belongs to him. He came down to claim it, didn't
he? And just as he claimed and received
all honor and glory from the Father and from the celestial
beings, the cherubs and seraphs and angels for millenniums of
time, In heaven, he said, now it's time to go down and claim
what else is mine, the earth and my people. He's Lord over
heaven and earth, and he came down to this earth to govern
his people. Just like he did in heaven, he
came down to earth to govern his people. His people. That's significant, because Everybody
won't have him. When he came, Henry, many said,
We'll not have this man to reign over us. They understood what
he was saying. I'm a king. I'm from above. You're
from beneath. How could they understand any
other thing? They understood back then that he was saying
he was God, didn't they? Men now claim ignorance. They
never said he was God. It's just that he never said
it to you. Right? Yeah, he said he was God. He
just never said it to you. And men back then, they refused. We'll not have this man reign
over, but some, by God's grace, some people who sat in darkness,
religious darkness, superstition, they saw it. Oh my, did they see it. He said,
didn't I say unto you, if you believe all things are possible,
you've never, you haven't seen anything yet. Every now and then,
he'd peel, like taking a mask off, like on that Mount of Transfiguration.
James, John, Peter, come on up. I'm going to show you something.
What, Lord? Oh, not a what. A wicked and
adulterous generation speaks after a sign. I'm going to show
you who. Come on up here. And he took
him up in a mountain one day. They said he was transfigured.
God peeled back his human nature, and they saw that face that shines
as the sun, S-O-N, in all its strength. And they heard a voice
as the sound of many waters, This is my son! And they all
fell down at him. Some of God's people have seen
who he is. And they see that the government's on his shoulder.
And not like the masses, they don't say, no, we'll not have
this man reign over him. Oh, in the day of God's power,
they'll say, we'll have him. As many as received him, to them
gave he power to become the sons of God, which were born not of
blood, not of the will of the flesh, not of their free will,
not of the will of man, but born of God. Born again, born from
above. Peter, James, Sherry, Stan, Vicki,
will show you something, God says. One day, through the preaching
of the gospel, God peeled back that man's face, and you saw,
this is not a baby in a manger. He's a governor. They use that
term in England, you know, governor. I say we impeach our governor,
he's assuming the wrong title. Ain't but one governor. Ain't
one who, but one who governs the heavens and the earth, right?
One who can rightfully own that name, governor. And the government
of everything is upon his shoulder, Joe, upon his shoulder. And he came, this lord and master,
this ruler, he came to take personal responsibility for and full control
over every soul that God Almighty gave him in that covenant of
old. Every soul. To take complete
charge over every single child that God named to him and gave
him. Go down there, arrest him, take
care of him, do what is necessary. My son, do it. Be governor. Rule
over him. Be lord over that man, that woman,
that young person. Go. Shoulder the blame. Oh, he's full of it. He's to
blame. His sins and his iniquities are
ever before my eyes. His sins have separated me and
him. Shoulder his blame. Take his iniquities on your powerful
shoulder. Shoulder the blame. Shoulder
his burdens. All of his cares, all of his
trouble, take it on your powerful shoulders. And when it's all
said and done, take him on your shoulder and you bring him back
home to me. I've loved him with an everlasting
love, therefore with lovingkindness I'm going to draw him and you're
the means I'm going to use. Put him on your shoulders and
bring him home. My governor, he's got big shoulders. He's got wide shoulders. Steve Park, you're a peep squeak,
buddy, compared to my lord and master. He's able to bear the
weight of the world on his shoulders. The sins and iniquity of all
of God's people. Bear the blame for them all.
He's shouldered the blame. for all of God's people. He took
the blame. Look up at verse 4. I saw this
and about flipped my gizzards. Verse 4. You see, he took my
whipping. Verse 4 says, Thou hast broken
the yoke of his burden. What is that? The yoke, the bondage
of God's law. The curse of the law that was
against me. God, by nature, every man is
in chains of darkness, waiting like those angels, waiting execution,
right? And God's law has them, bind
them up. They're guilty. Whatever things
the law sayeth, it sayeth to them that are under it, every
man, woman born, boy and girl born, bind them up. Put shackles
and chains on them. Under the curse, they got to
die. And the law of God brings me before God. And then it says
here, And the staff of his shoulder, the rod of the oppressor. Then
I come before the law of God, and the law of God says over
and over throughout the scriptures, The soul that sinneth must surely
die. You see, my coat is off. He's
laid me naked and open before him whom everybody has to do. I'm naked. My old self-righteous
robes won't cover me. They won't protect me, and I'm
naked before him. And he's got this rod of the law smiting me. The soul that sinneth must surely
die. The wages of sin is death. Our hate is all workers of iniquity,
and that's me. And another blow is about to
fall on me. Without the shedding of blood,
and somebody says, I found the ransom. And my governor, this son, comes
up and peels off his robe. And I see those rippling muscles,
those broad shoulders. And he says, bind me to that
law. Bind me unto that curse. Make
me a curse. And he says to the wrath and
the justice of God, hit me! in place of him. Hit me hard,
make it bleed!" And the wrath of God was six hours on that
cross, hitting until the rod broke. Did you see that? The rod broke. Now there's therefore now no
condemnation. So ain't no switch around. No
switch left. It's broke. Christ took all the
wrath of God. The rod broke on his back, his
powerful back. And after he fulfilled all the
wrath and justice against God for me, on my behalf, he said
it's finished. It was painful. He died. But he didn't stay dead. He rose
from the grave. Rose from the grave. Meaning
that God accepted what he did. I received that. Accepted. And everybody else that he did
that for. You come on up here too. You're
accepted. Why? Because I preached and prophesied
and did many wonderful works in your name. And I was, oh,
I was persecuted. No, no, no, no. You dare say that. Because he took your weapon.
That's why. Because the blood makes propitiation
for your sinful soul on the mercy seat. Because he hath poured
out his soul unto them. Because by his stripes you are
healed. That's why. Only reason. Only reason. He
shouldered the blame, all of it. And He shoulders their burdens. He says, cast your care. I don't
care how big it is. I don't care how big it is. Cast
your care upon Him. He careth for you. All your burdens,
your troubles, your trials, your cares, place them on His shoulders. They're big enough. He said, if it were not so, I
would have told you. Oh, this is too big. This child's
too great, it's more than I can stand." Yeah, it is, never said
you'd be able to stand it. Cast it on him. He'll stand it. And his shoulders, listen to
this in closing. Turn with me to Isaiah 46, and
I'll quit. His shoulders are so powerful
that not only, he's like that nail, John, in sure place. Not a six-penny finishing nail.
I'm talking about a thirty-three and a third penny, a spike, a
nail in a sure place. He's able to carry it all the
way. Not only of your blame, not only
shoulder all your cares and your burdens, but you can hang on
his shoulders. You can get up on his shoulders.
There's nothing sweeter than you parents, pop daddies. Nothing you enjoy more than carrying
that little buddy on your shoulder. Joe, that grandbaby of yours,
carry him on your shoulder. He loves it, too. Oh, he's got...
You know, when he's up on his shoulder, he's got... He's above
the crowd, isn't he? And he sees things he never saw
before. He sees like an adult, finally, only on his shoulder.
But the father takes great delight in carrying that baby around.
He ain't heavy. Oh, that's my son. That's my
brother. My elder brother, and he can
carry us on his shoulder, and that's exactly what God said
he was going to do. Isaiah 46, verse 4. Even to your
old age. Yeah, I'm too old, and he's not
going to put up with me. No, he's going to carry you all
the way. God's not going to carry it.
These fellas today act like this thing's a football game or something.
You know, you carry the ball ninety-nine yards, and you know,
then God carries it Or God carries it 99 yards and you carry it
on into the end zone, you know, that sort of thing. That's exactly
what the—you take the first step, you don't understand how far
that step is, do you? You take the first step, God
will meet you. You don't understand how big that step is. The Scripture
says there's a great gulf between us. Am I going to step over eternity? Am I going to step around my
sins? Am I going to step around the wrath and justice of God
that looms like a large guillotine over my head? No. Do you know
what would happen? God—blasphemy, even, think about
it. He'd give me the ball at the
one-yard line, I'd fumble. Wouldn't you? Or I understand
some guys have done this before. Turn around and run the wrong
way? Hang on a minute. Which way would you go and run
out of bounds? No, he says, even to your old
age, I'll carry you all the way through. Virgie, my soul, he
carried you up until now, he's not going to let you go there.
Up to your old age, I am he. Who are you? Even to your old
age, I'll carry you, he says. Even I will carry you and will
deliver you. Deliver you to who? To Satan,
to the law, to justice? No, to my father. Here she is,
Virgie Jones, my child. Carried her 86 years. And then he says, look at this
verse, verse 5, now who are you going to liken me to that does
all of this? This great one, this child, this
son, this governor, this great mighty one who carries all of
it, who are you going to liken me to? What's my name? Well, tonight we're going to
look at that name. Oh, we're going to call him. Oh, we're
going to call him. Oh, he's got a name. He's got
some names that are above every name. All right, stand with me
and I'll dismiss this in prayer. Hope to God that you see your
need of those powerful shoulders. Let's pray. Dear Lord, thank
you for sending your Son. We marvel, we're absolutely amazed
at what child is this, at the giving of your Son, your well-beloved,
only begotten Son, sending him down into this perverted, dark,
filthy world. But more than importantly, more
than anything, we thank you for putting the iniquities of his
people on his shoulders and having him bear our blame.
We couldn't bear it. Our sins, our burdens, our cares,
even our very persons upon his powerful shoulders. Thank you,
Lord. May we ride on top of his shoulders.
May we be content to rest right there from now on. In Christ's name we pray and
as we sing, give you all the glory. Amen.

A Child Is Born, A Son Is Given - Part 1

What does the Bible say about God's revelation?

Why is the incarnation of Christ important for Christians?

How do we know that Jesus is the Son of God?

Why is it important to understand the government of Christ?

What does it mean that Christ bears our burdens?

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A Child Is Born, A Son Is Given - Part 1

What does the Bible say about God's revelation?

Why is the incarnation of Christ important for Christians?

How do we know that Jesus is the Son of God?

Why is it important to understand the government of Christ?

What does it mean that Christ bears our burdens?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

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