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December 25, 2004
Christmas Day
Isaiah 9:2-7
Pastor Joel Zank

Unto Us a Son is Born!

(Isaiah 9:2-7) The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. 4For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. 5Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

A blessed Christmas to you all in the name of Jesus our Prince of Peace!

Babies have such a sense of wonder about them; wouldn't you agree? They take in all the sights and sounds of life, but have no idea what to make of them. How mysterious our world must appear to them! But at the same time, there's something mysterious about babies too. Who of us hasn't held a little child in his or her arms, only to wonder what she will be like some day, or what he will do with his life? Of course, there's no way of knowing such things. Only time will tell, unless the baby in question would happen to be Mary's son, Jesus.

Now certainly a great mystery surrounded his virgin birth, but that mystery did not involve his purpose on earth or his reason for coming here. Already at the time he was born, all this had been known for centuries - seven centuries to be exact. For God permitted the Prophet Isaiah to step out of time in order to see and record, not just the birth, but the life, death and resurrection of our dear Jesus. In fact, so detailed and so perfect is Isaiah's prophecy, that though it came seven hundred years before our Lord's birth, we still study it today, so that it may provide us with a deeper understanding of, and a greater faith in God's saving love. With this in mind, let's give our attention to the Prophet Isaiah who, on this Christmas morning, is so thrilled to announce: Unto Us a Son is Born! As Isaiah will show us, 1) he is born to rule; 2) he is equipped to rule; 3) and he will succeed in his rule.

Isaiah writes: "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders" (Isaiah 9:6a). We might say of someone, "It looks as if he's carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders." To all appearances, I suppose that Baby Jesus looked like any other baby. But from the moment of his birth and even before it, he was truly carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. After all, he had been sent from heaven to earth in order to govern and rule a people who wanted nothing to do with God. In the opening verse of our text, Isaiah describes these rebels as "the people walking in darkness...those living in the land of the shadow of death...." Sound like anyone you know? Take a peek in the mirror. Isaiah is talking about you and me and the sinful condition in which we were born. By nature we are at war with God and with one another. By nature we live in a state of anarchy, doing whatever sinful thing we want to do.

This isn't the life God designed for us. Before Jesus, God had given us his perfect law to rule us. But because of our sin, the commandments were made powerless. They can shout at us all day long: "Don't sin!" They can threaten us with punishment in hell. But not all their shouts and all their threats can get rid off our sin. We just keep right on cursing, and hating, and lusting and stealing and sinning in every way. So all that is left is for the law to condemn us, and that, the law can and must do. Sin and sinners must be punished! This is the frightening truth that makes Christmas such an amazing act of God's grace. For unto us sinners, a Son is born, born to overthrow our sin and rule our hearts in its place. Isaiah knew it, and thanks to his prophecy, so do we - Jesus was born to rule.

But how could a little baby, or for that matter, even a grown man conquer sin and rule rebels? Isaiah explains: Unto us a Son is born who is equipped to rule.

This morning there are, I'm sure, some disappointed children out there who can't play with the toys they got for Christmas because someone failed to read the little note: "batteries not included." It gets worse. All day long parents will discover the true meaning of the words, "some assembly required;" and after hours of frustration, a few of you will have to deal with the huge heartache caused by a tiny, yet critical, missing part. Christmas gifts seldom come in working order. But the first and best Christmas gift did. From the very start he came as the "Wonderful Counselor."

A counselor is someone who has the ability to size up a problem and then come up with a solution for it. They say that great leaders are people who surround themselves with good advisors, good counselors. But the Baby of Bethlehem needs no advisors. He came to our world as a Wonderful Counselor in his own right, fully equipped with the most wonderful plan to solve our biggest problem -a plan to ransom us from the sin that had captured our hearts.

But could he carry out his plan? Oh yes, because this Baby is also "Mighty God." It says in the psalms: "No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him-8 the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough" (Psalms 49:7?8). The Savior's plan to ransom sinners was brilliant. He planned to become our substitute. He came to our world to live a life free from sin in our place, and then offer that life as our sin-payment on the cross. But as great as it was, that plan would have failed had Jesus been only human. A mere human would have been ruined by the same sin that plagues us. Not Jesus - he is Mighty God. As such he was born a sin-free human and able to stay that way. What is more, he could take his perfect life as well as his innocent death and make them count as ours, for as Jesus himself said: "What is impossible with men is possible with God" (Luke 18:27).

And as long as we've mentioned the impossible, the Bible also says in the book of Acts, that after Jesus died to pay for our sins, "God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him" (Acts 2:24). We know so well the words of Romans 6:23: "The wages of sin is death." Since Jesus paid those wages in full on our behalf, death had no right to hold him. So as the God-man, Jesus brushed off death as easily as we wipe sleep from our eyes. Jesus lives! This is why Isaiah can also refer to Jesus as "Everlasting Father."

Isaiah is not suggesting that Jesus is the first person of the Trinity, the person we call "Father." Rather he is describing the Savior's compassion for sinners. He loves us like a father love his children. And since he is risen from the dead, never to die again, his compassion is everlasting. It never ends, never wears out, and so he is also the perfect Prince of Peace.

Earthly rulers must rule by force. Without the power to enforce their laws, they lose control. That's not the case with Jesus. Though he is Mighty God, he does not force himself on sinners. Instead he comes to us in undeserved love. He takes control of our hearts, not with brute strength, but with a promise to forgive us. He comes with a declaration of peace between God and sinners, a treaty signed in his own blood, the same precious blood that once secured and now maintains the peace. It is that holy blood, so human and yet so divine, that equips Jesus with everything he needs to rule the hearts of sinners.

But will his rule be successful? Can the Baby born so long ago still make a difference in the world of today and tomorrow? There's no doubt about it. Isaiah tells us: Unto us a Son is born, a Son who will succeed in his rule!

So many of the presents that we will get and give this day will be junk by Christmastime next year. But God's gift of a Son is timeless. We sinners may forget that, or sometimes even doubt it. But our sinful lapses of memory and faith only hurt us. They do not change the fact that Jesus' kingdom is thriving. Our problem is that we often can't see the forest through all of the trees. So today the Prophet Isaiah gives us a new perspective. He lets us look at our place in Christ's kingdom from his vantagepoint in time 2700 years ago.

Consider again at the first verse of our text. Remember, we use to live in the land of the shadow of death. We were destined to be miserable in hell forever. But Jesus, the Light of the world has changed all that. His saving light has shone in our hearts, and by the faith he's worked there, he's made us a part of his people. We are now saints in his holy nation; for all of which Isaiah sings God's praise: "You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. 4For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. 5Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire" (Isaiah 9:3-5).

People rejoice at the harvest and when dividing the spoils of war because it means that the hard work is all finished. So it with us, dear friends. The hard work was finished on Good Friday by our substitute, Jesus. Just as the Lord fought for his people Israel against the Midianites and their other enemies, so he has fought for us. The yoke of sin's guilt that once burdened our conscience has been shattered. Jesus carried our guilt into hell with him and left it there. So you, dear friends, are forgiven. You are at peace with God and with each other through Jesus. Our fighting days are over. As Isaiah says, we can burn our army boots and bloody uniforms. Our war with the oppressor, Satan, has been won. Jesus has gotten us the victory!

This good news is meant for every one of us, but not just for us. It is meant for all people. So as we spread the news of Christ's victory, more hearts will be won for and ruled by his peace. His successes will keep rolling in! Isaiah says: "Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever" (Isaiah 9:7). Great David's greater Son, Jesus will never let us down. No matter how large his kingdom grows, no matter how long this world goes on, no matter how terrible our sins may be, the blood that Jesus shed to serve God's justice will never fail to earn us God's pardon. The same is true of Christ's righteousness. The holiness he produced during his 33 years on earth will always be more than enough to keep you and me and all sinners right with God forever. Could there be a better Christmas gift?

Our Carrie was working with the three-year-olds in Sunday school the other day. She asked what they wanted for Christmas. One little boy said, "I want everything because I've never had everything before." Well, now he does and so do we. For unto Us a Son is Born - a Son through whom we have peace with God, peace that will rule our hearts and keep us safe all the way to heaven. You can count on it, dear friends, for as the prophet says, "The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this" for Jesus' sake. Amen.