Now, just in case I forget to
do it later. Y'all have a wonderful Christmas together with your
families. Add to the prayer list Alicia Putnam family. Remember
them in your prayers. They lost a loved one, didn't
they? Yeah, the grandmother, yeah. Okay, so remember them
in your family. there'll be no midweek service
this week on Wednesday night since Wednesday is Christmas
and y'all gonna spend time with your families so there'll be
no midweek service this coming Wednesday night. Other than that,
I can't think of any other announcements. Next Sunday will be the last
Sunday of the month, right? Next Sunday will be the last Sunday
of the month so we'll have the Lord's table next Sunday and no afternoon
Bible study, okay? All right. Let's begin our worship
service this morning. Hymn number 128, Wounded For
Me. Wounded for me, wounded for me. On the cross he was wounded for
me. Gone my transgressions and now
I am free. All because Jesus was wounded
for me. Dying for me. There on the cross He was dying
for me. Now in His death by redemption
I see. All because Jesus was dying for
me. Reason for me. Reason for me. From the grave
He has risen for me. Now evermore from death's sting
I am free. All because Jesus has risen for
me. Up in the skies He is living
for me. Daily He's pleading and praying
for me. All because Jesus is my Savior. One day to earth He is coming
for me. Then with what joy His clear
face I shall see. Oh, how I praise Him, He's coming
for me. After scripture reading and prayer,
we sing hymn number 212. you have your Bibles turn with
me to Isaiah the 7th chapter, gonna read for me a portion of
scripture. One verse of scripture, verse
14. Isaiah chapter 7 and verse 14. Therefore the Lord himself shall
give you a sign Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son
and shall call his name Emmanuel. Let us pray. Our Father, we are
thankful for your word, which gives us understanding, which
enlightens us to the truth, which shows us what you have for your
children in this world. We thank you for the shed blood
of Jesus Christ, who by his death secured our salvation, redeemed
us by his blood, was made to be righteousness unto us, and by his spirit through the
word brought us to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave
us faith and repentance, and whoever lives to make intercession
for us. We are thankful, Father, for your mercy that is new every
day, for the great grace, abundant
grace you've shed abroad upon us, the love you've set abroad
in our hearts. We ask, Father, if you'd be pleased
this hour to meet with those who are sick and troubled, We know in this time of the year
things can be hard on folks who've lost loved ones, who are struggling with financial
situations, who are troubled in their minds and hearts. We
ask, Lord, your comfort and strength to them only you can. We pray
for ourselves this day that you might be pleased to cause us
to consider Him of whom this text speaks, our great Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ, help us to worship, to fall down before
you, to acknowledge who you are, and to give glory to your name
alone. We ask this in Christ's name for His glory. Amen. What can wash away my sins? Nothing
but the blood of Jesus. What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that
makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing
but the blood of Jesus. Precious is the flow that makes
me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing
but the blood. Nothing can for sin atone, nothing
but the blood of Jesus. Not of good that I have done,
nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that
makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing
but the blood of Jesus. This is all my hope and peace,
nothing but the blood of Jesus. This is all my righteousness,
nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that
makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing
but the blood of Jesus. Let us pray. Father, again we
come in the name of Jesus Christ, our merciful Savior. We thank
you for the gift you give to all your children. We know that
he gave himself to you as the perfect sacrifice for sin, and
by his death secured the salvation of the elect. But your word says
that you gave him to us, and we have his spirit. And with
him you have freely given us all things, all things necessary
for godliness and life. What we have, we have received.
Let us not boast as if we've not received it. And as we turn
it unto thee, let us do so with thanksgiving and praise. For we know this and all we are
belong to you. We ask it in the name of Christ.
Amen. you. You. I invite your attention back
to Isaiah chapter 7, a very familiar portion of scripture which I
expect to be read a number of times during this season in most
of the churches all throughout this land and throughout the
world. It speaks of the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ which
was the event that changed the world. God split heaven wide open and
laid aside his glory and came down here and robed himself in
human flesh and dwelt among sinners without sin but lived all the
hardships of every that every human being could handle and
much more than most could ever handle. He was homeless. Once he left his house, he was
homeless. He didn't have a place to lay his head. He used rocks
and stones for his pillows. He knew what it was to be hungry.
On the day of his temptation after his baptism when he was
met by Satan after spending forty days and forty nights in the
wilderness without food. He suffered greatly. He suffered
on the cross. He suffered at the hands of men.
All his stripes were for our healing, for he knew no sin. The first mention of his coming
was in Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15. when the Lord spoke
to Satan, or to the serpent, and promised that the seed of
a woman was going to bruise his head, and he would bruise the
seed of the woman's heel, speaking of the coming of the Messiah,
the Lord Jesus Christ. And here in Isaiah, this is actually
a promise given to Ahaz, which he will never see, but his generations
far away, far advanced in the future will see. But our Lord is here named. He
wasn't named in Genesis 3. But here He is given a name.
He was born of a virgin. Why was He born of a virgin,
or a woman who knew no man? Because His Father was not of
the human race. Sin is transferred through Adam. our holy, unholy Father. It is not transferred to the
woman. And so when Jesus Christ was born of a woman and not born
of Adam's race, He was not tainted with Adam's sin, and therefore
He was a suitable sacrifice to be offered unto God for sinners. The virgin shall conceive and
bring forth a son, I shall call his name Emmanuel." Now if you
read the Gospels, that is interpreted God with us. Now the Jews could
always say that God was with them, though they didn't understand
through the concept of spirit. He was holy, and to them that
meant He was separate and out there somewhere ruling and reigning
things, though they didn't want to obey Him and listen to Him
and discarded his words and got steeped in idolatry. They always
believed he was there, somewhere. But now this says that God is
going to be with us. A son of woman, a man born of
woman is going to be with us and we're going to be able to
look on the face of God. You say, well a man can't look
on the face of God and live. Everyone who looked on the face
of Jesus Christ looked on the face of God, ran in and we see
the glory of God revealed in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Emmanuel, God with us. What a thought! God walking among
us, God sitting down and eating with us, God going to sleep with
us, God waking with us, God with us. This was what the promise
was. To Ahaz this probably meant nothing.
but to the child of God this promises wonders. We see here
the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ set forth in Scripture.
The seed of woman. The seed of woman. God with us. God with us. And He's with us now. Scripture
says He resides in us. Christ in you is the hope of
glory. His Spirit lives in us. We can't
prove that. We can't even feel that. We can
believe that because God has said it to be so. I know people
talk about when the Spirit is in them, they get all kinds of
goofy, but that's not the Spirit of God, that's the Spirit of
Satan, that's another spirit. The Spirit of Christ will always
lead you to Christ. That's what His job was, according
to John 16, He would take the things of Christ. and reveal
them or show them unto you. He will not glorify Himself.
He'll never glorify Himself. He'll not speak of Himself. People
talk about Holy Ghost meetings. They're talking about the wrong
kind of meeting. Because if it's really a Holy Ghost meeting,
it's going to be about Christ and Him crucifying. But hear
the promise of this seed of woman is that His name shall be called
Emmanuel. Emmanuel. Then if you'll turn
over to the ninth chapter of Isaiah, we find him mentioned
again with several names. First, he's God with us, God
in the midst of us, God in human flesh, the likeness of sinful
flesh, dying for sin. In Isaiah chapter 9 it says this,
in verse 6, For unto us, a child is born unto us. That was the
language used when Jesus Christ came into this world, was born
in Bethlehem, Judah. Now, when He was born in Bethlehem,
Judah, He was a baby, but He was a different kind of baby.
According to Micah, Chapter 5, in Verse 2, it says, But thou,
Bethlehem, Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands
in Judah, yet one of thee shall he come, yet out of thee
shall he come unto thee, that is, the ruler in Israel, and
whose goings forth have been from old and from everlasting."
This babe that was born in Jerusalem was from old and from everlasting. You see, He is the Eternal God
and the Eternal Son of God. The Eternal Son of God, old and
everlasting. It says of this, for unto us,
and that's what the angels said to the shepherds on the hillside
by night, for unto you is born in the city of David a Savior,
which is Christ the Lord. Unto you. Now it didn't go into
the city. It went out to a bunch of shepherds
or pastors. Unto you it's born. And then
they were told to go out and spread the truth. First go to
Bethlehem and see the child. For unto us a child is born. A child is born. That is speaking
of the human birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, born of a woman,
born under the law to redeem them that are under the law.
That is His physical, actual birth. But then it says something
else, and it is not saying the same thing where unto us a child
is born and unto us a son is given. This speaks of the eternal
sonship of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was given to us as a son.
In fact, He became a son because we were. Look over at Hebrews
chapter 2, just for a moment. Listen to
the language that is used here of the Lord Jesus Christ coming
into this world in verse 14. For as much as the children,
whose children? God's children. He's talking
about the children that God has given Him. the brethren that
he is not ashamed of in this same chapter, for as much then
as the children are partakers of flesh and blood," God's children
are flesh and blood, "...he also likewise partook of the same."
Now, they were children from all eternity. They didn't know
it yet. They didn't know they had been
predestinated to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ Himself.
They had not been born anew in this world. but they were children. So in order for Christ to save
his children, he must become a child. He must become like
them. For as much then as the children
were partakers of flesh and blood, he also likewise partook of the
same, that through death he might destroy him that hath the power
of death, that is the devil, that is the power of the fear
of death. The fear of death is not really the fear of dying,
it's the fear of what comes after death. because that's the way
people talk when they're dying. They're not talking about the
death itself. I've sat beside many a bedside and held many
a hands of those that died and passed from this world to the
next. I've never heard one of them talk about being afraid
to die. What I've heard them talk about is what they wish
they'd done better. Wish they hadn't been interested
in that. They'd been more interested in family. What are they doing?
They're realizing that death doesn't mean much, but on the
other side of death, there's a reckoning. And they realize
that, and that's scary. That's scary. What will remove
that fear of death? The coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ, evidently, because that's what it said, to remove that.
What will remove the fear of that reckoning, if in Christ
that reckoning has already been settled? If in Christ that judgment
has already been made? We don't fear the judgment, for
as He is, so are we in the world. It says in I John chapter 4 and
verse 74, Unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given. And then He's described, this
one who is Immanuel, God with us, bears all the qualities and
attributes and characteristics of God. THE CHILD BORN, THE SON
GIVEN, THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER. What does
that mean? THE RULE OF THIS WORLD IS HIS. HE RULES IT WITH ABSOLUTE SWAY
OVER EVERYTHING THAT RIDES AND WRIGGLES AND WALKS AND TALKS
UPON THE FACE OF THIS EARTH. HE RULES WITH ABSOLUTE SWAY.
NOTHING HAPPENS THAT IS APART FROM HIS WILL AND HIS PURPOSE. We may not understand it. No,
we don't understand it. We can never understand it. It's
too big for our understanding. His thoughts are not our thoughts,
neither are His ways our ways. As far as the heaven is above
the earth, how high His thoughts are above our thoughts. We can
never understand it, but we know this. We know He's in charge. We know He's running the show.
We know this. Why? Because this is the promise
of this child born, this son given, the Lord Jesus Christ,
the government shall be upon his shoulder. First we learn
that Jesus Christ is God, Emmanuel. Then we learn his attributes.
His name shall be called Wonderful. That means secret. only discerned
by God-given faith. Remember Samson's mom and dad? Before Samson was born, they
saw this angel arise out of the fire, and they said, What's your
name? He said, My name is Wonderful.
My name is Wonderful. Counselor. You want counsel? Don't go to a psychiatrist. Go to Jesus Christ. He's the
counselor. I'll tell you what, I know this
about Him, and I know this about His Word. he will never lead
you in the wrong direction. Wouldn't that be nice to know?
If you needed to counsel with someone, that you'll never be
led in the wrong direction. And listen to how he's described,
the mighty God, Jesus Christ. This child born, this son given,
this one born of a woman born under the law, this one called
Emmanuel that is conceived of a virgin, He's called the Mighty
God, the Almighty Jesus Christ is God. That's usually the question
I ask these folks when they come to the door and knock and want
to talk about Jesus. I ask them that question. You
should, too. It really will settle the argument. They'll leave pretty
quick and just say, Is Jesus Christ God? Now, they'll say, Well, He's
one with God. Now, that's not what I said.
They'll say, He's the Son of God. That's not what I asked.
Is He God? Because all cults don't believe
that He is any more than they can be a God. But the truth is, He is the MIGHTY
God. In John chapter 1 it said He
is the Creator of all things. Nothing was made that He did
not make as the Word of God that was God, the Mighty God. Not only that, He is the Son
given, the Child born, who is the Father. That is what it says,
the Everlasting Father. What a thing, this Trinity, this
triune Godhead. What a mystery it is. I see people
online fighting about, do you believe in the Trinity? Well,
the Bible says, here it is, he's a son and he's a father. Isaiah
42 says he has the Spirit of God. Wonderful counsel of the
mighty God, the everlasting Father, Jesus Christ. said to, I think
it was Thomas, I'm not sure, but I think it was Thomas in
John 14, he said, have you seen me? You've seen the Father. You've seen the Father. The Son
is the Father, the Father is the Son. What a wondrous thing. The mighty God, the everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. That means the King of Peace,
the one who gives peace. How was peace made? peace has
already been made for the elect of God. All of them have already
been reconciled to God by the blood of His cross. He made peace
with God through the blood of His cross. God didn't need to
be reconciled to us. He didn't do anything wrong.
We need to be reconciled to Him because we're the ones that fouled
up. We're the ones that sinned against God, but He's the Prince
of Peace. What did He say to you? Not that the world gives. My
peace I give you. What is that? It's peace of the
knowledge that God is not angry with you. That God is not waiting
around the corner to thump you on the head. God is not going
to do something to you other than love you and do what's good
for you for the rest of your existence throughout eternity. The Prince of Peace. That is
peace of mind. the peace of mind that passeth
knowledge and understanding. Because so much of this world
we don't understand. We view things, we view God by
our circumstance often when it should be the other way around.
We all view circumstances by God. But we do. We look at things
happening. We get troubled. We're downtrodden. We're beaten up. Where do we
find peace in this world? What is this peace? Everything
that happens in this world for the child of God is for his
good and for God's glory. Point at anything. Pick up any instance that's happening
right now in this world that seems crazy as hell. Get out.
That's for your good and for your glory. That'll be the pillar
that you can lay your weary head down on at night. The peace. He's the prince of peace. the
prince of peace, and of the increase of his government and peace,
there shall be no end. There shall be no end. Upon the
throne of David and upon the kingdom to order it and to establish
it with judgment and justice. That is exactly how this kingdom
was established. The judgment and justice were
suffered by him for his people. from henceforth forever, the
zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform these." The zeal of the
Lord of Hosts will perform these. His name is Emmanuel. He's God.
He's a child who was born into this world, and a son who was
given from all eternity, and He rules the world. He rules
the world. His name is secret and wonderful. He is the counselor. He is the
mighty God. He is the everlasting Father. He is the Prince of Peace. That's
who this is. A lot of people are going to
come to church this Wednesday night or maybe this Sunday morning
and have Christmas dinner. I read an article, I think it
was by Moose Parks, called Christian for a Day. Once or twice a year
people come to church and they're a Christian for that day. That
day is momentous. When it happened, I don't know,
probably sometime in October The sheep were, the men were
out in the fields right before March, and that's toward the
middle of October, which is the rainy season. But they celebrated
on the winter solstice of December 21st to the 25th, 12 days of
Christmas. I read yesterday that today the
day will be three and a half to four seconds longer than it
was yesterday. So make good use of your time.
And that's what this article said. I thought that was funny. this one this one is god I remember my
brother-in-law Tom used to work at a magazine an internet magazine
up in New York City and he knew a whole lot of people worked
right next to the Twin Towers before they went down and he
was at dinner with himself, and a Jew, and a Muslim, and a Baptist,
I think. It sounds like a joke, doesn't
it? But he was at dinner with them, and they were all talking. The Muslim said of Jesus Christ,
he said he was a great prophet. And the Jew said the same thing,
he was a prophet of God. And the Baptist said he was the
son of God. My brother told Tom, he says, if he's not God, none of us have a hope in this
world because it was God, Emmanuel, who came into the world
as a child, as the Son of God, who is the mighty God, the everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace, and rules all things. Turn to
Matthew 1.21. Matthew chapter 1 and verse 21,
when our Lord was conceived of the Holy Ghost, as it said in
Luke chapter 1, it says the angels didn't know quite what to call
the Lord Jesus Christ. They knew that He was conceived
of the Holy Ghost, and they didn't know what that meant, so they
called Jesus Christ that holy thing, whatever it is inside
of you is the Son of God. He's the son of God. This is
another name he was given. This is a name by which we know
him. We know his titles as the Christ, that is the anointed,
the one chosen for the job, for the task of saving his people
from their sins. That's his name. He's the Christ.
And that's why people are called Christians because they said
he's the one. He's the anointed one. he's the lord we know that he
was lord as god almighty the mighty god he was lord over all
from all eternity but this lordship that applies to us other than
his rule is the Adonai lordship which he actually earned because
he was a child born and a son given He earned this right by
living on this earth as a perfect human being without sin, ever
doing what was good for someone else and never considering himself. He thought not of himself. He
thought always of the good of his people. He lived without
sin, without guile, never had a bad thought, an evil thought
in his mind. He lived perfectly in this world. Because of that, when he went
to the cross as the perfect sacrifice before God and offered himself
to God, died the death that was required of his people for sin,
God accepted that sacrifice and made him Lord. Well, he's already
Lord, but wait a minute. He made him Lord as a human being.
THERE IS A MAN IN GLORY SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER
WHO IS LORD, BECAUSE HE DIED AND ROSE AND RESURRECTED THAT
HE MIGHT BE THE LORD OF THE LIVING AND THE DEAD. We know him by his titles, but
this is his name, and why in the world would you call him
that? This one who is Immanuel, God with us, the child born,
the son given, the one who rules the government, whose name is
wonderful, counsel of the mighty God, the everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace. Why call him Jesus? Why call
him Joshua? Why call him Yeshua? Why call
him that? Because that name means he's
gonna do something. that name means he's going to
do something see Joshua was the one who delivered one of the
two who ended up taking Israel into the promised land Joshua
and Caleb was with him Caleb his faithful dog was with him
Joshua delivered Joshua fit the battle of Jericho Joshua did
that he delivered his people into Israel Moses didn't Moses
was the law and the law can't deliver anybody into the promised
land. But Joshua did. Why? That name means Savior. Savior. Now that's a title, granted,
and it means that actually somebody is saved, or he ain't no Savior. Christ is not the Savior of unsaved
men. That's an oxymoron. That doesn't
make sense at all. He's the Savior of those whom
He saved. thou shalt call his name Jesus for he shall this is going to
happen he shall save his people from their sins that's his name
Emmanuel wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Heavenly Father,
Prince of Peace, Jesus, Savior. Twenty centuries ago, this was
the message that the angels gave when the glory of God filled
the heavens. these shepherds watching the
sheep by night were confronted with this bright light and these
heavenly voices and a choir from heaven singing glory to God in
the highest and on earth peace and goodwill toward men. Why?
For unto you this day is born in the city of David a Savior
which is Christ the Lord. Father, bless us through our
understanding, we pray in Christ's name, amen.