Hope Of The Coming King
Isaiah 7
I just love Christmas. I pray that you all had a great thanksgiving. We have much to be thankful for. Would you categorize the year 2020 as hard or easy? As years go, I would say that 2020 has been one of the more challenging ones, but even in the hard year, we can know that God is still with us, and we have much to be thankful for.
Today we are beginning a message series on advent.
The word advent is based on the Latin word Adventus, which is a translation from the Greek word Parousia.
Parousia which occurs twenty-four times in the NT, is a compound form composed of the preposition παρά, G4123, “alongside, beside” and the substantival form of the verb εἰμί, G1639, “to be.” It basically means “being alongside of” and conveys the sense of the English word “presence.”
I am thankful for God’s presence, especially in the hard times, I am thankful that we don’t walk alone, but He walks alongside of us. Truly thankful.
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The title of our series is Make Room.
We will go through four messages on the prophecies of Christ in Isaiah, as they are related to advent (the coming), and we’ll see how Isaiah was sent to prepare the Lord’s people to receive the King.
Today’s message is on Hope, next week is a message on Love, followed by the Joy that we receive in Him, and the Peace that He brings, and finally on Christmas Eve, we’ll celebrate the King.
Have you made room for Him…not in your house, but in your hearts. In your day.
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The prophecies of Christ in Isaiah
Isaiah came with the message of hope, born out of love, that would eventually bring true joy and peace.
Isaiah would announce the Messiah’s coming some 700+ years before His arrival.
The prophet Isaiah came to the people of Judah at a time when there was great opposition to the Lord and His people…not unlike today.
Isaiah communicated to the Lord’s people because of their great need for Him not unlike today.
The difference between Isaiah’s proclamation of the coming of Christ and our celebration of Advent, is that we know Christ has come.
He has completed all that was required of Him by the Father. Now His message of hope, love, joy, and peace is communicated by the Holy Spirit.
Today, we still need to “Make Room.” Because the King is coming again.
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Why did the Lord send Isaiah?
When we think of the book of Isaiah, the first thing that comes to our minds is in Isaiah 6 when Isaiah had a vision of the Lord and he was called.
The King of Judah, which is the southern Kingdom, in that day was King Uzziah.
Chapter 6 starts out by saying “in the year that King Uzziah died”.
Where Isaiah says
“I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.”
He also saw angels called a Seraphim, who cried Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory.
We might think that, and there probably were some who at the announcement of the prophet were rejoicing in their hearts. But the truth is that this vision comes after a series of woes, or grievances that have been listed. These are woes issued by the Prophet to the LORD’s people.
The truth is, that even though Judah is the southern kingdom of the LORD’s people, they were wicked, and had turned against Him.
Chapter 1 verse 2-4 says
Hear O heavens, and give ear, o earth; for the LORD has spoken: “Children have I reared and brought up, but they have rebelled against me. The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s crib, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.”
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How is that a message of Hope?
If anything, it is a message of despair…the opposite of hope.
So now with that bleak history in mind, turn with me to Chapter 7 verse 10-17.
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”
Verse 10 says
Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz:
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Who is Ahaz?
He was the son of King Uzziah, and when King Uzziah died, Ahaz became the King of Judah. So the prophet was sent to Ahaz.
Look what the Lord tells him through the prophet in verse 11.
“Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.”
Do you remember someone else in Scripture that asked for a sign?
In the book of Judges, the superior force of the Midianite army were closing in on the Lord’s people, and Gideon was called to lead the defense.
In Judges 6 verses 12-18:
12 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” 17 And he said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me.18 Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”
What a demonstration of the LORD’s patience and grace.
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Here in our text for today, the prophet was not asked by Ahaz for a sign, the prophet was led of the Lord to tell Ahaz to ask for a sign.
Ahaz responded with unbelief in the Lord and belief in his own strength, and ability to execute his own plan.
The Assyrians, were a formidable foe. The Northern Kingdom would fall to the Assyrians in 722 BC, and the ten northern tribes would be assimilated in to the Assyrian people and throughout their conquered regions, lost forever. The Southern Kingdom would prevail, not with the help of the King, but by the Lord’s hand. The Southern Kingdom would eventually fall to the Babylonians, and be sent into exile in 598 BC.
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The prophet says in verse 13 after Ahaz’s rejection:
And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also?
The difference between the Prophet and the King was relationship.
You remember the two relationships that we talked about in our previous series, the vertical relationship with the Lord and how that relationship affects and prompts all of our Horizontal relationships.
So you are saying…wait, isn’t this supposed to be a message of hope? How can I find hope in this?
That is the great part!!! Just like when God waited on Gideon to prepare, and He patiently waited as He sent a Prophet to Judah, In the midst of the waiting, He is promising an undeniable Hope that is secured by Himself!
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As we have navigated a challenging year, with the Pandemic affecting so many aspects of our lives.
Economic decline…
Loved ones sick…
Travel prohibited…
Social distancing required…
Isolation…
Here is the HOPE!
As we enter Christmas season, as we see the decorations come up, as we hear the music change, as we smell the different scents around the house, as we feel the cooler air, let us remember the LORD’s Faithfulness! His provision of a hope…that is found in Christ.
That is exactly what the prophet says to Ahaz,
after refusing the words of the prophet in his heart, Ahaz hears these words:
The Lord God said
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted.
The Lord’s Patient but firm response.
This is the promise of a savior.
The Lord HIMSELF gives a sign.
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Think about all the Promises of God that are realized through the coming Messiah.
Geneses 3:14,15:
14 The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring[a] and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
Psalm 72:10-11
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands
render him tribute;
may the kings of Sheba and Seba
bring gifts!
11 May all kings fall down before him,
all nations serve him!
Micah 5:2-5
2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.
5 And he shall be their peace.
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And then here in Isaiah we see many mentions of His promise…
God’s promise of the coming King has been followed through with Christ.
Have you made room for the King?
Is He your hope?
We don’t need today to ask Him for a sign.
Jesus Christ has come, in the flesh.
He walked a perfect sinless life.
Verse 15 of our text today says:
He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good.
He is perfect…can you see that God offers us hope through Him?
No matter what you face, Christ has come…He is our hope.
He has come in the flesh…walked a perfect sinless life, conquered sin and death, and now He is asking you to trust in Him. If you have then you eagerly await with Hope, His return. Why? Because the word says we are His and we will be with Him.
1 Thes 4:13-18 gives me this hope!
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
My Hope is in Christ…
today more than ever.
This world is passing away,
but I will live in Christ,
because of God’s promises and I have hope in Him.
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Discussion Questions:
What did you Hope for as 2020 began? Now with 2020 ending, on what is your hope placed?
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What is a scripture that brings you hope? Can you recite that from memory, and carry it in your heart as you face the challenges of the world?
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Jesus is coming again. God has promised us this…just like He promised His first coming. He has given us hope in Christ, how can you communicate this hope this season?
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