Isaiah 9:1-7
Are people still walking in darkness today? I am sure you know that the church says yes to that one. We are talking about the ones who live in the spiritual darkness and bondage to sin without being aware of the freedom they could have in Christ’s grace, mercy and forgiveness. They do not seem to realize that there is more to life than this life on earth. So many are totally blind to the possibility of an eternal life that is lived forever with the consequences of the choices that are made in this one. If they do hope for eternal life, they most often pursue a kind of pie in the sky image of the all forgiving God who does not require sincere faith in Jesus, or discipleship in his way, or any repentance for sin.
Not only that but in their darkened hearts they often do not know how to live according to the wisdom that brings true joy and peace with deep and loving relationships in this world. The evidence for this is the epidemic of fatherless children, divorce, abuse and all kinds of socially destructive sins from substance abuse to thievery, embezzlement and even murder. One sin leads to another. People lie, cheat and steal to pursue a little worldly pleasure. Even many people who call themselves Christians live this way. They have forgotten God, or never really knew him. They are the people living in deep darkness. But what if they could see the light?
Our text today says that the people walking in darkness will see the light when the dawn breaks. A light has dawned. Originally, the prophecy referred to the fact that Jesus the light of the world hails from Galilee. In the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, God honored Galilee, of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, by having Jesus dwell there and conduct a large part of his ministry there.
But Jesus also told his disciples, now we are the light of the world. So in fact wherever we live today the light should dawn. People living in darkness should see something when they see us. They can’t turn on the light to see the error of their ways. They can only notice the light as it dawns on them that the way we live is a better way. This requires a couple of circumstances to be true. They must see the way we live, and the way we live must be a significant improvement over the way they live. Otherwise they will see no difference and they will not think we are very bright for believing in a god who has no power to change lives.
But our God has the power we need! We don’t often pay much attention to this section of Isaiah 9 because we are uncomfortable with warlike words such as these: “You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For 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. Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.”
But when you really read them, you hear of a God who ends all wars. Our God brings peace and joy through the power of his love. He shatters the yoke that burdens, the bar across our shoulders, the rod of the oppressor. And these symbols of war, the warrior’s boot and uniform are burned, fuel for the fire. When I read that thoughtfully I realized something unique in that perspective. I honor our own military heroes and give thanks for their brave service, but it occurred to me that many of our veterans still own the uniforms they wore with pride in their military service. I understand the reasons for that and I respect it. Keeping the uniforms is also symbolic of the idea that the world is not yet established in perfect peace. Those uniforms might be needed again, unless the Lord comes quickly.
What we have pictured here in God’s word is a celebration of ultimate peace! What would it feel like for all our veterans to know that their work was really finished, and finished in such a way that no one would ever need a military uniform ever again because everyone knows that there will be no more wars? It could be a very meaningful ceremony if a day came when all soldiers of all nations declared their thanks for peace by burning all the uniforms. That’s what is pictured here in God’s word. And we have God’s assurance that such a day will come. I can picture a grand celebration all over the world in which soldiers from many nations give thanks for God’s permanent establishment of peace by bringing their carefully preserved uniforms to be burned up as a thank offering. Maybe that’s the real reason they are kept for now.
Our text goes on to explain why this will happen: 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. Of the greatness 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.
Some warrior types might have expected, or even perhaps even preferred the text to say that the reason lasting peace will come is because to us an ultimate weapon is fashioned, to us a bomb is given, one that will literally frighten everyone else into laying down their arms. And all who refuse to submit will be wiped out plain and simple, with no collateral damage, no innocent lives lost. But that is not the way God prefers to defeat his enemies.
Our Lord’s ultimate weapon is love. God loves his enemies, until they become his friends. Love conquers all! A child born of love, born to show that God so loves the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him shall not die, but will receive eternal life. God’s ultimate weapon that brings peace does so by bringing life to those who were dead in their sins, not by bringing death to those who try to live apart from Him. Those apart from him are already dead. What they need is life! Jesus us is the life, just as much as he is the way and the truth. God conquered death through a birth!
Jesus is the child who grew up to bear the weight of the world upon his shoulders. He is the wonderful counselor because his words of wisdom and grace bring life and joy and peace to those who believe and live by them. He is called the Mighty God because that is what he is! He is called Everlasting Father because he is the image of the eternal God. He is called the Prince of Peace because his ministry is the ministry of reconciliation that gives us all peace with God. Also notice the names speak of the trinity. The Holy Spirit is the Wonderful Counselor according to John 16:7. The Everlasting Father is of course obviously God, the Father Almighty. Mighty God names them all! Prince of Peace is most fitting for Jesus himself.
This God/man, Jesus, cannot die. That makes him an invincible warrior! But he bears a cross instead of a sword. He went to his own death instead of sending his enemies to theirs. In this way he undoes all the effects of the destructive forces of sin in the world, by taking them all on and reversing them through the power of his conquering love, the direct opposite of evil powers efforts to conquer by force. You really can’t fight fire with fire. But the living water dowses the fires of hell for those who believe this gospel.
Then God states the promise in terms of the everlasting results of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. “Of the greatness 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.” What is the zeal of the Lord Almighty? Zeal, enthusiasm, passion, eagerness, determination. This all means that God really cares about his creation and insists on his right to undo the devil’s evil scheme and Adam’s sin. He also insists that it will all be dome in his righteous and holy way.
Picture God as an artist, drawing all of creation on a great canvas. Then the devil comes and scribbles all over it. God has to respond. He could have left it a mess. But that would have been to admit defeat. He could have started over on a new canvas. But that would also have been to admit defeat. So God triumphs by taking the mess that satan made and working in and through to recreate, restore and redeem his original creation and God wins! And it is as if God says, “No matter what you try satan, I don’t have to give up or start over. I will end up with the beautiful creation I always wanted.”
Now think of how that applies to each and every one of us as individuals. No matter how messed up my life is, God wants to redeem, restore and recreate me so that God ends up with me ending up as the beautiful creation he always intended. But in the case of people. He doesn’t just do it. He offers the possibility with the demonstration of his amazing grace as seen in Christ in the cross and risen from the dead, and we get to choose whether we will allow that gospel to have its full power at work in our lives.
So now, what happens when people see the light? What happens when the power of the gospel dawns on us and we begin to see creation and relationships the way God sees us relating to each other in his ideal world that is yet to come and will definitely be real one day? Let’s restate the case. In our darkened hearts we do not know how to live according to the light of the wisdom that brings true joy and peace with deep and loving relationships in this world. The evidence for this is the epidemic of fatherless children, divorce, abuse and all kinds of socially destructive sins from substance abuse to thievery, embezzlement and even murder. One sin leads to another. People lie, cheat and steal to pursue a little worldly pleasure. Even many people who call themselves Christians live this way. They have forgotten God, or never really knew him. They are the people living in deep darkness. But what if they could see the light?
In that case, the opposite things must begin to happen. Relationships become of primary importance and love works all things out so that we all care for each other and all belong to each other and all serve each other and all forgive each other. The evidence of the love of God in us will be seen in the power to forgive the most hideous grievances. The evidence of the love of God in us will be seen in the humility to ask forgiveness and genuinely stop doing the destructive things that hurt other people.
This church community will become more and more obviously a safe place in which we can share with each other what heart aches and burdens cause us to struggle, even letting others know what sins most tempt us to step out of God’s will. And there will be no condemnation but instead strugglers will find mercy and support in their brothers and sisters. The struggling will be strengthened against temptation by loving concern. The needy will be blessed with provisions. The sorrowful will be comforted by the joy of the Lord. Yes we will all look to God to meet these needs, but we will discover that God loves to meet those needs not by dropping blessings out of the sky but by inspiring the ones who can help to help the ones who need help! He gives us to the gifts we need to bless other with that otherish love I like to talk about.
The place will be so filled with the light of God’s love, brightly shining in our lives and appearing remarkably different from the way the world does things. I long for this to be a reality in our lives. This is what I mean when I pray for God’s kingdom to come. As I was thinking about these things this week it dawned on me that this is a big reason why I am a pastor today. I come from a dark and broken family with a significant lack of fatherly love and no spiritual guidance at all. But in Christ and in the church I began to see the possibilities of what life could really be for those who are in Christ, and frankly I am hungering and thirsting for God to have his way with us because I know how beautiful it can be. I want to see it become more and more of a reality. I want to help it become a reality. As God enables, I want to be fully involved with blessing God’s people so that all of us together enjoy the truest possible sense of belonging and family love.
While we wait for him to come and finish the job of redemption, let the Prince of Peace rule in our hearts now. Let the Wonderful Counselor guide us in how to care for each other in the grace and love of Jesus. Let the Almighty God have his powerful way with us and we will become like bright and shining stars of God’s glory. Let those still living in darkness see a great light bursting forth from our hearts and revival will spread. Let us look for them and welcome them with a supernaturally inspired love that offers forgiveness and new life for everyone. Love conquers all! Amen.
Not only that but in their darkened hearts they often do not know how to live according to the wisdom that brings true joy and peace with deep and loving relationships in this world. The evidence for this is the epidemic of fatherless children, divorce, abuse and all kinds of socially destructive sins from substance abuse to thievery, embezzlement and even murder. One sin leads to another. People lie, cheat and steal to pursue a little worldly pleasure. Even many people who call themselves Christians live this way. They have forgotten God, or never really knew him. They are the people living in deep darkness. But what if they could see the light?
Our text today says that the people walking in darkness will see the light when the dawn breaks. A light has dawned. Originally, the prophecy referred to the fact that Jesus the light of the world hails from Galilee. In the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, God honored Galilee, of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, by having Jesus dwell there and conduct a large part of his ministry there.
But Jesus also told his disciples, now we are the light of the world. So in fact wherever we live today the light should dawn. People living in darkness should see something when they see us. They can’t turn on the light to see the error of their ways. They can only notice the light as it dawns on them that the way we live is a better way. This requires a couple of circumstances to be true. They must see the way we live, and the way we live must be a significant improvement over the way they live. Otherwise they will see no difference and they will not think we are very bright for believing in a god who has no power to change lives.
But our God has the power we need! We don’t often pay much attention to this section of Isaiah 9 because we are uncomfortable with warlike words such as these: “You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For 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. Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.”
But when you really read them, you hear of a God who ends all wars. Our God brings peace and joy through the power of his love. He shatters the yoke that burdens, the bar across our shoulders, the rod of the oppressor. And these symbols of war, the warrior’s boot and uniform are burned, fuel for the fire. When I read that thoughtfully I realized something unique in that perspective. I honor our own military heroes and give thanks for their brave service, but it occurred to me that many of our veterans still own the uniforms they wore with pride in their military service. I understand the reasons for that and I respect it. Keeping the uniforms is also symbolic of the idea that the world is not yet established in perfect peace. Those uniforms might be needed again, unless the Lord comes quickly.
What we have pictured here in God’s word is a celebration of ultimate peace! What would it feel like for all our veterans to know that their work was really finished, and finished in such a way that no one would ever need a military uniform ever again because everyone knows that there will be no more wars? It could be a very meaningful ceremony if a day came when all soldiers of all nations declared their thanks for peace by burning all the uniforms. That’s what is pictured here in God’s word. And we have God’s assurance that such a day will come. I can picture a grand celebration all over the world in which soldiers from many nations give thanks for God’s permanent establishment of peace by bringing their carefully preserved uniforms to be burned up as a thank offering. Maybe that’s the real reason they are kept for now.
Our text goes on to explain why this will happen: 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. Of the greatness 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.
Some warrior types might have expected, or even perhaps even preferred the text to say that the reason lasting peace will come is because to us an ultimate weapon is fashioned, to us a bomb is given, one that will literally frighten everyone else into laying down their arms. And all who refuse to submit will be wiped out plain and simple, with no collateral damage, no innocent lives lost. But that is not the way God prefers to defeat his enemies.
Our Lord’s ultimate weapon is love. God loves his enemies, until they become his friends. Love conquers all! A child born of love, born to show that God so loves the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him shall not die, but will receive eternal life. God’s ultimate weapon that brings peace does so by bringing life to those who were dead in their sins, not by bringing death to those who try to live apart from Him. Those apart from him are already dead. What they need is life! Jesus us is the life, just as much as he is the way and the truth. God conquered death through a birth!
Jesus is the child who grew up to bear the weight of the world upon his shoulders. He is the wonderful counselor because his words of wisdom and grace bring life and joy and peace to those who believe and live by them. He is called the Mighty God because that is what he is! He is called Everlasting Father because he is the image of the eternal God. He is called the Prince of Peace because his ministry is the ministry of reconciliation that gives us all peace with God. Also notice the names speak of the trinity. The Holy Spirit is the Wonderful Counselor according to John 16:7. The Everlasting Father is of course obviously God, the Father Almighty. Mighty God names them all! Prince of Peace is most fitting for Jesus himself.
This God/man, Jesus, cannot die. That makes him an invincible warrior! But he bears a cross instead of a sword. He went to his own death instead of sending his enemies to theirs. In this way he undoes all the effects of the destructive forces of sin in the world, by taking them all on and reversing them through the power of his conquering love, the direct opposite of evil powers efforts to conquer by force. You really can’t fight fire with fire. But the living water dowses the fires of hell for those who believe this gospel.
Then God states the promise in terms of the everlasting results of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. “Of the greatness 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.” What is the zeal of the Lord Almighty? Zeal, enthusiasm, passion, eagerness, determination. This all means that God really cares about his creation and insists on his right to undo the devil’s evil scheme and Adam’s sin. He also insists that it will all be dome in his righteous and holy way.
Picture God as an artist, drawing all of creation on a great canvas. Then the devil comes and scribbles all over it. God has to respond. He could have left it a mess. But that would have been to admit defeat. He could have started over on a new canvas. But that would also have been to admit defeat. So God triumphs by taking the mess that satan made and working in and through to recreate, restore and redeem his original creation and God wins! And it is as if God says, “No matter what you try satan, I don’t have to give up or start over. I will end up with the beautiful creation I always wanted.”
Now think of how that applies to each and every one of us as individuals. No matter how messed up my life is, God wants to redeem, restore and recreate me so that God ends up with me ending up as the beautiful creation he always intended. But in the case of people. He doesn’t just do it. He offers the possibility with the demonstration of his amazing grace as seen in Christ in the cross and risen from the dead, and we get to choose whether we will allow that gospel to have its full power at work in our lives.
So now, what happens when people see the light? What happens when the power of the gospel dawns on us and we begin to see creation and relationships the way God sees us relating to each other in his ideal world that is yet to come and will definitely be real one day? Let’s restate the case. In our darkened hearts we do not know how to live according to the light of the wisdom that brings true joy and peace with deep and loving relationships in this world. The evidence for this is the epidemic of fatherless children, divorce, abuse and all kinds of socially destructive sins from substance abuse to thievery, embezzlement and even murder. One sin leads to another. People lie, cheat and steal to pursue a little worldly pleasure. Even many people who call themselves Christians live this way. They have forgotten God, or never really knew him. They are the people living in deep darkness. But what if they could see the light?
In that case, the opposite things must begin to happen. Relationships become of primary importance and love works all things out so that we all care for each other and all belong to each other and all serve each other and all forgive each other. The evidence of the love of God in us will be seen in the power to forgive the most hideous grievances. The evidence of the love of God in us will be seen in the humility to ask forgiveness and genuinely stop doing the destructive things that hurt other people.
This church community will become more and more obviously a safe place in which we can share with each other what heart aches and burdens cause us to struggle, even letting others know what sins most tempt us to step out of God’s will. And there will be no condemnation but instead strugglers will find mercy and support in their brothers and sisters. The struggling will be strengthened against temptation by loving concern. The needy will be blessed with provisions. The sorrowful will be comforted by the joy of the Lord. Yes we will all look to God to meet these needs, but we will discover that God loves to meet those needs not by dropping blessings out of the sky but by inspiring the ones who can help to help the ones who need help! He gives us to the gifts we need to bless other with that otherish love I like to talk about.
The place will be so filled with the light of God’s love, brightly shining in our lives and appearing remarkably different from the way the world does things. I long for this to be a reality in our lives. This is what I mean when I pray for God’s kingdom to come. As I was thinking about these things this week it dawned on me that this is a big reason why I am a pastor today. I come from a dark and broken family with a significant lack of fatherly love and no spiritual guidance at all. But in Christ and in the church I began to see the possibilities of what life could really be for those who are in Christ, and frankly I am hungering and thirsting for God to have his way with us because I know how beautiful it can be. I want to see it become more and more of a reality. I want to help it become a reality. As God enables, I want to be fully involved with blessing God’s people so that all of us together enjoy the truest possible sense of belonging and family love.
While we wait for him to come and finish the job of redemption, let the Prince of Peace rule in our hearts now. Let the Wonderful Counselor guide us in how to care for each other in the grace and love of Jesus. Let the Almighty God have his powerful way with us and we will become like bright and shining stars of God’s glory. Let those still living in darkness see a great light bursting forth from our hearts and revival will spread. Let us look for them and welcome them with a supernaturally inspired love that offers forgiveness and new life for everyone. Love conquers all! Amen.
Light for the Nations
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